How to make pot seem as all-American as an ice-cold beer

Read the entire story from the Source: As the Legal Marijuana Industry Grows, Businesses Struggle to Differentiate and Market Themselves – The Atlantic

Medical marijuana supporters have descended on the state Capitol hoping for long-awaited action that would legalize medical marijuana for more than a dozen conditions.

The state House on Monday afternoon was expected to begin discussing and amending SB 3, which passed overwhelmingly in the Senate nearly a year ago.

The Senate had passed a bill in 2014 but the House allowed it to die.

Supporters rallied on Monday morning, with leaders saying they know they won’t get a “perfect” bill, but expressing optimism the House will pass a bill that will give relief for people including children with severe seizures, veterans with PTSD and people who want an alternative to highly-addictive opioid painkillers.

There are dozens of proposed amendments to SB 3, and wading through them could be a long process on Monday.

A final vote could come no sooner than Tuesday. An amended bill would have to go back to the Senate for another vote.

SB 3 allows medical marijuana to be consumed via routes including oils that can be swallowed or vaporized, but it couldn’t be smoked. One controversial proposed amendment would limit the amount of THC, the chemical that is responsible the marijuana high.

Source: Pa. medical marijuana supporters crossing fingers for long-awaited action on legalization | PennLive.com

Liberal-leaning Vermont legislature could become the first U.S. state to legalize recreational marijuana use, rather than by voter initiative, in a move that advocates for the drug say could speed its acceptance across the nation.

State representatives this month are set to take up a bill passed by the state Senate in February that would allow adults over 21 to purchase and smoke the drug beginning in 2018.

The move follows a year of hearings in the Senate that lawmakers say allowed them to closely consider appropriate limits to place on the drug’s use. The current proposal would prohibit users from growing plants at home and ban the sale of edible products containing marijuana extracts.

But lawmakers must act before the end of May, when the current session ends, a deadline that may prove difficult to meet. It is uncertain whether it has enough support in the Democratic-controlled House to pass.

The law would impose a 25 percent tax on sales of the drug, which would fund drug law enforcement and drug education programs.

“It makes for a much more thoughtful and measured approach,” said State Senator Jeanette White, a sponsor of the senate bill. “We got to work out the details, we got to ask the questions first and put the whole infrastructure in place before it happens.”

Four states, Colorado, Washington, Oregon and Alaska, as well as the District of Columbia, have legalized marijuana through ballot initiatives, and voters in four more states, including neighboring Massachusetts, are to vote on legalization in November. The drug remains illegal under federal law.

Advocates contend the push for marijuana legalization across the nation will be boosted if the legislation is passed by the Democratic-controlled legislature of Vermont, the home of U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders, who is running for the Democratic presidential nomination.

Bills have been submitted in 16 other states, according to advocates, but none have advanced as far.

“It sends an important message that legislatures don’t have to be afraid of this, it’s not a third rail anymore,” said Jeff Laughlin, a 37-year-old software programmer from Barre, who supports the measure.

Laughlin is far from alone. A February poll of 895 state residents by Vermont Public Radio found that 55 percent of Vermonters supported legalization, with 32 percent opposed.

More telling, a 2015 Rand Corp study commissioned by the state found that one in eight residents already use the drug illegally, with one in three people aged 18 to 25 doing so. The report estimated that users spent between $125 million and $225 million on the drug in 2014.

REALITY CHECK

The high prevalence of marijuana use in the state has some lawmakers and even law-enforcement officials contending it’s time for the rules to catch up with reality.

“If it’s one in eight, to me that tells me that we need to change, that society for the most part is accepting it,” said Windham County Sheriff Keith Clark. “If 12 or 13 percent of the population is not being open with law enforcement when we’re out trying to investigate serious crimes, then that is holding us back from working with our communities.”

Supporters acknowledge that the bill will have a harder path to approval in the state’s House of Representatives, where many Republicans are wary of legalizing the drug.

“Many of our members are opposed to this proposal and I don’t know that it can be changed enough for them to change their minds,” said Representative Donald Turner, the House Republican leader. “I don’t feel there is a good argument for legalizing it at this point.”

Governor Peter Shumlin, a Democrat in his final year in office, asked lawmakers to pass the measure during this year’s legislative session, which ends in May.

