Newsletter
Another former anti-cannabis congressman joins company board (Newsletter: October 14, 2019)
Mexican leaders to release legalization bill this week; Former FDA head floats cannabis compromise; California gov signs & vetoes marijuana bills
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/ TOP THINGS TO KNOW
Former Rep. Stephen Buyer (R-IN) joined the board of cannabis firm FSD Pharma. Marijuana Moment took a deep dive into his record as a congressman, including consistent votes against measures to protect state medical cannabis laws from federal interference and cosponsoring legislation seeking to overturn local policies.
Former Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Scott Gottlieb suggested in a Wall Street Journal op-ed that Congress “take marijuana out of the existing paradigm for drug scheduling” and wrote that regulating “potency of THC compounds, the forms they take, how they’re manufactured, and who can make purchases ought to be possible.”
Key Mexican Senate committees have declared themselves in permanent session as they work to merge provisions of various marijuana legalization proposals into a comprehensive bill they plan to propose on Thursday.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) signed several cannabis bills into law, including measures concerning medical marijuana donations to low-income patients, tax fairness for businesses, a legal hemp program, research and more. But he also vetoed a bill to allow medical cannabis in healthcare facilities.
/ FEDERAL
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued vaping guidance noting that “products containing THC, particularly those obtained off the street or from other informal sources…are linked to most of the cases and play a major role in the outbreak” and recommending that “persons should not use e-cigarette, or vaping, products that contain THC” but also that “persons consider refraining from using e-cigarette, or vaping, products that contain nicotine.”
The House of Representatives is expected to consider legislation on the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy this week.
Rep. Don Young (R-AK) toured several marijuana businesses and said he is optimistic about cannabis banking legislation after speaking to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY).
Rep. Barbara Lee (D-CA) tweeted, “1️⃣ Legalize marijuana at the federal level 2️⃣ Legitimize the industry with resources and banking opportunities 3️⃣Provide restorative justice to communities of color most impacted by the failed War on Drugs”
The House bill to deschedule marijuana and fund programs to repair the harms of the drug war got one new cosponsor for a total of 48.
/ STATES
Nevada Gov. Steve Sisolak (D) formed a multi-state agency special task force to investigate potential corruption or criminal influences in the state’s marijuana industry.
Pennsylvania’s lieutenant governor tweeted, “‘88,000 people die each year in the United States due to causes related to alcohol use. Cigarette smoking.. more than 480,000 deaths. Yet there’s no serious talk of prohibition of those products.’ It must be all those none cannabis overdose deaths.”
The U.S. Virgin Islands Committee on Rules and Judiciary rejected the nomination of a former senator who authored the territory’s medical cannabis law to serve on an implementation advisory board.
Oregon regulators filed temporary rules for a six-month ban on flavored vaping products and also released a compliance education bulletin.
Washington State regulators published guidance about the state’s flavored vaping ban.
The Colorado Supreme Court will hear a case on Thursday concerning medical cannabis use by people on probation.
Florida regulators proposed hemp rules and will hold hearings to receive public comment this month.
Louisiana regulators published hemp rules they intend to adopt.
The California Legislative Analyst’s Office reviewed two proposed marijuana ballot measures.
The Oklahoma legislture’s interim study on medical cannabis advertising has been delayed.
An Indiana senator authored an op-ed on the need to decriminalize marijuana.
Missouri regulators are hiring attorneys to work to defend against challenges to medical cannabis business license denials.
Alabama regulators began accepting hemp applications.
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/ LOCAL
The Pinellas County, Florida sheriff and state attorney issued a memo advising police not to make certain marijuana arrests.
The Broward County, Florida sheriff said it is “only a matter of time” until marijuana is legalized.
/ INTERNATIONAL
Australia’s health minister is asking officials to share information they considered before enacting a local marijuana legalization law.
Canada’s Conservative Party paid for Facebook ads falsely accusing the Liberal government of wanting to “legalize hard drugs.”
A Russian court sentenced an Israeli-American woman to seven and a half years in prison for allegedly smuggling nine grams marijuana into the country after Israel rejected an offer to exchange her for a Russian hacker set to be extradited to the U.S.
/ SCIENCE & HEALTH
A dermatological science review concluded that “cannabinoids have demonstrated anti-inflammatory, antipruritic, anti-aging, and antimalignancy properties by various mechanisms including interacting with the newly found endocannabinoid system of the skin thereby providing a promising alternative to traditional treatments.”
The University of California San Diego School of Medicine’s Center for Medicinal Cannabis Research announced $3 million in grants to study medical cannabis as a supplementary or alternative treatment for schizophrenia, rheumatoid arthritis, insomnia, alcohol dependence and anxiety linked to anorexia.
/ ADVOCACY, OPINION & ANALYSIS
A poll found that Florida likely voters support legalizing marijuana, 67%-29%.
The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review editorial board is calling on Congress to pass a marijuana banking bill.
/ BUSINESS
Ohio medical cannabis companies are jointly moving to disclose vaping product ingredients.
Cura Cannabis settled a defamation lawsuit against Bloom Farms.
Mother Jones looks for clues as to who the unnamed foreign national allegedly involved in funding a scheme to win marijuana business licenses was in a federal indictment filed last week.
/ CULTURE
Anderson Cooper led a 60 Minutes report on psychedelic research.
Actor Woody Harrelson spoke to Ellen DeGeneres about the potency of his marijuana.
The finance editor of The Economist wrote about her experiences with psychedelics.
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