CANNASWEEP

September 2024

OFW’s Cannabis Team regularly monitors cannabis news, legislation, regulation, and policy so our clients stay up-to-date on the latest developments impacting their business.

If you have any questions or would like more information about any of the items below, please contact us.

We also track cannabis-related legislation introduced in the U.S. Congress.  If you would like to learn more about our Congressional Bill Tracker, please reach out to Ben Dash. 

Cannabis Rescheduling/Descheduling

• Donald Trump Backs Federal Marijuana Rescheduling And Cannabis Banking Bill (Washington Post) (Forbes). Cannabis trade groups celebrate after Trump endorses marijuana rescheduling. Cannabis Stocks Get Boost as Trump Backs Easing Restrictions

Executive Branch/Enforcement

• President Biden made clear that the rescheduling process is not over. With the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) hearing on the proposed rule set for December 2024, that almost certainly means he will not see the policy implemented while he’s in the White House, assuming the DEA ultimately approves it at all.
• A top U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) official says the agency retains authority to remove cannabis-infused foods and drinks from the market, though that level of enforcement action is rare and is most commonly executed by local law enforcement.
• Congressional Research Service (CRS) Report: FDA Could Approve Hemp As A Tobacco Additive, But Marijuana Won’t Be Allowed Even If Rescheduled
• The U.S. Census Bureau (UCB) has released a new experimental data product featuring quarterly tax collections at the state level for cannabis sales. States have collected more than $8.7 billion in marijuana taxes since 2021.
  

  • California has reported the biggest share of that revenue, at more than $2 billion in tax income, followed by Washington State ($1.3 billion), Colorado ($898 million) and Michigan ($698 million)

• White House: Presidential Determination on Major Drug Transit or Major Illicit Drug Producing Countries for Fiscal Year 2025.
• A biopharmaceutical company is suing the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) over what it called unjustified delays to its application to launch clinical trials into cannabis treatments for Multiple Sclerosis (MS) and Huntington’s Disease (HD)
• DEA is now acknowledging the legitimacy of the new two-part test used to determine a substance’s accepted medical use.
• Is THC-O a Legal Hemp Product? A Court rules it is – The ruling comes despite a letter from the DEA stating that THC-O is a Schedule I controlled substance.
• Update on the DEA’s efforts to reschedule cannabis: what you need to know (Reuters)
• Nixon Started the War on Drugs. Privately, He Said Pot Was ‘Not Particularly Dangerous.’ (The New York Times)

U.S. Congress

• Congressional Cannabis Caucus co-chair Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-OR) is calling on House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) to bring marijuana legislation to the floor in light of former President Donald Trump’s recent endorsement of state and federal reform, as well as newly unearthed audio capturing former President Richard Nixon conceding that cannabis is “not particularly dangerous.”
• Sen. John Hickenlooper (D-CO) is touting the therapeutic potential of psychedelics, calling it “timely and appropriate” that states like Colorado are taking the lead on reforming laws around the substances after making history with marijuana legalization.
• A Senate committee has rescheduled a hearing to vote on a bill that would limit the ability of federal agencies to use past marijuana use as a factor in making employment and security clearance decisions.
• Sen. Brian Schatz (D-HI) says marijuana reform is one “huge” example of an issue that could move voters during the election this November but that so far hasn’t been meaningfully addressed on the campaign trail by his party’s presidential nominee.
• Senate Banking Committee Chairman Sherrod Brown (D-OH) tours Marijuana Business And Promotes Banking Bill Amid Growing Industry Frustration Over Inaction

