WeedLife News Network

Making predictions about California’s marijuana industry was a challenge even before a global pandemic changed everything.

It’s not just that the legal cannabis market, which launched three years ago in California, is so new. It’s also the singularity of an industry in which licensed, legal operators still compete against a much larger illicit market, even as the industry’s core consumer product — which is medicine for some people — remains illegal at the federal level.

Some of the trends that were expected to shake up California’s marijuana industry at the start of 2020 were overshadowed or fully sidelined by the coronavirus. Still, California’s marijuana businesses fared better than some other sectors thanks to their “essential” designation, which allowed retailers and others in the supply chain to stay open and generate revenue during lockdowns.

Will that growth continue in 2021? Experts point to four changes that figure to affect the state’s cannabis industry in the coming year.

State regulators who oversee California’s cannabis industry are gearing up for major changes in the year to come.

As of January 1, 2021, it is no longer illegal to possess small amounts of marijuana for recreational use in Montana. However, there are still a number of questions before any legal sales take place.

The legalization was approved by Montana voters, who voted in favor of two measures in the November 2020 election: Constitutional Initiative 118 (CI-118) amended the state constitution to allow the Legislature or voters to set the age at which adults are allowed to possess and consume marijuana; and Initiative 190 (I-190) legalized the sale and possession of limited amounts of marijuana and levies a 20 percent tax on the sale of non-medical marijuana in Montana. It also allows people serving a sentence for an act now legal to apply for resentencing or an expungement of a conviction and prohibits the advertising of marijuana and related products.

While the Montana Legislature is likely to reshape the state’s marijuana laws in response to the initiatives, the first provisions took effect on Friday – before lawmakers even had a chance to meet.

The newly-effective sections allow people 21 and older to possess and use up to one ounce of marijuana or eight grams of marijuana concentrates. They also allow growing up to four marijuana plants inside a private residence, with the property owner’s permission.

However, Montanans shouldn’t expect to be able to immediately buy marijuana at a retail outlet, unless they have a medical card. The sections allowing recreational sales won’t take effect until at least October 2021, and current dispensaries are still limited to serving only registered patients.

With much to fight for, marijuana advocates say that people can and should do their part however possible. Here’s how.

Cannabis reform continues to make progress in America. With several states passing legislation on Election Day, and several more on the verge of doing the same soon, some may think that the fight is winding down. That isn’t the case when talking to those involved in the movement.

While much of the decades-long heavy lifting to earn back the public’s support for cannabis is already complete, there is much more to get done. Be it legalization or other policy reforms, advocates across the U.S. can and should still get involved in the fight. Even the most progressive of states continue to suffer pain points that advocates hope to address in a bid to create a fair and equal market for patients, consumers, marginalized communities and everyone else in the space. 

Jordan Isenstadt is the senior vice president of New York-based PR firm Marino. Isenstadt, who has worked in the administration of several New York State Senators and the Governor, spoke about the importance of advocacy in the community. He calls cannabis reform “one of the great social challenges of our time.” 

Isenstadt described the previous century of cannabis policy as failed and racist. “Being an advocate for cannabis today is about righting the wrongs of a century of failed policymaking,” said Isenstadt. He added, “Cannabis advocates have an opportunity to make history over the next few years.”

In advance of the 2021 legislative sessions, NORML will be providing a more detailed break down of legislative efforts in various states across the nation that are poised to enact significant marijuana reforms next year. This is the latest in a series of blogs examining where state-specific reform efforts stand.

Republican lawmakers in South Carolina are looking ahead to 2021 with hopes of passing a bill to legalize medical cannabis access. Earlier this month, State Rep. Bill Herbkersman (R) acknowledged, “It is unacceptable that South Carolinians with serious illnesses have to break the law to alleviate their suffering.”

Rep. Herbkersman, along with Senator Tom Davis (R) have pre-filed separate House and Senate versions of the South Carolina Compassionate Care Act in advance of the 2021 legislative session, which would allow qualifying patients to access medical cannabis under a physician’s supervision.

The South Carolina Compassionate Care Act was previously approved by a subcommittee vote in April 2019.

Ahead of the 2021 legislative session, Sen. Davis is optimistic that “there is a very good chance we get something passed this session,” but if that does not happen, Davis indicated that he will  “work on a bill to send the question to the people.”

