Author: News Room

Legislative committees in Hawaii have approved separate bills that would legalize marijuana for adults and direct the state to further study psychedelic-assisted therapy, advancing both measures to the Senate floor ahead of an end-of-week deadline. Lawmakers in a joint committee session on Thursday approved the cannabis legalization measure, SB 669, after adopting a number of fresh amendments. The changes won over at least two lawmakers, one Democrat and one Republican, who voted for the measure despite saying they were initially opposed. “Originally I was going to vote no on this one, but I’m going to trust your leadership,” Sen. Brenton…

A marijuana legalization bill cleared additional Minnesota House Senate committees on Thursday. The House Public Safety Finance and Policy Committee passed the measure from Rep. Zack Stephenson (D) in a voice vote—the eleventh in the chamber to do so this session. Later in the day, the Senate Labor Committee also advance the companion version sponsored by Sen. Lindsey Port (D) in a voice vote, making it the eighth panel in that body to sign off on the legislation this year. “Minnesotans are ready for this change,” Stephenson told members of the House committee. “Our current laws are doing more harm…

The Washington State Senate approved a bill on Wednesday to eventually allow marijuana businesses to engage in interstate commerce. The measure, approved in a vote of 40-8, would give the governor the authority to enter into agreements with other legal states to permit imports and exports between licensed cannabis companies. “It is no secret that Washington has been a leader in the cannabis industry,” Sen. Ann Rivers (R), the bill’s sponsor, said on the floor ahead of the vote. “We have taken massive steps to make sure that the product produced here is labeled well and is tested and have…

The White House is reviewing a draft application form that people who were covered under President Joe Biden’s mass marijuana pardon can fill out to demonstrate that they were granted clemency. In October, Biden issued a proclamation granting a pardon to people who have committed cannabis possession offenses under federal law and in Washington, D.C. The relief was automatic, but advocates have pushed officials to provide an application that people can use to obtain certificates showing they are covered. That could be useful for those whose prior convictions are preventing them from obtaining jobs or housing, for example. A notice…

New Mexico lawmakers advanced legislation on Wednesday to create a state body that would study the the possibility of launching a psilocybin therapy program for patients with certain mental health conditions who could benefit from using the psychedelic. The House Health and Human Services approved the bill, sponsored by Rep. Christine Trujillo (D), in a unanimous voice vote. The measure now heads to the House Appropriations & Finance Committee. Rep. Elizabeth Thomson (D), the panel’s chair, recounted hearing “fascinating” testimony at an earlier meeting and receiving Twitter direct messages from people “who said this saved their lives.” “If they hadn’t…

A marijuana industry-backed campaign to put a legalization initiative before voters on the 2024 ballot has met a symbolic milestone, netting more than 420,000 valid signatures to date. 420, of course, is a special number for cannabis reform advocates, with April 20 being the unofficial holiday to celebrate the plant. The Florida Division of Elections updates petition counts on the measure at the end of each month, and at the close of February the campaign had netted 420,072 valid signatures, a development first noted by News Service Florida. At the end of January, the measure cleared a major hurdle, getting…

As early voting begins this week on an Oklahoma marijuana legalization measure on Tuesday’s ballot, the campaign behind the initiative is promoting a new report detailing the costs of criminal prohibition and highlighting an endorsement from a former police chief. The goal is to make the case to voters that prohibition hasn’t prevented cannabis use in Oklahoma but has instead taken tolls on individuals lives, families and futures. Former Chief of Police, Stephen Mills asks #Oklahoma voters to support #SQ820, so law enforcement can prevent serious crime. Minor #marijuana offenses waste resources, and the current system is broken. We deserve better,…

A bipartisan pair of federal lawmakers are rebranding and relaunching a congressional caucus to promote research into and awareness around psychedelic-assisted therapy, hoping to shine a light on the practice’s potential to treat a variety of mental health conditions. The renamed Congressional Psychedelics Advancing Therapies (PATH) Caucus, which was described exclusively to Marijuana Moment ahead of its formal announcement in a press release on Thursday morning, aims to inform fellow lawmakers of the growing evidence from leading research institutions that therapy involving substances like psilocybin and MDMA can help effectively treat PTSD, depression and substance use disorder. The group’s founders,…

UK hemp stakeholders fear CBD could be relegated to medical-only status after the release of a controversial report from a government regulator claimed 10 people have died after ingesting the compound. The Committee on Toxicity (CoT), an independent scientific body that consults the Food Standards Agency (FSA), highlighted the deaths and listed a total of 860 adverse reactions to CBD which have been reported in the UK as of Feb. 28, 2023. The UK’s Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) records the CoT data under a “Yellow Card” alert system, a compilation of publicly available reports received from healthcare…

A marijuana legalization bill cleared another Minnesota Senate committee on Wednesday, bringing the total number of panels in the chamber to advance the legislation so far this session to seven. The Human Services Committee passed the measure from Sen. Lindsey Port (D) in a voice vote. “This allows adults to safely and responsibly use cannabis,” Sen. Clare Oumou Verbeten (D), who presented the bill on behalf of Port, told committee members. “It creates a regulated marketplace that’s much safer than our current underground illicit marketplace.” “Cannabis prohibition has caused immense harm in our communities, and that’s particularly when it comes…