WeedLife News Network

Delaware's latest marijuana bill focuses on keeping profits local, while at the same time promoting fairness and social equity.

Legislators said March 18 they crafted the bill based on what has been done in the 14 states that have already legalized marijuana – many plagued by out-of-state corporate interests and heavy regulation that cut into local profits.

“We have studied what's going on in the other states and we feel we have a pretty good bill,” said Rep. Ed Osienski, D-Newark.

Senate sponsor Sen. Trey Paradee, D-West Dover, said Delaware's approach is safe, smart and responsible. “We've seen what has worked and not worked,” he said.

House Bill 150 would make it legal for those 21 and older to sell and buy marijuana. A Marijuana Control Enforcement Tax of 15 percent would be levied on the retail product, and those who grow, manufacture and sell it would pay application and licensing fees.

After receiving a suspended sentence for possession of cannabis last year, Filip Dostovski walked out of the Skopje courthouse and lit a joint outside as cameras rolled.

It was an act of "revolt against their sentence and against their policy", said the 41-year-old cancer survivor, who is pushing for the free use of marijuana in North Macedonia.

The Balkan state is eyeing a chance to become a cannabis pioneer in Europe, as the government considers legalising marijuana in what would be a first on the continent.

But many worry about a lack of follow-through, a problem that has dogged the government's drug policy for the last five years.

Home to little over two million people, North Macedonia legalised the cultivation and sale of marijuana-derived medical products in 2016, hoping to get the edge in a fast-growing European market.

State legislators seem to be highly motivated to push marijuana legalization through.

Lawmakers in New York are apparently close to a deal to make the state the latest to legalize recreational marijuana.

Leaders in Albany said Monday that a final version of the bill is imminent, and that it could be brought to a video perhaps as soon as next week.

Speaking at an event that day, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo told reporters that he spent the previous weekend on the phone with Assembly Majority Leader Crystal Peoples-Stokes.

“We’re very close on marijuana,” Cuomo said.

t is throwdown time, generally in Spain, over the entire cannabis conversation. 

Currently, cannabis clubs in Basque country are challenging authorities over their right to operate during the Pandemic. Meanwhile Barcelona clubs are leading their own similar challenge. These two regions are the Spanish states which have the most cannabis clubs. To add to all of the legal complexity, these are two of the most “independent” of the Spanish states, with a long history of confrontation against federal authorities.

No matter where they are, clubs (and their clients) across Spain have suffered, unsurprisingly, during the Pandemic. During the early days of the first global shutdown everywhere, most were closed, no discussion. However, some began reopening, even if on a limited, pick up basis, challenging local authorities, much as happened in U.S. states. Unlike the U.S. however, there was never really a formal discussion about how “mandatory” such services were. That said, no matter how reluctant politicians were to touch the issue, police in several countries, not just Spain, have weighed in on the fact that with clubs and/or coffee shops closed, the much more dangerous illicit market flourishes. And violence, particularly in poorer areas, has flared.

That is monumental enough. 

Here is why. The entire Spanish “social club” scene has developed, much like the situation in Holland, if not the early U.S. states—i.e., the entire state legit, federal illegal model that the Biden White House apparently also insists on perpetuating. In other words, in the grey areas of federal law. Unlike Holland and the U.S., however, the Spanish club model is a non-profit endeavor.

Here is the first thing you need to know about Franjo, as he is more apt to be known to both patients and others: he is a board-certified German medical artz (physician). 

Here is the second: he is also a doctor with a disability.

As a result of this, he has a unique perspective on the topic of cannabis as medicine that few in either the scientific or medical professions can match in both his medical training and his sympathy for patients.

Because this is not a new avocation, Grotenhermen is one of the leading cannabis doctors in the country right now. Further his voice as a medical doctor is one of the most credible ones on the edge of the giant green reform that is slowly starting to take hold in Deutschland as cannabis as medicine becomes a more accepted reality.

No matter how well you know him, however, is impossible to miss that he is passionate, articulate, and takes no prisoners.

Defending his stance against a bill to adopt Nebraska’s Medical Cannabis Act, Governor Pete Ricketts says “legalising marijuana” will “kill kids”.

In a press conference after discussion between lawmakers regarding Legislative Bill 474, Governor Ricketts said:

“So this is a dangerous drug that will impact our kids. If you legalise marijuana, you’re going to kill your kids. That’s what the data shows from around the country.”

