New hemp-derived CBD regulations in Colorado

The Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) has finalized state testing requirements for hemp. The new regulations take effect on October 1 and include all hemp-derived goods intended for human consumption, including hemp-infused CBD products.

“We don’t want to burden the industry,” Jeff Lawrence, CDPHE director of environmental health and sustainability, told Westword. “But what we’ve learned is that there are things in hemp products that we obviously need to be considerate of. Since the inception of hemp, Colorado has been a leader in this industry. This will provide some better guidance.”

Testing will screen for things like pesticides, heavy metals, and residual solvents.

Hemp-infused products like foods, drinks, nutritional supplements, cosmetics, and pet products will be subject to the new testing requirements. Industrial hemp products like textiles, fuel, and building materials, are excluded from the testing requirements. Hemp-derived smokable products, including those with modified cannabinoids like Delta-8 THC, are also excluded from the new regulations.

“Ultimately, this is a public-health issue. In 2018, when, statutorily, these products were allowed, we said it would be treated like every other food and dietary supplement requirement,” Lawrence said.

DEA-approved medical marijuana research facility coming to Denver

A Denver-based marijuana research and cultivation firm received approval from the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) to begin federally-approved medical marijuana studies.

The research license will allow MedPharm to study all of the molecules known to be made by the cannabis plant—more than 400 so far. The company will also be studying the interaction between phytocannabinoids and different brain cells.

“Access to the diversity of chemicals produced by cannabis has never been greater, and we are excited to unlock the medical potential of these compounds,” said Dr. Tyrell Towle, MedPharm’s director of chemistry and research.

Although MedPharm is licensed to grow medical marijuana for research purposes at the city and state levels, they’re still waiting on the DEA to approve federal licensing. That means that the company won’t be using its own marijuana for research. Currently, the University of Mississippi is the only federally licensed medical marijuana research supplier.

Colorado Cannabis Business Office focuses on social equity

Governor Jared Polis announced the creation of a new office aimed at supporting cannabis businesses and promoting social equity.

The Cannabis Business Office (CBO) was created as part of a bill passed earlier this year. $4 million was set aside for the program for the 2022-’23 fiscal year from the state Marijuana Tax Cash Fund.

According to the CBO, the office will:

“This office will offer tools like technical help and improve access to money for businesses. Where the federal government has fallen behind, Colorado will lead. Colorado is, and always has been, the best place to live, work, grow and sell cannabis,” Polis said in a press release.

Colorado’s Speaker of the House, Alec Garnett (D-Denver), has introduced legislation that would create more stringent rules for medical marijuana patients and marijuana concentrates.

 House Bill 1317 would require a review of a patient’s mental health history before a physician could recommend medical marijuana. That recommendation would have to include a prescribed THC potency level and daily dosage.

Additionally, a new state tracking system would monitor medical marijuana patient’s purchases.

Instead of being packaged and sold by the gram, marijuana concentrates, aka dabs, would be packaged in single doses no larger than 0.1 grams. Medical purchases of cannabis concentrates would be limited to 8 grams per day for patients 21 years and older. Medical marijuana patients between the ages of 18 and 20 would be limited to purchasing 2 grams of concentrate per day.

It’s not clear what data is driving the lawmaker’s desire to regulate marijuana concentrates and medical cannabis further. There has been an uptick in marijuana concentrate usage among teenagers from 2017 to 2019, but overall, marijuana usage rates in Colorado have remained flat in Colorado since legalization. Additionally, enrollment for Colorado’s medical marijuana program has fallen in recent years. It’s uncertain what impact the new legislation would have on patient access or the medical marijuana program as a whole.

“We have been at the table for months to produce a balanced policy measure, and we very much appreciate that the conversation has shifted to a more evidence-based approach to cannabis regulation,” according to a joint statement from the Marijuana Industry Group and Colorado Leads. “The cannabis industry has always supported youth prevention efforts and strict regulations that keep marijuana out of the hands of teenagers. That’s why we support an even more robust tracking system that limits the amount of medical marijuana concentrate 18- to 20-year-olds can purchase, as well as other provisions that make it harder for teenagers to obtain marijuana illegally.”

The new state system proposed under HB 1317 tracking the purchasing data of medical marijuana patients has raised both privacy concerns and fears about how that data could be used against minority communities.

