WeedLife News Network

In a move that gave local cannabis watchers—and many dispensary owners—a serious case of whiplash, the Arizona Department of Health Services gave the green-light to recreational pot sales late last month, catching a lot of people in the industry off guard.

Harvest Enterprises, Inc., founded by CEO and Tempe native Steve White, had the first-ever Arizona adult use sale in its Scottsdale location and Harvest became the first Tucson-area dispensary to sell recreational marijuana, with patients waiting in line for hours outside the midtown outlet at 2734 E. Grant Road, on opening weekend.

Harvest’s opening came after the AZDHS allowed recreational cannabis sales to begin, letting dispensary owners know adult-use recreational sales can move forward as soon as licenses are approved and dispensaries are set up to handle both aspects of the market.

“This has been really surprising and gives an opportunity for us to have a conversation about how we don’t say a lot of good things about government,” White said. “But this is really a bang-up job by the

department.”

Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly of Kansas announced a proposal on Monday that would legalize medical marijuana to raise the revenue required to expand the state’s Medicaid program. Under the proposal, nearly 200,000 state residents who do not currently have health insurance would gain eligibility for coverage. 

“After nearly a year of challenges brought on by COVID-19, we need to use every tool at our disposal to protect the health of our workforce and our economy,” Kelly said in a statement from the governor’s office. “Getting 165,000 Kansans health care, injecting billions of dollars and thousands of jobs into our local economies, and protecting our rural hospitals will be critical to our recovery from the pandemic. By combining broadly popular, commonsense medical marijuana policy with our efforts to expand Medicaid, the revenue from the bill will pay for expansion.”

Obamacare Includes Medicaid Expansion

Under the Affordable Care Act passed in 2010, Congress authorized an expansion of the Medicaid program to provide health insurance for more low-income families, with the federal government covering 90% of the cost and the states responsible for 10%. Kansas is one of 12 states who have not implemented the expansion, with leaders of the GOP-led legislature citing the costs of the program.

“You have heard many of the comments coming from the opposition have been [that] we can’t afford it,” Kelly said in a press conference on Monday. “We have just designed a bill that pays for itself and more.”

“There’s never been any good argument against expansion other than we can’t afford it,” she added.

THREE people were recently sentenced to 30 years in prison in Tunisia for using cannabis and this verdict has ignited public debate in the country to the point of causing Prime Minister Hichem Mechichi to react on February 1.

The conviction for the consumption of cannabis has sparked a heated debate in the country around its legislation. The judgment, handed down on January 20 by a court in Kef (north), “does not relate only to the consumption of narcotics but also to the use of a sports field for the consumption of drugs,” specified on January 31 to the AFP.

A spokesman of the court, Mohamed Faouzi Daoudi said Tunisian law provides for a severe penalty for the consumption of narcotics in the public space, citing “law 52 and chapters 7 and 11”.

On social media, using the hashtag in Arabic “#prison-no, change 52”, many users protested against the verdict and called for a demonstration.

The director of the regional office of Amnesty International, Amna Guellali, described the decision made by the courts as “unacceptable” rejecting “all the [prison] sentences issued concerning the consumption and possession of narcotics”.

“This shows what can happen when politics override the will of the people and causes a stalemate in the rollout of voter-favored programs,” says one industry expert.

Four of the five states that passed cannabis-centric ballot initiatives on Election Day 2020 have since run into hurdles.

The pathway from ballot question to implementation has only been smooth for one of the five states to pass measures recently — Arizona. Adult use sales began on Jan. 22, with many medical dispensaries expanding to adult use to accommodate the newly opened market.

The Copper State sets a new bar by opening its market just a couple months after passing an initiative. Lawmakers from the other four states, however, are stalling the process.

South Dakota

South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem issued a January executive order showing that she ordered a lawsuit to overturn the adult use portion of its result

Exciting times have arrived in Arizona’s cannabis industry! The Arizona Department of Health Services (the “Department”) (1) released final interim rules for recreational licensees, and (2) issued new recreational licenses. As noted by Marijuana Moment’s Kyle Jaeger, the marks the fastest transition from voter approval to sales implementation of any state that has legalized marijuana to date.

