Author: News Room

While some public health experts have expressed concerns that the legalization of marijuana could fuel a rise in the use of tobacco products, a new study instead concludes that state-level cannabis reforms are mostly associated with “small, occasionally significant longer-run declines in adult tobacco use.” Researchers did find “consistent evidence” that the adoption of state recreational marijuana laws (RMLs) led to a slight uptick in cannabis use among adults—of between about two and four percentage points, depending on the data source—but tobacco didn’t follow that trend. If the apparent substitution effect from cigarettes to marijuana that’s being driven by legalization…

The governor of Arizona has signed into law budget legislation that includes provisions to fund research into the medical potential of psilocybin mushrooms for a variety of conditions. Gov. Katie Hobbs (D) gave final approval to the appropriations package on Thursday, just hours after it cleared the legislature. Lawmakers introduced a standalone psilocybin bill, which unanimously passed one House committee in February, but they reached an agreement to have its provisions attached to the budget deal instead, albeit at a lower funding level than originally proposed. The proposal is being enacted through two complementary bills that the governor signed: one…

With the hemp industry in a deep trough, the U.S. Farm Bill now before Congress is an opportunity for a desperately needed reset. But if a recent Farm Bill position paper “Endorsed by Industry Leaders” is any indication, they won’t be the ones to lead us out of the ditch. A nearly $1 trillion spending package, the Farm Bill authorizes agriculture and food policies ranging from crop subsidies to nutrition assistance programs. With a politically divided Congress, this year’s bill represents one of only a handful of measures nearly guaranteed of passage. It’s a once-in-five-year chance to advance hemp industry…

Over the course of the session, the Legislature also put the kibosh on a handful of bills that would have had enormous consequences for the industry. By Max Savage Levenson, Montana Free Press In the waning days of the 2023 Legislature, lawmakers passed a handful of bills that—if signed into law by Gov. Greg Gianforte (R)—will have large impacts on the adult-use recreational cannabis industry in the state. Some new policies—like an extended moratorium to prohibit new businesses until 2025, and new leniency with THC testing for edibles—could help bolster the industry. But others, like an enormous hike on license…

By Marsha Turner Brown The cruiser was backed into a space beside the Kentucky Fried Chicken. Blissfully unaware, I sped by him at 20 miles above the limit. He pulled behind me at the first caution light; I was driving through the second signal when he put on his siren. Pulling to the curb I readied for the drill: name, number, state of sobriety and registration. In the moment it took to review my license, the trooper smelled a rat, or as I would shortly discover, a “leafy vegetabletype contraband.” When I unlocked the glove box to retrieve the registration…

Few names loom as large over exotic American cannabis as Anna Willey. In a legal industry where jokes about quality have become the norm, not many companies have been able to float on top of that noise based on the quality of the product. Hers, California Artisanal Medicine or CAM, is like a battleship ripping through the waves of the decimated California industry. While many struggle to sell middle-tier products as elite, Willey can barely feed the monster. She’s on the cusp of opening her 2,000-plus-light cathedral of hype in Sacramento, on top of a new facility she just opened…

A perspective from Boston University law professor Jay Wexler—a former law clerk for Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg at the United States Supreme Court, and the author of the new Weed Rules: Blazing the Way to a Just and Joyful Marijuana Policy.It’s a Tuesday night in Boston. I’ve finished my work for the day, so as on most evenings, I turn to my weed stash. I’ve got plenty of edibles, a tincture or two, and some vaping cartridges, but tonight I want the old-fashioned pleasure of smoking a joint. No more sensual way exists, in my opinion, for enjoying cannabis than…

Just one day after the New Hampshire Senate defeated a marijuana legalization bill, the Republican governor announced that he would sign an alternative proposal to enact legalization through a system of state-run stores. What happens next is up in the air, as earlier House-passed legislation from last session that would have created a state-run market overseen by the state Liquor Commission was also rejected by the Senate amid opposition from even many leading legalization advocates. And Senate President Jeb Bradley (R) signaled on Thursday that he didn’t feel lawmakers should be prioritizing adult-use marijuana reform at all. Still, with Gov.…

“This bill also permits agencies involved to share information so that the banks or credit unions may ensure the business is a legal cannabis business, paying taxes to the state of Missouri.”  By Rebecca Rivas, Missouri Independent Missouri’s marijuana businesses would have fewer obstacles when it comes to accessing banking, under legislation approved Thursday. Few banks nationwide serve cannabis businesses and their owners—or even their auxiliary partners —because most want nothing to do with a business that sells a product the federal government still considers illegal. That’s true even in states that have legalized marijuana. On Friday, the Missouri House passed a bill allowing…

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) says a committee vote on a marijuana banking bill will be scheduled “in the near future” following an initial hearing on Thursday—and he is reiterating plans to attach criminal justice reform provisions to the financial services measure. In a speech on the floor on Thursday evening, Schumer said that the Senate Banking Committee meeting represented a “big step” for the bipartisan Secure and Fair Enforcement (SAFE) Banking Act, which was refiled by Sens. Jeff Merkley (D-OR) and Steve Daines (R-MT) last month. “SAFE Banking would ensure cannabis businesses have equal access to critical banking…