Every Sunday, EZ’s Dispensary sends its weekly menu of bud via text message, offering strains like AK-47 and Girl Scout Cookies, to thousands of people in New York City. Customers respond with their order—quarter, half, full ounce—and their address. Pretty soon, a dealer in a rental car pulls up to complete the sale.

All of this is illegal, but weed delivery is part of the city’s fabric—some New Yorkers can get cannabis delivered to their door faster than a pizza. Naturally, as states have legalized marijuana sales, legal delivery services have followed, from Snoop Dogg-funded Eaze to Lantern, which is owned by alcohol delivery and e-commerce platform Drizly. And thanks to the pandemic, delivery services are booming and companies are hiring and raising venture capital to keep up with the surge in demand.

Khaled Naim, the CEO and co-founder of Onfleet, a San Francisco-based delivery management software company, raised a $14 million Series A in October to scale the business and keep up with the pandemic-inspired growth.

“Cannabis delivery has exploded this year,” says Naim. “We used to manage thousands of cannabis deliveries, now its tens of thousands.”

High-End High: Sava is targeting the higher-end, less price conscious consumer with its scheduled delivery service. Basket size grew from $162 per average customer pre-pandemic to over $170.

The USA’s Federal Trade Commission has announced its first crackdown on CBD vendors that make deceptive claims about their products.

Operation CBDeceit is already poised to claim a few scalps – its goal being to protect consumers from false, deceptive and misleading health claims regarding cannabidiol (CBD) made in online advertisements, on web sites and social media platforms. Initial action is being taken against half a dozen sellers of CBD products.

According to the FTC, one of those vendors collared claimed its products prevent a wide range of serious conditions including cancer, diabetes and heart disease. The FTC says it is illegal to advertise a product can prevent, treat, or cure disease without competent and reliable scientific evidence to support such claims.

The financial penalties proposed in five of the six cases range from USD $20,000 to $85,000. The proposed administrative orders settling the FTC’s charges also include directions for those vendors to stop making unsupported health claims immediately and prohibits engaging in deceptive advertising in the future.

“The six settlements announced today send a clear message to the burgeoning CBD industry: Don’t make spurious health claims that are unsupported by medical science,” said FTC Bureau of Consumer Protection Director Andrew Smith. “Otherwise, don’t be surprised if you hear from the FTC.”

The National Basketball Association and the NBA Players Association have reached an agreement that will not test players for marijuana use for the entirety of the 2020 to 2021 season, which starts December 22. It's a continuation of a policy used during the unusual "bubble" arrangement for the 2020 NBA playoffs in Orlando.

In announcing the decision, NBA officials pointed to the coronavirus pandemic as a motivator. NBA spokesman Mike Bass said in a statement, "Due to the unusual circumstances in conjunction with the pandemic, we have agreed with the NBPA to suspend random testing for marijuana for the 2020 to 2021 season and focus our random testing program on performance-enhancing products and drugs of abuse."

In announcing the decision, NBA officials pointed to the coronavirus pandemic as a motivator. NBA spokesman Mike Bass said in a statement, “Due to the unusual circumstances in conjunction with the pandemic, we have agreed with the NBPA to suspend random testing for marijuana for the 2020 to 2021 season and focus our random testing program on performance-enhancing products and drugs of abuse.”

The announcement is another milestone in the ever-evolving relationship between professional sports and cannabis. Earlier this year, the NFL announced that players will face fines, not suspensions, when testing positive for marijuana use.

How long will the new policy last?

The NBA's decision is of interest to people in the cannabis business because sports often reflect broader cultural trends. It's also another case of businesses having to recalibrate drug testing policy in light of marijuana legalization taking place in states across the country.

Many states have stepped up to legalize medical or recreational cannabis, and federal legalization or decriminalization could finally be on the horizon for the U.S. But South Carolina continues to hold out as one of the states without even a medical industry, falling behind the rest of the country. All that could change, however, with the pre-filing of a new bill in the South Carolina Senate. 

The bill, so far known as Senate Bill 150 or the South Carolina Compassionate Care Act, was filed by Senator Tom Davis (R-Beaufort). He really thinks the bill has a chance in 2021, despite the state’s history. 

“I have a majority of state Senators who will vote for this, and I have a majority of House members who will vote for this bill,” Davis said.

While this is an exciting bill for cannabis advocates, Davis himself admits that it’s extremely conservative as cannabis bills go, which is why he is hopeful that it will pass. 