It was really an over the top statement given Legislative Bill 474 is in connection to medicinal cannabis – but the Governor sees it as the thin edge of the wedge and also wants the FDA’s blessing on any medical cannabis products.

Here’s the full video, posted by The Recount:

New Mexico has not moved any closer to fully legalizing recreational cannabis, as a Senate panel has decided to pull discussions at the last minute.

Initially, a hearing was scheduled for this past Sunday, but the topic has now been pulled and won’t be discussed at this time. This is probably due to the fact that the Senate is finding it hard to agree on issues like taxation, pardoning and expungement, and licensing—the issues that often hold cannabis industries up initially. 

This is stressful for advocates, as New Mexico’s Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham wants to go ahead and get legalization under way, and only gave state senators this week to approve legislation. Then, the session will end, and cannabis legalization needs to be decided and worked out before then. 

The Status of Cannabis in New Mexico

This discussion and debate started when two proposals were introduced to legalize cannabis, one from a Republican and another from a Democrat. Those deciding on legal cannabis are also looking at how the medical industry already does things, as well as how to balance economic opportunity with best practices for equity. 

They don’t make cannabis products like they used to, and there’s an increasing number of Colorado lawmakers who think that’s problematic.

As recently as 2014, the vast majority of medical and recreational cannabis sold in Colorado was flower and only 11% was the high-potency concentrates consumed through dab rigs or vape pens. By 2019, concentrates took up a third of the market and flower was below 50%.

With the rising popularity of high-THC concentrates, which are several times more potent than flower and edibles, come worries among deep-pocketed political groups and their statehouse allies that teenagers have too much access to it without enough knowledge of the effects.

Lawmakers are working on what could be the biggest marijuana legislation in Colorado since recreational cannabis was legalized in 2012 — a bill that would more tightly regulate the state’s industry with a range of proposals, including a possible THC potency cap, a requirement that people seek medical cards in person only and improved data collection aimed at stricter enforcement of purchasing limits.

Its potential impact is enough to have the cannabis industry and its advocates warning of a so-called soft prohibition and again raising concerns about racial inequity in the business itself.

Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf has granted pardons to dozens of low-level marijuana offenders. The pardons were granted as part of an expedited process put into place last September via the Board of Pardons. That process, which was spearheaded by Lt. Gov. John Fetterman, explicitly facilitates the expedited review of those with criminal records for low-level marijuana violations. 

To date, the Governor has issued expedited pardons to just under 100 marijuana offenders. 

In recent months, lawmakers and public officials in various states have taken aggressive steps to review and vacate the criminal records of tens of thousands of people with marijuana convictions. In California alone, over 100,000 citizens had their records expunged. In several other states – including Colorado, Nevada, Illinois, and Washington – public officials granted pardons to tens of thousands of citizens with cannabis convictions. 

Said NORML’s Deputy Director Paul Armentano: “Millions of citizens unduly carry the burden and stigmatization of a past conviction for behavior that most Americans no longer believe ought to be a crime, and that in a growing number of states is no longer classify as a crime by statute. Our sense of justice and our principles of fairness demand that officials move swiftly to right the past wrongs of cannabis prohibition and criminalization.”

The future is looking brighter for Idaho farmers interested in growing hemp, as members of the state’s House Agricultural Affairs Committee approved House Bill 126 on Monday.

Voting on H.B. 126 was initially delayed during a hearing on Feb. 24, as some members of the committee said they needed additional time; however, the bill passed in a 44-26 vote. 

H.B. 126, which Rep. Clark Kauffman sponsored on the House floor, would legalize the production, processing, research and transportation of industrial hemp in Idaho.

If passed, farmers would be required to follow the United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) final rule, set to take effect March 22, prohibiting them from growing plants that test over the 0.3% legal tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) concentration limit.

According to the bill, any grower who violates the 0.3% THC limit will be charged with a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of up to $150 for the first offense. For a second offense committed within five years of the first, a person would be guilty of a misdemeanor, and the fine could double to $300. Following this, a person who commits a third offense within five years of the first conviction is guilty of a misdemeanor, punishable by a fine of not more than $1,000 and six months in the county jail. 