Debby Haskins, executive director of opposition group Smart Alternatives for Marijuana-Vermont, noted that Vermont, like many U.S. states, is coping with a surge in addiction to opioid drugs, ranging from prescription painkillers to heroin.

She said she believed health officials needed to solve that problem before legalizing a new drug.

“The questions that keep coming up for me is, how will this make Vermont healthier and how will this improve the quality of life? I don’t think this bill does it,” Haskins said. “It’s the wrong direction for us to be heading.”

 

Source: Vermont legislature on track to be first in U.S. to legalize marijuana

Learn More About Vermont Seed to Sale Here.

As the Adilas420 team continues to assist clients with training and Seed to CPA software and assisting in Standard Operating Procedures (SOP’s) we often strive to define “compliance.” Many focus time to ensure the words on their SOP’s reflect procedures compliant with rules and regulations issued by the state, but struggle to implement the protocols required to deliver compliant practices and product.

Compliance is not just about words written in statutes referenced by state inspectors; compliance is about working towards creating a stable industry in a sustainable manner. Compliance applies to your People, your Product and your Process.

Canna-business owner, Laura Davis, describes the recognition of the importance of compliance in her article below.

Compliance: It’s Just Good Business – Cannabis Industry Journal

The cannabis industry in Colorado and other states is heavily regulated at many levels from cultivation to sale. As the industry grows and matures, companies are looking to federal standards and practices that may not immediately apply to their state’s industry, but that have been in place for years to provide for public safety. As the cannabis industry continues to grow, it is critical that industry leaders demonstrate that, through their practices and adherence to public safety standards, their products are safe for the consumer.

This vision has led cannabis companies to seek out compliance experts and build compliance departments. Hiring compliance experts is a major trend in this fledging industry, and more than that, it is a critical element to maintaining employee morale and providing for public safety. Compliance provides a roadmap for employees, offering guidance and resources to assist them with job performance. It is a basic building block for employee retention.

Internally, employees must be aware of what regulations can affect their specific position and job responsibilities. It is crucial that all staff employed by a cannabis business are aware of current and pending regulations. If the employees are well versed on the regulations that impact their duties in the company, there is less of a chance for error.

Externally, cannabis companies should strive for the highest level of compliance, and much can be gleaned from other, more established industries. Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) should be developed to detail critical work flow areas of the business, including cultivation practices, sales protocols, and more.

Compliance can help to create a more sustainable business. In an industry that has grabbed headlines for energy, water and resource usage, compliance is at the core of a sustainable business model.

Read the full story from the Source: Compliance: It’s Just Good Business – Cannabis Industry Journal

Contact Adilas420 for compliance advice, guidance or support.

Detroit medical marijuana caregiver center eligibility map. All of the colored circles identify sections of the map where dispensaries would be in violation of the Detroit zoning laws that took effect March 1. (Gus Burns | fburns@mlive.com)

Detroit has been one of the most lax cities in Michigan regarding the enforcement of medical marijuana dispensaries, which are still illegal under state and federal laws.

With names like The Green Mile, House of Dank, Action Medz and Detroit Grass Station. at latest count there were an estimated 211 dispensaries operating throughout the city, nearly 1.5 per square mile.

The businesses make no effort to hide their intent, and police have left them to operate freely for the most part, despite a state Supreme Court ruling in 2013 that allows medical marijuana dispensaries to be declared a public nuisance. 

There is pending legislation that could define and regulate dispensaries in the state.

The 2008 Michigan Medical Marijuana Act allowed caretakers to designate up to five medical marijuana patients for whom they could provide marijuana. The law did not address the possibility of retail sales.

Some of the pot shops have clearly invested large amount of capital into their entrepreneurial endeavors and buildings, but it could be all for naught with the implementation of strict zoning laws that ban shops throughout most of the city.

One group of dispensary and medical marijuana advocates, Citizens for Sensible Cannabis Reform, is fighting back. It filed a referendum last week that, if approved, could appear on August election ballots and reverse the zoning law that took effect March 1.

The referendum petition is currently being reviewed by the city Elections Department to determine if it is legal and the signatures are valid, says Elections Director Daniel A. Baxter.

As written, shops are banned from operating within 1000 feet of schools, arcades, parks, party stores, child care facilities, churches, public housing and other dispensaries. The city opened a 30-day application window March 1 and says it will begin enforcement next month.

