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Link please for Jess Brown comments
Pennsylvania Governor Says Legalizing Marijuana Is ‘Something That We Want To Be Focused On Doing
’Published on September 18, 2024By Marijuana Moment
“There are Pennsylvanians who may be traveling out of state to purchase cannabis, and that’s, I think, something that we want to be focused on doing here in our commonwealth.”
By Peter Hall, Pennsylvania Capital-Star
After celebrating a new law making canned cocktails available in supermarkets and convenience stores, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro (D) said Tuesday he believes that legalizing recreational use of cannabis makes sense from an economic perspective.
Cannabis May Be “Viable Alternative” Treatment For Dogs With Common Skin Disease
Among Pennsylvania’s six border states, all but West Virginia have fully legalized marijuana, allowing its sale and use for medical and recreational use. Pennsylvania has legalized cannabis for medical use, but continues to impose criminal penalties for possession of pot without a medical marijuana card.
Shapiro told reporters at a press conference at a Rutter’s convenience store in Perry County where canned cocktails will now be sold that he has called for legalization of cannabis for several years. Shapiro included revenue from recreational marijuana sales in his 2024-2025 budget proposal and said legalizing weed, like expanding the availability of alcoholic beverages, gives Pennsylvania residents more freedom.
“There are Pennsylvanians who may be traveling out of state to purchase cannabis, and that’s, I think, something that we want to be focused on doing here in our commonwealth,” Shapiro said.
Reps. Aaron Kaufer (R-Luzerne) and Emily Kinkead (D-Allegheny) introduced new legislation Monday to legalize cannabis. Multiple cannabis legalization bills have been introduced across both chambers this session, of which House Bill 2500 is only the latest. None have been taken up by either the House or Senate yet, but advocates say legalization is a matter of how and when.
Shapiro signed into law Act 86 of 2024 in July, which creates the opportunity for restaurant, hotel, and distributors liquor license holders to obtain permits to sell pre-mixed beverages containing distilled spirits to patrons for consumption off premises.
The law is the latest expansion of alcoholic beverage sales over the last two decades in Pennsylvania, where alcohol sales on Sundays were limited and wine and spirits by the bottle could be purchased only from Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board (PLCB) stores until relatively recently.
Pennsylvania’s restrictions on alcohol remain relatively strict compared with many other states. Supermarkets and convenience stores were permitted to sell up to 192 ounces of beer to go in 2011 and the equivalent of four bottles of wine in 2014, but the PLCB stores remain the only place to buy spirits by the bottle.
The ability to sell pre-mixed liquor-based beverages in supermarkets, beer distributors, and convenience stores is popular, according to the governor’s office.
Since Aug. 27, the PLCB had received 1,595 ready-to-drink cocktail applications and issued 1,416?permits, Shapiro’s office said in a news release.
Asked whether Pennsylvania should do more to privatize liquor sales, Shapiro said he believes ready-to-drink cocktails in private stores is a responsible step that protects jobs, creates $130 million in new revenue and gives residents more freedom.
Act 86 was introduced in the state Senate by Sen. Mike Regan (R-York). It passed with Democratic opposition in the Senate but received bipartisan support in the state House when it was finally approved in July.
Trump Needs To ‘Bring Us Some Republican Senators’ To Pass Marijuana Banking Bill Following His Endorsement, Democrat Says
Published on September 11, 2024By Kyle Jaeger
well as Sens. John Hickenlooper (D-CO) and Mike Braun (R-IN), weighed in on the cannabis banking issue in interviews on Tuesday, though none were aware at the time that Trump, the 2024 GOP nominee, had endorsed the policy change days earlier.
The Secure and Fair Enforcement and Regulation (SAFER) Banking Act cleared Brown’s Banking Committee last September, but it’s yet to receive floor consideration. Brown and Hickenlooper both suggested the main obstacle is ensuring that enough GOP members get on board to meet the steep 60-vote threshold for passage.
Braun, for his part, said it’s “still pretty difficult” to meet that vote requirement under the current political composition of the chamber.
Brown told Marijuana Moment that “we don’t have enough Republicans, we don’t think,” to secure the passage of the SAFER Banking Act. That point has previously been contested, however, with the bill’s lead Republican sponsor Sen. Steve Daines (R-MT) insisting that the votes are there to move the measure along.
“We’re trying to figure out how to move these things when we have a Republican party that doesn’t always step up,” Brown said. He noted resistance from Sen. Tim Scott (R-SC), ranking member of the Banking Committee, but since it already moved through that panel, it’s unclear why that would represent a major obstacle to bringing it to the floor.
Pressed on Trump’s recent endorsement of the banking legislation, Brown said he’s “not listening to the presidential campaigns weigh in on this stuff,” and he said he’s consistently spoken to Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) about this and other legislative priorities.
Hickenlooper, meanwhile, said that while he hadn’t been appraised on the latest Trump remarks on cannabis banking, he’s skeptical about how serious the former president is in the position, commenting that “it might change by tomorrow” given his proclivity for rapidly taking on opposite sides of various issues.
He added that the SAFER Banking Act is “going through this process,” but he also said the Biden administration’s push to federally reschedule cannabis represents “a major step forward” that could help grease the wheels on marijuana banking reform.
“I think rescheduling is going to get SAFE Banking through the Senate,” the senator said. “Donald Trump can say whatever he wants, but unless you bring us some Republican senators, we’re not going to get SAFE Banking.”
The Congressional Research Service (CRS) released a report last month explaining that federal marijuana rescheduling is “unlikely” to improve banking access for state-legal cannabis businesses, But Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-OR), co-chair of the Congressional Cannabis Caucus, similarly argued that the reclassification move, when it is enacted, could have a political effect that spurs action on the separate marijuana banking legislation.
It should also be noted that the proposed rescheduling action isn’t guaranteed. Following a public comment period, the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) last month announced that it has scheduled an administrative hearing in December to gain additional input before potentially finalizing the rule. It’s possible that rulemaking could extend into January, meaning there’s a chance that the next presidential administration could influence the final outcome.
Meanwhile, as the November election approaches, a recent series of polls found widespread majority support for marijuana legalization, cannabis federal rescheduling and cannabis industry banking access among likely voters in three key presidential battleground states: Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.
When Trump And Harris Agree On Marijuana Legalization, You Know The Issue Has Gone Mainstream
(Op-Ed)Published on September 15, 2024By Marijuana Moment
“Both Trump and Harris wisely see advocating for marijuana policy reform as an opportunity to connect with a wide range of potential voters.”
By Paul Armentano, NORML
At a time when voters and politicians are historically divided, there is one issue that Americans largely agree upon: It’s time to legalize marijuana.
Psilocybin Eases Psychological Distress In People Who Experienced Childhood Trauma
Months ago, Vice President Kamala Harris tweeted that “nobody should have to go to jail for weed.” Despite her past opposition to marijuana legalization, she’s since become the first major presidential nominee to endorse it.
In a more recent social media post, Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump opined, “We do not need to ruin lives and waste taxpayers’ dollars arresting adults with personal amounts of it [marijuana] on them.”
That’s significant coming from Trump, who as president was on record supporting violent drug war crackdowns abroad and who appointed longtime anti-marijuana zealot Jeff Sessions to be his first attorney general.
One look at recent polling data and it’s clear why the two candidates are finding common ground on cannabis. According to Gallup, 70 percent of U.S. adults believe that “the use of marijuana should be legal.”
That’s an increase of 19 percentage points since 2014, when Colorado and Washington became the first states to implement adult-use cannabis legalization. Twenty-four states have now done so—and no state has ever repealed marijuana legalization.
The public’s support is bipartisan. Nationwide, 87 percent of Democrats, 70 percent of independents, and 55 percent of Republicans support legalization. In important swing states like Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin, legalizing marijuana similarly enjoys majority support.
It’s easy to see why. The initial push for cannabis criminalization, which began in earnest in the early 1900s, had little to do with any legitimate concerns about public health or safety. Rather, the move to ban marijuana and to criminally prosecute those who consume it was based primarily upon myths and xenophobia.
Today, nearly half of all drug-related arrests nationwide are for marijuana. This is a tremendous waste of time and resources that most Americans believe ought to be reprioritized toward targeting more serious crimes.
In addition, those arrested and prosecuted for violating marijuana laws face a litany of lifelong consequences—including a criminal record and the lost opportunities that come with it. Those arrested are disproportionately young people and socioeconomically disadvantaged.
Criminalization, despite its longevity, has failed to disrupt the illicit market or discourage marijuana use. By contrast, teens’ use of marijuana has plummeted since states have begun regulating marijuana sales. In addition, survey data finds that most cannabis consumers in legal states obtain their goods from licensed retailers, not from underground street dealers.
Legalization has also provided notable economic benefits for state governments. Since 2014, retail sales of adult-use cannabis products have generated more than $15 billion in tax revenue, which has funded school construction, affordable housing and other services.
Given the success of legalization and the overt failures of marijuana prohibition, it’s hardly surprising to see the presidential candidates weighing in.
It’s notable, however, that it’s taken this long for them to publicly tout the issue. Trump previously mused that statewide legalization resulted in “big problems” in states like Colorado, while Harris urged California voters to reject a 2010 legalization ballot question.
But times have changed, and politicians are adapting accordingly. In an election where every vote counts, both Trump and Harris wisely see advocating for marijuana policy reform as an opportunity to connect with a wide range of potential voters.
Trump now supports New Banking Rules for Credit-Card Transactions !!!!
Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump on Monday sparked a rally in cannabis stocks after he signaled that he’s in line with the Biden administration on lowering the federal classification of cannabis to a less restrictive level.
Trump said late Sunday on his Truth Social platform that he supports a ballot referendum in Florida to allow adults 21 and over to use cannabis and also supports assigning cannabis to Schedule III under the U.S. Controlled Substances Act. Cannabis is currently listed as a Schedule I drug, in the same category as LSD and heroin.
Trump also said he supports new banking rules would allow cannabis companies to conduct credit-card transactions and would resolve other banking-related challenges.
“As President, we will continue to focus on research to unlock the medical uses of marijuana to a Schedule 3 drug, and work with Congress to pass common sense laws, including safe banking for state authorized companies, and supporting states rights to pass marijuana laws,” Trump wrote.
Right under your Noses and you still don't see it! LOL
Cannabis legalization at the Federal level is proceeding exactly like Alcohol Prohibition did, fragmented by State approval first, some even with certain counties (WET) others (DRY) some of which still have not legalized Alcohol to this day, LOL
2025 is the year we get done finally, bipartisan support in House and Senate, as well a White House support regardless of which party wins is now in the cards.
Cannabis market will explode with access to banking system and tax right offs for business expenses.
Bipartisan Pennsylvania Lawmakers File New Marijuana Legalization Bill As Neighboring States See Benefits Of Cannabis Sales
Published on September 13, 2024By Kyle Jaeger
Bipartisan Pennsylvania lawmakers have officially filed a bill to legalize recreational marijuana in the Commonwealth.
