CCMA Political greenBrief
Wednesday, June 13, 2018
How DNA Mapping Could Expand Our Knowledge On Cannabis Genomes
Cannabis Packaging In California, June 19th (CA – Los Angeles Event)
Join the CCMA and the Manufactured Cannabis Safety Branch of the California DPH for a panel discussion on packaging and manufacturing requirements. June 19th from 6-9pm in Santa Monica. This is an opportunity for brands and manufacturers to hear how and why the requirements were developed, ask questions about the requirements and, most importantly, provide feedback to help influence packaging and manufacturing requirements going forward. Regulations are not set in stone. This is your chance to interact with the agency that determines the regulations. Event details below.
California Marijuana Shops Will Have Glut Of Cheap Weed, Followed By A Possible Shortage After July 1 (CA – Cannabis Industry)
East Bay Times (June 13, 2018) Cannabis consumers soon should be able to shop at licensed stores in California without worrying about whether products on the shelves are laced with pesticides and other contaminants often found in black-market weed. Customers also will be able to see, on the package, how potent their products are, where they came from, and what other ingredients are used in any cannabis-infused edibles.
California Cannabis Market Transition Period About To End; Price Spikes, Shortages May Occur (CA – Regulated Market)
Marijuana Business Daily (June 12, 2018) The end of the beginning is coming. The formal end of the six-month transition period for California’s newly regulated marijuana market, that is – and it could be a bumpy ride for some MJ business owners. Come July 1, retailers will no longer be able to sell product that hasn’t passed testing lab standards mandated by regulators, which will be a serious shift for many companies and could be a major disruptor for retailers, growers and other businesses, such as edibles manufacturers.
Legal Weed: California Lawmakers Have Full Agenda for Week of June 11, 2018 (CA – Cannabis Legislation)
Marijuana.com (June 11, 2018) It is sure to be another busy week in Sacramento, California, for proposed cannabis legislation. Nine hearings are scheduled during the week of June 11, 2018. This week, California state legislators will hear cannabis bills pertaining to tax revenue, licensing and applications, as well as commercial regulations and enforcement.
California Scraps $14 Million Budget For Black Market Weed Offensive (CA – Illegal Market)
Merry Jane (June 12, 2018) California Governor Jerry Brown met with state legislators early this week to solidify a state budget. At the Sacramento meeting, both parties agreed to a finance plan pushing hundreds of millions of dollars to prevent homelessness and encourage higher education, but declined to allocate $14 million of proposed funding towards statewide enforcement against black market cannabis.
How California’s Legal Weed Has Hurt The People Who Need It Most (CA – Medical Cannabis)
Fast Company (June 12, 2018) In passing laws to make marijuana fully legal, state lawmakers inadvertently derailed the pipeline that has been operating for years to donate marijuana to sick people in need. Existing compassionate care programs led by both commercial and nonprofit organizations can’t operate in the new climate because there is no way to officially license their services, and, even if so, they’d still be subject to taxes so high many operations would have to fold.
https://www.fastcompany.com/40 573541/how-californias-legal- weed-has-hurt-the-people-who- need-it-most
Medical Marijuana Dispensaries And Cannabis Business License Tax On City Council Agenda (CA – Local Regulations)
Your Central Valley (June 11, 2018) The chances of medical marijuana dispensaries coming to Fresno, are getting higher. City leaders say it’s possible each council district could get a medical pot shot. Manufacturing facilities to cultivate cannabis are also on the table. But a group of local pastors are saying no to marijuana. The City is working with a consultant on how to best regulated medical marijuana and there’s also talk of imposing a cannabis business license tax. Many pastors want the pot talk shut down.
Nevada County Moves Ahead With Temporary Medical Commercial Cannabis Permitting (CA – Local Regulations)
Sierra Sun (June 11, 2018) As of Friday, 11 people have scheduled an appointment with Nevada County officials to get a temporary medicinal commercial cannabis permit, the first step toward a legal marketplace. It’s a number of growers a member of the Nevada County Cannabis Alliance’s executive board said is unsurprising, considering what he called the county’s restrictive ordinance.
Lack Of Cannabis Banking Hurts Average Small Business Owners, While Wealthy Entrepreneurs Flourish (USA – Cannabusiness)
Forbes (June 13, 2018) Most people think cash stacking up in vaults is the biggest problem caused by the cannabis industry’s lack of access to institutional banking. That is a problem, as it creates real concerns for public safety, as well as makes the industry harder to track and more ripe for illicit market diversion and money laundering.
How Mapping Marijuana DNA Could Change The Future Of Pot (USA – Cannabis Research)
Rolling Stone (June 12, 2018) Scientists are currently in the midst of exploring uncharted territory: The cannabis genome. Unlike with other plants, researchers don’t have a long history of closely analyzing the genetic makeup of the plant. But for the past seven years – as more and more states legalize medical and recreational pot – researchers have been working on producing a high-quality marijuana genome.
7 Mayors Want Pot Removed From Federal List Of Illegal Drugs (USA – Cannabis Reform)
MRT (June 11, 2018) Mayors from seven U.S. cities in states with legal marijuana said Monday they have formed a coalition to push for federal marijuana policy reform just days after President Donald Trump expressed support for bipartisan congressional legislation to ease the federal ban on pot. Mayors from Denver, Seattle, Portland, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Las Vegas and West Sacramento — all in marijuana-friendly states — sponsored a resolution at the U.S. Conference of Mayors in Boston that asked the U.S. government to remove cannabis from a list of illegal drugs, among other things.
A History Of Cannabis Prohibition In 13 Iconic Busts (USA – Cannabis History)
Leafly (June 12, 2018) In his classic essay Civil Disobedience, OG transcendentalist Henry David Thoreau wrote that “if a plant cannot live according to its nature, it dies; and so too a man.” Thoreau didn’t have cannabis in mind, particularly, but his larger point—that it’s the sacred duty of all citizens to live according to our natures, and resist injustice, even if that involves breaking the law—certainly had a huge effect on the cannabis liberation movement.
Power Forward: NBA Could Be First League To Allow Athletes To Medicate With Marijuana (USA – Medical Cannabis)
Marijuana.com (June 11, 2018) After Matt Barnes told the world in May 2018 that he smoked a joint before taking to the court for the Golden State Warriors, cannabis use among the National Basketball Association (NBA) has gotten almost as much attention as this year’s playoffs. OK, maybe not that much. “All my best games I was medicated,” Barnes said in one of a series of Bleacher Report roundtable discussions about cannabis and sports, convened in April, 2018.
Vaping Is Up, Painkiller Use Is Down In Teens (USA – Underage Use)
The Fresh Toast (June 12, 2018) Back in December, the NIH released a survey that found that vaping e-cigarettes, THC cartridges and flavored vape juice is on the rise in teenagers, while the abuse of painkillers is down. Though the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) found the cannabis numbers disturbing, what do they really mean?
Forget Kombucha And Coconut Water. Cannabis Is The Next Beverage Trend (USA – Cannabis Products)
Inc (June 11, 2018) As consumer preferences change, the road to failure in the beverage industry is paved with sugar. But cannabis holds a new opportunity for drink makers looking for the next trend in consumer tastes, especially as legalization spreads among states and new marijuana users look for more social ways to consume.