Political

Advocates for equity in the cannabis industry hope to see more diversity among licensees if a bill approved by the Legislature gets the governor’s signature. 

The legislation, which passed through the House 57-40 Tuesday, creates a task force that will help create the Marijuana Social Equity Program. It would allow the Liquor and Cannabis Board (LCB) to issue forfeited, canceled and revoked retail licenses to applicants in communities disproportionately impacted by the war on drugs. The program would last for eight years.

Sen. Steve Dickerson's medical marijuana bill passed through the Tennessee Senate committee on Wednesday afternoon with a vote of 6 to 3.

However, there was a last-minute amendment added by Republican Senator Bo Watson (R-Hixson) that would only allow the bill to happen if marijuana is rescheduled as a Schedule 2 substance federally. The committee also voted to pass the amendment 6 to 3.

Senator Dickson, a Republican Nashville lawmaker, is in his fifth year of bringing forth legislation that would legalize certain forms of cannabis for medical use.

The marijuana legalization process in US states is speeding up in 2020. Many new states are coming up with their own proposals to legalize marijuana. The demand for marijuana is high among Americans. However, the lack of legal stores forces consumers to approach the illegal market to obtain their favorite products, which causes a surge in illegal cannabis sales. Now, the DEA (Drug Enforcement Administration) agrees that state-level legalization could actually help lower the illegal market demand.

Members of the Oglala Sioux Tribe will vote this week on legalizing medical and recreational cannabis on South Dakota’s Pine Ridge Reservation in an initiative that many hope will bring economic development to one of the most impoverished areas in the country.

Neither South Dakota nor nearby Wyoming and Nebraska have legalized marijuana, and tribal leaders think marijuana could rake in millions of dollars. If the measure is approved, the Oglala Sioux Tribe would become the only Native American tribe to set up a cannabis market in a state where it’s otherwise illegal.

An amendment that establishes a potency cap of 10% THC for medical marijuana patients under 21 has made its way back to the Florida House floor, where it was tacked onto a larger healthcare bill during a floor session Thursday.

The amendment, which passed with a voice vote on the floor, would not apply to patients 21 and younger with terminal illnesses.

With a clean sweep of the American South, former Vice President Joe Biden cruised into the lead for the Democratic presidential nomination on Tuesday night, eclipsing the former frontrunner, Sen. Bernie Sanders, in the total delegate tally.

Biden shot ahead with victories in Alabama, Arkansas, North Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, and Oklahoma. He also claimed wins in Massachusetts and Minnesota.

Sanders, meanwhile, won the Democratic primaries in California, Colorado, Utah, and Vermont. Texas and Maine remain too close to call.

Marijuana legalization is a hot top topic in the US as the presidential 2020 election gets closer. Legalizing recreational cannabis is a priority for Connecticut in 2020. Recently, the state mentioned that it’s ready to pass the legalization bill. Neighboring states’ stance on marijuana legalization pushed Connecticut’s steps forward.

 A new effort to legalize recreational marijuana in Ohio got underway in the state Monday.

Backers of a measure called the Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol Amendment submitted the initial petition and 1,000 signatures to the Ohio Attorney General’s Office for review. A long process awaits the proposal, which backers want on the November 2020 ballot.

The constitutional amendment would allow adults over the age of 21 to buy, possess and consume limited amounts of marijuana, including growing up to six marijuana plants.

The blossoming medicinal cannabis market gets a boost from Texas lawmakers.

Texas is one step closer to joining the 34 states where medicinal marijuana is legal after state legislators passed a law written by North Texas Republican representative and registered nurse Stephanie Klick to expand the conditions that can be treated with medicinal cannabis.  Although the law narrowly defines which conditions can be treated with medicinal marijuana, it is a significant expansion. 

In a last-ditch effort at the tail end of the legislative session, the chamber most likely to oppose a cap on THC has taken up the issue.

After weeks of rumors that the Florida House was pushing an amendment that would put a cap on the amount of THC in all medical marijuana at 10% potency, the proposal was finally filed Friday afternoon in the Senate.

THC is the main psychoactive compound in marijuana, and can come in the form of whole-flower marijuana, tinctures, oils, vaporizers and edibles.