As of Thursday, 113 businesses had applied for permits to become medical marijuana caregiver centers. A cursory look at the locations reveal most violate one or more of the new zoning limitations.

The city offers a mapping tool online for dispensaries to see if their location violates the new zoning limitations. More than 90 percent of the city map is covered with multitude of circles indicating a 1000-foot restricted area for one reason or another.

One applicant, Mind Right, is located at 17243 Mack in west Detroit. Typing in the address reveals numerous zoning location violations. “Location Ineligible,” the city website says. It’s within 1000 feet of “a controlled use location,” Parkie’s Liquor Shoppe; a child daycare facility, Moross Congregational Church and within a Drug Free Zone.

After checking about 10 addresses of applicants, all violated at least on aspect of the ordinance.

Source: Group hopes to halt dismantling of Detroit’s marijuana dispensary industry | MLive.com

The following article from the Boston Globe presents the argument of the opposition; “Opponents argue that the dangers of the drug  (marijuana) have been understated, and argue that the state is already facing an opioid abuse crisis.” This crisis is real and serious. Opioid Recovery Specialists like, Matt Flinch, report on studies and confirmation that marijuana can ease opiod withdrawl symptoms.

While we await Federal Regulation, At the end of the day, the American Medical Association shouldn’t deny these simple stats, regarding drug use for medicinal or recreational purposes: alcohol, opiods, prescription and non prescription medications, used medicinally or recreationally kill and marijuana is the better option if possible.

Drug Overdose Total 47,055

Prescription Analgesics Total 18,893

Heroin Overdose Total 10,574

Alcohol-Induced Deaths 29,001Cannabis 0

(See more from the source of these stats here).

And Congrats to Boston for collecting the signatures from the people to support adult use marijuana regulation and Good Luck on Monday!

Legislative hearing Monday on marijuana legalization initiative – The Boston Globe

State lawmakers are set to hold a hearing Monday on a proposed initiative for the November ballot that would legalize the use of marijuana.

Such a measure has many powerful opponents on Beacon Hill — including Governor Charlie Baker and House Speaker Robert A. DeLeo — but the referendum could move forward even if it doesn’t garner much support from lawmakers at the hearing, which is set for 1 p.m.

Advocates have gathered enough petition signatures to get the measure before the Legislature. The Legislature can approve their initiative, reject it, propose a substitute, or do nothing.

In the absence of legislative approval, organizers will have to gather 10,792 signatures by early July in order to get the measure on the ballot.

The legalization initiative proposes to set a 3.75 percent excise tax on retail marijuana sales, in addition to the state’s 6.25 percent sales tax. The measure would also allow cities and towns to impose an additional 2 percent tax that the municipalities could keep.

The initiative would also allow adults to grow up to six marijuana plants at home. Retail sales could begin in January 2018. A new “Cannabis Control Commission,” would oversee stores, growing facilities, and manufacturers of edible products like brownies.

Some lawmakers have suggested that they may go back and adjust the measure if it is approved by voters, in order to address any shortcomings they might find.

Legalization advocates say laws against marijuana are ineffective, and that the drug should be regulated like alcohol. Voters in four states and Washington, D.C. have approved legalization measures, but marijuana remains illegal at the federal level.

Opponents argue that the dangers of the drug have been understated, and argue that the state is already facing an opioid abuse crisis.

They also say the state has already taken steps to make its marijuana rules more reasonable. Medicinal marijuana is being haltingly implemented in Massachusetts, for instance, and the state has decriminalized personal use.

Governor Baker, Attorney General Maura Healey and Boston Mayor Martin J. Walsh argued against legalization in an opinion piece in Monday’s Globe.

“We should not be expanding access to a drug that will further drain our health and safety resources,” the three elected officials said.

Source: Legislative hearing Monday on marijuana legalization initiative – The Boston Globe

S.241, sponsored by Senator Jeanette K. White, was approved by the Vermont Senate in a 17-12 vote after a 16-13 preliminary vote. The bill now moves to the House Of Representatives for approval. If approved, the bill will then have to be signed into law by the Governor.

The bill aims to allow those who are at least 21 or older to purchase up to an ounce of marijuana. It also establishes a “possession limit”, meaning the amount of marijuana anyone who is at least 21 or older can possess at any given time is limited to one ounce.

