Today in cannabis news: A measure to legalize cannabis on the federal level is resubmitted in the U.S. Congress, as the Senate develops its own proposal; the Louisiana state Senate votes in favor of allowing access to smokable cannabis for medical cannabis patients; and the Colorado state House approves a bill with the goal of restricting youth accessibility to high-potency THC items.
The Morning Buzz presented by TRICHOMES brings you late-breaking news that tells you what’s happening within the cannabis industry. Check in with the cannabis community at TRICHOMES.com
** First up: Late last week, the U.S. House of Representatives proposed again a measure to federally legalize cannabis and improve social equity in the market. The bill, spearheaded by Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler (D-NY), was submitted with several amendments from the iteration that passed the floor last year.
The measure would exempt cannabis from the Controlled Substances Act (CSA), permit those who have been convicted of cannabis offenses to have their records cleared, and impose a federal tax on cannabis, with proceeds allocated to communal reinvestment and similar projects. The announcement comes as the Senate prepares to present a different reformation bill with common goals.
Under a Republican majority, the Marijuana Opportunity, Reinvestment, and Expungement (MORE) Act died in the Senate after receiving approval in the House. However, activists are confident that the policy update will this time be adopted, due to Democrat control in both Congressional chambers and the White House, and as additional states move to legalize cannabis.
The latest iteration of the MORE Act removes wording inserted just prior to last year’s vote in the House chamber that would have barred persons with prior cannabis offenses from receiving federal licensure to operate cannabis companies. The problematic clause was added hastily and was vigorously condemned by activists.
** Next up: After the Louisiana state Senate voted to extend its medical cannabis system past the existing non-smokable types such as tinctures, candies, and inhalers, patients may finally be able to obtain the herb in its raw, smokable state.
Rep. Tanner Magee’s House Bill 391, which allows patients to purchase a maximum of two-and-a-half ounces of cannabis flower every two weeks from the state’s certified cannabis pharmacies, was approved by the state Senate by a vote of 23 to 14.
The legislation marks a dramatic development of Louisiana’s medicinal cannabis system, which was established some years ago with some of the country’s strictest standards. Additionally, Senate lawmakers are attempting to leverage the companion measure to tax smokable cannabis to expand the state’s sales tax hike in order to finance bridge and street improvements.
Technical adjustments were made in the Senate, but they still need to be approved by the House. The legislation would next be sent to Democratic Gov. John Bel Edwards, who has signaled that they will ratify it.
** Last up: The Colorado state House of Representatives approved the state’s most comprehensive cannabis control legislation following legalization, with the goal of restricting youth accessibility to high-potency THC items and tightening medical cannabis regulations.
HB21-1317 passed with a resounding 56 to 8 vote and now heads to the state Senate, where it is anticipated to pass as well.
The Colorado School of Public Health would review published studies “related to the physical and mental health effects of high-potency THC marijuana and concentrates,” according to the measure, which is being spearheaded by House Speaker Alec Garnett. In the next few years, the findings could serve to guide further regulations.
The bill furthermore necessitates medical and recreational retailers to pack goods with clear and specific serving size instruction for buyers, as well as a real-time data system to uphold established state rules on daily buying caps. The bill also carries multiple clauses to render the medical cannabis doctor-patient relationship more formal, making it more difficult for individuals under the age of 20 years to acquire medical cannabis.
Among the few House lawmakers who opposed the measure, they warned that data gathering would result in customer bias and a gateway to further prohibitive legislation.
In response, Garnett said: “Making sure we all understand where this market has gone, how this (high-potency) market has expanded. … I just want to make sure that if there is an impact on the developing brain, then we have public health research. We have waited too long to get to this point.”