About two months after circulating a memo with draft legislative language to build support for the proposal, Reps. Aaron Kaufer (R) and Emily Kinkead (D) formally introduced the legislation, alongside 15 other cosponsors, on Friday.
There’s been a stepped up push for reform in the legislature as neighboring states such as Ohio move forward to open legal cannabis markets. In the earlier memo, the sponsors said the regional developments mean outside states are positioned to “capture Pennsylvania dollars into their market.”
Marijuana Helps Cancer Patients Think More Clearly And Manage Pain
The legislation would create a regulated cannabis market under the state Department of Agriculture, prioritize social equity and small businesses, enact safeguards to deter youth use and generate tax revenue for law enforcement and local governments.
Adults 21 and older would be able to buy and possess up to 30 grams of cannabis. Medical marijuana patients could grow up to five plants for personal therapeutic use, but adult-use consumers would not have that option.
The bill was revised from the draft version in several ways before being filed, including by consolidating regulatory oversight and making it so the agriculture department would be responsible for managing both the state’s adult-use and medical cannabis programs. Previously, medical marijuana would’ve been separately regulated by the Department of Health, as is currently the case.
Language that would have mandated charter agreements between social equity licensees and existing operators was also removed. And the measure was also amendment to include strict advertising rules for billboard advertising.
The proposal would provide pathways for expungements, commutations and resentencing for cannabis-related convictions. Previously, it did not include such resentencing provisions. Under the proposal, there would be protections to allow incarcerated people to access medical cannabis if they are certified with a qualifying condition.
Existing operators would only be allowed to obtain one adult-use license, whereas the prior version called for a maximum of three licenses per operator. Also, the bill no longer imposes a cap on the number of marijuana grower licenses and instead leaves that up to the Department of Agriculture’s discretion.
There would be an 8 percent sales tax and 5 percent excise tax for adult-use cannabis products. Revenue from those taxes would go to a Cannabis Business Establishment Fund (30 percent), Cannabis Regulation Fund (30 percent), the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency (15 percent), drug prevention services under the Department of Drug and Alcohol Programs (10 percent), local governments with cannabis businesses in their jurisdiction (10 percent) and support for the state’s medical cannabis program (5 percent).
The legislation also stipulates that adults who use cannabis in compliance with the state law could not be barred from possessing or purchasing firearms. However, that protection would be limited to the state’s statute and would not affect the ongoing federal prohibition on gun ownership by marijuana consumers.
“The majority of Pennsylvanians want a legal, adult-use market and the majority of states surrounding Pennsylvania have legalized marijuana,” Responsible PA spokesperson Brittany Crampsie said in a press release on Friday. “There are now viable bi-partisan proposals on the table today for the legislature to consider and there are no more excuses to wait.”
“We are pleased and applaud Representatives Kinkead and Kaufer who have taken the initiative to file this bill and renew our call on the legislature to pass legalization immediately upon the legislature’s return to Harrisburg in September,” she said.
In July, the governor of Pennsylvania said the administration and lawmakers would “come back and continue to fight” for marijuana legalization and other policy priorities that were omitted from budget legislation he signed into law that month.
When the Pennsylvania legislature approved the budget bill that Gov. Josh Shapiro (D) enacted, lawmakers also accidentally left medical marijuana dispensaries out of a section providing tax relief for the cannabis industry. And it hasn’t been clear whether the omission could be fixed without future legislative action.
MM are playing games nicking BIDS to get comm. partial fills
They will not fill entire BiDs, they instead are giving you 30 shares and generating a full commission.
They used to prorate the commission on the % of the order filled
or allow an AON, all or nothing trade.
Could America’s divide on marijuana be coming to an end?
U.S. News
By DAVID A. LIEB
Updated 1:05 AM EDT, September 12, 2024
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.
Both major presidential candidates have signaled support for a federal policy change to reclassify marijuana as a less dangerous drug, and voters in several additional states will get a say this fall on legalization.
Though still illegal under federal law, public approval of marijuana has grown significantly — and so has the number of states where it’s legally sold in stores.
Possessing marijuana is a federal crime punishable by fines and prison time. Selling or cultivating marijuana is a more serious federal crime, punishable by prison sentences of five years to life, depending on the quantity of the drug.
But many states have abolished their own marijuana penalties.
Twenty-four states and the District of Columbia — representing 53% of the nation’s population — have legalized marijuana and now tax and regulate sales similar to alcohol, according to the Marijuana Policy Project, which supports legalizing cannabis. An additional seven states have removed jail sentences for possessing small amounts of marijuana. A total of 38 states and the District of Columbia have laws that allow the medical use of marijuana.
The Justice Department in May proposed to reclassify marijuana from a Schedule I drug to a less dangerous Schedule III drug, which includes such things as ketamine and some anabolic steroids. But that switch involves a lengthy process.
The Drug Enforcement Administration has set a Dec. 2 hearing to take comment on the proposal. That means a final decision could come after President Joe Biden leaves office in January.
Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic nominee for president, backs marijuana decriminalization and has said it’s “absurd” that marijuana is classified as a Schedule I drug, alongside heroin and LSD.
Former President Donald Trump, the Republican presidential nominee, also signaled support for the policy change this past week. He posted on his social media platform that he would “continue to focus on research to unlock the medical uses of marijuana to a Schedule 3 drug” and said he would vote “yes” on a Florida ballot proposal to legalize recreational marijuana.
The Florida initiative would allow recreational sales to people over 21 from existing medical marijuana dispensaries, with the potential for the Legislature to license additional retailers. The proposal needs at least a 60% vote to pass and would take effect six months after voter approval.
The campaign has been the costliest of nearly 160 measures on state ballots this year, attracting tens of millions of dollars of contributions primarily from supporters, according to the election tracking organization Ballotpedia. Among the opponents are the Florida Republican Party and Gov. Ron DeSantis, who has said it would reduce quality of life by leaving a marijuana stench in the air.
Voters in North and South Dakota will be asked for the third time whether to legalize marijuana beyond medical use. The measures need a simple majority to pass.
Nebraska Secretary of State Bob Evnen has said initiatives to legalize and regulate medical marijuana appear to have enough petition signatures to qualify for a statewide vote. He faces a Friday deadline to certify measures for the ballot.
About 70% of American adults said marijuana should be legal in a Gallup poll taken last year, the highest level recorded by the polling firm since it first asked about marijuana policy in 1969. By contrast, only about one-third of respondents supported marijuana legalization 20 years ago.
Last year’s Gallup poll showed the highest support for marijuana among young voters, a key demographic in seven presidential battleground states.
An analysis of national survey data published earlier this year found that an estimated 17.7 million people reported using marijuana daily or near-daily in 2022 — up dramatically from less than 1 million people in 1992. Though alcohol is still more widely used, the report marked the first time that the number of Americans who use marijuana just about every day surpassed the number who drink that often.
What’s happening with similar drugs?
As legal marijuana becomes more widespread, some state officials are battling the sale of unregulated products derived from hemp, which is federally classified as distinct from marijuana. Some of those products are sold in packaging similar to common candies or chips and contain delta-8 THC, a synthesized from of CBD that’s prevalent in hemp.
Some states have banned or restricted synthetic hemp products, including South Dakota and Wyoming, where new laws took effect July 1. Indiana authorities have warned stores to remove delta-8 THC products that they say also contain illegal amounts of the psychoactive delta-9 THC found in marijuana.
In Missouri, where marijuana was legalized in 2022, Republican Gov. Mike Parson raised concerns that certain hemp-derived products are being marketed to children and ordered a crackdown by the state health department. He joined with Attorney General Andrew Bailey on Tuesday to announce a task force focused on unregulated psychoactive cannabis products.
“We are not the only state facing this issue and not the only state taking action,” Parson said.
Where are the Haters? No Sellers left, LOL
600 Million on the BID, that is 10% of the Float, that should tell you something LOL
Trump supports reclassifying marijuana, voting for legalization in Florida
16 mins ago
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By Karah Rucker (Anchor/Reporter), Zachary Hill (Video Editor)
Former President Donald Trump recently signaled support for a significant shift in marijuana policy, aligning his stance with Vice President Kamala Harris. This marks the first time both major-party presidential candidates have backed broad cannabis reform, reflecting a growing trend of public support for legalization.
In a Truth Social post on Sunday, Sept. 10, Trump expressed his intention to vote in favor of Florida’s Amendment 3, which would legalize recreational marijuana for adults 21 and older.
“It’s time to end needless arrests and incarcerations of adults for small amounts of marijuana for personal use,” Trump said.
He also emphasized the need for “smart regulations” and access to safe, tested products.
In addition to supporting the Florida measure, Trump announced his backing for a federal reclassification of marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule III. This change would ease restrictions on medical research but would not fully legalize marijuana at the federal level.
Vice President Harris has also supported reclassifying marijuana but additionally advocates for its complete legalization nationwide. Harris’ campaign manager has criticized Trump’s stance, calling it “blatant pandering.”
The timing of Trump’s announcement could influence Tuesday’s debate if he decides to challenge Harris on her past cannabis-related prosecutions as district attorney of San Francisco.
Trump’s position marks a significant shift from the traditional conservative view on marijuana. He contrasted with other prominent Republicans, including Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, who opposes the state’s marijuana ballot measure.
Trump’s endorsement could boost Amendment 3’s chances of passing, but it needs 60% voter approval to succeed. If it passes, Florida would become the 25th state to legalize recreational marijuana.
This shift in Trump’s stance mirrors a broader change in American attitudes toward marijuana. A Gallup poll from last year found that 70% of American adults support legalization, reflecting the evolving landscape of cannabis policy in the U.S.
DeSantis Vs. Trump Over Florida Cannabis Legalization: Guess Who's Winning
by
Maureen Meehan, Benzinga Editor
September 10, 2024 12:14 PM
Zinger Key Points
While Ron DeSantis has been mum about Trump's support of legal weed in Florida, his wife Casey DeSantis has not.
Several other GOP stalwarts are also lashing out at Trump, essentially calling him a hypocrite who'd 'say anything' to get ahead.
Donald Trump and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis continue to square off over cannabis legalization, with the former supporting and the latter opposing.
"As a Floridian, I will be voting YES on Amendment 3 this November," Trump wrote Sunday in a Truth Social post. "As President, we will continue to focus on research to unlock medical uses of marijuana to a schedule 3 drug, and work with Congress to pass common sense laws."
Shortly before Trump's remarks hit the wires, DeSantis told a gathering at City Church Tallahassee that the cannabis legalization initiative, known as Amendment 3, was "coming because of one weed company, Trulieve who basically has a de facto monopoly" or a "weed cartel." He proceeded to accuse the CEO of Florida medical marijuana giant, Trulieve Cannabis Corp
TCNNF
-2.95%
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of having personally written the ballot amendment.
But when it comes to Trump's newly-found support of legal cannabis, both in Florida and on a national level, DeSantis is still not commenting or casting aspersions.
