Black people in every single state are more likely to be arrested than white people for marijuana-related offenses, according to recently released data, despite legalization. Several states have legalized or decriminalized marijuana since 2010, yet the intended common goal to decrease discriminatory practices in marijuana arrests haven’t improved as well as expected. Regarding the evidence […]
A recent YouGov poll found 45% of respondents believed that recreational cannabis legislation has been “more of a success than a failure” or “success only,” with 19% saying that it was “more of a failure than success” or “failure only.” Only 10% of respondents believed legalization legislation was a failure. Among Republicans, 41% said the reforms had […]
Colorado has made online sales of recreational marijuana legal during the coronavirus pandemic, fulfilling one of the pot industry’s biggest wishes and fueling its argument for more concessions that could be made permanent when the crisis eases. It’s one of several signs emerging from the virus outbreak of just how far ingrained marijuana has become […]
As New York lawmakers deal with the fallout of the coronavirus pandemic, it appears cannabis legalization is off the table for this session. During a coronavirus briefing, Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) said the state would likely only be able to pass a “bare-bones” budget as it’s been the state hardest hit by the pandemic. See […]
Business analysts at DataTrek Research suggest more states could legalize adult-use cannabis in the near future to help their economies recover from the coronavirus pandemic. Traditional revenue-boosting strategies such as increasing income, sales, or real estate taxes could push taxpayers away and further weaken state economies. A brand new taxed and regulated cannabis marketplace, however, would help […]
The Smart and Safe Arizona ballot initiative, that could legalize marijuana for adults 21 years and older in Arizona, has quickly gathered more than the required 300,000 signatures necessary to get listed on the ballots in November 2020. Most of the signature gathering was done in front of Arizona dispensaries and at various mega stores like Target and Wal-Mart […]
The Alabama Senate passed SB165 with a vote of 22-11. The bill would be the strictest medical marijuana bill to be passed in the United States, requiring patients to exhaust all other treatments before being prescribed marijuana and require consultation with two doctors. The bill also prohibits any smokeable medicinal products from being sold. See the original […]
Bernie Sanders has repeatedly said that, if elected, he’d sign an executive order on his first day in office to legalize cannabis in all 50 US states. But could he really do it? Unfortunately, it’s not so simple. A Sanders administration would almost certainly mean a step forward for cannabis policy in the United States. But it’s virtually […]
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo is making the rounds as he prepares for the legalization of marijuana in the Empire State. Cuomo has previously stated he wants legalization passed by state officials before April 1, when the state budget must be approved. See the original article at Daily Voice
Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Elizabeth Warren has unveiled her plan to legalize cannabis if she is elected president — the plan includes expungement of past convictions, research funding, medical cannabis access for veterans, and more. Warren unveiled the plan before a campaign stop in Denver, Colorado and said during the rally that the reforms are […]
Asked in a new interview about President Trump’s position on changing federal marijuana laws, a top reelection campaign aide said the administration’s policy is that cannabis and other currently illegal drugs should remain illegal. “I think the president has been pretty clear on his views on marijuana at the federal level,” said Marc Lotter, director […]
The head of the labor union that represents U.S. Border Patrol agents acknowledged that states that legalize marijuana are disrupting cartel activity. While National Border Patrol Council President Brandon Judd was attempting to downplay the impact of legalization, he seemed to inadvertently make a case for the regulation all illicit drugs by arguing that cartels […]
Los Angeles County, California is set to expunge 66,000 cannabis-related convictions, including 62,000 felony convictions and 4,000 misdemeanor convictions dating back to the early 1960s. District Attorney Jackie Lacey, who filed the motion to erase the convictions, said her office went above and beyond what current cannabis laws require and dismissed felonies for cultivation, transporting, […]
Virginia lawmakers have passed legislation that would decriminalize possession of small amounts of marijuana. Those caught with the drug would instead receive a fine of no more than $25. See the original article at WRIC
A newly filed proposed ballot initiative would repeal the section of the Colorado Constitution that says cannabis “should be legal for persons twenty-one years of age or older and taxed in a manner similar to alcohol.” The measure, submitted to state officials for review last month, would not change Colorado laws concerning medical cannabis or […]
According to a recent poll, 9 out of 10 people living in Kentucky support the legalization of medical cannabis, up from 78% in 2012. 95 percent of Democrats, 92 percent of independents, and 90 percent of Republicans support some form of reform. The poll also found 59 percent support for allowing adults to buy and […]
