CCMA Political greenBrief
Friday, January 18, 2019
www.cannabismanufacturers.org
Advocates Hope Governor Gavin Newsom Will Allow California Companies to Participate in Compassionate Care Programs — Already The State Legislature Has Introduced SB 34 Which Would Enable Licensed Providers To Donate Free Medicinal Cannabis To Patients In Need.
“Compassionate care programs save lives, and we should help them thrive instead of forcing them to pay taxes intended for businesses — taxes that are shutting these programs down. We need to correct this oversight in Prop 64 and help people living with serious conditions like HIV and cancer obtain the medical cannabis they need.”CA Senator Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco) On State Compassionate Care Programs
“The new Congress is the most pro-cannabis reform in history, and for the first time ever, a majority of the House of Representatives supports allowing states to legalize if they wish. Legislation like H.R. 420 will probably be taken more seriously than it ever has been in the past, though bills that take a more state rights approach have a better chance of actually making it through Congress. Still, it’s become increasingly clear that more and more legislators are realizing cannabis reform is good politics, and something many voters care about deeply.”Sam D’arcangelo, Project Manager Of HeadCount’s Cannabis Voter Project, On The New Wave Of Cannabis Support In Congress
EVENT: Malibu Fire Fundraiser On February 15th (Los Angeles – Cannabis Events)
On Friday February 15th, help the CCMA and Future Cannabis Project bring the cannabis community together for a fundraiser to benefit victims of the Woolsey Fire in Malibu. The evening kicks off with a four course dinner by cannabis Chef Holden Jagger followed by a party with music and DJs in a beautiful venue in downtown Los Angeles. Tax deductible proceeds will go directly to the Malibu Foundation, a non-profit working to assist in recovery for victims of the Woolsey Fire.
http://futurecannabisproject.org/2019/01/malibu-foundation-woolsey-fire-fundraiser/
A New Hope: Gavin Newsom & California’s Compassionate Care Programs (CA – Cannabis Legislation)
Cannabis Now (January 17, 2019) A second wind has hit the sails of those working to get free medical marijuana to California’s sick and needy, largely driven by a wave of optimistic feeling towards in newly elected Gov. Gavin Newsom. In recent weeks, California’s state legislators have gotten the ball rolling on their second attempt at creating regulations to support California’s compassionate care programs. The bill’s proponents say it is needed desperately by both the patients themselves and the providers who face the current tax burden accrued while supplying patients with free medicine.
https://cannabisnow.com/a-new-hope-gavin-newsom-californias-compassionate-care-programs/
The Sales Conundrum: How Cannabis Farmers Are Being Screwed By Retail Regulations (CA – Cannabusiness)
Merry Jane (January 17, 2019) Just a year ago, expectations were high as we celebrated the dawn of a new cannabis era… and then reality hit. January 1st, 2018, is now being referred to by some as “the first extinction event.” Now, with the close of the first year of recreational cannabis in California, statistics are starting to be made public about how little money was actually made, how little tax was collected, and how few of us in the biz managed to survive. Along with legality came a super-abundance of rules — and very few farmers, manufacturers, distributors, or retailers were prepared for the new regime.
California Legal Agency Signs Off On State’s Final Cannabis Industry Rules (CA – Cannabis Regulations)
Marijuana Business Daily (January 17, 2019) The California Office of Administrative Law (OAL) approved final marijuana industry rules that regulators had published in December, paving the way for the state to implement a permanent regulatory framework for the nation’s largest cannabis market. The regulations, approved late Wednesday, take effect immediately, according to news releases from the Bureau of Cannabis Control (BCC), the Department of Food and Agriculture and the Department of Public Health, which wrote the rules. Regulators had spent months drafting and revising the rules. The OAL’s approval was needed before the regulations could take effect.
https://mjbizdaily.com/california-legal-agency-signs-off-on-states-final-cannabis-industry-rules/
Cannabis Rules, Tools Roll Out; Sonora Dispensary Opening (CA – Cannabusiness)
My Motherlode (January 16, 2019) As state cannabis regulators continue to tweak rules and get their “track and trace” system up and running, they have an updated online tool for public use. All cannabis-related activities that are legally licensed by the Bureau of Cannabis Control can now be accessed through the updated interface, which it released this week. Calaveras County Sheriff Rick DiBasilio, who shared the information as something potentially noteworthy for many, comments that the state rules continue to change at a rapid pace, making it sometimes a challenge to keep up and that the BCC provides working documents and related news on its website as well.