Casey DeSantis Takes Up The Anti-Weed Battle
However, Casey DeSantis isn’t shy about sharing her thoughts on the matter, even if she’s echoing her husband’s views — and that’s fine.
“Amendment 3 creates a permanent, constitutional right to possess over 100 joints at a time and SMOKE ANYWHERE in Florida—even public places where it could more easily fall into the hands of children,” she posted on X.
Amendment 3 creates a permanent, constitutional right to possess over 100 joints at a time and SMOKE ANYWHERE in Florida—even public places where it could more easily fall into the hands of children.
What’s more, it creates a monopoly & blanket legal immunity for big weed…
Vote No on 3
Vote No on 3
@VoteNo_On3
Follow the money. Big Marijuana spent $60 million to put Amendment 3 on the ballot because it hands them control of Florida’s weed market. This isn’t legalization—it’s corporate domination. #VoteNoOn3
1:40 PM · Sep 9, 2024
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The DeSantis couple are not the only Republicans fuming over Trump’s endorsement of legal weed in the Sunshine state.
Stuart Stevens, chief strategist for Mitt Romney‘s 2012 presidential campaign, told MSNBC that the former president was essentially a hypocrite who’d say anything to get ahead. “Donald Trump, he’s on both sides of so many of these issues. I mean, within an hour he reversed himself on what position he was going to take on the abortion referendum in Florida. It’s because there’s nothing there except this desire to be president, this desire to be in control … so he’ll say anything.”
Several other GOP stalwarts joined Stevens in his criticism of the former president, reported Newsweek.
Actually, the Republicans’ comments were not unlike those made by Vice President Kamala Harris‘ presidential campaign team, which referred to Trump’s cannabis announcement as “blatant pandering.”
Trump’s support of Florida marijuana legalization may show growing bipartisan consensus
By: Jacob Fischler - September 10, 2024 6:30 am
Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump’s early Monday statement that he would vote to legalize recreational marijuana use in Florida sent a strong signal that both major parties are moving to adopt popular marijuana reform efforts, unexpectedly elevating the issue in the presidential battle.
But the campaign for the Democratic nominee, Vice President Kamala Harris, expressed strong skepticism about Trump’s sudden embrace of reform and criticized Trump’s record in office, accusing him of “blatant pandering” after States Newsroom inquired about Harris’ position on legalization.
The statement from Trump, who has sought to portray himself as a “law and order” candidate throughout his political career, shows the growing support for marijuana legalization among voters of both parties nationwide — and could be a signal that GOP elected officials will align themselves with legalization, Josh Glasstetter, a spokesperson for the advocacy group U.S. Cannabis Council, said in an interview with States Newsroom.
“Trump’s statement on Truth Social signals that there is a political realignment that is well underway on the issue of cannabis reform,” Glasstetter said.
Trump said in a post to his social media platform that he would vote yes on Florida’s Amendment 3, a ballot initiative to legalize recreational cannabis use in the state.
He also said he supported federal legislation to remove federal restrictions on banking services for state-legal marijuana businesses and moving cannabis from Schedule I to Schedule III of the federal Controlled Substances Act.
States with legal recreational marijuana industries, which now number 24, have long sought tweaks to federal law to allow banks to legally provide loans and other services to marijuana businesses that are legal under state law. Bills in Congress, while largely bipartisan, have been introduced for years but not yet won the consensus needed to become law.
Schedule I is the most restrictive category under federal law and indicates a drug has no medicinal value and high risk of abuse. President Joe Biden’s administration has started the move to Schedule III, which includes heavily regulated legal substances including Tylenol with codeine.
“Despite his blatant pandering, Donald Trump cannot paper over his extensive record of dragging marijuana reform backward,” campaign spokesman Joseph Costello wrote in an email. “As president, Trump cracked down on nonviolent marijuana offenses – undermining state legalization laws, opposed safe banking legislation, and even tried to remove protections for medical marijuana.
“Donald Trump does not actually believe in marijuana reform, but the American people are smart enough to see through his campaign lies.”
The campaign did not respond to a follow-up message seeking clarity on Harris’ position on the issue.
Trump’s first attorney general, Jeff Sessions, took a hard line against a growing trend of states legalizing marijuana use. He rescinded a 2013 document known as the Cole memo that required federal officials to stay out of state-legal marijuana operations.
But Glasstetter said Trump had “clearly reassessed his position” on the issue, reflecting a consensus among voters that Republican officials have been slower to adopt.
“For many years now, cannabis reform advocates have talked about the growing bipartisan consensus among voters in support of cannabis reform and elected officials have been a lagging indicator, particularly on the conservative side of the spectrum,” he said.
While Harris has not highlighted the issue — besides not answering emailed questions Monday, the campaign’s newly launched issues page on its website does not mention cannabis — she is seen as an ally of reformers based on her record, including as U.S. senator and California attorney general, Glasstetter said.
Harris convened a roundtable of marijuana reform advocates at the White House in March that included rapper Fat Joe and Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear, a Democrat. At that event, she promoted the administration’s work to relax federal marijuana restrictions and spoke in favor of broad reforms.
“I’ve said many times: I believe — I think we all at this table believe — no one should have to go to jail for smoking weed,” she said.
Leading Republicans
Trump’s endorsement could be seen as an attempt to close the policy gap between the parties on a popular issue.
Republicans in Congress have lagged behind their Democratic colleagues in seeking marijuana reforms, even as polls and ballot initiatives in states that favor both parties have shown legalizing marijuana use is an increasingly popular position among voters of all political persuasions, Glasstetter said.
A Pew Research Center poll this year showed 88% of respondents thought marijuana should be legal for recreational or medical use. That was up from 68% in the same survey in 2022.
At a May hearing of the U.S. House Appropriations Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice and Science, just days after Attorney General Merrick Garland announced the administration would seek to reschedule cannabis, Republican representatives voiced skepticism over the move to federal Drug Enforcement Administrator Anne Milgram.
Rep. Robert Aderholt, an Alabama Republican, noted studies finding a connection between cannabis use and psychosis. The country is dealing with a mental health crisis, he said.
“My concern is rescheduling marijuana would make the crisis worse,” he said.
But an endorsement from Trump, who holds immense influence among congressional Republicans, could be crucial to getting more Republicans to change their positions, Glasstetter said.
“Former President Trump is a leading indicator,” he said. “We expect that his high-profile embrace of cannabis reform will make it much easier for other Republicans, particularly in Congress, to come out in support of cannabis reform.”
Trump Backs Federal Marijuana Rescheduling And Cannabis Industry Banking Access
Published on September 9, 2024By Tom Angell
Former President Donald Trump says he supports federally rescheduling marijuana and opening up access to banking services for businesses in the cannabis industry. He is also reiterating his support for the legalization initiative on Florida’s November ballot.
“As President, we will continue to focus on research to unlock the medical uses of marijuana to a Schedule 3 drug, and work with Congress to pass common sense laws, including safe banking for state authorized companies, and supporting states rights to pass marijuana laws, like in Florida, that work so well for their citizens,” Trump said in a post on his site Truth Social on Sunday night.
The 2024 Republican presidential nominee made clear that he will be voting in support of legalizing cannabis in Florida, where he is a resident.
Cannabis Use Before Bedtime Does Not Cause Next-Day Impairment Of Cognitive Ability
“As I have previously stated, I believe it is time to end needless arrests and incarcerations of adults for small amounts of marijuana for personal use,” he said. “We must also implement smart regulations, while providing access for adults, to safe, tested product. As a Floridian, I will be voting YES on Amendment 3 this November.”
The support for rescheduling cannabis under the Controlled Substances Act will allay some fears that a Trump administration could reverse progress on the issue that was initiated—but has not yet been completed—by the Biden administration.
The Department of Health and Humans Services has recommended moving marijuana to Schedule III, but that has faced some resistance from the Drug Enforcement Administration, which has scheduled a hearing on the proposal for December 2—after the presidential election, raising concerns that the process will not be completed until after a new president is inaugurated.
Trump’s latest marijuana post follows up on one he made last month in which he indicated—but did not explicitly say—he supported Amendment 3 in Florida. The earlier comments predicted that Florida voters would approve the cannabis measure and generally discussed the benefits of legalization, but left some observers wanting more clarity on the former president’s position on the specific state initiative.
“In Florida, like so many other States that have already given their approval, personal amounts of marijuana will be legalized for adults with Amendment 3,” Trump said in the prior post. “Whether people like it or not, this will happen through the approval of the Voters, so it should be done correctly.”
“We need the State Legislature to responsibly create laws that prohibit the use of it in public spaces, so we do not smell marijuana everywhere we go, like we do in many of the Democrat run Cities,” he added at the time. “At the same time, someone should not be a criminal in Florida, when this is legal in so many other States. We do not need to ruin lives & waste Taxpayer Dollars arresting adults with personal amounts of it on them, and no one should grieve a loved one because they died from fentanyl laced marijuana.”
Trump then discussed the medical benefits of cannabis and said legalization would be “very good” for Florida in an interview with Lex Fridman last week.
“Medical marijuana has been amazing,” he said, adding the he has “had friends and I’ve had others and doctors telling me that it’s been absolutely amazing, the medical marijuana.”
On broader legalization, he said “it’s got to be a certain age” to purchase. “It’s got to be done in a very concerted, lawful way. And the way they’re doing it in Florida, I think is going to be actually good. It’s going to be very good, but it’s got to be done in a good way. It’s got to be done in a clean way.”
Prior to announcing his support for marijuana reform, Trump met with the CEO of Trulieve Cannabis Corp., a large company that has provided the vast majority of funding in support of the Florida legalization campaign.
Last month at a press conference, Trump told a reporter that he’s starting to “agree a lot more” that people should not be criminalized over marijuana given that it’s “being legalized all over the country”—adding that he would “fairly soon” reveal his position on the Florida ballot measure.
“As we legalize it, I start to agree a lot more because, you know, it’s being legalized all over the country,” Trump said at the time. “Florida has something coming up. I’ll be making a statement about that fairly soon.”
A reporter had asked about the Biden-Harris administration push to reschedule cannabis, as well as Vice President Kamala Harris, the 2024 Democratic presidential nominee, stating repeatedly that people should not be incarcerated over simple cannabis offenses.
“As we legalize it throughout the country—whether that’s a good thing or a bad thing—it’s awfully hard to have people all over the jails that are in jail right now for something that’s legal,” Trump replied. “So I think obviously there’s a lot of sentiment to doing that.”
Following Trump’s recent announcement of support for the Florida cannabis legalization ballot measure, the campaign for Harris is working to remind voters that while in office, Trump “took marijuana reform backwards.”
In a memo from a senior campaign spokesperson, the Harris campaign accused Trump of “brazen flip flops” on cannabis. The Democratic campaign says it’s one of the Republican former president’s “several bewildering ‘policy proposals’ that deserve real scrutiny.”