“We limit the qualifying conditions to medical conditions for which there is empirical evidence that medical cannabis can be a medicinal benefit.”

U.S. Senator Rand Paul has introduced the Hemp Economic Mobilization Plan (H.E.M.P) Act of 2020 that seeks to significantly boost the maximum THC limit of hemp.

A major challenge for hemp farmers in the USA is the THC limit currently in place – 0.3%. Crops over this level are considered “hot” and must be destroyed. It’s a double-whammy as not only do affected farmers have the crops they’ve toiled over destroyed, they often have to also pay for their destruction. Additionally, they may be prosecuted.

The current THC limit restricts the choice of hemp varieties US farmers can cultivate, putting them at a disadvantage on the international scene as a number of other countries allow for higher THC content crops.

Senator Paul’s H.E.M.P Act of 2020 would  change the legal definition of hemp to raise the THC limit from 0.3% to 1% . Even at that level, hemp would have no recreational value. The legislation would also see testing of the final hemp-derived product instead of the hemp flower or plant.

Farmers have stated the current 15-day timeframe for harvesting and testing a hemp crop’s THC content is too short and does not take into aspects beyond their control; whereas hemp processors and manufacturers have greater control over THC content in their products.

One of the biggest arguments right now for ending marijuana prohibition in the United States is that it would generate beaucoup bucks in tax revenue and provide the nation with a trapdoor out of the economic sludge brought about by the coronavirus. After all, marijuana sales are a boon in states where it is legal.

In Colorado, one of the first states to legalize the leaf for recreational purposes, dispensaries have sold more weed in 10 months than they did all of last year. The state is poised to end the year with almost $2 billion in pot sales, providing millions of dollars in state tax revenue.

So why not take this concept nationwide? It would make sense since American economies are starved for financial relief. Some data shows that nationwide legalization would create around 1 million jobs and contribute hundreds of billions in federal tax revenue.

However, the federal government is doing just fine without putting a taxed and regulated cannabis market to work. In fact, marijuana legalization stands to cut the head off a mega-money beast that has been capitalizing on pot prohibition for years. For starters, Uncle Sam is already raking in loads of money in marijuana taxes every year.

Section 280E of the American Tax Code requires illegal marijuana businesses (even those considered legal in some states) to claim their earnings on their tax returns. But since none of these businesses can write off expenses like other sectors, they are subject to a 70% tax rate. Yep, Uncle Sam is taking the majority of the money from businesses it still considers illegal. If this policy sounds like robbery, that’s because it is. Data shows the federal government makes billions taxing weed operations in legal states. 

Following the results of the 2020 presidential election, cannabis advocates across the nation breathed a sigh of relief; for the first time in our history, cannabis decriminalization was being supported by the party in office. Since 2012, 15 states and Washington, DC, have legalized cannabis for adults over the age of 21. And 36 states have legalized medical cannabis — meaning that a majority of Americans now have some form of access to cannabis, whether medically or recreationally. On December 4th, the House passed the Marijuana Opportunity, Reinvestment, and Expungement (MORE) Act, a historic bill which will remove cannabis from the Controlled Substances Act and serves as the first step in ultimately deciding the fate of federal decriminalization in the United States. 

But, as proponents are keenly aware, major changes will need to be made at the regulatory level to ensure decriminalization rolls out effectively across the country, while setting the United States up for federal legalization in the not-so-distant future. So, where better to look for lessons learned on the path to legalization, than Canada?

Lessons from the North

The cannabis industry has made major strides across North America over the last few years, including Canada, which federally legalized cannabis two years ago. Having already forged the path, Canada can now serve as a case study for the United States as it takes its first step toward legalization, through decriminalization, offering guidance into best practices for launching a new legal industry, and warnings of the costly repercussions of unpreparedness, inexperience, and premature rapid growth.

While the legal Canadian market took off as investors took interest, growing the market to hit CAD $908 million in online and retail store sales within the first year, the numbers fell well short of analysts’ initial projections as a poorly executed retail distribution framework and high costs had many consumers turning to the legacy market. Within a year of legalization, the industry was experiencing mass layoffs and major executive changes at some of the country’s largest producers, alongside multi-billion-dollar stock-market losses. Initial product shortages were then followed by a massive surplus in inventory, with licenced producers reporting more than 400 metric tonnes of excess supply that forced price reductions as they dealt with overflowing warehouses. To ensure a successful transition from decriminalization to legalization, while avoiding the pitfalls that the Canadian industry faced, the US will need to focus on five major areas.

