Author: News Room

Legislation to eventually allow Washington State marijuana companies to engage in interstate commerce passed out of a House committee on Tuesday. A companion bill on the Senate side cleared its own committee hurdle last month. If the legislation is enacted, interstate marijuana trade would depend on a policy change at the federal level: either a law “to allow the interstate transfer of cannabis” between legal businesses or an opinion from the U.S. Department of Justice “allowing or tolerating” marijuana commerce across state lines, the bill says. California and Oregon have already adopted changes similar to the Washington proposal. On the…

A Hawaii Senate committee on Tuesday held a hearing on a bill to legalize marijuana—with multiple state agencies weighing in on the proposal in testimony. The legislation from Sen. Joy San Buenaventura (D) was discussed in the Senate Judiciary Committee. It’s one of two key legalization measures that advocates are tracking this session. Members of the committee heard from a range of supporters and opponents on SB 669 on Tuesday, with the chair indicating that a vote could come on Thursday. At the hearing, some witnesses raised concerns that the legislation goes too far in prioritizing existing medical cannabis licensees,…

What’s good, New Yorkers? The time is now to get your very own garden party started! New York state medical cannabis home cultivation laws took effect back in early October. The rules now allow patients and caregivers three mature and three immature plants at a time. Officials allow two or more certified patients in any private residence to have double that—six mature and six immature plants. Whoo! It’s a big win for New Yorkers, and combined with adult-use legalization and decriminalization in neighboring states—the Northeast has joined cannabis’ golden age. Should I grow indoors or outdoors in the Northeast? Now…

Committees in Virginia’s GOP-controlled House of Delegates on Tuesday rejected bills to start adult-use marijuana sales and create a psilocybin advisory board while rescheduling the psychedelic. A House General Laws subcommittee defeated the Senate-passed cannabis commerce legislation from Sen. Adam Ebbin (D) along party lines in a 5-3 vote. The psilocybin measure from Sen. Ghazala Hashmi (D), which was also approved in the Senate this month, was rejected in the House Rules Committee, with members voting 13-5 to lay it on the table. Meanwhile, the General Laws subcommittee also defeated a proposal to create a “Cannabis Incubator Project” in the…

Courts can’t deny pretrial intervention just because the cannabis law is silent on conditional discharges. By Dana DiFilippo, New Jersey Monitor People who dodged conviction for minor drug offenses through a diversionary program for first-time offenders before state lawmakers decriminalized marijuana in 2021 can still be admitted to another diversionary program for new offenses, the New Jersey Supreme Court ruled Tuesday. The unanimous decision was an effort by the state’s highest court to parse the intent of the expansive Cannabis Regulatory, Enforcement Assistance, and Marketplace Modernization Act, which decriminalized the simple possession of cannabis in New Jersey and mandated that…

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) held a second meeting on marijuana legislation for the new Congress on Tuesday—and this time, he convened a group of GOP senators to discuss next steps for crafting a passable bill, Senate sources tell Marijuana Moment. The first meeting took place at the beginning of the month with Democratic colleagues. Now the majority leader has brought Republican members into the fold, including Sens. Steve Daines (R-MT), Rand Paul (R-KY) and Dan Sullivan (R-AK). The purpose of these latest conversations is to determine where lawmakers can find bipartisan consensus on legislative objectives for cannabis reform…

A pair of bipartisan House members have filed a bill to direct the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to carry out studies into the therapeutic potential of marijuana for military veterans with certain conditions. Reps. Lou Correa (D-CA) and Jack Bergman (R-MI) introduced the legislation on Tuesday, about a week after Sens. Jon Tester (D) and Dan Sullivan (R) filed a companion version in their chamber. That Senate measure is scheduled to be taken up in the Veterans’ Affairs Committee, which Tester chairs, on Thursday. Under the proposal, VA would be tasked with conducting studies that explore the effects…

Nearly three in four North Carolina voters—including bipartisan majorities—say they support a proposed bill to legalize medical marijuana in the state, according to a new poll. The survey from Meredith College found that 73 percent of North Carolinians back the medical cannabis legislation, compared to 15 percent who said they were opposed and 12 percent who were undecided. There was majority support across political affiliations, including 91 percent of Democrats, 64 percent of Republicans and 77 percent of those who identified as unaffiliated. Here’s the text of the survey question that was posed to voters:  “North Carolina is considering a…

Arizona lawmakers have approved a bill in committee to promote research into the medical potential of psilocybin mushrooms for a variety of conditions, which could inform future reforms to more broadly allow access to psychedelic-assisted therapy. The House Military Affairs & Public Safety Committee unanimously passed the legislation from Reps. Kevin Payne (R), Jennifer Longdon (D), Stacey Travers (D) and Sen. T. J. Shope (R) in a 15-0 vote on Monday. The bill was introduced last month. The proposal is focused on psilocybin research, providing $30 million in grants over the course of three years for scientists to study the…

A controversial bill filed in Rhode Island earlier this month would make it illegal to have cannabis at gatherings of three or more people has been withdrawn and is being reworked, its sponsor says. Hosting essentially any social event where marijuana is used or possessed would carry a fine of $500 to $1,000 under the proposal as introduced. If enacted, the measure would severely limit adults’ ability to use cannabis under Rhode Island’s legalization law, passed by state lawmakers last year, by requiring hosts of more than two other people to take “all reasonable steps” to prohibit the use or…