Hashim Coats, executive director of Black Brown and Red Badged, a coalition of Black and Brown cannabis business owners, told Westword:

“The current draft legislation has serious racial bias implications and racial blind spots, particularly in the areas that address data collection and research,” he says. “We are supportive of some important provisions of this bill, [but] we are unfortunately still incredibly concerned about the racial tone-deafness and exclusion of Black voices from the discussion, which any legislation of this nature should include, and that the bill at this point has yet to strike the right balance.”

HB 1317 will have its first hearing in the House Public & Behavioral Health & Human Services Committee on May 18.

It was a historic night for marijuana legalization in the U.S. four states voted to legalize recreational marijuana, and two states legalized medical marijuana.

Arizona

Arizonans overwhelmingly voted to pass Proposition 207, legalizing adult-use marijuana. Adults 21 years and older can possess and consume up to one ounce of marijuana. Adults can grow six cannabis plants at home or no more than 12 plants in a house with more than one adult.

Arizona’s Department of Health Services will begin accepting applications for recreational dispensaries in January. It will begin issuing licenses within 60 days–so expect the first recreational sales to kick off in March.

Arizonans with a prior marijuana conviction can petition to have the record expunged as of July 12, 2021. Finally, a 16% excise tax will be added to recreational marijuana sales to fund public programs.

New Jersey

The Garden State will be cultivating a new crop thanks to voters who approved Question 1 on the ballot, legalizing recreational cannabis. Adults 21 and older will be able to purchase and possess legal cannabis, subject to rules and regulations that will be overseen by the state’s Cannabis Regulatory Commission, which already oversees New Jersey’s medical marijuana program. Recreational marijuana sales will be subject to a 6.625% sales tax.

In 2019, legislation that would have legalized adult-use cannabis in New Jersey was pulled from a vote in the state legislature after failing to secure enough support from lawmakers.

Montana

Montana had not one but two ballot measures to legalize recreational marijuana, both of which were approved by voters.

Initiative 190 legalized the sale and possession of up to an ounce of cannabis and the cultivation of up to four cannabis plants and four cannabis seedlings at home. Recreational marijuana sales will be subject to a 20% tax.

Constitutional Initiative 118 amended the state constitution to allow the Legislature to set the age for adults permitted to possess and consume marijuana to 21 years and older.

New Approach Montana, the group who backed both ballot measures, estimates that legal adult-use marijuana sales will generate $48 million in tax revenue for the state by 2025.

“Our research has always shown that a majority of Montanans support legalization, and now voters will have the opportunity to enact that policy, which will create jobs and generate new revenue for our state,” said Pepper Petersen, campaign spokesman for the group.

South Dakota

South Dakota is the first state where voters simultaneously approved legalizing both medical and recreational marijuana.

Voters passed Measure 26 legalizing medical marijuana for people with qualifying conditions with 69% of the vote.

Amendment A passed with the approval of 52% of voters, allowing adults 21 and older to possess up to an ounce of cannabis and allowing the cultivation of up to three marijuana plants. The South Dakota Department of Revenue will issue licenses for manufacturers, testing facilities, and retailers. Sales tax on recreational sales will be 15%.

Marijuana possession will remain illegal in South Dakota until July 1, 2021.

Mississippi

Mississippians have said ‘yes’ to medical marijuana by approving Ballot Initiative 65.

The Mississippi Department of Health is required to hammer out the rules and regulations for a medical marijuana program by July 1, 2021. Mississippians will be able to apply for a medical marijuana card for 22 qualifying conditions, including cancer, chronic pain, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

Each medical marijuana patient will be allowed to possess up to 2.5 ounces of cannabis per 14-day period. Home cultivation of marijuana is prohibited.

 

Higher Education: Colorado State University-Pueblo offers cannabis major

Starting this fall, CSU-Pueblo will offer a bachelor of science in cannabis biology and chemistry.

The degree program will offer students two tracks–a natural products track focused on biology or an analytical track that focuses on chemistry. Students will have to complete general biology and chemistry courses in addition to nine proposed cannabis courses to complete their degree.

This is Colorado’s first cannabis degree program, and one of the first cannabis degree programs in the country. Northern Michigan University and Minot State University in North Dakota offer bachelor programs in medicinal plant chemistry.