“On issue after issue, Trump is saying one thing after having done another,” the memo says. “For example: As a candidate in 2024, he suggests he is for decriminalizing marijuana – but as President, his own Justice Department cracked down on marijuana offenses.”
The claim appears to be a reference to the move by Trump-era Attorney General Jeff Sessions to rescind the so-called Cole memo, which provided guidance to federal prosecutors not to interfere with operations of well regulated state marijuana systems.
Meanwhile, longtime ally and GOP political operative Roger Stone, who is also a Florida resident and supports the legalization proposal, separately told Marijuana Moment that if Trump did ultimately endorse the measure it would “guarantee victory.”
Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC), who is sponsoring a bill to federally legalize marijuana called the States Reform Act, separately said that while she hoped Trump would back the Biden administration’s rescheduling move, she also said part of the reason Republicans in Congress have declined to embrace marijuana policy change is because they’re “afraid of it.”
Trump also recently went after Harris over her prosecutorial record on marijuana, claiming that she put “thousands and thousands of Black people in jail” for cannabis offenses—but the full record of her time in office is more nuanced.
Trump’s line of attack, while misleading, was nonetheless notable in the sense that the GOP presidential nominee implied that he disagrees with criminalizing people over marijuana and is moving to leverage the idea that Harris played a role in racially disproportionate mass incarceration.
Meanwhile, Harris selected Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz (D) as her running mate, choosing a candidate who backed numerous cannabis reform measures in Congress, called for an end to prohibition when he was running for governor and then signed a comprehensive legalization bill into law in 2023.
As president, Trump largely stayed true to his position that marijuana laws should be handled at the state-level, with no major crackdown on cannabis programs as some feared after then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions rescinded the Obama era federal enforcement guidance. In fact, Trump criticized the top DOJ official and suggested the move should be reversed.
While he was largely silent on the issue of legalization, he did tentatively endorse a bipartisan bill to codify federal policy respecting states’ rights to legalize.
That said, on several occasions he released signing statements on spending legislation stipulating that he reserved the right to ignore a long-standing rider that prohibits the Justice Department from using its funds to interfere with state-legal medical marijuana programs.
Before President Joe Biden bowed out of the race, his campaign made much of the president’s mass cannabis pardons and rescheduling push, drawing a contrast with the Trump administration’s record. The Harris campaign so far has not spoken to that particular issue, and the nominee has yet to publicly discuss marijuana policy issues since her own campaign launched.
Trump throws full support behind Florida pot legalization as DeSantis fights it
Trump also said he supported reclassifying marijuana under federal law.
Former President Donald Trump is registered to vote in Florida, making him eligible to vote for Amendment 3. | Alex Brandon/AP
By Arek Sarkissian and Mona Zhang
09/09/2024 11:44 AM EDT
TALLAHASSEE, Florida — Donald Trump said he supports loosening federal marijuana restrictions and will vote for a Florida ballot initiative seeking to legalize the drug for adult use just hours after Gov. Ron DeSantis warned hundreds of church goers that the measure would create an invincible drug cartel in their shared home state.
Trump already signaled his support for the legalization measure, which will appear on the November ballot as Amendment 3, during a Truth Social message posted in late August. The former president and GOP presidential nominee more explicitly endorsed it with another message posted late Sunday. Trump stopped short of supporting federal decriminalization, but indicated support for reclassifying marijuana under federal law, along with passing banking reform for state-regulated cannabis companies and supporting states’ rights to pass legalization laws.
“As a Floridian, I will be voting YES on Amendment 3 this November,” Trump wrote in the Sunday Truth post. “As President, we will continue to focus on research to unlock medical uses of marijuana to a schedule 3 drug, and work with Congress to pass common sense laws.”
Trump, in his August social media post about Amendment 3, was both positive and negative about the ballot measure, which seeks to legalize pot use for people aged 21 and over and allow the state’s medical marijuana industry to start selling for recreational use. His latest post reinforced concerns that state lawmakers should regulate the drug so that its presence — including its pungent smell — does not impact neighborhoods.
But Trump has also said Amendment 3 would stop “needless” marijuana-related arrests, which he also brought up in his August post.
Trump posted his message about four hours after DeSantis told about 200 people at a Tallahassee church that Amendment 3 was a ploy by one Florida marijuana company to create a drug cartel backed by the state constitution. DeSantis, who won the governor’s seat in 2018 with help from Trump’s endorsement, told the crowd at the Baptist-based City Church that, contrary to claims that Amendment 3 would stop people from being incarcerated on marijuana possession charges, no one is serving time in a Florida prison for simple marijuana possession.
DeSantis also said Amendment 3 would allow people to carry enough pot to make dozens of joints and smoke them anywhere they want. He said states such as Colorado, where marijuana has already been legalized recreationally, had failed to restrict places where the drug is consumed.
“Public use of this will be rampant,” DeSantis said. “You can’t point to a state that is better off for doing it.”
Trump has historically shied away from providing a concrete stance on marijuana legalization. During the 2020 election he said the issue should be left up to each state. He also appointed Jeff Sessions, a notorious opponent of marijuana legalization, as attorney general, who had signaled plans to begin cracking down on enforcement of the federally banned drug that never materialized.
Trump’s endorsement of Amendment 3 comes as the Democrats have the most pro-weed presidential ticket ever, with Vice President Kamala Harris and Tim Walz. Meanwhile, Trump’s running mate JD Vance has said that he doesn’t like marijuana legalization, but believes in states rights when it comes to legal weed.
Flanked by musician Fat Joe and Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear, Vice President Kamala Harris speaks during a roundtable conversation.
Cannabis
Vice president criticizes federal cannabis restrictions during White House weed event
By Natalie Fertig | March 15, 2024 03:37 PM
Harris embraced federal legalization as a senator and Walz supported establishing a taxed, regulated market for adults as governor of Minnesota. Trump’s support for reclassifying cannabis to Schedule III closes the differences between him and Harris’ position ahead of the debate on Tuesday.
Trump’s embrace of federal policy assuages some of the concerns of pro-cannabis advocates that the Biden administration’s proposal to reschedule cannabis, a process that will extend beyond Election Day, will be able to continue no matter who wins.
Biden issued an executive order in October 2022 directing federal agencies to conduct a scientific review of marijuana’s status under federal law. In August, the Department of Health and Human Services concluded that marijuana should be moved from Schedule I to Schedule III under the Controlled Substances Act, which would make it easier to conduct scientific research and reduce taxes for cannabis companies. The DEA will have the final say on whether that ultimately happens, but the agency is widely expected to embrace the recommendation.
The previous Trump administration rolled back the Obama administration’s hands-off policy when it came to state-regulated marijuana markets, but there was no ensuing crackdown on state-legal markets.
“Both major party candidates support moving cannabis down to Schedule III. There should be no further delay,” Adam Goers, co-chair of the Coalition for Cannabis Scheduling Reform, said in a statement.
Trump is registered to vote in Florida, making him eligible to vote for Amendment 3 and another high-profile measure, Amendment 4, which seeks to expand abortion rights. Trump has already announced that he will not vote for Amendment 4 but he was highly critical of the state’s recently-enacted ban on abortion after six weeks of pregnancy, which was a top priority for DeSantis.
Trump also historically has given conflicting statements about his stance on abortion rights. He declined to endorse a national abortion ban despite party pressure and has stated that the issue of abortion limits should be left up to the states.
DeSantis on the other hand has come out with force against both Florida ballot measures. Earlier this year he launched a political committee called the Florida Freedom Fund to attack the legalization push and efforts to enshrine the right to abortion in the state’s constitution. He also helped launch the “No on 3” campaign in July.
Amendment 3 will need at least 60 percent of the vote in order to pass, requiring significant support from Republican voters. The campaign behind the measure has collected more than $80 million in cash contributions, and almost all of that money came from the Tallahassee-based Trulieve, which is the state’s largest medical pot company. The measure would allow Trulieve and more than 20 other companies licensed by the state to grow and sell medical marijuana to expand into the recreational market, and then leave future expansion plans up to the state’s GOP-controlled Legislature.
DeSantis said not even people who support marijuana should vote for Amendment 3 because it’s giving control of the industry to Trulieve and other medical pot licensees. Unlike previous efforts to legalize marijuana, which included provisions allowing people to grow a limited number of plants at home, this year’s measure is written to favor the state’s $2 billion medical marijuana industry.
“They’re creating in Florida’s constitution a drug cartel,” DeSantis said. “And they’ll have no liability with the cultivation and sale of marijuana.”
Trump and Harris Both Agree That Marijuana Should Be Legal
Bowing to Public Opinion, Trump and Harris Both Agree That Marijuana Should Be Legal
It remains unclear whether either would do anything about that as president.
Jacob Sullum | 9.4.2024 12:01 AM
After Donald Trump endorsed a Florida ballot initiative that would legalize recreational marijuana in that state, Kamala Harris accused her Republican opponent of flip-flopping on the issue. Yet the vice president herself did not publicly support marijuana legalization until 2018, when two-thirds of Americans already favored that policy.
The truth is that both presidential candidates have changed their positions on this issue over the years, reflecting a sea change in public opinion. But that does not necessarily mean that either, if elected, would invest any effort in addressing the untenable conflict between state marijuana laws and federal prohibition.
In 1990, when Trump was famous as a billionaire New York developer rather than a politician, he called the war on drugs "a joke" and recommended legalization instead. "We're losing badly the war on drugs," he said during a speech in Miami. "You have to legalize drugs to win that war."
In an interview after the speech, Trump said he hoped "people will start to realize that this is the only answer; there is no other answer." As a Republican presidential candidate 25 years later, he implausibly claimed his 1990 remarks did not count as an endorsement of legalization.
During that campaign, Trump's position on marijuana legalization was essentially the same as Hillary Clinton's. "I really believe we should leave it up to the states," he said, although he made it clear that he took a dim view of legalization, which he described as a "bad" policy that had caused "some big problems" in Colorado.
Despite Trump's avowed preference for letting states go their own way on marijuana policy, his first attorney general, Jeff Sessions, rescinded a Justice Department memo that encouraged federal prosecutors to leave state-licensed cannabis suppliers alone. But no crackdown followed, and Sessions' successor, William Barr, did not even try to instigate one.
As president, Trump also proposed eliminating an annually renewed spending rider that bars the Justice Department from interfering with state medical marijuana programs. Nothing came of that either.
Those two moves, the Harris campaign argues, were plainly inconsistent with what Trump said in a Truth Social post on Saturday. Predicting that Florida voters will approve marijuana legalization in November, he cited reasons to welcome that outcome.
"Someone should not be a criminal in Florida" for possessing marijuana "when this is legal in so many other States," Trump wrote. Pot busts, he added, "ruin lives & waste Taxpayer Dollars."
It is fair to say that Trump's views on marijuana legalization have evolved. But the same is true of Harris.
