Author: News Room

Finding weed in Berlin is like going back in time. Sure, Germany has a medical cannabis program but it’s not Oklahoma. The regulations are very strict. You can’t just walk in off the street and start buying flowers and concentrates. It’s true that German legislators are working out plans for cannabis legalization, but adult-use cannabis dispensaries are estimated to be at least five years away. To find cannabis in Berlin, you gotta do it the old-fashioned way. You need a plug. A weedman. You gotta find somebody at the reggae club that looks trustworthy. Or maybe you put out the…

New York’s governor has signed legislation that to provide tax relief to New York City marijuana businesses that are currently blocked from making federal deductions under an Internal Revenue Service (IRS) code known as 280E. About five months after the Senate and Assembly approved the proposal, and less than a week after both chambers formally transmitted their identical bills to Gov. Kathy Hochul (D), she signed them into law on Friday. While Hochul signed a separate budget bill last year that included provisions allow state-level cannabis business tax deductions—a partial remedy to the ongoing federal issue—New York City has its…

As Ridgeline Farms returned to the podium this year at The Emerald Cup, who could have imagined that they’d find their way to a Zalympix win a month later? They did. In entering Zalympix—California’s fastest-growing elite indoor contest, and now one of its largest—Ridgeline’s founder Jason Gellman showed his faith in what they are producing under the sun of Southern Humboldt. Imagine being one of the 120-plus indoor cultivators that didn’t make it to the podium and then seeing the guy that won first place with Lantz in the “Mixed Light Flower” category at The Emerald Cup also win third…

South Dakota’s attorney general issued a draft explanation on Friday for a second proposed ballot measure to legalize recreational marijuana in the state. Unlike a separate would-be initiative filed earlier this year, the new proposal includes plans for licensed, regulated retail sales to adults in addition to legalizing possession and home cultivation. The measure, sponsored by Rapid City resident Emmett Reistroffer, “allows individuals 21 of age or older to possess, grow, ingest, and distribute marijuana or marijuana paraphernalia,” the draft attorney general’s statement says, adding that adults could possess up to three ounces of marijuana and grow up to six…

“Businesses that choose to participate in Missouri’s marijuana industry do not get to decide which rules and which parts of [the constitution] they want to follow.” By Rebecca Rivas, Missouri Independent The state’s Division of Cannabis Regulation is revoking the marijuana manufacturing license of Delta Extraction after accusing the company of illegally importing “marijuana product” from out-of-state and adding it to Missouri-grown marijuana products. The revocation will take effect on December 2. The Robertsville-based company is at the center of Missouri’s massive marijuana recall that was issued on August 14. The state recently rolled back part of the recall, but…

A study published this month in the Journal of Neuroscience Research found that regular cannabis users “have a greater understanding of the emotions of others,” findings that authors say “highlight positive effects of cannabis on interpersonal relationships and potential therapeutic applications.” The study, from a team of neurobiologists at the National Autonomous University of Mexico, compared measurements of empathy between a group of 85 regular cannabis users and 51 nonconsumers, using both a 33-item test and MRI images of the participants. The written test, authors wrote, “analyzes the empathic ability of the subject, assessing both cognative and affective empathy.” That…

The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) fired a former agent based on an “unjustifiable, unlawful, and inexplicable” rationale after he tested positive for THC after using CBD products that were marketed as being derived from federally legal hemp, an attorney argued in a new brief in a federal court case challenging the removal. Anthony Armour—described by DEA itself as an “outstanding” special agent during his 16-year tenure—was terminated in 2019 following a random drug screening that revealed traces of THC metabolites. He admitted to taking CBD for chronic pain as an opioid alternative—and he turned over the products he believed to…

South Africa lawmakers have approved a long-awaited bill to legalize marijuana possession and cultivation by adults. The National Assembly passed the legislation on Tuesday, setting the stage for possible concurrence by the bicameral Parliament’s National Council of Provinces. The reform has been years in the making, with lawmakers well past a deadline following a Constitutional Court ruling in 2018 that deemed the prohibition on simple possession and cultivation unlawful and mandating legislative change within two years. The bill to codify legalization was finally introduced in 2020, but action has been delayed, even as South Africa’s government has included cannabis in…

A New Hampshire commission charged with issuing a report by December 1 on how to legalize adult-use marijuana sales through a novel system of state-controlled stores held a marathon meeting on Thursday, ultimately finishing its line-by-line review of a 37-page draft bill circulated last month by the body’s chair, Sen. Daryl Abbas (R). With one meeting remaining before the commission’s deadline, the group now has to incorporate members’ feedback into a revised draft bill that the legislature can consider enacting in the 2024 session. They must also assemble a report that conveys the sharply conflicting views of the 19-member panel,…

As a bipartisan marijuana banking reform bill lingers in the Senate, congressional researchers have released a report outlining the various criminal penalties that continue to loom over financial institutions that work with state-licensed cannabis businesses. While hundreds of banks and credit unions do report servicing state-legal cannabis operators—activity that regulators generally decline to take enforcement action against despite federal prohibition—the report from the Congressional Research Service (CRS) shows what’s technically at stake under existing statutes. “Due to the legal risks under federal law, many financial institutions are unwilling to provide common banking products and services—such as debit or credit card…