Author: News Room

A Washington, D.C. law went into effect on Thursday that bans most private workplaces from firing or otherwise punishing employees for marijuana use during non-work hours. This comes exactly one year after Mayor Muriel Bowser (D) signed the legislation, which then prompted a 60-day congressional review period during which federal lawmakers opted not to block the measure. The reform is designed to expand on a previous measure lawmakers approved to protect local government employees against workplace discrimination due to their use of medical cannabis by covering workers in private businesses. The law will “prohibit employers from firing, failing to hire, or…

As the marijuana industry closely tracks congressional effort to pass a marijuana banking bill, a coalition of financial institutions has released a report offering best practices and standards for banks that are looking to start servicing cannabis businesses. The report from the Cannabis Financial Industry Group (CFIG), published on Thursday, is meant to serve as a baseline for what banks and credits need to learn and do if they plan to work with state-legal marijuana markets under the umbrella of ongoing federal prohibition. It’s designed to help banks and credit unions in the current policy environment, but CFIG says the…

None of the bipartisan marijuana or psychedelics amendments that bipartisan lawmakers proposed as part of a large-scale defense bill will advance to the floor following a key House committee action. More than a dozen drug policy amendments were offered by members to potentially be attached to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). But Republican leadership in the House Rules Committee declined to make any of them in order for floor votes, despite the testimony of certain sponsors who implored the panel to accept them. The committee released a second rule and list of cleared amendments for NDAA early Thursday morning.…

Michigan officials have approved changes to the state’s employment policy, making it so applicants for most government jobs will no longer be subject to pre-employment drug testing for marijuana. The Michigan Civil Service Commission unanimously approved the amendment, which also gives people who’ve already been penalized over positive THC tests an opportunity to have the sanction retroactively rescinded, during a meeting on Wednesday. Commission Chair Jase Bolger said that the intention is to treat cannabis like alcohol under the code, pointing out that a person who “overindulges in alcohol” or uses marijuana on a Friday night are “likely not under…

Meta—the parent company of Facebook, Instagram and the new social network Threads—has updated its cannabis advertising policy to permit the promotion of non-ingestible CBD products, with limitations, and also loosen restrictions on hemp ads. The social media conglomerate said in a notice on Tuesday that CBD products containing up to 0.3 percent THC, which meets the federal definition of legal hemp, can be advertised if they meet certain conditions. Businesses can promote the sale of CBD if they receive written approval from Meta and if the products are certified with the payment compliance company Legitscript and comply with local laws.…

“We see this as a resource not only to reduce harm, but to also bring in resources to help our people recover.” Buy Max Nesterak, Minnesota Reformer The Red Lake Nation’s tribal council voted on Tuesday to legalize recreational marijuana and begin selling it—to both tribal and non-tribal members—on August 1. The move could make Red Lake Nation the first entity to operate a recreational dispensary in the state, and gives the tribe a significant head start in the green rush to claim a piece of the projected $1.5 billion market. While possessing recreational marijuana will become legal across Minnesota on…

The historical Boston Tea Party motto of “no taxation without representation” took on a new meaning on Wednesday when a major marijuana company marked the 250th anniversary of the act of civil disobedience by protesting federal code that prohibits the cannabis industry from making key tax deductions like other traditional businesses. Dressed in colonial garb, executives and employees of the multi-state cannabis operator MariMed took to the Boston Harbor to raise attention to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) code known as 280E. The stunt was a play on the December 1773 protest by early Bostonians over England’s monarchy raising the…

The Berkeley, California City Council has approved a resolution to deprioritize the enforcement of laws prohibiting psychedelics. Members voted to adopt the measure on Tuesday evening as part of a consent calendar—just hours after a bill to legalize the possession and facilitated use of certain psychedelics like psilocybin and ayahuasca advanced through a state Assembly committee. The local resolution, sponsored by Councilmember Sophie Hahn, was previously approved by the Council’s Health, Life Enrichment, Equity & Community Committee. “Berkeley has long been a leader on progressive legislation when it comes to criminal justice and cannabis reform in particular,” Hahn said ahead…

A former acting White House drug czar says the U.S. has a lot to learn from Portugal’s move to decriminalize drugs and treat addiction as as a health issue through a harm reduction approach. Regina LaBelle, who held top positions in the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) under the Obama and Biden administrations, wrote an op-ed that was published in The Hill on Wednesday, touting the success of Portugal’s move to decriminalize drugs and arguing that the U.S. should take a lesson from the country. “Portugal took a pioneering approach to its drug crisis and implemented a comprehensive…

A bill to legalize medical marijuana in North Carolina is likely dead for the session, the top Republican House lawmaker says. House Speaker Tim Moore (R) said on Tuesday he will not break an internal rule that requires bills to have support from the majority of the Republican caucus in order to bring them to the floor. And while some GOP members back the cannabis bill, it doesn’t appear it will get that required majority this round. Doing so “would require a number of House members who’ve taken a position of ‘no’ to literally switch their position to want to…