How H.R. 420 Could Completely Revolutionize The Cannabis Industry (USA – Cannabis Legislation)
Money Morning (January 17, 2019) H.R. 420 is a new bill from Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-OR), and it could be a game changer for the cannabis industry. If passed, it would remove cannabis from the Controlled Substances Act. Marijuana would then be regulated just like alcohol at the federal level, opening up a new frontier of hr 420possibilities at the state level. Some investors have been sitting on the sidelines, still worried about buying cannabis stocks because marijuana is still illegal under federal law.
No Evidence Yet That Legal Cannabis Is Replacing America’s Other Favorite Vices (USA – Cannabis Industry)
The Takeout (January 17, 2019) There has been much wringing of hands and gnashing of teeth among alcohol companies over legal recreational and medical marijuana. A look at Oregon’s beer sales data compiled last year—a few years after the state legalized recreational marijuana—found that the growth of packaged craft beer sales fell the same year weed was legalized. Some alcohol companies got nervous. But two new analyses from the Brewers Association and the Distilled Spirits Council both found no evidence that legal marijuana has impacted liquor or beer sales.
https://thetakeout.com/recreational-medical-marijuana-beer-liquor-sales-1831837814
Cannabis Market’s Rapid Growth Has Created A Demand For Specialized Security Services (USA – Cannabis Industry)
PR Newswire (January 17, 2019) The U.S. legal cannabis industry has grown significantly and to the point that it now rivals large worldwide corporations like Netflix and McDonalds. And the industry is expanding rapidly due in part to California’s massive cannabis market. According to data compiled by Marijuana Business Daily’s Factbook, the legal cannabis market delivered revenues of approximately USD 6.2 Billion in 2017 and is expected to grow by more than 200% from 2017 to 2022. The data projects that legal cannabis sales in the U.S. could surpass those of firearms and ammunition by the end of 2019. The market will continue to develop as the medical and recreational segments flourish due to their widespread legalization.
Does Cannabis Use Cause Schizophrenia? (USA – Cannabis Effects)
The New York Times (January 17, 2019) Nearly a century after the film “Reefer Madness” alarmed the nation, some policymakers and doctors are again becoming concerned about the dangers of marijuana, although the reefers are long gone. The concern is focused largely on the link between heavy usage and psychosis in young people. Doctors first suspected a link some 70 years ago, and the evidence has only accumulated since then. In a forthcoming book, “Tell Your Children,” Alex Berenson, a former Times reporter, argues that legalization is putting a generation at higher risk of schizophrenia and other psychotic syndromes. Critics, including leading researchers, have called the argument overblown, and unfaithful to the science.
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/01/17/health/cannabis-marijuana-schizophrenia.html
U.S. Beer Giants Push Into Cannabis Market Thirsty For Growth (USA – Cannabis Market)
BNN Bloomberg (January 17, 2019) The makers of Budweiser, Coors and other large-scale brewers are placing their bets on cannabis as a way to fight saturated markets and shifting consumer trends. For years, the industry’s largest players have struggled with stagnating markets and shifting consumer tastes. While the same macroeconomic issues of saturated markets and consumers constantly looking for something new remain, the industry may have to contend with escalating trade issues and a market downturn that could cut into consumer spending.
https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/u-s-beer-giants-push-into-cannabis-market-thirsty-for-growth-1.1200087
3 Months Since Legalization: A Snapshot Of Canada’s Legal Cannabis Market (Canada – Cannabis Market)
Leafly (January 17, 2019) Never believe the hype. Three months after adult-use cannabis was made legal in Canada, neither has the sky fallen nor have we all been transported to utopia. It’s essentially business as usual for almost everyone, with the added option of buying cannabis from a store with less worry. At least for the most part. From supply shortages to the slow rollout of retail, legalization has been nothing less than rocky, but now that the fog has cleared, here’s where Canada’s legal cannabis market stands following its first quarter.
https://www.leafly.com/news/canada/3-months-cannabis-legalization-canada
Wisconsin Governor Now Supports Cannabis Legalization (WI – Legalization)
Leafly (January 17, 2019) Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers, who campaigned in support of legalizing medical marijuana, went a step further this week and said he now supports full legalization, giving hope to Democrats and other advocates who have pushed the issue unsuccessfully for years. Attorney General Josh Kaul also said on Wednesday that he would make the case across Wisconsin for legalizing medical marijuana as an alternative to prescribing more opioids to combat pain. Any change would have to pass the Republican-controlled Legislature, which has blocked past attempts to soften the law.
https://www.leafly.com/news/politics/wisconsin-governor-now-supports-cannabis-legalization