Specifically, on January 22, 2021, the Department issued 86 new licenses for adult use or recreational use marijuana (CLICK HERE for the list). By happenstance, I drove by the Harvest dispensary in North Scottsdale on Friday (January 22), and the lines were literally around the building! So, it appears that recreational sales have started out strong in Arizona.

The Department also released final interim rules for adult use establishments in January 2021, that were effective as of January 15, 2021 (CLICK HERE to view the regulations). Unfortunately, it does not appear that the Department released a redline of the regulations that show the changes from the draft rules to the interim final rules. However, I will discuss a few of the more important changes below.

It’s worth noting too that the Department did not make changes to certain rules notwithstanding public requests to do so. For example, certain commenters requested that the license fee be reduced for initial licensees. The Department decided to stick with its original proposal, so the initial licensing fee remains a pretty steep $25,000.

One change made to the rules is with regard to the financial conditions that must be satisfied by a licensee. Under the draft rules, the applicant had to demonstrate it had “at least $500,000 in funds available” and a financial institution had to provide evidence of same within 60 days of the application. Under the interim final rule, while there is still a requirement for at least $500,000 in available funds, there are now a few other requirements. A.A.C. R9-18-303(A)(6).

Minnesota is back with their legislative push to legalize recreational cannabis this year, hoping to follow in the footsteps of many of their neighbors.

“The ability for Minnesotans to drive across the border to get cannabis is going to increase significantly,” said House Majority Leader Ryan Winkler. “People are willing to drive to Wisconsin in order to buy fireworks. They’re sure as heck going to drive to South Dakota to get cannabis.”

However, while democrats and cannabis advocates keep pushing, and 51 percent of registered voters in the state support legal cannabis, the republicans, who control the Senate in Minnesota, are mainly anti-cannabis. 

“My main concerns are the unintended consequences of recreational pot similar to the concerns we all have about tobacco, drinking, or prescription drug abuse,” said Senate Majority Leader Paul Gazelka. “Just because it’s legal, doesn’t mean there aren’t consequences. We’re just starting to learn about legalization’s adverse effects in other states like Colorado and Washington. There is no reason to rush this in Minnesota without learning more.

Pot’s Got A Fighting Chance

The Alabama Legislature goes into session tomorrow, but already lawmakers are not shying away from controversial topics. State Sen. Tim Melson, R-Florence, is bringing back his medical marijuana legislation for 2021.

The legalization of medical marijuana is an issue that Melson brought up in 2019 and in 2020. Both times, the Alabama Senate narrowly passed the legislation and both times, the decriminalization of medical marijuana failed to get out of committee in the Alabama House of Representatives. This year, Melson’s bill has been pre-filed in the state Senate as Senate Bill 46.

For Alabamians with a medical affliction that they think might be treated with medical cannabis, there are no legal options other than to move to another state. SB46 would create the Compassion Act. It would authorize certain residents of Alabama diagnosed with a qualifying medical condition and designated caregivers to be registered and obtain a medical cannabis card, thereby authorizing the patient to use cannabis for medical use.

Under existing law, unlawful possession of marijuana in the first degree is a Class C or Class D felony, and unlawful possession of marijuana in the second degree is a Class A misdemeanor. Even marijuana legally prescribed by a doctor in another state is a violation of the Alabama criminal code. While dozens of states have legalized medical marijuana, if citizens of those states visit an Alabama beach or to even drive through the state with their legally prescribed medical marijuana, they are committing a crime and could potentially do jail time if caught.

SB46 would tightly regulate medical marijuana from seed to the final end-user:

Lawmakers in New Jersey late last week moved forward on legislation designed to clear up penalties for underage cannabis use. 

Characterized as a “cleanup bill,” the legislation “would revise the consequences associated with the underage possession or consumption of illegal marijuana or hashish, or legalized cannabis items which may only be lawfully possessed by persons 21 years of age or older,” after the first attempt at a compromise bill unraveled earlier this month.

That previous bill, according to NJ.com, “fell apart when Black lawmakers came together in opposition, arguing that the penalties it set forth for those under 21 would disproportionately affect Black and Brown youth,” although the follow-up legislation that was introduced last week “is not so different from that prior attempt.”

“The main change on penalties is the lowering of fines those 18 to 20 could face for possessing marijuana,” NJ.com reported.