“We have been working on this particular degree program for over a year now, and the chemistry department and the biology department have put together a program that really emphasizes the science of cannabis,” said David Lehmpuhl, dean of the College of Science and Mathematics at CSU-Pueblo.

The Colorado Commission on Higher Education approved the program earlier this month. According to Lehmpuhl, there are plans to create more cannabis-related degree programs at universities in the state.

“We anticipate this is the first of several cannabis-related degrees and certifications that will be developed by Colorado institutions of higher education in the near-term,” Lehmpuhl said.

“It’s a challenge in a way because cannabis has both positive and negative connotations. We want to make sure that we are viewed as being not pro or anti-cannabis, but just looking at the science behind it,” Lehmpuhl said.

“To those of us who are scientists, this is really exciting.”

 

Kentucky gives medical marijuana another try

A bill to legalize medical marijuana passed in Kentucky’s House Judiciary Committee for the second year in a row. House Bill 136 would legalize medical marijuana and allow doctors to prescribe it. Qualifying medical conditions have not yet been spelled out but would be determined by a panel of eight doctors, four public advocates, and a pharmacist.

The bill passed in the House committee last year, but failed to receive a full floor vote. The bill is expected to pass in the House but faces an uphill battle in the Senate.

Senate President Robert Stivers (R-Manchester) said that he hadn’t seen sufficient research into medical marijuana, but there’s a “narrow path” to passing the bill in the Senate.

“It’s a balancing test of do the goods outweigh the bads,” Stivers said. “And we just haven’t had anything done on that.”

Advocates of the bill say that medical marijuana is a better alternative to addictive opioids.

“If House Bill 136, medical cannabis, were to pass in the Commonwealth of Kentucky, I would not be a criminal,” said Eric Crawford, who spoke before lawmakers. “I would not have to live in fear. I would not have to lay awake at night worrying about law enforcement coming to my home. I would not have to stress about going to jail, or losing my home, work or freedom.” Crawford has been in a wheelchair since being involved in a car accident in 1994.

If the bill were to pass in both the state House and Senate, it would create one of the more restrictive medical marijuana laws in the country. Smoking marijuana would be illegal, although flower would be available for other uses. Colorful packaging and gummies would be prohibited. Even THC may be a no-go under the bill, something that would be decided on at a later date by the Kentucky Cabinet of Health and Family Services.

90 percent of Kentuckians support legalizing medical marijuana, according to a recent poll by the Foundation for a Healthy Kentucky. That’s up from 78 percent support in 2012.

 

States with medical marijuana have fewer workers’ compensation claims

A new study found that in states with legal medical marijuana, there was a 6.7 percent decline in workers’ compensation claims.  Medical marijuana “can allow workers to better manage symptoms associated with workplace injuries and illnesses and, in turn, reduce need for workers’ compensation,” according to the study.

Researchers from the University of Cincinnati Ash Blue College and Temple University analyzed data from the Census Bureau’s Annual Social and Economic Supplement to the Current Population Survey. The data spanned from 1990-2013 and included survey interviews from 150,000 U.S. residents 15 and older.

“We think there is a lot of overlap between conditions for which medical marijuana can be used in managing symptoms and the types of illnesses that lead people to file workers’ compensation claims,” said study co-author, Catherine Maclean, an associate professor in the economics department at Temple University.

When workers did file claims, they were for shorter periods of time, on average, after medical cannabis was legalized.

“Our findings add to the small, but growing, literature on the effects of MMLs (medical marijuana laws) on labor market outcomes. On net, the available findings suggest that MML passage may increase work capacity among older adults, reduce work absences, improve workplace safety, and reduce WC (workers’ compensation) claiming and the pain and suffering associated with workplace injuries.”

At the beginning of 2020, three states already have marijuana legislation appearing on ballots this November. South Dakotans will have a double dose of marijuana initiatives, as voters decide on both medical and adult-use legalization. Medical marijuana is on the ballot in Mississippi, and New Jersey will give legalizing recreational marijuana another go.

Medical and Recreational marijuana will be on South Dakota’s ballot

This November, South Dakota will be the first state to vote on the legalization of both medical and recreational marijuana on the same ballot.

The ballot initiative for legalizing adult-use marijuana was given the official go-ahead by South Dakota’s Secretary of State earlier this week. South Dakotans for Better Marijuana Laws submitted over 50,000 signatures in support of the initiative, well over the number required to make it on the ballot.