Cannabis should be regulated and taxed like alcohol and tobacco, ADPD have said.  

The party was reacting to a statement by the Prime Minister Robert Abela where he announced that government will be launching a white paper on the decriminalisation of cannabis for personal use.  

“Over the years, despite the rhetoric and crocodile tears, authorities have ignored the suffering of thousands of people because of the so-called and ridiculous war on whoever smokes a joint. Victims of hard drugs are also made into victims of the justice system,” chairperson Carmel Cacopardo said.  

In light of recently published statistics that sixty percent of cases before the drug tribunal are for the possession of cannabis, ADPD said this is leading to a waste of police resources and cannabis.  

“The criminalization of drug users has completely failed, as even the United Nations claims. Those who are victims of heavy drugs have also ended up being victimized all over again, because instead of medical and social assistance they have ended up stuck in the criminal justice system,” spokesperson Samuel Muscat said.  

The latest U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) National Drug Threat Assessment says hemp is causing headaches for law enforcement.

10 pages of the 100-page report are dedicated to marijuana related issues. This section mentions the 2018 Farm Bill that legalized hemp production at the federal level is causing problems, especially in states that have legalized marijuana.

It says in some states where marijuana production is legal under state law, “a significant number” of hemp businesses and cultivation operations are owned and operated by drug-trafficking organisations that are illegally producing and trafficking marijuana.

The DEA says according to law enforcement officials, traffickers are using state-issued hemp documentation as a cover for marijuana grow operations and to shift product across state lines. The DEA also mentions large-scale hemp operations are at times used to camouflage marijuana plants scattered within them.

It states domestic use of marijuana remains high and is likely to increase as state legalization continues, and so too will domestic production and trafficking as changes to laws see more medical or recreational marijuana markets open.

Melissa Agard: "Youth usage of marijuana has actually gone down in states that have fully legalized.”

PolitiFact's ruling: Half True

Here's why: Wisconsin’s Republican lawmakers may have made clear that Gov. Tony Evers’ plan to legalize marijuana in the next state budget will go up in smoke, but state Sen. Melissa Agard, D-Madison, isn’t backing down. 

Agard has pushed the state for years to legalize the drug for both medicinal and recreational purposes, a proposal that garnered little traction under former Gov. Scott Walker and the Republican-controlled Legislature. 

Today, though, the dynamic is different. Legalization could generate $166 million in revenue that could help fund rural schools and programs for communities that have been disproportionately affected by past marijuana laws, Evers said when he announced the plan. 

The Chamber of Deputies approved this Wednesday in general the law that regulates marijuana for recreational use in Mexico.

With 316 votes in favor, 129 against and 23 abstentions, the new law decriminalizes marijuana in Mexico for recreational, scientific, medical and industrial uses.

This is one of the last steps in the legalization process, as it must return to the Senate for review and final approval.

In November, the Senate approved the legalization of the plant. However, the San Lázaro postponed the discussion of the controversial law, arguing that it needed more time to analyze it.

The general law for the regulation of cannabis , proposed by Morena, states that only people over 18 years of age may grow, carry and consume marijuana, THC and CBD .
Likewise, up to 28 grams of possession would be allowed.

A bill in the Iowa Senate that would loosen Iowa’s marijuana penalties has bipartisan support from lawmakers.

SF 533 would lower the legal penalty for first time offenders possessing less than five grams of marijuana in Iowa to a simple misdemeanor, translating to a maximum sentence of 30 days in prison and a fine between $105 – $855. Current state laws could result in up to six months of imprisonment and $1,000 in fines.

The bill has received bipartisan support and was originally introduced by Sen. Brad Zaun, R-Urbandale. It was unanimously passed in a Senate Committee on March 3, meaning the bill can be called for a full vote on the Senate floor.

Still, with 30 other states having fully legalized or decriminalized the substance as of March 2021, some policymakers in the state are worried that the legislation does not go far enough to address the social and economic grievances brought on by prohibition.

Sen. Joe Bolkcom, D-Iowa City, said that he believes the bill can go further by fully legalizing or decriminalizing the substance, which would also be beneficial for marginalized communities.

Republican U.S. Congressman Bob Good has written a letter to Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam urging him to veto a recreational marijuana legalization bill passed by state lawmakers last month. The Virginia Senate and the House of Delegates agreed on a compromise bill to legalize cannabis for use by adults and to regulate marijuana production and sales on February 27.