1. Prioritize distribution channels

The US’s ability to capitalize on rapid growth will start with having a proper retail distribution structure. Where Canada struggled in this regard, lacking the infrastructure to approve enough retail licenses to meet the distribution needs of producers, the US needs to use this opportunity to establish a sufficient retail distribution framework to ensure that producers can get their products into the hands of consumers in a timely manner. 

Public and political support for legalizing recreational marijuana use has surged. Florida lawmakers need to accept that reality and come up with effective legislation. If not, the public will legalize pot via constitutional amendment. (Photo by strelov/Getty Images)

When it comes to legalizing marijuana in Florida, the question is no longer whether it should be legalized. The question is whether lawmakers want a role in that process.

We think they should. But first, lawmakers have to accept a simple reality.

It’s time to legalize recreational use of marijuana for adults.

There are plenty of reasons, not the least is that resistance has become futile. The political will to legalize pot is strengthening. A growing majority of Americans want it.

Gov. Jared Polis signed a landmark bill affecting the cannabis industry on June 29 in front of Simply Pure in Denver. The dispensary was the first in the nation owned by a Black couple.

HB20-1424 creates a new social equity license that is intended to boost minority participation in the cannabis industry. The program goes into effect Jan. 1.

The bill also authorizes the governor to pardon individuals for possession of up to 2 ounces of marijuana — the current legal limit for medical patients — removing a barrier to ownership of marijuana businesses.

“This month, across our whole state and our whole society, we’ve had a long overdue and renewed conversation about race, about racial inequalities … and cannabis is no different than anything else,” Polis said at the bill signing. “The majority of those in prison for cannabis-related crimes are people of color, while the majority of people that are making money legally on cannabis are white.”

People with prior convictions have been prevented from raising capital and getting loans, leases, jobs, licenses and mortgages, Polis said.

A temporary scheme enabling patients in Ireland easier access to their prescribed medical cannabis treatments has been made permanent.

In Ireland, specialist medical consultants can prescribe medical cannabis for patients with certain conditions assuming an appropriate application is submitted to the Department of Health and accepted. The country’s Medical Cannabis Access Programme kicked off in 2019 on a pilot basis for five years.

Currently, only three medications can be used – High CBD Oil Drops from Aurora, CannEpil from MGC Pharmaceuticals and THC10:CBD10 from Tilray. But it hasn’t been a case of popping down to the local pharmacy to pick up the medicines. The majority of patients of licenced clinicians obtain their prescribed products from Transvaal Pharmacy in the Hague in the Netherlands.

Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, these patients or family members had to travel to the Netherlands to collect their medical cannabis prescription due to a ban in the Netherlands on commercial exports of cannabis oils. This created a great deal of stress for patients and their families, along with the significant added financial strain associated with making the trips.

A temporary delivery service from the Netherlands was established in April 2020 for the filling of individual prescriptions due to COVID-19 travel restrictions. It’s obviously worked out pretty well, and yesterday Minister for Health Stephen Donnelly announced this would be ongoing.

The Bureau of Cannabis Control‘s Cannabis Advisory Committee approved recommendations that would relax several regulations for the California cannabis industry, aimed at helping struggling cannabis businesses. The recommendations were included in the state panel’s annual report.

While arguably the largest state market for cannabis in the United States, California legal cannabis businesses struggle with competition from illegal cannabis sellers, among many other obstacles to expanded profitability. Though classified as essential services by the state, the businesses also have been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and new public health requirements for retail and manufacturing industries.

“The state has faced unprecedented circumstances in 2020: the global COVID-19 pandemic and resulting recession, a record-breaking wildfire season, and the nationwide fight for racial justice and equality,” the seventeen-member panel reported. “With the additional pressures the cannabis industry faces during this challenging time in mind, the Advisory Committee sought to recommend policies that promote public health, set the stage for the proposed consolidation of the licensing authorities, and lead to economic recovery.”

Recommendations made by the panel included lifting the $5,000 limit on the cannabis products can be carried by delivery vans, which would allow retail businesses to offer a greater variety of products. The panel also recommended that cannabis lounges eventually be allowed to serve food and beverages.