As for the new bill’s prospects, NJ.com said this: “If the full Legislature passed the cleanup bill, [New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy] could sign it and the two other bills legalizing (S21) and decriminalizing (S2535) marijuana into law together. He has said he cannot sign the other two as is, citing conflicting language that both legalizes possession of marijuana for those under 21 and makes it a disorderly persons offense.”

Even though the state’s decriminalization model won’t eliminate all problems associated with drug abuse, it could help chip away at it while saving law enforcement resources.

Oregon decriminalized the possession of all drugs in the November 2020 election. The law officially goes into effect on February 1, 2021. This means, from this point forward, those caught holding what the state considers a “small amount” of any illegal substance, including cocaine, methamphetamine and heroin, will no longer be charged with a crime and fed to the wolves of the criminal justice system. Instead, the offender would have to pay a small fine. No jail, no lengthy court battle.

The state is also putting a renewed focus on drug rehabilitation by allotting more than $100 million in cannabis taxes for those services. This concept might sound groundbreaking, but it is actually nothing new. Drug decriminalization has been successful for decades in Portugal. But will the United States government take notice of this policy and make a similar shift in the coming years?

The new drug decriminalization law in Oregon eliminates the criminal penalties associated with the possession of illicit substances and makes it a civil infraction. Anyone caught holding personal amounts of illegal drugs will be given the option of paying a $100 fine or participating in a health assessment. The goal is to provide addicts with a pathway to recovery rather than treat them like criminals.

According to the Oregon Criminal Justice System, the new law will decrease the number of convictions for possession of controlled substances by more than 90%. In addition to using cannabis funds to finance addiction services, the state says it will save millions by not locking up drug offenders. This money will also be put toward harm reduction programs.

When it comes to nationwide marijuana decriminalization, the president would need the help of the full Congress to get it done. And that’s where things get tricky.

Joe Biden wants America to see him as the hip, new president who is just flat out better than Donald Trump. He’s not interested in building walls, inciting riots, or tweeting a bunch of jibber-jabber from the White House throne. No sir, old Cup of Joe has a more reasonable agenda than the lame-brained administration that just moved out. He’s trying to tame the coronavirus debacle, repair a beaten-down economy, and conduct a significant overhaul on immigration.

If time allotted, Biden would also like to be the Commander in Chief to kick some major tail in the realm of marijuana reform. Not only does he support the legalization of medical marijuana, but he’s also interested in eliminating the criminal penalties associated with minor possession. 

Unfortunately, President Biden cannot crawl out of bed this morning and sign an executive order to end marijuana prohibition. He wouldn’t even if he could. Although Biden’s campaign showed a willingness to get behind modest cannabis reforms, full-blown legalization wasn’t one of them. However, Biden has some executive power he can use to help further the marijuana movement.

He can sign one ordering his health secretary to initiate the rescheduling process for the cannabis plant. And he might just do that. Biden has suggested that he would be willing to downgrade marijuana’s Schedule I listing to a Schedule II. Yet, when it comes to nationwide marijuana decriminalization, the president would need the help of the full Congress to get it done. And that’s where things get tricky.

Washington state's cannabis industry has grown at a "staggering rate" since the drug was legalized, adding an estimated $2 billion to the economy and generating total tax revenues of more than $883 million, according to a new report.

The report, by Washington State University, also found that the cannabis industry can grow even more with new innovations and nurturing from state lawmakers.

The report is the first to detail the positive economic impacts associated with the state’s newest agriculture industry. It was compiled by WSU's Impact Center for the Washington State Cannabis Alliance.

“This is a tremendous peek under the hood,” said Caitlein Ryan, interim executive director of the Alliance. “It’s easy to see how much the industry has grown and now contributes to the state’s economic well-being."

She added, “These findings also clearly tell us that the industry has grown at a staggering rate, adding nearly 20,000 jobs to the private sector, and hundreds of millions of dollars to the state’s economy. And there is still substantial growth to come, as the industry matures.”

When Jo Anne Zito was initially arrested for at-home cultivation nearly 10 years ago, her kids were taken away from her. Though her charge was later downgraded to low-level possession thanks to a grand jury, she’d already gotten a taste of how severely those who grow cannabis at home are criminalized.

Only after completing a pricey drug rehabilitation program was she legally eligible to receive custody, on top of serving three years of probation. Her husband, now deceased, was also charged and sentenced to drug court.

