Today in cannabis news: The Pennsylvania state Senate votes to prohibit medical cannabis home cultivation; a U.S. Congressional analysis provides legislators with an outline of the hemp industry and policy issues; and federal authorities convene with state cannabis regulators to talk about the effects of nationwide legalization.
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** First up: The Pennsylvania state Senate, which is controlled by a Republican majority, rejected an amendment to a medical cannabis measure approved by the state House that would have enabled licensed patients 21 years or older to grow up to five cannabis crops for individual consumption. That would have been a significant extension of the state’s current policy, in which cannabis is exclusively supplied lawfully via retailers.
Furthermore, the crops could only be tended by patients or caretakers. Cultivating over five crops, distributing or acting in violation of the legislation would have led to the revocation of home growing licenses, and additional fines.
The amendment was rejected along party lines with a vote of 29-21. The whole medical cannabis bill, which it would have been connected to, was later passed 47-3 without the personal cultivation measure.
** Next up: The Congressional Research Service (CRS), the research branch of the U.S. Congress, has released a new analysis entitled “Production, Marketing, and Regulation of Hemp Products,” which describes several aspects of the growing industry and addresses legislative concerns.
There are “three leading markets for hemp, each based on the part of the plant used: fiber, seed/grain, and flower,” according to the report. Some researchers, though, believe that “a separate, marketable category exists for the plant’s extracted compounds,” like CBD oil, according to CRS.
However, in regards to hemp in the United States, the sector that has sparked the most attention is cannabinoid-infused nutritional products and foods, specifically CBD goods touted for a myriad of health benefits. That is also the most problematic section in terms of federal laws, as the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has authority over that field instead of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), and hasn’t yet adopted guidelines permitting CBD derivatives in the food supply chain.
Although the study contains no new information, it is an indicator of the normalizing of cannabis in Congress following the federal legalization of hemp with the 2018 Farm Bill.
** Last up: A group of U.S. state cannabis authorities convened with federal regulators and Congresspeople to examine the possible implications of nationwide cannabis legalization and additional legislative updates on the systems they manage. The discussion also included proposals to safeguard banking institutions that provide services to state-licensed cannabis retailers from federal regulatory authorities.
The federal authorities were “very receptive” in the chat, according to Andrew Brisbo, executive director of the Michigan Marijuana Regulatory Agency, and acknowledged the state officials as “willing to be good partners in their ongoing conversations.”
Brisbo also noted “I think the primary thing we wanted to get across is, as federal policymakers are engaged in conversations and thoughtfully considering how to approach federal policy reform, that it’s critical that state regulators have a seat at the table to share our perspective,” he said.
Brisbo added: “Obviously we all know from our experiences what has worked in state regulatory environments—probably more importantly what hasn’t worked—and we want to lend that perspective,” they said.
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