Anyone under 21 who possesses an amount of marijuana equal to or less than the possession limit or lied about their age in order to obtain marijuana has committed a civil offense and will be enrolled in the Youth Substance Abuse Safety Program. If they fail the program they will be subject to a civil penalty of $300 and their driver’s license will be suspended for 90 days. On the second offense, they will be subject to a civil penalty of $600 and their driver’s license will be suspended for 180 days.

If the person under 21 possessed more than the possession limit, they will be enrolled in the Youth Substance Abuse Safety Program and if they fail, they will be subject to a civil penalty of $600 and their driver’s license will be suspended for 180 days.

Along with a suspended driver’s license, their insurance rates may skyrocket. If the person passes the program, then no penalty will be issued and everything will be a-okay.

However, if the person is under 16, they will be considered delinquent and will be subject to 33 V.S.A. Chapter 52.

Anyone enabling the use of marijuana for someone who is under 21 will be imprisoned for no more than two years or fined no more than $2000, or both.

Those who are 21 or older and possess or cultivate more than the possession limit will be subject to a civil penalty no more than $500. If they possess or cultivate five times the possession limit, they will be subject to a civil penalty no more than $1000. If they possess or cultivate ten times the possession limit, they will be subject to a civil penalty no more than $10000.

Those who sell or “dispense” marijuana will be subject to the following:

The bill does make an exemption to this, saying “This [does not] apply to cultivators, product

manufacturers, testing laboratories, retailers, lounges, and their owners, officers, staff members, and agents who are in compliance with State law …”

The bill also plans to “expunge criminal history records”, the section in its entirety is as follows:

“On or before December 31, 2016, the Civil Division of the Washington County Superior Court shall issue an order to expunge all records and files related to the arrest, citation, investigation, charge, adjudication of guilt, criminal proceedings, and any sentence related to a misdemeanor conviction for possession or cultivation of cannabis. Copies of the order shall be sent to each agency, department, or official named therein. Thereafter, the courts, law enforcement officers, agencies, and departments shall reply to any request for information that no record exists with respect to such person upon inquiry in the matter.”

Due to the 25% sales tax this bill will place on marijuana, Senator Dick Sears (voted “Yea”) says that this bill would likely generate $30-40 million in new tax revenue every year.

Source: Vermont Senate Approves Recreational Marijuana Bill – Deep Dot Web

Michigan Bill To Legalize Recreational Marijuana

Michigan state Senator Coleman Young II has introduced Senate Bill 0813 and Senate Joint Resolution O. The purpose of the bill is to regulate and tax marijuana while the join resolution proposes “an amendment to the state constitution of 1963, by adding section 40a to article IV, to

decriminalize the possession and use of [marijuana].”

Young introduced this bill “in the interest of law enforcement to focus on violent and property crimes”.

“In the interest of allowing law enforcement to focus on violent and property crimes, generating revenue for education and other public purposes, and individual freedom, the legislature finds and declares that the use of [marijuana] should be legal for individuals 21 years of age or older and taxed in a manner similar to alcohol.”

The bill aims to place a sales tax at:

• $50 per ounce of marijuana flowers
• $25 per immature marijuana plant
• $15 per ounce of marijuana other than marijuana flowers

Similarly to Vermont, the bill enacts a “possession limit”. The possession limit described in the bill is as follows:

* If the marijuana produced by the plants exceed 1 ounce, it must be possessed in the same place where the plants are “cultivated”.

The bill also outlines what will no longer be considered criminal or a civil offense as long as the person is 21 years or older:

• Possessing, consuming, growing, using, processing, purchasing, or transporting an amount of marijuana that does not exceed the possession limit.
• Transferring 1 ounce or less of marijuana or not more than 6 immature marijuana plants to an individual who is 21 years of age or older without remuneration.
• Controlling property where actions that are described in this section occur.
• Assisting another individual who is 21 years of age or older in any of the acts described in this section.

Individuals under 21 who lie in order to obtain marijuana or gain access to a marijuana establishment will be fined up to $400.

Those who cultivate marijuana must ensure that the plants can not be seen by the public and can not be accessed by someone who is under 21. The cultivation must also take place on property that is lawfully owned by the cultivator or property that the cultivator has permission to use. Failing to do so will result in a fine up to $750.

Individuals who smoke marijuana in a public place will be fined up to $100.