The committee has not yet posted it’s final report, but a draft is available here.

Two weeks ago, I reported on the landmark ruling by the Court of Justice of the European Union (the CJEU) that cannabidiol (CBD) derived from the entire hemp plant is not a narcotic under the U.N. Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs of 1961 (the Single Convention); and thus, should be freely traded between European Union (EU) member states.

The same day that piece was published, the European Commission accepted the CJEU ruling and retracted its preliminary position on treating hemp-derived CBD and other extracts derived from the flowering tops of the Cannabis sativa L. plant as narcotics. This means that CBD ingestible products won’t be banned from the EU market and that European regulators have resumed the review of those existing CBD Novel Food Authorization applications.

Then, on December 2, 2020, the United Nations Commission for Narcotic Drugs (the CND) brought to a vote six recommendations made by World Health Organization (WHO) in 2019.

The Single Convention, an international treaty in which member countries pledge to ban the production and trade of certain drugs, including cannabis, except for medical and research purposes, categorizes drugs based on their possible harm versus medical utility. The Single Convention has four schedules: Schedules I and II are the main schedules, whereas Schedules III and IV are complementary schedules. Schedule IV is a stricter subset of Schedule I and includes substances considered to be the most harmful and with virtually no therapeutic value — this is in essence comparable to Schedule I of the U.S. Controlled Substance Act (the CSA).

Of the six WHO recommendations, only the proposal to remove cannabis and cannabis resin for medicinal purposes from Schedule IV of the Single Convention was approved by a close vote, passing 27 to 25, with the United States (the U.S.) and notable European nations in favor.

Mexico’s President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador on Tuesday blamed small draft errors for a delay in approving a new law that would legalize cannabis and effectively create one of the world’s largest weed markets.

The bill was due to be approved by Dec. 15, but it has been delayed to next year, with the Supreme Court setting a new deadline of April 30 for the law to be passed, according to local media.

Lopez Obrador said legislators requested a delay as time had run out before the current session in Congress ended this month, meaning there was not enough time to review the bill.

“The period was practically over but they are matters of form and not substance,” Lopez Obrador said in his morning daily press conference, adding that the issues will be “resolved” in the next session due to start in February.

The bill, which would mark a major shift in a country bedeviled for years by violence between feuding drug cartels, easily passed the Senate in a vote last month, and would create a huge new legal market for marijuana.

Lawmakers haven’t given much consideration to how weed will be treated in places like casinos, mostly because everyone involved seems to be under the impression that it will be treated the same as booze and tobacco. 

New Jersey just legalized recreational marijuana in the November election, but don’t bet on Atlantic City’s casinos amending their policies to accommodate people who use the herb. That’s probably not going to happen, according to a report from the Press Of Atlantic City.

Although people have been secretly using marijuana in the hotels for years, people close to these operations say that’s only because management has turned a blind eye. However, now that marijuana is legal, the protocol might get a little more militant with respect to the “no marijuana” restrictions.

“I don’t think there’s going to be any real major change,” Dan Heneghan, an industry consultant and retired spokesperson for the state Casino Control Commission, told the news source. “The blind eye that (casinos) turn to that will just be opened.”

So far, the Casino Association of New Jersey has not come out and taken a definitive stance against marijuana use. But that is likely because marijuana regulations are still being hashed out in the state legislature. The truth is, New Jersey lawmakers haven’t really given much consideration to how marijuana will be treated in places like casinos, mostly because everyone involved seems to be under the impression that it will be treated the same as alcohol and tobacco. 

South Carolina lawmakers are slated to consider multiple bills next year that could legalize marijuana for either recreational or medicinal use.

Though some Democrats are pushing for complete decriminalization of the plant, there is a bipartisan effort to push legalization of medical marijuana in the state.

Medical marijuana bills prefiled this month in both the House and the Senate tout sponsors from both parties. If either bill — both named the “South Carolina Compassionate Care Act” — were to pass, South Carolina would join 36 other states in allowing the use of marijuana for medical purposes.

But bipartisan support hasn’t been enough to push through marijuana legislation in the past. Last session, two bipartisan bills, one in each the House and the Senate, didn’t make it out of their respective committees.

In the Senate last year, the bill became bogged down by amendments, including one that would only allow cannabis derivatives such as oils and creams. Neither bill resurfaced during 2020, when the session was cut short by COVID-19.