As USA Today notes, "Harris has been criticized for aggressively prosecuting weed-related crimes when she was California's attorney general and San Francisco's district attorney, particularly given the racial disparities in punishment nationwide." She opposed a California legalization initiative in 2010, when she was the San Francisco district attorney; laughed at a question about legalization in 2014, when she was running for attorney general against a Republican who favored it; and declined, as California's attorney general, to take a position on the 2016 initiative that legalized recreational use in her state.
As a senator two years later, Harris finally took the plunge, saying, "We need to decriminalize marijuana nationwide." Later that year, she co-sponsored a bill that would have repealed the federal ban, and she introduced a similar bill in 2019.
President Joe Biden, by contrast, has always resisted federal legalization, and the 2024 Democratic platform says nothing about it. The Republican platform, meanwhile, does not even allude to marijuana reform.
That silence is striking, given that 38 states have legalized medical marijuana and 24 of them, accounting for most of the U.S. population, also allow recreational use. According to Gallup, 70 percent of Americans—including 87 percent of Democrats, 70 percent of independents, and 55 percent of Republicans—think marijuana should be legal.
As of Saturday, both major-party presidential candidates agree. But it remains unclear whether either is prepared to do anything about it.
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Trump Supports Florida Marijuana Legalization Ballot Measure,
But Wants Lawmakers To Ban Public Smoking
All good NEWS for Artizen Cannabis going into next year, regardless of who becomes President, cannabis is on its way to decriminalization in the US!!!!
Published on August 31, 2024By Tom Angell
Former President Donald Trump said on Saturday that he believes voters in his home state of Florida will approve a marijuana legalization initiative on the November ballot, arguing that “someone should not be a criminal in Florida, when this is legal in so many other States.”
Trump added that current policy ruins lives, wastes taxpayer dollars and puts people at risk of dying from cannabis tainted with fentanyl.
The former president wants lawmakers to follow up on legalization if voters approve it, however, by passing a law to ban public cannabis consumption.
Marijuana Is Linked To An Enhanced ‘Runner’s High’ And Lower Pain During Exercise
“In Florida, like so many other States that have already given their approval, personal amounts of marijuana will be legalized for adults with Amendment 3,” Trump said in a post on his social media site Truth Social. “Whether people like it or not, this will happen through the approval of the Voters, so it should be done correctly.”
“We need the State Legislature to responsibly create laws that prohibit the use of it in public spaces, so we do not smell marijuana everywhere we go, like we do in many of the Democrat run Cities,” he added. “At the same time, someone should not be a criminal in Florida, when this is legal in so many other States. We do not need to ruin lives & waste Taxpayer Dollars arresting adults with personal amounts of it on them, and no one should grieve a loved one because they died from fentanyl laced marijuana.”
“We will make America SAFE again!” he said.
Florida Sen. Joe Gruters (R), a former Chairman of the Republican Party of Florida, cheered Trump’s support for legalization.
“I am incredibly proud to have President Trump stand alongside us in our effort to end needless arrests and incarcerations of adults for simple possession of marijuana and to give Floridians the same individual freedom to choose safe, tested products that more than half the country already enjoys,” he said.
Gruters has pledged to push legislation to ban public marijuana smoking if voters approve legalization on the ballot, as Trump now says he supports.
“Our shared goals to expand our freedoms and keep Floridians safe from fentanyl-laced marijuana from the illicit market is why Amendment 3 has broad support and will pass in November,” the senator said. “President Trump’s call for smart implementation is exactly why I filed a bill to prevent smoking in public. Marijuana should be consumed at home, and I will work alongside my colleagues in the legislature to ensure Florida does this right.”
Earlier this month at a press conference, Trump told a reporter that he’s starting to “agree a lot more” that people should not be criminalized over marijuana given that it’s “being legalized all over the country”—adding that he would “fairly soon” reveal his position on the Florida ballot measure.
“As we legalize it, I start to agree a lot more because, you know, it’s being legalized all over the country,” Trump said at the time. “Florida has something coming up. I’ll be making a statement about that fairly soon.”
A reporter had asked about the Biden-Harris administration push to reschedule cannabis, as well as Vice President Kamala Harris, the 2024 Democratic presidential nominee, stating repeatedly that people should not be incarcerated over simple cannabis offenses.
“As we legalize it throughout the country—whether that’s a good thing or a bad thing—it’s awfully hard to have people all over the jails that are in jail right now for something that’s legal,” Trump replied. “So I think obviously there’s a lot of sentiment to doing that.”
Longtime ally and GOP political operative Roger Stone, who is also a Florida resident and supports the legalization proposal, later told Marijuana Moment that if Trump did ultimately endorse the measure it would “guarantee victory.”
Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC), who is sponsoring a bill to federally legalize marijuana called the States Reform Act, separately said that while she hopes Trump will back the Biden administration’s rescheduling move, she also said part of the reason Republicans in Congress have declined to embrace marijuana policy change is because they’re “afraid of it.”
Trump also recently went after Harris over her prosecutorial record on marijuana, claiming that she put “thousands and thousands of Black people in jail” for cannabis offenses—but the full record of her time in office is more nuanced.
Trump’s line of attack, while misleading, was nonetheless notable in the sense that the GOP presidential nominee implied that he disagrees with criminalizing people over marijuana and is moving to leverage the idea that Harris played a role in racially disproportionate mass incarceration.
Meanwhile, Harris selected Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz (D) as her running mate, choosing a candidate who backed numerous cannabis reform measures in Congress, called for an end to prohibition when he was running for governor and then signed a comprehensive legalization bill into law in 2023.
As president, Trump largely stayed true to his position that marijuana laws should be handled at the state-level, with no major crackdown on cannabis programs as some feared after then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions rescinded the Obama era federal enforcement guidance. In fact, Trump criticized the top DOJ official and suggested the move should be reversed.
While he was largely silent on the issue of legalization, he did tentatively endorse a bipartisan bill to codify federal policy respecting states’ rights to legalize.
That said, on several occasions he released signing statements on spending legislation stipulating that he reserved the right to ignore a long-standing rider that prohibits the Justice Department from using its funds to interfere with state-legal medical marijuana programs.
Before President Joe Biden bowed out of the race, his campaign made much of the president’s mass cannabis pardons and rescheduling push, drawing a contrast with the Trump administration’s record. The Harris campaign so far has not spoken to that particular issue, and the nominee has yet to publicly discuss marijuana policy issues since her own campaign launched.
Back in Florida, Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) has doubled down on his opposition campaign against the marijuana legalization initiative that will appear on the state’s November ballot.
Meanwhile, a Democratic congresswoman who recently said she was on the fence about whether she’d vote for the legalization ballot initiative this November has officially given the measure her endorsement.
There’s been a mixed bag of feedback on Amendment 3 from members of Florida’s congressional delegation.
One pro-legalization GOP congressman, Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL), recently said he intends to vote against it, strictly because he feels the reform should be enacted statutorily, rather than as a constitutional amendment that would prove more challenging to amend.
On the other hand, Rep. Brian Mast (R-FL), co-chair of the Congressional Cannabis Caucus, predicted earlier this year that the measure will pass.
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GOP Congresswoman Predicts Marijuana Will Be Rescheduled ‘Right Before The Election,’
But She’s Not Sure If Trump Is On Board
Published on August 26, 2024By Kyle Jaeger
A GOP congresswoman says she expects the Biden administration’s marijuana rescheduling proposal to be finalized “right before the election, because they want the cannabis votes.” And while she hopes former President Donald Trump will back the change, she also said part of the reason Republicans in Congress have declined to embrace marijuana reform is because they’re “afraid of it.”
Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC), who is sponsoring a bill to federally legalize marijuana called the States Reform Act, spoke about cannabis election politics, rescheduling prospects and more during an interview with The Dales Report on Monday.
Asked about whether she expects Trump will get behind marijuana reform in light of his recent comments indicating support for decriminalization as more states adopt legalization, Mace said she wasn’t sure. But she noted his past comments in favor of medical cannabis and said she “would like to hear support for rescheduling” from her party’s leader, especially considering that there’s a “statistically significant number of Republicans” in favor of those policies.
Study finds cannabis increases productivity when working out
“There’s a lot of work to be done, and Republicans need to get on board, because the vast majority of Americans are with me, with you guys, on how to move forward in a very responsible manner,” Mace said during the marijuana-focused podcast interview. “I would allow states to decide how they want to regulate cannabis. That should be a thing that states are involved at their level—whether it’s medical, recreational—how they want to implement it. Different states have done it different ways, with some successes and some failures.”
“I think that, in the GOP realm, people are afraid of it,” the congresswoman said. “People are afraid of being primaried, and they they haven’t polled it, because if they polled it, they would see, ‘oh, wow, there’s actually significantly more support for this position than I realized.'”
She added that there are “so many reasons to [back cannabis reform] as a Republican. Not only is it the “right moral thing to do,” but it’s also “a winning electoral issue—it’s like a win-win situation.”
Mace said her colleagues in Congress are largely “clueless” on the nuances of the marijuana policy debate, particularly as it comes to some of the debates that have played out during the rescheduling effort. To an extent, that means it’s partly the responsibility of stakeholders and advocates to bring legislators the data showing how supporting policy reform is a popular political position, she said.
But as far as this year is concerned, Mace only signaled confidence that the Biden administration would complete rulemaking to move marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule III under the Controlled Substance Act (CSA), as the Justice Department formally proposed in March.
Her States Reform Act to federally deschedule cannabis, meanwhile, has “zero” percent chance of advancing in the GOP-controlled House in the next three weeks, Mace said, noting challenges with the calendar and other legislative priorities.
“Right now, a good effort would be, between now and the end of the year, is I want to educate members about States Reform Act and then ask them to cosponsor it—showing that we can have a growing level of support,” she said.
Cannabis stocks post sharp gains as Trump says he’s starting to ‘agree more’ about reforms
GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump said he plans to make a statement about Florida’s upcoming referendum on adult-use cannabis
By
Steve Gelsi
Published: Aug. 8, 2024 at 4:05?p.m. ET
Cannabis stocks rallied Thursday after Donald Trump said he’s starting to agree more with cannabis reform.
Florida voters are preparing to weigh in on legalization for adult use.
-1.71%
CURLF
-2.59%
CGC
-8.06%
AYRWF
-10.05%
VRNOF
-2.28%
CRLBF
-3.71%
TLRY
-1.89%
TCNNF
-1.51%
Cannabis stocks moved sharply higher in late afternoon trading on Thursday after Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump said he’s shifting his position in favor of looser cannabis laws.
At a press conference at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Trump said, “as we legalize it, I start to agree a lot more.” He also said he’s readying a statement about an upcoming Florida referendum on adult-use cannabis. The measure, which requires 60% of the vote to pass, is already polling above that support level.
Trump declined to elaborate on his planned statement but said, “As we legalize it throughout the country, whether that’s a good thing or a bad thing, it’s awfully hard to have people all over the jails that are in jail right now for something that’s legal.”
He added: “Obviously there’s a lot of sentiment to doing that.”