If voters approve the adult-use ballot measure, it will allow adults 21 and older to possess up to an ounce of cannabis as well as cultivation of up to three marijuana plants. The South Dakota Department of Revenue would issue licenses for manufacturers, testing facilities, and retailers. Sales tax on recreational sales would be 15%.

“The adult-use legalization initiative will greatly benefit the people of South Dakota by ending the injustice of arresting otherwise law-abiding adults for marijuana offenses. It will focus law enforcement resources on fighting serious crime, generate new tax revenue for the state, and create jobs,” said Marijuana Policy Project deputy director Matthew Schweich in a press release.

An initiative for medical marijuana will also be put to voters this November after New Approach South Dakota submitted more than 30,000 signatures to the state.

Marijuana advocates in South Dakota expect some opposition to legalization from state Republicans.  Gov. Kristi Noem (R) vetoed a hemp legalization bill last year.

Voters will decide on legalizing medical marijuana in Mississippi

An initiative to create a medical marijuana program in Mississippi has received enough signatures to appear on the 2020 ballot.

Ballot Initiative 65 would legalize medical marijuana for 22 qualifying conditions, including cancer, chronic pain, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Each medical marijuana patient would be allowed to possess up to 2.5 ounces of cannabis per 14-day period.

Mississippians for Compassionate Care (MCC) collected more than 214,000 signatures.

“The polling is extremely positive,” MCC spokesperson Jamie Grantham said. “It polls above 77 percent, with every age group, religious affiliation, political affiliation, and other groups. Also, to that point, we saw the overwhelming support from the number of signatures we received.”

Gov. Phil Bryant (R) and the Mississippi State Board of Health oppose medical marijuana. Lawmakers will have four months to approve, reject, or amend the proposal.

Adult-use marijuana referendum on 2020 ballot in New Jersey

The New Jersey state legislature passed a resolution that will put the question of marijuana legalization to voters in November.

The referendum would legalize possession of marijuana for adults 21 and older and would be subject to a 6.625 percent state sales tax.

“We’re optimistic that next November, New Jersey voters will replace an eight-decade-long policy disaster with a far more sensible approach to marijuana,” said Karen O’Keefe, director of state policies for the Marijuana Policy Project.

Last March, legislation that would have legalized adult-use cannabis in New Jersey was pulled from a vote in the state legislature after failing to secure enough support from lawmakers.

Following up on a hot button issue this week: In a first of its kind ruling, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court decreed on Monday that employers in the state cannot fire employees for medical cannabis use.

Cristina Barbuto was fired after her first day at Advantage Sales and Marketing after she testing positive for marijuana. Barbuto has a prescription for medical marijuana to treat Crohn’s disease, something she disclosed to the company after being told that she would need to take a mandatory drug test. Barbuto’s supervisor told her twice that her cannabis use shouldn’t be a problem, as long as she didn’t use it before or during work.

But after she’d completed her first day of work, an HR representative told her that her employment was terminated because, “We follow federal law, not state law.”

Barbuto filed suit against the employer, claiming that her termination violated state anti-discrimination laws. The case reached the state supreme court after being dismissed in 2015. Similar cases have been filed in the past, but have often ruled against the employee.

In this ruling, the state supreme court said that, “the use and possession of medically prescribed marijuana by a qualifying patient is as lawful as the use and possession of any other prescribed medication.”

Similar cases have been tried in Colorado, California, Washington, and Montana. In each, the court ruled that employers could fire workers for legal, off the clock, cannabis use because it is still illegal under federal law.

“I can’t stress this enough, it’s the first case of its kind in the country,” said Dale Deitchler, a shareholder at world’s largest labor and employment law firm and an expert on marijuana issues in the workplace.

“Massachusetts is not a state where such protections are written in the law so this is really significant,” Deitchler said. “The court created law.”

The ruling means that the case will be sent back to the Suffolk County Superior Court, the court that initially dismissed Barbuto’s suit.

The justices concluded that, “An employee’s use of medical marijuana under these circumstances is not facially unreasonable as an accommodation of her handicap.” However, “it does not necessarily mean that the employee will prevail in proving proof of handicap discrimination”, If accommodating an employee’s medical cannabis use, “would create undue hardship” on an employer.”

