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Browsing: Legislation

Marijuana Reform Is Still a Long Way Off for Texas

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By on Legislation

Marijuana reform is headed for Texas, but it probably won’t get here anytime soon.

During the 85th Texas legislative session, which ended in May, two cannabis reform bills made it further than pretty much any similar efforts have before. Although both laws had an apparent majority in the Texas House of Representatives, the session ended before they could be voted on.

One bill aimed to decriminalize possession of small amounts of marijuana. The other tried to create a real medical marijuana program. While the bills’ legislative journey says a lot about how much politicians in Texas have warmed to marijuana, it will probably be at least two or three more years before the state sees any big changes to its pot laws.

Is Congressional Threat to Medical Pot Biz Protection Real or a “Nothingburger”?

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By on Follow that story, Legalize It, Legislation, News

The most prominent anti-marijuana group in the country is touting the absence of language in a key Congressional funding bill that has protected the medical marijuana industry in Colorado and beyond from federal prosecution in recent years. But a cannabis advocate dismisses the suggestion that this development could soon unleash a law-enforcement blitzkrieg against the MMJ biz.

In the words of Tom Angell, who leads the national organization Marijuana Majority, “This is a gigantic nothingburger.”

Want a Say in Colorado’s Marijuana Enforcement? Here’s Your Chance

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By on Cannabusiness, Follow that story, Legislation, News

Legalizing medical and recreational marijuana may have seemed like the end of a long journey for consumers, but it was just the beginning of a vigorous regulatory obstacle course for advocates, lobbyists and industry members. As state and local governments continue to “build a plane as we fly it,” to quote former Colorado marijuana czar Andrew Freedman, Colorado’s Marijuana Enforcement Division wants your input during its next round of stakeholder meetings – but only if you know your shit.

Thornton’s First and Only Dispensaries Will Have Familiar Faces

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By on Cannabusiness, Dispensaries, Legislation

Initially content with viewing the commercial cannabis experiment from the sidelines, the City of Thornton banned dispensaries back in 2010. That all changed last August, though, when the Thornton City Council lifted the ban and began considering applications for recreational pot shops.

A town of more than 136,000 people, according to U.S. Census estimates, Thornton has approached its burgeoning cannabis sector with more trepidation than Denver did, allowing just one dispensary in each of the city’s four geographical quadrants. The council approved its fourth and final applicant in April, setting the stage for open recreational dispensaries as early as late summer.

Legal Pot and Colorado Crash Rates: Two Studies, Two Different Conclusions

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By on Busted, Legislation, Media, News

Only days after the release of a study saying that collision claim frequencies in Colorado are about 3 percent higher overall than would have been expected without marijuana legalization comes a competing report stating that the crash fatality rates haven’t changed significantly. These seemingly contradictory findings leave one marijuana reformer confused but certain that the sky isn’t falling.

Eleven Ways the Trump Administration May Try to Kill Legal Marijuana

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By on Elections, Follow that story, Legalize It, Legislation, News

Members of the Justice Department’s Task Force on Crime Reduction and Public Safety have been ordered to “undertake a review of existing policies” regarding federal marijuana law enforcement, among other things. Their report is due on or before July 27, and the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws believes the document may use as its template a list by a fellow at the ultra-conservative Heritage Foundation of eleven ways the administration of President Donald Trump can shut down legal cannabis.

The tactics, shared below, include employing the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO), as was just allowed via a ruling in a potentially groundbreaking marijuana-smell lawsuit in Colorado earlier this month.

Reintroduced CARERS Act Would Protect States’ Rights, Medical Marijuana Patients

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By on CBD, Follow that story, Legalize It, Legislation, Medical, News

Days after a letter from Attorney General Jeff Sessions surfaced, asking congressional leaders to revoke federal protections for medical marijuana, senators have introduced a bill that would protect medical marijuana patients in states where it’s legal while also removing cannabidiol (CBD) from the Controlled Substances Act and expanding research on marijuana.
Senators Cory Booker (D-New Jersey), Mike Lee (R-Utah), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-New York), Rand Paul (R-Kentucky), Al Franken (D-Minnesota) and Lisa Murkowski (R-Arkansas) introduced the Compassionate Access Research and Respect the States (CARERS) Act on June 15. The bill would protect medical marijuana users from federal prosecution, allow Department of Veterans Affairs doctors to recommend medical marijuana to veterans, and loosen multiple restrictions on cannabis research and medical compounds.

NORML Promises Fight After Latest Trump Minion Hints of Marijuana Crackdown

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By on Follow that story, Legalize It, Legislation, Medical, News

The National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws is sending a clear signal to the administration of President Donald Trump following the latest negative words and deeds aimed at legal marijuana in Colorado and beyond by Justice Department officials Jeff Sessions and Rod Rosenstein. In the words of NORML policy director Justin Strekal, “Should the Department of Justice decide to throw out the Tenth Amendment and respect for states’ rights as they govern their own intrastate commerce, they’re going to have a fight on their hands.”

Ten Tips for Chefs Who Want to Mix Cannabis and Fine Dining

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By on Cannabusiness, Culture, Legislation

Mixing gourmet food and premium cannabis was a hot topic for white-collar America after the New Yorker‘s April feature story on the “Martha Stewart of edibles,” a Portland food writer who holds cannabis-infused dinners at her home. The story was nothing new to us in the Mile High, of course, where there have been plenty of edibles, both legal and illegal, to choose from for quite some time.

But what if you want to separate weed and food while still enjoying them together?

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