The Florida vote could go in a more “liberal” way than people expect, he said.
The AdvisorShares Pure U.S. Cannabis exchange-traded fund
MSOS
-1.71%
was up 9.7% Thursday as the closing bell approached.
Curaleaf Holdings Inc.
CURLF
-2.59%
rose 7.3%, Canopy Growth Corp.
CGC
-8.06%
was rallying 10%, Ayr Wellnes Inc.
AYRWF
-10.05%
was up by 17.4%, Verano Holdings Corp.
VRNOF
-2.28%
was up by 12.1% and Cresco Labs Inc.
CRLBF
-3.71%
was rallying by 7.9%. Tilray Brands Inc.
TLRY
-1.89%
rose 5.7% and Trulieve Cannabis Corp.
TCNNF
-1.51%
jumped 10.6%.
Amendment 3: Top Republican backs legal use of recreational marijuana in Florida
Updated: 7:12 PM EDT Aug 8, 2024
Greg Fox
Reporter
Florida voters will decide on Amendment 3 this November, which would legalize recreational marijuana for adults 21 and older.
It's mostly backed by Trulieve, the state's largest medical marijuana dispenser, that's so far raised more than $66 million.
But standing in the way of passage is Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.
"So, this is not going to be good. It's not good for law and order," DeSantis said two weeks ago in Orlando at the Florida Sheriff’s Association Conference.
The Florida Sheriff’s Association and the Florida Police Chiefs Association oppose the measure, citing concerns about a growing black market in states like Colorado and California despite legalization.
"Well, what's happened in Colorado is, they have the biggest black market they have ever had. California has a big black market, and so, that has led to way more drugs. It's led to more dangerous drugs coming in," DeSantis said.
The Florida Freedom Fund, a committee set up by the governor's chief of staff, James Uthmeier, has raised nearly $1.8 million to fight Amendment 3 and Amendment 4, which would enshrine abortion rights in the state constitution.
Proponents of recreational cannabis have gained a new ally: Republican Sarasota state Sen. Joe Gruters.
“With Amendment 3, I think we can take that step, to save lives, decriminalize it, and make sure we put up the guardrails to protect average, everyday Floridians,” Gruters said during an interview with WESH 2 News.
Gruters, who served as chair of the Republican Party of Florida from 2018 to 2022 and has previously served in the state House. He has been a strong conservative voice, proposing restrictions on abortion, banning smoking on beaches, eliminating vote-by-mail drop boxes, and advocating for guns in churches and schools.
He argues that recreational cannabis would be a revenue generator, noting that medical marijuana is currently not taxed.
Gruters also addressed law enforcement concerns about impaired drivers, suggesting that Florida should explore new scientific methods to test for driver impairment to ensure safety.
“At the end of the day, we have the ability to regulate it however we see fit. We can put those guardrails up. We can make sure on the implementation side that it, you know, we can test impairment and put people away for driving under the influence, 100% we should do that," he said.
For Amendment 3 to pass, 60% of voters must vote yes, and current polls indicate it has a strong chance of approval.
Florida To Decide On Legalizing Recreational Marijuana
In November, Florida voters will decide on Amendment 3, a constitutional amendment that would legalize recreational marijuana for adults. If passed, Amendment 3 would legalize the possession and purchase of up to 3 ounces of marijuana and up to five grams of cannabis concentrates. The measure also allows the state’s current medical marijuana licensees to produce and sell cannabis products to adults aged 21 and up.
Amendment 3 also allows state lawmakers to approve regulations for new businesses to enter the recreational marijuana market, although the initiative does not require the legislature to do so. If approved by voters, the cannabis legalization amendment will take effect six months after election day. Recent polling suggests that the ballot measure has the 60% support needed to pass.
The former president’s potential support for Florida’s Amendment 3 differs significantly from the state’s Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis. At a breakfast meeting during the GOP convention in Milwaukee last month, DeSantis urged the Republican Party of Florida to oppose Amendment 3.
“It gives you a limitless constitutional right to possess and smoke,” DeSantis said about the ballot measure, according to a report from Florida Politics. I think it’s up to like, what, 40 joints, is that the 3 ounces would be 40? More than that, 80 joints. Something like that.”
DeSantis added that he opposes marijuana legalization for several reasons, including the odor of cannabis. During his failed presidential campaign, the governor said that today’s cannabis is “too potent” and repeated the unproven but commonly held assertion that drug dealers “throw fentanyl in.”
Trump Suggests He Supports Decriminalizing Marijuana
A.J. Herrington
Forbes
Aug 8, 2024
Former President Donald Trump on Thursday suggested he supports decriminalizing marijuana, noting that cannabis is “being legalized all over the country.” Trump made the comments during a press conference at Mar-a-Lago, adding that he will announce his position on a ballot measure to legalize marijuana in Florida “fairly soon.”
“As we legalize it, I start to agree a lot more because, you know, it’s being legalized all over the country,” Trump said, according to a report from Marijuana Moment. “Florida has something coming up. I’ll be making a statement about that fairly soon.”
Trump made his comments after a reporter asked him about the Biden administration’s efforts to reclassify marijuana under federal drug laws and presumed Democratic presidential candidate Vice President Kamala Harris’ repeated assertion that people should not be incarcerated for low-level marijuana offenses.
“As we legalize it throughout the country—whether that’s a good thing or a bad thing—it’s awfully hard to have people all over the jails that are in jail right now for something that’s legal,” Trump replied. “So I think obviously there’s a lot of sentiment to doing that.”
Trump’s apparent willingness to consider the decriminalization of marijuana is a change for the Republican presidential candidate, who has repeatedly called for a hardline on drug policy. When Trump launched his bid for reelection in November 2022, he said he would make securing the southern border and combatting Mexican cartels would a be a priority, calling for the execution of drug dealers.
Schumer, Booker And Other Senators Push DEA To ‘Promptly Finalize’ Marijuana Rescheduling
Published on August 3, 2024By Kyle Jaeger
Top Democratic senators, including Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), are pushing the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) to”promptly finalize” a rule to reschedule marijuana.
In a letter sent to Attorney General Merrick Garland and DEA Administrator Anne Milgram on Friday, Schumer and Sens. Cory Booker (D-NJ), Ron Wyden (D-OR) and others implored the administration to follow through on a proposal to move cannabis from Schedule I to Schedule III of the Controlled Substances Act (CSA), as the Justice Department formally proposed in May.
“The proposed rule to reclassify marijuana to schedule III recognizes the medical benefits of marijuana, will improve access for studying the health effects of short and long-term cannabis use, and will provide relief to cannabis businesses that continue to navigate a patchwork regulatory system to conduct legal business,” they said.
VP Harris Tells Group of Activists: 'We Need to Legalize Marijuana'
A public comment period on the proposed rule closed last week, with more than 40,000 people weighing in on the modest reform. Initial analyses of the comments indicated that the vast majority were in favor of reclassifying cannabis or descheduling it altogether.
The senators said they “urge DEA to promptly finalize this proposed rule to reschedule.”
“Rescheduling presents significant benefits to public health, research, business, and Americans harmed by the lasting effects of our punitive drug policies,” the letter says. “It will also bolster cannabis related businesses, many of which are owned by people criminalized for marijuana offenses, opening them up to critical investment opportunities.”
While rescheduling would remove certain research barriers and free up state-licensed cannabis business to take federal tax deductions under the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) code known as 280E, it would not federally legalize marijuana, as the Congressional Research Service (CRS) has made known in multiple recent reports.
The senators said rescheduling could additionally prompt the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) “to generate and update technical information on cannabis to clarify its regulatory approach to relevant stakeholders” and “create broader availability of supply for studies, while allowing researchers to avoid the stringent and costly DEA administrative review process.”
“Better study of marijuana will make its use safer for users and communities,” they said, while adding that existing federally approved studies “do not reflect the full range of products consumed by customers,” as the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) separately explained in a report to Congress in June.
“Reclassification is a long overdue step toward the end of prohibition, which has disproportionately impacted young people and people of color for decades,” the letter says, noting that the issue could be more comprehensively addressed if Congress enacted legislation to end federal marijuana prohibition, such as the Cannabis Administration and Opportunity Act (CAOA) that Schumer, Booker and Wyden have sponsored.
“The bill would create a federal regulatory framework to protect public health and prioritize restorative justice to undo the decades of harm caused by the failed War on Drugs,” they said. “This legislation was heavily informed by states’ laws creating legal adult-use cannabis markets.”
“Marijuana prohibition has denied scores of Americans from benefiting from the drug’s accepted medical uses and resulted in criminal enforcement that has harmed communities around the nation. Criminal enforcement has contributed to our country’s exorbitant incarceration rates, racial disparities in policing, and immense pain and loss in communities hardest hit by punitive marijuana policies. This is true especially for low-income communities and people of color. From 2010-2018, marijuana related arrests reached 6.1 million, with 700,000 in 2018 alone.”
The senators, who back full legalization, wrote that incremental rescheduling is “not the panacea to undoing the harms caused by decades of marijuana prohibition, but it is a step toward addressing the policies that have devastated communities across the country.”
“Cannabis should be entirely de-scheduled,” the said. “Yet, we recognize and appreciate DEA’s effort to address the flaws in our current marijuana policy by using its authority under the CSA and following the scientific and medical evidence to reschedule marijuana as a schedule III drug. We urge DEA to finalize the rule.”
Other signatories on the letter include Sens. Tina Smith (D-NM), Ben Ray Luján (D-NM), Patty Murray (D-WA) and Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY).
Kamala Harris Is The First Major Presidential Candidate To Back Marijuana Legalization
Published on August 4, 2024By Marijuana Moment
“Harris’s trajectory from marijuana legalization skeptic to proponent mirrors that of many Americans.”
By Paul Armentano, NORML
Like most Americans, Vice President Kamala Harris has evolved on marijuana.
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In 2010, when she was San Francisco’s district attorney, Harris urged voters to reject a proposed ballot initiative to legalize the adult-use marijuana market. At the time, Harris’s position aligned with that of most California voters, 54 percent of whom ultimately decided against the measure.
But not long after, Harris—and most Americans—changed their stance.
In 2016, Californians reversed course and passed Proposition 64 legalizing marijuana statewide. And in 2019, Harris—then California’s junior U.S. senator—sponsored legislation to end the federal prohibition of cannabis. That same year, Gallup pollsters reported that some two-thirds of Americans believed that “the use of marijuana should be legal”—up from 46 percent in 2010.
Today, public support for legalization stands at 70 percent.
As vice president, Harris has repeatedly stated that Americans should not be incarcerated for marijuana use. She’s championed the Biden administration’s efforts to pardon low-level marijuana offenders and to loosen certain federal cannabis restrictions.
And as the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, she’s the first major party candidate to have ever called for the plant’s legalization and regulation.