Smoking marijuana while operating a motorized vehicle used for transportation will result in a fine or suspension of driver’s license, or both. First offense results in a fine up to $200, suspension up to 6 months. Second offense up to $500, suspension up to 1 year.

Young said that there too many people in jail because of marijuana and that he wants to end that.

“If you’re 21 or older and you’re not hurting anybody and you want to smoke a bong and stare at a fireplace for four and a half hours, that’s your right, Leave people alone.”

Source: Michigan Bill To Legalize Recreational Marijuana – Deep Dot Web

Lawmakers are poised to approve legalizing full-strength marijuana for terminally ill patients after supporters fought off attempts in the Senate to expand the proposal Friday.

Lawmakers are poised to approve legalizing full-strength marijuana for terminally ill patients after supporters fought off attempts in the Senate to expand the proposal Friday.

The measure would make full-strength marijuana legal for the first time in Florida by adding cannabis to the list of experimental drugs available to patients diagnosed with illnesses that could result in death within a year without life-saving interventions.

A vote could come as early as Monday, with the bill (HB 307) then going to Gov. Rick Scott. The House approved the bill Thursday.

But most of the Senate discussion Friday focused on another portion of the bill, aimed at resolving problems with a 2014 law that legalized non-euphoric marijuana for patients with cancer or chronic seizures, including children with severe epilepsy.

Doctors were supposed to be able to order the low-THC cannabis products for patients more than a year ago, but legal challenges delayed implementation of the law, spurring frustrated lawmakers to propose the changes in this year’s legislation.

Under the 2014 law, nurseries that have been in business for 30 years and grow at least 400,000 plants were eligible to apply for one of five highly sought-after licenses to grow, process and distribute the cannabis products.

Health officials selected the five “dispensing organizations” in November, prompting another round of challenges. Hearings in the cases are slated to run from March through the end of July. Meanwhile, the dispensing organizations are in the process of beginning to cultivate the marijuana, which must be low in euphoria-inducing tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, and high in cannabadiol, or CBD.

The bill ready for approval includes provisions that would allow each of the five applicants selected by health officials in November to keep their licenses and also would allow applicants whose challenges are successful to get licenses.

The measure would allow for three new dispensing organizations, once doctors have ordered medical marijuana treatments for at least 250,000 patients. It also includes an accommodation for black farmers, who complained they were shut out from applying for the licenses because none of the state’s black farmers met the criteria for the licenses.

But the changes to the measure — which ultimately could increase the number of dispensing organizations to a dozen — don’t go far enough to fix a bad law, Sen. Jeff Clemens said.

The focus of the 2014 law “was to help people and we haven’t helped anyone … because other members of this Legislature have been focused more on helping people out in the hallway more than helping people in our communities,” Clemens, a Lake Worth Democrat, said. “It was written to undermine the free market, and it was written to pick winners and losers.”

Sen. Rob Bradley, the bill’s sponsor who was instrumental in passage of the low-THC law, said he filed the legislation because he was “frustrated … with people suing and worrying more about money than patients.”

Bradley argued against changing the bill, saying that it was a result of a compromise with the House. And, Bradley said, a proposed constitutional amendment on the November ballot that would legalize medical marijuana for a broad range of patients will open up the market if it passes.

But Clemens and other critics of the measure filed more than 30 amendments, including proposals that would have expanded the types of patients who could qualify for the full-strength marijuana and would have allowed farmers — and not just nurseries — to compete for the licenses, all of which failed.

One proposal, aimed at helping veterans, would have allowed people with post-traumatic stress disorder to qualify for the medical marijuana treatment. Sen. Greg Evers, the amendment’s sponsor, said it would help keep veterans, who self-medicate with illegal drugs or addictive prescription drugs, out of trouble.

“We owe it to them to have less powerful pain killers, less powerful sleep options … and not put them into veteran courts,” Evers, R-Baker, said.

Saying that his two brothers served overseas, Bradley insisted that his family “loves the military.”

“The Bradley family loves the military. This is not an up or down vote on how much we love our veterans,” he said.

Evers’ amendment died on a tie vote.

Source: Medical marijuana expansion ready for approval

Detroit has a new set of medical marijuana laws that officially went into effect on Thursday that requires owners of dispensaries to have a license to do business.

Source: New medical marijuana laws in place in Detroit – Story | WJBK