The States

• Officials in at least six states with legal marijuana—Connecticut, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Missouri, and New York—reported hitting their highest-ever monthly sales numbers in August, led by surging summer purchases of adult-use products.
• A new public opinion survey in the key presidential election swing states of Pennsylvania, Michigan, and Wisconsin shows that voters strongly support marijuana reform, with 84 percent of respondents in favor of medical cannabis and 62 percent backing broader adult-use legalization.
• Alabama: Appeals court ruling keeps Alabama’s marijuana legal fights going
• Arkansas: A majority of likely voters in Arkansas are in favor of an initiative to significantly expand the state’s medical marijuana program, according to a new poll
• California: Newsom wants to ban intoxicating hemp products. Industry — and some health experts — say he’s going too far (The Hill); Gov. Gavin Newsom is trying to defeat a tough-on-crime ballot initiative by convincing voters it would mark a return to the drug war launched by Richard Nixon; The California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) announced Sept. 11, 2024, the selection of a project that will assist more than 200 Mendocino County cannabis cultivators meet requirements to transition from provisional to annual licensure. 
• Colorado: 26 states may soon need to regulate cannabis – here’s what they can learn from Colorado and Washington; The American Bankers Association and the Colorado Bankers Association released a new ad highlighting Rep. Brittany Pettersen’s (D-Colo.) support for legislation that would enable banks to provide services to licensed cannabis businesses in states where cannabis is legal.
• D.C.: D.C. has only one marijuana inspector (Axios);
• Florida: Donald Trump says he supports legalizing adult marijuana use in Florida (Reuters)(Politico); FDLE arrests petition circulator on fraud charges related to 2022 marijuana ballot initiative; Ron DeSantis claims recreational pot measure creates ‘Big Weed cartel’ with legal immunity
• Illinois: Cannabis Research Institute opens in Chicago, looking to dig deep into marijuana; With marijuana at a new level of scrutiny, here’s what the research says
• Indiana: Democratic gubernatorial nominee lays out marijuana legalization plan
• Kansas: Kansas Court of Appeals to hear oral argument at Kansas State University – challenges the district court’s ruling that reasonable suspicion can be based on the officer’s detection of the odor of marijuana coming from a moving vehicle.
• Massachusetts: Cannabis Commission says it needs more funds from the Legislature; The Massachusetts Cannabis Control Commission will be soliciting feedback from stakeholders on the agency’s proposed regulatory changes to Microbusinesses, Delivery license types, telehealth options for patients, and prescribing allowances for providers. 
• Missouri: Missouri Governor and Attorney General announce task force to regulate hemp products; With Missouri regulations in flux, what’s the difference between hemp and marijuana?; New wave of holds hit marijuana product in Missouri dispensaries
• Nebraska: Lawsuit seeks to invalidate Nebraska’s medical marijuana ballot measures
• New Jersey: Gov. Murphy signs controversial bill restricting sales of hemp products; The New Jersey Economic Development Authority (NJEDA) Board approved the fourth investment from the New Jersey Innovation Evergreen Fund (NJIEF) into an emerging Princeton-based life sciences company, RICOVR Healthcare, which is developing a rapid diagnostic test for cannabis use.
• New York: Why does NY still have an illegal weed problem? City and state officials say they’ve shut down more than 1,300 illicit outlets. It’s believed that thousands more remain in business; New York State officials are preparing to deploy up to $5 million in grants funded by marijuana tax revenue as part of an effort to reinvest in areas disproportionately impacted by the war on drugs; NY marijuana sales could pass $1 billion in 2024 after a rocky start
• North Carolina: Despite years of debate about it, North Carolina still isn’t legal – even though WRAL News poll once again shows overwhelming support for it among every demographic group.
• Ohio: Overview of dispensaries, sales figures, and cultivators
• Oklahoma: Oklahoma Department of Corrections Patient Education: Cannabis Use Disorder (The Basics)
• Pennsylvania: Pennsylvania House introduces bill to legalize marijuana
• Washington: The Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board announces a new streamlined process for converting approved adult-use cannabis-infused edible products to DOH-compliant products.

Cannabis Abroad

• Germany: 20 million Germans Could Benefit From Medical Marijuana But Most Struggle To Find Prescribing Doctors; What will become of cannabis legalization?
• Pakistan: The National Assembly passed, “The Cannabis Control and Regulatory Authority Bill, 2024” to ensure public health and safety by regulating cannabis cultivation, refining, manufacturing, sale, industrial products, export generation, and attracting Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in Pakistan.
• Italy: The Lower House approved an article in the government’s security bill banning the sale of so-called cannabis light-hemp flowers and products that have an extremely low level of the psychoactive compound in normal marijuana that makes people high.
• Poland: The Path to Decriminalization Part 3
• Taiwan: Taiwan government reiterates opposition to marijuana decriminalization

Business, Banking, Insurance

• Weed Companies Are Making More Money Selling Beer Than Cannabis (Bloomberg)
• Barstool Sports announced its new partnership with multi-state cannabis operator Green Thumb Industries (GTI).
• Athletes, investors eye Fusion CBD Products as popularity of buying CBD online increases
• Schedule III Classification Offers New Opportunities For The Pre-Roll Industry
• 4 Reasons Why Cannabis Stocks Are a Strong Buy

Other Noteworthy Updates

• Researchers from the Nanjing Agricultural University (NJAU) Academy of Science say they have found a crucial gene that directly impacts the number of flowering sites on a Cannabis sativa plant.
• Cannabis & older adults: Poll looks at use, beliefs, and risk – Among people 50 and up, 21% used cannabis in the past year, and 12% partake at least monthly; signs of risky driving and potential addiction seen (Michigan Medicine – Go Blue)
• A Pharmacist’s Guide to Medical Cannabis Interactions and Patient Care
• Could America’s divide on marijuana be coming to an end? The U.S. is divided when it comes to state and federal marijuana policy, but recent political developments could move the country toward a greater acceptance of cannabis.
• Female youth aged 12 to 24 and youth of both sexes aged 14 to 16 living in states with legalized medical marijuana or recreational marijuana between 2000 and 2019 had higher rates of death by suicide than youth in states with no such laws (Get Smart about Drugs).
• Long-Term Cannabis Use Linked to Sleep and Memory Issues (Get Smart about Drugs).
• Why more older adults are using marijuana
• Cannabis consumption for symptom relief was common among women with endometriosis, and some even reported that the use of cannabis reduced their use of analgesics.
• Study: Improvements in Fibromyalgia-associated symptoms after one and three months of cannabinoids treatment, allowing pain relief, and improvements in sleep quality, performance of daily life activities, and quality of life.
• A study of hundreds of people using medical marijuana reported “rapid and significant improvements” in health-related quality of life over the first three months, according to new research led by Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine (PCOM).

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If you are interested in exploring commercial opportunities in the cannabis space, we would be happy to assist you with any of your cannabis law questions, comments, or concerns. Please contact Tish Pahl (tpahl@ofwlaw.com), Kyla Kaplan (kkaplan@ofwlaw.com), Denise Calle (dcalle@ofwlaw.com), and Ben Dash (bdash@ofwlaw.com) for assistance.