Harris’s trajectory from marijuana legalization skeptic to proponent mirrors that of many Americans. Like most voters, her views on cannabis softened following the legalization of marijuana for medical purposes. As district attorney of San Francisco, Harris pledged not to prosecute people who either used or sold medical cannabis.
“In my own life, I have had loved ones and close friends who relied on medical marijuana to relieve their suffering and even prolong their lives,” she acknowledged. Many Americans had similar experiences—which is why nearly 20 states approved medical cannabis access between 1996 and 2011, almost all by voter initiative.
But it wasn’t until 2012 that voters gave the green light to outright legalization. That year, voters in Colorado and Washington became the first to approve measures regulating the adult-use cannabis market. By 2016, the total number of legal states had risen to nine.
Today, 24 states—home to more than half of the U.S. population—have legalized marijuana.
How has America reacted to this real-world experiment? For Harris, living in a legal state likely influenced her transition from a one-time critic into a staunch advocate. That’s been the case for many others too. In states like California and Colorado, a greater percentage of voters back legalization now than they did when the laws were initially enacted.
Further, no state has ever repealed its marijuana legalization laws. That’s because these policies are working largely as voters and politicians intended—and because they’re preferable to cannabis criminalization.
State-level legalization has led to a drastic reduction in low-level marijuana arrests and prosecutions. It’s significantly disrupted the illicit marketplace, and it’s led to the creation of over 400,000 full-time jobs. Taxes from regulated cannabis sales have generated over $20 billion in state revenue. And contrary to some critics’ fears, marijuana legalization and regulation has not led to any increase in cannabis use by young people.
But while Americans’ attitudes have shifted over the years, federal marijuana policies have largely remained static.
In Congress, far too many politicians remain wed to the sort of “Reefer Madness” view that most voters have long since abandoned. Like Harris did, they also need to evolve their views on cannabis to more closely align with current scientific and public consensus. Those who refuse to adapt do so at their own political peril.
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Artizen Cannabis Sales for June 2024 - $1Million +
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What tax deductions will be available to marijuana companies if 280E disappears?
By Neil Prasad and Martin Martinez, Guest Columnists
July 5, 2024
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The cannabis industry has long been shackled by the constraints of Section 280E of the Internal Revenue Code, which prohibits companies dealing with substances classified under Schedules 1 or 2 of the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) from deducting ordinary business expenses.
While Section 280E is applicable to federal deductions, only half of the markets with medical or adult-use marijuana business licenses are decoupled from federal limitations, meaning state-regulated cannabis companies in those regions aren’t subject to 280E rules when filing state taxes.
This provision has stifled the growth of legal marijuana enterprises across the United States.
But with the Biden administration proposing the reclassification of marijuana from Schedule 1 to Schedule 3, the industry stands on the brink of a fiscal revolution.
What deductions are currently out of reach for cannabis companies?
Under Schedule 1, marijuana businesses face severe limitations when it comes to their tax filings and income-tax obligations.
They also should review whether each state where they operate conforms to federal tax provisions.
The iron grip of Section 280E bars companies from claiming a myriad of selling, general and administrative deductions that are otherwise routine for businesses in other sectors, such as:
Rent: The simple overhead of leasing space for operations – a deductible expense in virtually any other industry – remains a fiscal ghost in the cannabis realm.
Salaries and wages: Employee compensation, from budtenders to executives, is money spent without the prospect of tax relief.
Utility costs: Electricity, water and other utilities essential to cultivating and selling cannabis cannot lighten the tax load.
Maintenance and repairs: Upkeep of facilities is a nondeductible money pit hindering reinvestment and upgrades.
Marketing and advertising: Building and promoting a brand are crucial for growth and customer acquisition, and they bleed funds without tax write-offs that offset their costs.
Health insurance: Employee medical coverage is an unacknowledged expense, pressuring the industry’s workforce stability.
Depreciation and amortization (on non-plant-touching assets): Federal tax regulations ignore the gradual loss of asset value over time.
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Preparing for 280E changes
Imagine a world where the marijuana industry no longer finds itself in the same category as heroin or LSD but instead sits alongside prescriptions filled daily at local pharmacies.
What transformation could this bring to cannabis businesses once freed from the 280E punitive regime?
Full-spectrum deductions: You could claim deductions for ordinary and necessary business expenses, such as rent, salaries, utility bills and marketing costs.
Profit reinvestment: Funds liberated from 280E could go back into the business, fueling expansion, research and development, innovation and employment.
Lower consumer prices: Potential cost savings might be passed to consumers, making medical cannabis more accessible.
Enhanced financial services: With the stigma reduced, obtaining loans, credit lines and banking services could become more accessible.
Elevated market competition: Tax relief could lead to competitive patient or consumer pricing, driving down the illicit market’s appeal.
The prospect of such changes has the industry buzzing with excitement and speculation.
Will these potential deductions lead to a flourishing economic ecosystem for cannabis businesses, or will the dream of financial parity with other industries remain just out of reach?
One thing is clear: The rescheduling of marijuana and the subsequent rendering of Section 280E obsolete for cannabis businesses could potentially unleash a green wave of prosperity, transforming a once-hamstrung industry into a financial powerhouse.
The question remains: When will the cannabis industry be allowed to bloom to its full financial potential?
Neil Prasad leads the National Cannabis Industry Group at Marcum, a national business and accounting firm. He can be reached at neil.prasad@marcumllp.com.
Martin Martinez is the partner in charge of Marcum’s Tax & Business Services division in Houston and a member of the firm’s National Tax Office. He can be reached at martin.martinez@marcumllp.com.
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Pennsylvania lawmakers introduce bipartisan marijuana legalization bill
by: George Stockburger
Posted: Jun 17, 2024 / 11:31 AM EDT
HARRISBURG, Pa. (WHTM) – Pennsylvania lawmakers have unveiled a bipartisan bill to legalize adult-use marijuana.
Reps. Aaron Kaufer (R-Luzerne) and Emily Kinkead (D-Allegheny) say the bill prioritizes public safety, consumer protection, social equity, and criminal justice reform.
The lawmakers also say their bill would help create jobs and generate “significant tax revenue” while targeting the illegal marketplace. In March, the Independent Fiscal Office released a report that said legalized marijuana in Pennsylvania has the potential to bring in more than $1 billion in tax revenue over the next five years
“This bill underscores our commitment to responsible regulation of the cannabis industry while addressing the diverse needs of Pennsylvania’s communities,” said Kaufer. “By prioritizing public safety and consumer protection, this legislation will build on the successful regulatory structure of the state’s medical cannabis program, continuing stringent standards for product quality, packaging and labeling to ensure the well-being of all consumers.”
Farmers would also have an opportunity to participate in the legal market.
“It is well past time for the Commonwealth to legalize cannabis for recreational use, address the injustices of the failed War on Drugs, and ensure that Pennsylvanians can benefit from this industry in the same way our neighboring states have,” said Kinkead. “Our bipartisan effort to provide specific language that takes the best practices from other states is the next substantial step in finally getting this done.”
Law makers say the bill would also place a “strong emphasis on social equity and criminal justice reform by creating opportunities for individuals disproportionately impacted by outdated cannabis policies.”
The beginning of the end of cannabis prohibition
The federal government is moving toward “rescheduling” cannabis to recognize its medicinal use. That’s not far enough — but it’s a major step forward.
By Paul Armentano,
Guest Columnist
May 15, 2024
The federal government is moving toward “rescheduling” cannabis to recognize its medicinal use.
For the first time in its history, the Justice Department is calling for a change in the federal legal status of cannabis — which is currently classified as one of America’s most dangerous drugs.
The Attorney General’s office recently confirmed that it’s circulating a proposal to reclassify marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule III under the federal Controlled Substances Act. The move, which affirms a prior recommendation by the Department of Health and Human Services and the FDA, marks an about-face for bureaucracies that have traditionally maintained a “flat earth” perspective for all things cannabis.
Under federal guidelines, Schedule I substances possess “no currently accepted medical use in the United States” and “lack accepted safety for use under medical supervision.” By contrast, Schedule III substances, like ketamine and anabolic steroids, are recognized as having well-established medical use and an acceptable safety profile for patients.
The federal government’s decision to finally recognize cannabis as a legitimate therapeutic agent is historic.
For decades, federal officials maligned patients and doctors who spoke out about the benefits of cannabis. One former federal drug czar even accused physicians who supported medical marijuana of practicing “Cheech & Chong medicine.”
For years, the government actively campaigned against statewide medical cannabis legalization initiatives — and even went so far as to try and strip physicians of their medical licenses for daring to discuss cannabis therapy with the sick and dying.
Not anymore.
According to HHS, an estimated 30,000 health practitioners in the United States are currently authorizing medical marijuana for their patients. The department also acknowledged that “the vast majority of individuals who use marijuana are doing so in a manner that does not lead to dangerous outcomes to themselves or others.”
The government’s stunning reversal validates the experiences of tens of millions of Americans. But it still falls well short of the changes necessary to bring federal marijuana policy into the 21st century. Specifically, the proposed change fails to harmonize federal marijuana policy with the cannabis laws of most U.S. states, particularly the 24 states that have legalized its use and sale to adults.
These jurisdictions regulate marijuana in a manner far more akin to alcohol — a substance omitted from the Controlled Substances Act — than a prescription drug. As a result, the state-licensed adult-use cannabis industry — and those who patronize it — will continue to operate in legal limbo, without any clear guidance from the federal government.
Nevertheless, as a first step forward, this policy change dramatically shifts the political debate surrounding cannabis.
Specifically, it delegitimizes many of the tropes historically exploited by opponents of marijuana policy reform. Claims that cannabis poses unique harms to health, or that it’s not useful for treating chronic pain and other ailments, have now been rejected by the very federal agencies that formerly perpetuated them.
Going forward, these specious allegations should be absent from any serious conversations surrounding cannabis and how to best regulate its use.
Of course, the longstanding politicization of cannabis won’t go away overnight. For decades, marijuana’s critics have derided both the plant and its consumers. Some will no doubt continue to try and do so despite the federal government’s decision to change course. But their claims will increasingly fall upon deaf ears.
After nearly a century of cannabis criminalization, prohibition is coming to an end.
Paul Armentano is the Deputy Director for NORML, the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws. This op-ed was distributed by OtherWords.org.
White House Announces Cannabis Rescheduling
Iris Dorbian
Contributor
May 16, 2024,02:34pm EDT
White House announces cannabis rescheduling
In October 2022, President Biden requested federal agencies review reschedule cannabis. After an ... [+]GETTY
In an unprecedented but widely anticipated move made by a U.S. president, today Biden announced that his administration is rescheduling cannabis from Schedule I to Schedule III under the Controlled Substances Act. A 60-day public comment period will commence before this action is finalized and implemented.
The news was first reported by the Associated Press on April 30.
Currently, cannabis is categorized as a Schedule I substance, meaning it is criminally prohibited by federal law and has a "high potential for abuse." Rescheduling cannabis as a Schedule III substance means it is legal to posses in licensed pharmacies under a doctor's prescription. Examples of Schedule III drugs are anabolic steroids and ketamine.