Three-and-a-half years into his sentence, he died while fulfilling the intense requirements of the program, Zito, board member at the Coalition for Medical Marijuana—New Jersey (MMNJ), told the state Senate in December during her public testimony in favor of at-home cannabis cultivation.

Under the proposed legislation on Gov. Phil Murphy’s desk, at-home cultivation (or home-grow) still remains severely criminalized.

“I don’t want to be in the business, I just want to grow and be left alone. Legalize me,” she said during testimony.

Okay, it’s an admittedly vague title, but it’s still true. France’s upcoming medical pilot program involves supplying medical cannabis to patients for free, and though the program was postponed, France just released the companies that won the bid to supply this free marijuana.

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Let’s be honest, France is not the most liberal when it comes to marijuana. Unlike its neighbors Spain, Italy, Switzerland, Belgium, and Germany, France does not allow for any decriminalization, personal use, or medical legalization measures. In fact, not only is France still rather conservative when it comes to cannabis, but the country was willing to allow a whole lawsuit with the EU (which it lost) just to keep CBD out. (Of course, this move was likely for the protection of pharmaceutical interests, but we’ll get into that later.) Now, with the recent announcement of a medical pilot program, France is promising to give out cannabis for free, and already lined up the companies that will provide it.

France and cannabis

The idea that France is about to give away cannabis for free is certainly a 180⁰ turn from its current laws. It is illegal to both use and possess cannabis in France. France doesn’t even make a designation between personal possession and trafficking, meaning how a case is treated is determined by the amount of cannabis in question, and what the prosecutor decides. So, if a person happens to get caught with a bunch of marijuana for their own personal medical use, it could actually be determined as trafficking. Punishments range from fines of €3,750 – €75,000, and prison sentences of 1-5 years. Cultivation is also illegal as use and possession are illegal, and no medical program exists…yet.

Selling and supply crimes are always illegal, and in France a person can incur 5-10 years in prison, along with a fine. If an offender has been found to be part of a criminal organization for trafficking, they can face life in prison, and a €7.5 million fine.

The United Nations Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND) has voted to remove cannabis from the list of the most dangerous substance.

According to the UN news portal, in reviewing a series of World Health Organisation (WHO) recommendations on cannabis and its derivatives, CND zeroed in on the decision to remove cannabis from Schedule IV of the 1961 Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs.

Under the schedule, cannabis was listed alongside specific deadly, addictive opioids, including heroin, recognised as having little to no therapeutic purpose.

“The 53 member states of the CND, the UN’s central drug policy making body, voted to remove cannabis from that schedule where it had been placed for 59 years and to which the strictest control measures apply that generally discouraged its use for medical purposes,” reads the information on the UN news portal.

The decision made in late December has opened the door to recognising the medicinal and therapeutic potential of the drug, although its use for non-medical and non-scientific purposes continues to remain illegal.

One of the most common questions cannabis consumers ask one another is how much cannabis costs in their part of the world.

It’s always fun to compare cost, quality, and quantity.

One thing many cannabis consumers across the globe will be quick to point out is that cannabis is not cheap. 

For the lucky folks who live in a part of the world where cannabis is decent quality and cheap, congratulations.

But for the rest of us, high-quality cannabis is usually fairly expensive.

Three pals out for a late-night, cannabis shopping spree had their fun cut short when police stopped them for breaching COVID-19 lockdown rules and then learned what they had been buying was a bit of weed.

The trio — all in the same vehicle, but all from different households — was busted on the night of Jan. 22, according to the Island Echo. All were fined for breaching health regulations and one man was also cited for possessing a controlled drug.

The wish-list purchase did nothing to convince the Hampshire Constabulary officers that the men needed to be outside during COVID-19. All three were ordered to pay £200 ($348).

The coronavirus “is spreading fast. Do not leave your home unless necessary. One in three people who have the virus have no symptoms, so you could be spreading it without knowing it,” notes information from the U.K. government, which has also issued video messages emphasizing the need to stay home.

“Robust enforcement action should be taken as required, where blatant breaches in public places or private premises are reported to us,” Maggie Blyth, assistant chief constable for the Hampshire Constabulary, said in a statement after the national restrictions were reintroduced.