Illinois cannabis shops brought in nearly $40 million in the first month of legal recreational marijuana sales, the state’s Department of Financial and Professional Regulation announced. During the 31-day period, almost 1 million individual marijuana products were sold across the state. Many of those transactions came from out-of-state cannabis tourists, who purchased $8.6 million worth of […]
Former New York City Mayor and 2020 Democratic presidential candidate Michael Bloomberg called efforts to legalize marijuana “perhaps the stupidest thing anybody has ever done.” The position from the billionaire politician would seem to be out of step with Democratic leaders in his state and liberal voters nationwide. See the original article at Newsweek
Sen. Bernie Sanders’s (I-VT) campaign is encouraging the candidate to promptly legalize marijuana without waiting for Congress if he is elected to the White House. Directing the Justice Department to reclassify cannabis under federal law is among dozens of executive actions that are under consideration for Sanders’s “first days as president.” See the original article […]
Researchers found that after cannabis legalization, binge-drinking rates for college students showed a greater drop than their peers in states where cannabis remains illegal. Binge drinking was defined in the study as having five or more drinks in a single sitting within the previous two weeks. See the original article at Ganjapreneur
Two lawmakers in Colorado are pushing for passage of a law that would protect employees in the state from being fired for their use of pot off the job. If passed, the bill would prohibit employers “from terminating an employee for the employee’s lawful off-duty activities that are lawful under state law.” See the original […]
Voters in Florida will have to wait at least two more years before they get the opportunity to decide whether the state should legalize pot. Make it Legal Florida, the group that spearheaded the campaign to get the proposed amendment on the 2020 ballot, said this week that it is tabling the effort, with an […]
A cannabis decriminalization bill has been introduced in Tennessee. In addition to the statewide reforms, the legislation would allow counties to legalize cannabis for adult use. The measure would broadly decriminalize possession by adults up to one-half ounce. See the original article at Ganjapreneur
A House Energy and Commerce subcommittee is scheduled to hold a hearing on various reform proposals on Wednesday, including cannabis reform. This comes months after the House Judiciary Committee held a historic vote approving a comprehensive legalization bill sponsored by the panel’s chairman, Rep. Jerrold Nadler (D-NY). That legislation—the Marijuana Opportunity, Reinvestment and Expungement (MORE) Act—will be one of […]
Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo vowed to legalize marijuana in New York, prioritizing a push that fell apart last year amid tensions over who should be allowed to sell the drug and where the revenue should go. The governor described the effort as a long overdue criminal justice reform that could help salve wounds in communities […]
On the first of legal recreational marijuana in Illinois, Illinois raked in almost $3.2 million in sales of the substance. Legalization also brought about applications for the 75 available dispensary licenses. New licenses will be issued on May 1. See the original article at Raw Story
It’s no secret that conservative politics and cannabis legalization don’t always mix, but young Republicans may change that. Across the nation, young Republicans continue to support increased efforts to legalize cannabis at far greater rates than the old guard. According to NPR, about 60% of young Republicans favored legalizing cannabis ahead of the 2016 election. See the […]
Years before Illinois lawmakers moved to legalize recreational marijuana, police in the largest suburban communities were already making far fewer arrests for cannabis crimes. Arrests for marijuana-related crimes dropped by between 63% and roughly 80% from 2015 to 2018 in Chicago’s five largest suburbs. See the original article at Chicago Tribune
More than a year ago, Canada made recreational cannabis legal. So why are people still buying it on the black market? “It didn’t take a rocket scientist to recognize that [cannabis] stocks were trading on fantasy and not on fundamentals,” says Jonathan Rubin, CEO of New Leaf Data Services. See the original article at BBC
Domestic travelers caught with weed in Chicago airports won’t be busted after Jan. 1, Chicago police say. The federally-run Transportation Security Administration, which screens all passengers getting on planes, says it will defer to police if they find someone carrying pot. See the original article at Chicago Sun-Times
During federal budget negotiations the Republican-controlled Senate removed several riders from the omnibus package meant to protect the legal cannabis industry. The Senate also rejected a measure that would have given legal cannabis businesses banking protections – similar to the protections allowed in the House-approved SAFE Banking Act. See the original article at Ganjapreneur
Mayor Lori Lightfoot beat back an attempt by black aldermen to stall the start of recreational marijuana sales in Chicago for six months, setting the stage for the city’s legal weed bonanza to start Jan. 1. The mayor emerged with a big legislative win after hours of intense, often heated public debate on the City […]
This week, lawmakers in both Kentucky and Indiana have filed bills to legalize cannabis in their respective states. Rep. Cluster Howard of Kentucky and Rep. Karen Tallian of Indiana proposed new legislation which would signifigantly loosen marijuana laws. See the original articles on High Times