In a letter to the Democratic governor written by Good last week, the representative for Virginia’s 5th Congressional District exhorted Northam not to sign the legalization bill, HB 2312, into law.

“Legalizing recreational use of marijuana, even if limited to adults, would expose our future generations to drug use at young impressionable ages,” said Good. “It is my hope that the Governor will not move forward with this legislation and will instead acknowledge that the many negative consequences far outweigh any potential positive revenue for the Commonwealth.”

In his letter, Good said that the cannabis legalization bill would “undermine the rule of law,” noting that marijuana remains a Schedule l substance under federal statute.

Good cited concerns that the legalization of cannabis would pose a danger to children and repeated debunked assertions that marijuana is a “gateway drug” to more dangerous illicit substances. He also expressed doubts that a regulated marijuana economy would generate as much tax revenue as projections predict.

Rhode Island is the next in a series of states to propose recreational cannabis as a way to boost the economy following the impacts of COVID. 

The bill was introduced by the state Senate, who proposed a legal cannabis bill that would tax cannabis at 20 percent in order to generate revenue. 

The bill is being backed by Josh Miller, chairman of the Senate Health & Human Services Committee, and Michael McCaffrey, the majority leader. If the bill gets signed into law, it will make it legal for those 21 and older to possess at least an ounce of cannabis in the state. Some home growing would also be made legal.

“Cannabis legalization is a monumental shift in public policy that effectively creates a new economy,” Miller said in a statement. “We want to ensure as many Rhode Islanders as possible have the opportunity to participate in this new economy.”

Miller claimed that the goal of this proposed law is to make legal cannabis “as entrepreneurial as possible” in order to bring money into Rhode Island. 

Hawaii state senators on Tuesday advanced a slight increase to the minimum wage and another measure that would legalize recreational pakalolo for anyone 21 years and older.

While this is the first year a recreational pot measure has cleared a full floor vote, it appears dead on arrival in the House of Representatives. A key House chairman said he may not hear the measure.

The House meanwhile advanced measures allowing certain nurses to perform abortions after significant debate on the floor. Those bills are among hundreds that crossed over between the House and the Senate on Tuesday.

More stringent gun control laws also drew some attention during floor debates. And the new federal stimulus bill may spell death for certain tax credit proposals.

A proposed bill in the Minnesota state senate would make it legal for medical cannabis patients in the state to use marijuana flower for treatment.

The legislation cleared its first hurdle earlier this month, with the bill getting passed out of the Senate Health and Human Services Finance and Policy Committee on March 1. According to local television station KSTP, current law in Minnesota only allows medical cannabis to be distributed in pill or liquid form.

Such restrictions have been decried by cannabis advocates, who argue that patients ought to be able to receive treatment in its most common form. Consumption methods like tinctures and oils are also generally more expensive for both the producer and consumer. Former Minnesota Gov. Mark Dayton signed the state’s medical marijuana law in 2014, which has gradually expanded in the years since to include more qualifying conditions. 

Criticism of The State’s Current Medical Cannabis Program

The state’s restrictions have prompted some to call Minnesota’s medical cannabis program one of the most conservative in the country. And those restrictions also prevent many patients from turning to cannabis rather than more dangerous painkillers. 

Irish Revenue officials have once again intercepted packages containing cannabis from the U.S., Canada, the U.K. and Spain thanks to the Baileys, two drug-detecting dogs whose sole mission is to sniff out contraband.

In all, packages received at both the Dublin and Athlone mail centres contained 141,000 euros (just shy of $213,000) in illicit weed.

Arriving at the Dublin Mail Centre, the innocuously declared packages — including those labeled as “art supplies,” “coffee pods,” “action figures” and “toys” — were destined for different addresses across the county, according to a statement from Revenue.

Specifically, the packages intercepted on Mar. 3 contained more than four kilograms of cannabis, and 27 grams of cannabis oil and butane honey oil products. Combined, the weed and products have an estimated value of almost 88,200 euros ($133,182)

Just two days earlier at the Athlone Mail Centre, Revenue officers seized almost seven kilograms of illegal drugs and psychoactive substances. This time, the contraband originated from the U.K. and declared as “hair bows,” “football memorabilia” and “photos.”