For leading professionals and practitioners, the news is a major step in the history of the fragmented legal U.S. cannabis industry. Although it doesn't end prohibition and inequities still remain, rescheduling is yet another sign of the increasing mainstream acceptance of cannabis.
Brian Vicente, founder of Vicente LLP, a cannabis law firm, said rescheduling would greatly alleviate the herculean tax burden of many licensed cannabis businesses since they are currently selling a Schedule I substance.
"We work with hundreds of licensed cannabis businesses, and the ability to deduct ordinary operating costs under the Schedule III proposal would be a game-changer for them," explained Vicente. "This proposal will release cannabis businesses from the crippling tax burden they are currently shackled with and allow these businesses to grow and prosper.”
Emily Paxhia, a managing partner at cannabis-focused investment firm Poseidon Asset Management, also applauded this historic White House action particularly as it follows solid evidence that legalization and regulation at the state level do work. "The tired and fear-based tactics of the prohibitionists are thin and will not play well in a fight against this progress," said Paxhia. "The industry, the states, the HHS, and the medical community have data to show that reform has been productive. We will continue to work the process with pragmatism and facts until the final scheduling is achieved."
Wendy Bronfein, co-founder, chief brand officer and director of public policy at medical cannabis brand Curio Wellness, also expressed jubilation; however, she tempered her celebratory tone with caution, underscoring the ultimate goal—descheduling.
“The only way to eliminate stigma and legitimize the legal cannabis industry is to fully remove cannabis from the Controlled Substances Act,” stressed Bronfein. “For as long as cannabis is listed as a scheduled substance, there will always be an inherent conflict between federal and state law. We encourage the federal government to seek a balance between exercising federal oversight and enforcement responsibilities while preserving each state’s ability to determine the best approach to cannabis within its borders.”
Justice Department takes 'major step' toward rescheduling marijuana
In a video announcement Thursday, President Joe Biden said he is “committed to righting” the wrongs of a “failed approach to marijuana.”
Biden Administration takes steps to reclassify marijuana as lower-risk
May 16, 2024, 1:00 PM EDT / Updated May 16, 2024, 1:13 PM EDT
By Julie Tsirkin and Monica Alba
WASHINGTON — The Justice Department took a significant step toward rescheduling marijuana Thursday, formalizing its process to reclassify the drug as lower-risk and remove it from a category in which it has been treated as more dangerous than fentanyl and meth.
President Joe Biden announced the “major” move in a direct-to-camera video posted to his official account on X. “This is monumental,” Biden said in the message. “It’s an important move towards reversing long-standing inequities. … Far too many lives have been upended because of a failed approach to marijuana, and I’m committed to righting those wrongs. You have my word on it.”
The Biden administration has been signaling that it would move to reschedule the drug from Schedule I — a strict classification including drugs like heroin — to the less-stringent Schedule III, which would for the first time acknowledge the drug’s medical benefits at the federal level. The Drug Enforcement Administration submitted a notice of proposed rulemaking in the Federal Register on Thursday afternoon, triggering a 60-day comment period that will allow members of the public to submit remarks regarding the rescheduling proposal before it is finalized.
Biden first directed federal agencies to review how marijuana is scheduled in October 2022, weeks before that year’s midterm elections. The process was led by the DOJ and the Department of Health and Human Services.
“Look folks, no one should be in jail for merely using or possessing marijuana. Period,” Biden said in Thursday’s video, his third time speaking extensively on the topic since his directive two years ago.
The second time Biden addressed the issue was during this year’s State of the Union address, making history by referring to marijuana from the dais in the House chamber. “No one should be jailed for using or possessing marijuana,” he said at the time.
Vice President Kamala Harris also released a video Thursday, hailing the progress.
“Currently marijuana is classified on the same level as heroin and more dangerous than fentanyl. We are finally changing that,” Harris said. “We are on the road to getting it done.”
During the first 30 days of the comment period, interested parties could request a hearing regarding the rescheduling proposal. Under the statute, the DEA would be required to hold a hearing before an administrative law judge.
After the DEA reviews and considers the public comments, and at the conclusion of any requested hearing, the DEA will issue a final order to reschedule marijuana. (The DEA could decline to reschedule the drug but that’s unlikely given the administration’s strong support).
The entire process can take anywhere from a few months to up to a year.
Once completed, federal scientists will be able to research and study the potential medical benefits of the drug for the first time since the Controlled Substances Act was enacted in 1971. It could also open the door for pharmaceutical companies to get involved with the sale and distribution of medical marijuana in states where it is legal.
For the $34 billion cannabis industry, the move would also eliminate significant tax burdens for businesses in states where the drug is legal, notably removing it from the IRS code’s Section 280E, which prohibits legal cannabis companies from deducting what would otherwise be ordinary business expenses.
Joe Biden walking in the garden
President Joe Biden in the Rose Garden on Monday, May 13, 2024.Demetrius Freeman / The Washington Post via Getty Images
The Justice Department’s rescheduling decision could also help shrink the black market, which has thrived despite legalization in states like New York and California, and has undercut legal markets, which are fiercely regulated and highly taxed.
During his time in office, Biden issued pardons for prior federal offenses of simple possession of marijuana and issued a proclamation granting additional pardons for simple possession, attempted simple possession and use of the drug.
The White House has also urged governors to do the same in their states and some have heeded the call, including in Oregon and Massachusetts.
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Kind of strange that the biggest PVSP / Artizen hater on twitter would be the one to discover some letter with no dates and Artizen management has said nothing.
Has been bashing for years now, check his posts.
Riss is the CCO at Netcapital
He has done all their financials and got them listed on Nasdaq, been pals for many years.
Riss is setting up NetCapital for Broker-Dealer License !!!!!
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Reclassifying Marijuana Could Unlock Billions in Tax Savings for Cannabis Companies
Wall Street Journal
Proposed change could lift income-tax burden that wipes out most licensed marijuana retailers’ earnings
By
Jennifer Maloney
May 5, 2024 9:00 am ET
Cannabis businesses are currently barred from claiming deductions on many basic business expenses.
Many U.S. cannabis businesses could become profitable for the first time if the Biden administration follows through on its plan to reclassify marijuana as a less dangerous drug.
That is because the change could lift a heavy income-tax burden: Section 280E of the federal tax code currently bars cannabis businesses from claiming deductions on many basic business expenses. That rule often results in an effective tax rate of 70% or more, wiping out most licensed marijuana retailers’ earnings.
“It’s an absolute game-changer,” said Boris Jordan, executive chairman of Curaleaf Holdings, which operates 145 dispensaries and 19 cultivation sites across the U.S. “It’s something we’ve been waiting for, for the better part of 10 years.”
The proposed rule could take months to complete and could be further stalled by lawsuits. The public, including state regulators and marijuana companies, would have a chance to comment and the White House would have to sign off on a final version of the rule before it could go into effect.
Marijuana is legal in some form in 40 states and the District of Columbia, but is illegal under federal law—and would remain so even if the Drug Enforcement Administration moved marijuana from Schedule I to the less-restrictive Schedule III, equivalent to prescription medications such as anabolic steroids and some combinations of acetaminophen and codeine.
Cannabis businesses would still have to contend with limited access to banking services and financing. They still wouldn’t be allowed to transport marijuana across state lines. And companies that sell marijuana in the U.S. still couldn’t be traded on U.S. stock exchanges. (Several Canadian operators are listed on U.S. exchanges while U.S. operators are listed on Canadian exchanges.)
Current tax rules allow cannabis businesses to deduct their cost of goods sold, so growers that put most of their resources into production don’t get hit hard.
A national survey conducted in 2022 by Whitney Economics, a cannabis industry research firm, found that fewer than 25% of cannabis businesses were profitable. Licensed U.S. cannabis companies this year are expected to make $31.4 billion in sales and pay $2.3 billion more in federal taxes than they would under normal business tax rules, according to Whitney Economics forecasts.
For companies that have been hanging on in hope of one day making it into the black, the policy change could be transformative. Business leaders said they could use the cash to invest more in marketing, offer better benefits to employees and expand into newly opened markets such as Ohio. Industry leaders said they are also optimistic that the policy shift could reduce the stigma around cannabis, bring more investors into the sector and make federal lawmakers more open to legalizing marijuana.
Congress created Section 280E of the tax code in 1982, when Sen. Bill Armstrong (R., Colo.) tucked the provision into a larger bill as the federal War on Drugs was ramping up.
Cresco Labs CEO Charlie Bachtell, center, said the company has paid millions more in U.S. federal taxes than it would have under normal business conditions. PHOTO: DANIEL ACKER/BLOOMBERG NEWS
The law denies many ordinary deductions and tax credits to businesses that are “trafficking in controlled substances” listed under Schedule I and II.
When marijuana was illegal at the federal and state levels, that deduction limit had a relatively small impact, and it mostly gave U.S. authorities an additional tool to go after drug dealers and impose taxes on top of criminal prosecutions. But state legalization combined with Section 280E created an odd hybrid. The cannabis industry looked like regular businesses in many respects—except for the income-tax bills.
“Draconian, I think, is putting it lightly,” said Charlie Bachtell, chief executive of Cresco Labs, which has dispensaries and production facilities across eight U.S. states. For each of the past two years, Cresco has paid between $70 million and $80 million more in U.S. federal taxes than it would have under normal business conditions, he said. Despite the hefty tax bill, Cresco in the last quarter of 2023 became free cash-flow positive for the first time since it went public in 2018.
The cannabis industry has “really been kind of stumbling its way forward because of the economic burdens of 280E,” said Brian Vicente, a cannabis lawyer in Denver.
The current tax rules allow cannabis businesses to deduct their cost of goods sold, so growers that put most of their resources into production don’t get hit hard. Businesses closer to the consumer get hammered by Section 280E. For instance, a retailer selling clothes or food can deduct rent, marketing and wages when calculating taxable income. But a cannabis retailer typically can’t take any of those deductions.
“It’s impossible to make those numbers work,” said Wanda James, CEO and co-founder of Simply Pure Brands, which has a dispensary in Colorado and a new branch about to open in New Jersey. “It’s just a question of how long is your runway.”
James, a former Navy officer, restaurateur and political organizer, was among the first Black cannabis licensees in Colorado. She said the tax change could lower the barriers to entry for women, people of color and veterans, many of whom have struggled to keep their cannabis businesses afloat after winning state lotteries for social-equity licenses.
The tax change could also shrink the gap in profitability between legal and illegal cannabis businesses, helping licensed businesses that have struggled to compete with the black market. Unlicensed operations can sell marijuana at lower prices and pay fewer administrative and regulatory costs.
More broadly, moving cannabis to Schedule III could create an unusual tax regime. Businesses would still face significant state taxes and high costs for banking and other services. But cannabis would actually have more favorable federal tax treatment than alcohol and tobacco, which are subject to federal excise taxes on top of income taxes.