“Undue hardship” would apply, for example, in the transportation industry, where cannabis use would impair an employee’s ability to do their work or endanger public safety. Past cases have been with employees with less physically stressful jobs so this ruling has not yet applied. Let’s hope this means a step forward for cannabis patients’ rights!

 

On Thursday, White House Press Secretary, Sean Spicer, told reporters that the Trump administration won’t be taking the same lax attitude towards marijuana as the Obama administration.

At the press conference, Spicer said, “I do believe that you’ll see greater enforcement.” He said that while federal law prohibits raids of medical marijuana operations, “that’s very different than the recreational use, which is something the Department of Justice, I think, will be further looking into.”

The marijuana industry has been unsure of what to expect from the new administration. During the presidential campaign, President Trump took wavering stances on cannabis, at times supporting states’ rights and acknowledging the benefits of medical cannabis use, while at others expressing skepticism and disapproval towards recreational marijuana. However, other members of the Trump cabinet have been vocal opponents of marijuana, including Attorney General Jeff Sessions and Vice President Pence.

The announcement is at odds with growing public support for marijuana legalization. A new Quinnipiac poll released Thursday found 71 percent of Americans would oppose a federal crackdown on legal marijuana, and 93 percent are in favor of medical marijuana, according to the survey of 1,323 voters nationwide.

“The president has said time and again that the decision about marijuana needs to be left to the states,” U.S. Rep. Jared Polis, a Boulder Democrat, said in a statement about Spicer’s comments. “Now either the president is flip-flopping or his staff is, once again, speaking out of turn. Either way, these comments leave doubt and uncertainty for the marijuana industry, stifling job growth in my state.”

Eight states and the District of Columbia have legalized recreational marijuana. Medical marijuana is approved in forty-four states. Cannabis has become a multibillion dollar industry that creates jobs, supports state economies, and raises taxes for things like improving infrastructure and education.

In his Senate confirmation hearing on Tuesday, Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-Ala) answered questions about his stance on marijuana and the enforcement of federal laws.

Sessions, President-elect Trump’s choice for U.S. attorney general, has been a staunch opponent of legal cannabis, making many in the cannabis industry nervous. In April 2016, Sessions criticized the Obama administration during a Senate drug hearing. He said, “I think one of [Obama’s] great failures, it’s obvious to me, is his lax treatment in comments on marijuana. It reverses 20 years almost of hostility to drugs that began really when Nancy Reagan started ‘Just Say No.'”

The Obama administration has taken a largely hands-off approach to marijuana, leaving it up to states to set and enforce their own policies.

During the hearing, Sessions refused to take a definitive stance on cannabis, leaving the cannabis industry unsure of how he’ll approach marijuana policy. In a nutshell, he said that if Americans don’t want him to enforce federal drug laws, then the laws themselves need to be changed.

“It’s not so much the attorney general’s job to decide what laws to enforce. We should do our jobs and enforce laws effectively as we’re able,” Sessions said during his hearing. “The U.S. Congress made the possession of marijuana in every state — and the distribution — an illegal act. If that’s something that’s not desired any longer, Congress should pass a law to change the rule.”

Under current federal law, cannabis is still considered to have no medicinal value and has been classified as a Schedule I drug along with heroin and LSD.

During the confirmation hearing, Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vermont) questioned Sessions on how he would approach medical marijuana. “Would you use our federal resources to investigate and prosecute sick people who are using marijuana in accordance with their state laws, even though it might violate federal laws?”

“I won’t commit to never enforcing federal law, Senator Leahy,” Sessions replied. “I think some of [the Obama-era guidelines] are truly valuable in evaluating cases,” he added. “Using good judgment about how to handle these cases will be a responsibility of mine. I know it won’t be an easy decision, but I will try to do my duty in a fair and just way.”

While it’s still unclear what the future holds for marijuana in the U.S., there’s some comfort in that, even if Sessions decided to enforce existing law, it would still take enormous federal resources. 28 states have legalized medical marijuana, along with eight states that have passed recreational cannabis laws.

We made it! The election is finally over–and the big winner is definitely cannabis.

 

Recreational marijuana initiatives were on the ballot in five states, with Arizona as the only holdout.

Here are the state-by-state results:

As of Tuesday’s election, medical cannabis is legal in more than half of U.S. states (28 states and Washington D.C.).

While the results of the presidential election may leave some questions up in the air as to the state of legal marijuana federally, this was a huge state-by-state advancement for cannabis!