Author: News Room

Senate Banking Committee Chairman Sherrod Brown (D-OH) says passing marijuana banking reform legislation this year is a “high priority,” reiterating his support as congressional attention shifts from funding the government to other outstanding legislative items. In a brief interview with AskAPol on Thursday, Brown was asked about the Secure and Fair Enforcement Regulation (SAFER) Banking Act that cleared his panel in September and now awaits floor action. “It’s a high priority,” he said, adding that Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) “wants to do it” and “I want to do it.” Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC), ranking member of the Banking…

A new review of scientific literature around CBD and its effects suggests that the cannabinoid could be useful in managing symptoms of alcohol use disorder (AUD) by modulating brain networks that perpetuate addiction. The review, from authors at the University of Sydney and local health districts in the Australian city, attempts to “theorise the potential neurobiological mechanisms by which CBD may ameliorate various symptoms of AUD.” “Previous research suggests that CBD may affect salience, reward, emotion generation and regulation and executive control (including inhibition control, working memory and self-monitoring) processes,” the report, which was published on Thursday in the Journal…

A bill to legalize marijuana in Germany will be implemented on schedule in April, with lawmakers representing individual states in the Bundesrat declining to refer the legislation to a mediation committee that would have meant setting back the timeline by six months. While the Bundestag passed the cannabis legalization measure last month, there were concerns among advocates that the Bundesrat, a body also known as the Federal Council, would vote to recommend the committee referral during a meeting on Friday. But that did not happen, meaning that the law, which will make possession and home cultivation legal and authorize social clubs…

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) says a genetically modified version of hemp produced by researchers in Wisconsin “may be safely grown and bred in the United States” and is “unlikely to pose an increased plant pest risk compared to other cultivated plants.” The hemp variety, dubbed “Badger G,” does not produce THC or CBD but is designed to have higher levels of the cannabinoid CBG. It’s at least the second type of genetically modified hemp to get the OK from APHIS after another modified plant, which produces lower levels of THC and CBC, was approved in October. USDA’s Animal…

Plaintiffs in a federal lawsuit over the Second Amendment rights of medical marijuana cardholders—including a local prosecutor in Pennsylvania who is himself a cannabis patient—filed a fresh brief in their case on Tuesday, arguing that the “deprivation of Second Amendment rights for merely using a medicinal substance has no basis in this nation’s history or tradition and is unconstitutional, full stop.” The underlying suit was filed in January by Pennsylvania’s Warren County District Attorney Robert Greene, along with advocacy group the Second Amendment Foundation and a U.S. military veteran who was recommended medical marijuana but has not registered as a…

Ongoing federal marijuana prohibition has created a “real problem” for banks amid the growing state legalization movement, a top Biden administration official says, adding that it would be “desirable” for Congress to pass reform legislation to address the issue. At a House Appropriations Financial Services And General Government Subcommittee hearing on Thursday, Rep. Dave Joyce (R-OH) asked Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen to weigh in on regulatory complications resulting from the “conflict” between federal and state marijuana policies. “Can you tell me what is presently this administration’s position on” the Secure and Fair Enforcement Regulation (SAFER) Banking Act, Joyce, co-chair of…

A congressional committee met on Thursday to take up a series of bills, including two GOP-led veterans-focused measures concerning medical marijuana and psychedelics. The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is supporting the cannabis legislation if it undergoes “extensive amendments,” and it opposes the psychedelics measure, describing it as “unnecessary.” The House Veterans’ Affairs Health Subcommittee—which made history last November by holding a first-ever congressional hearing focused on psychedelics-assisted therapy for veterans—also heard from a number of veterans service organizations (VSOs) that are advocating for the reforms. One of the bills that was on the agenda, sponsored by the subcommittee chair…

Some lawmakers who backed the ban in principle feared it “could have unintended consequences.” By Kyle Pfannenstiel, Idaho Capital Sun A bill to criminalize advertising illegal services or products—like marijuana—in Idaho failed to pass the Idaho Senate on Wednesday. Marijuana is illegal in Idaho and in federal law. But states surrounding Idaho, like Washington, Montana, Nevada and Oregon, have legalized marijuana for recreational use in recent years. House Bill 613 would have allowed misdemeanor charges for ​​”any person who willfully publishes any notice or advertisement, in any medium, within the state of Idaho for a product or service that is…

Washington Gov. Jay Inslee (D) has signed legislation into law to exempt registered medical marijuana patients from the state’s 37 percent cannabis excise tax, which is currently one of the highest in the country. The exemption will only apply, however, to products that have been certified to higher testing standards than typical state-legal products. HB 1453, which lawmakers sent to the governor earlier this month, would allow registered patients and caregivers to avoid the tax when purchasing products that are compliant with Department of Health (DOH) testing standards. Medical marijuana cardholders already are eligible for exemptions from sales and use…

Congressional leaders have unveiled a second package of spending legislation to keep the government funded, with provisions included that would continue to block Washington, D.C. from legalizing marijuana sales, fund psychedelics-related clinical trials and more. House and Senate appropriations leaders released the bill on Wednesday after reaching an agreement on the remaining Fiscal Year 2024 spending that wasn’t included in separate legislation enacted earlier this month. The plan is to pass the package ahead of a Friday deadline when the current continuing resolution is set to expire. Despite repeated calls from advocates and lawmakers to remove a controversial rider that’s…