Author: News Room

To sleep, perchance to dream of the ideal 420 party? Well Leafly nation, you never need to dream on that front—we got you. As I say every year, the numbers keep getting better and the states with either recreational or medical cannabis (21 rec, 40 medical) keeps going up. That means more and more opportunities to gather around ganja and honor both the plant and the people who dedicate themselves to it.This year is a “make new friends, but keep the old” ethos, with a mix of long-standing gatherings and new ideas to help you repeat a dank experience or…

Former President Donald Trump is suggesting there may be a link between the use of “genetically engineered” marijuana and mass shootings. At a speech at a National Rifle Association (NRA) leadership forum on Friday, Trump listed a number of controversial and unproven factors that he said he’d direct the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to investigate as possibly causing the ongoing scourge of mass shooting afflicting the country. “We have to look at whether common psychiatric drugs, as well as genetically engineered cannabis and other narcotics, are causing psychotic breaks” that lead to gun violence, he said. Trump, who is…

A bill to allow interstate marijuana commerce in Washington State is officially heading to the governor’s desk. The House approved the Senate-passed legislation from Sen. Ann Rivers (R) on Wednesday, but members adopted a minor amendment that required concurrence from the opposite chamber. That happened on Friday, meaning the bill is now on its way to Gov. Jay Inslee (D) for his signature. The measure would allow the governor to enter into agreement with other legal cannabis states, pending a federal policy change “to allow for the interstate transfer of cannabis” or a federal Justice Department opinion “allowing or tolerating”…

Marijuana regulators from three states, advocates and small business representatives of the cannabis industry will share advice on charting an equitable path forward in the legalization movement at an upcoming event organized by a non-profit focused on preventing corporate monopolization of the market. The Parabola Center for Law and Policy, a think tank working to educate lawmakers and advocates about the potential ramifications of consolidated ownership in the marijuana sector, also announced on Friday that it has partnered with 50 new organizations, including at least one that sells legal cannabis in multiple states. Cannabis regulators from Massachusetts, New York City…

The top House Democrat and a Republican lawmaker have refiled a bill to lay the groundwork for federal marijuana legalization. Rep. Dave Joyce (R-OH) and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) introduced the Preparing Regulators Effectively for a Post-Prohibition Adult-Use Regulated Environment Act (PREPARE) Act on Thursday. The incremental reform would direct the attorney general to create a commission charged with making recommendations on a regulatory system for cannabis that models what’s currently in place for alcohol. “With nearly every state adopting its own set of cannabis reforms, an end to federal cannabis prohibition is inevitable,” Joyce, co-chair of the…

“It seems there’s still a lot of information missing that should be provided, and that should be done in a way, in a manner that is forthcoming and transparent.” By Sophie Nieto-Muñoz, New Jersey Monitor Cannabis regulators on Thursday denied Curaleaf, the biggest player in New Jersey’s nascent cannabis industry, a renewal of the license that allows it to grow and sell recreational marijuana in the Garden State. The vote represents a surprising blow to the cannabis giant, and comes just about a week before the first anniversary of recreational weed sales in the state. It left observers stunned, and a representative…

A pair of bills to legalize and regulate marijuana in Delaware have officially been sent to the governor’s desk, meaning he will need to act on them before the end of the month. While the legislature passed both measures with sizable support last month, advocates remain concerned that Gov. John Carney (D) may again veto the reform as he did last session. He’s avoided commenting on his intentions for the legislation so far this round other than to say he remains concerned about the impact of the reform on impaired driving. But the clock is now ticking. His office received…

Nevada lawmakers have approved a revised bill that would create a new working group to study psychedelics and develop a plan to allow regulated access for therapeutic purposes. While the legislation before the Senate Health and Human Services Committee as introduced would have legalized psilocybin and promoted research into the psychedelic, as well as encouraged studies of MDMA, the panel adopted an amendment that scales it back significantly. As approved in a voice vote on Thursday, Sen. Rochelle Nguyen’s (D) measure now focuses on forming a Psychedelic Medicines Working Group to examine the use of entheogens “in medicinal, therapeutic, and…

CBD is ‘remarkably safe’ and well-tolerated even at higher doses, according to a new scientific paper, but there is limited evidence for its efficacy in smaller amounts. Researchers investigating the safety and efficacy of CBD have concluded that the compound has a ‘remarkably safe profile’ even at higher doses. They found limited evidence, however, to support its efficacy at doses lower than 400mg, with its potential for treating anxiety showing the most promise.  While CBD is becoming more widely used and increasingly easy to access across the world, there are still some concerns around its safety, with limited scientific evidence having been…

Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ) says it’s been “frustrating” to see marijuana legalization fall short of equity goals, which he said is partly due to ongoing federal prohibition. And while he’s pushing for reform, he characterized cannabis as a “dangerous” drug that hasn’t been studied enough. The senator, who has long advocated for equity-centered federal legalization and sponsored a bill to that end with Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) last year, discussed the prospects of drug policy reform at a panel at Tisch College on Monday. Asked about which of his priorities could be achieved in the current Congress, Booker…