CCMA Political greenBrief
Friday, September 21, 2018
www.cannabismanufacturers.org
A U.S. Congressman Is Urging His Government Not To Bar Entry To The States For Marijuana Workers Like These, At Harvest One Cannabis Inc. In Duncan, B.C.
“To deny transit to Canadian citizens because they’re involved in what is a lawful business in Canada is just not what Congress intended. For us to be applying the law in the way we are applying it does not make sense.”Rep. Luis Correa (D-CA) On Barring Canadian Cannabis Workers From Entering The U.S.
“As the research field moves forward, I think we’re gaining evidence that these cannabinoids are more broadly applicable than we had previously known, and I think this will help destigmatize the medical applications of cannabinoids. We want to take (cannabis) out of the political realm and put it squarely in the scientific realm and that’s what this study helps to do.”Catherine Jacobson, Tilray’s Director Of Clinical Research, On The Culture Shift Towards Cannabis
Using Marijuana Legally? New California Law Gives You Some Privacy. (CA – Cannabis Legislation)
Sacramento Bee (September 20, 2018) Gov. Jerry Brown on Thursday signed a bill to give adult cannabis users some privacy. Assembly Bill 2402 by Assemblyman Evan Low, D-Campbell, extends the same privacy protections to recreational cannabis users that medical cannabis users receive, with two exceptions. Information can be shared in conjunction with processing payments and to government officials, such as police, performing official duties. The measure is largely aimed at preventing buyer information form being sold or traded for commercial use. The bill also clarifies existing law “that all personal information of medical cannabis users is kept confidential by deeming identification cards issued to medical cannabis users to be ‘medical information’ under state law and therefore protected from unauthorized disclosure,” according to a statement from Low’s office.
https://www.sacbee.com/news/po
Will Challenges Faced By Cannabis Producers Create Opportunities For Real Estate Investors? (CA – Cannabis Investments)
National Real Estate Investors (September 20, 2018) Similar to what happened in Colorado, California’s cannabis industry might experience some growing pains, industry experts predict. State and local government requirements and an oversupply of product expected to flood the market in coming years are likely narrow the supplier field and cause some operators to shut down. That, in turn, might provide cannabis real estate investors with opportunities to acquire facilities of failed operators at distressed pricing, according to Jim Fitzpatrick, principal at Costa Mesa, Calif.-based Solutioneers, a consulting firm that assists cannabis businesses in securing licensing and helps real estate investors identify cannabis compliant properties and obtain financing.
CannaRoyalty Transformative California Distribution Acquisition Set To Close (CA – Cannabusienss)
New Cannabis Ventures (September 20, 2018) “CannaRoyalty” or the “Company”, a North American cannabis products and brands company, announced today that it has merged the operations of its subsidiary Alta Supply with RVR Distribution. Effective August 31, 2018, Sadie Reyes, President of Alta Supply, was appointed to the position of President of RVR to lead the Company’s state-wide distribution efforts. Alta Supply has begun to leverage RVR’s distribution infrastructure, through transfer of inventory and accounts. Today, CannaRoyalty has signed a definitive agreement to close the previously announced merger of RVR with Alta Supply, subject to customary closing conditions. Pursuant to the close, RVR will receive exchangeable shares as consideration, which will allow RVR shareholders to acquire 70,000 CannaRoyalty Class A shares, over the next 24 months.
Husch Blackwell Attorney Explores California’s Laws And Regulations On Emerging Cannabis Industry (CA – Cannabis Industry)
Sacramento Business Journal (September 19, 2018) Since Prop 64 passed nearly two years ago here in California, we have entered a shake-out period. Regulators and operators have been proceeding under a set of emergency rules, and that circumstance has created a lot of confusion on all sides. There have been shortages of legal product and an uneven distribution of retail operators. The lack of clarity at a state level prior to Prop 64 created something of a regulatory vacuum, and localities filled that empty space with a hodgepodge of regulations that led to a marketplace with very different characteristics from city to city. For example, there are 30 dispensaries in Sacramento; there are none in Palo Alto.
Marijuana Task Force Raids 3 California Churches, Finds 100 Pounds Of Cannabis And $75,000 (CA – Illicit Grows)
East Bay Times (September 18, 2018) Riverside County’s cannabis task force says it seized more than 100 pounds of cannabis and an estimated $75,000 to $100,000 in cash Friday, Sept. 14, from three sites where The Vault Church says it uses marijuana as a religious sacrament. The task force, led by the District Attorney’s Office, served search warrants at three locations operated by The Vault: 291 N. Yale St., Hemet; 5298 Mission Blvd., Jurupa Valley; and 5024 Etiwanda Ave., Jurupa Valley. At the Etiwanda location, they also found two indoor grows, seized 200 to 300 plants in various stages of harvest and found what they believe to be the remnants of a butane honey oil lab, according to a news release.
County Half-Jokes It Wants Cannabis ‘World Domination’ (CA – Cannabis Industry)
Santa Barbara Independent (September 21, 2018) It wasn’t exactly a come-to-Jesus moment, but for former altar boy Dennis Bozanich, it would have to do. Bozanich works for county CEO Mona Miyasato as Santa Barbara’s de facto cannabis czar, meaning it’s his job to get the new industry up and legally operating within the narrow time constraints the state has allowed. Likewise, it’s his responsibility to ensure that black marketeers and noncompliant industry stragglers are enforced out of existence. This Monday, Bozanich had invited all 96 cannabis operations to the county supervisors’ chambers for some blunt talk. Accompanying them was a flotilla of land-use agents, attorneys, political consultants, and professional planner types. Bozanich played good cop and bad cop simultaneously, holding hands and kicking ass at the same time. It was quite a performance.
https://www.independent.com/ne
Self-Styled ‘Weed Nuns’ Put Faith In The Healing Powers, And Profits, Of Cannabis (CA – Cannabusiness)
ABC News (September 19, 2018) The Sisters of the Valley, a group of self-styled “weed nuns,” are putting their faith in the healing power of cannabis. Despite their moniker, this nonreligious sorority of radical feminists resides in Northern California farm country. The women grow cannabis on the sun-drenched property, tucked among vineyards and apple orchards. They use a strain of marijuana that eliminates THC, but still contains CBD (cannabidiol), which is touted for its healing properties. The Sisters of the Valley sell products for various ailments including insomnia, arthritis and anxiety. Their top seller is a tropical salve that soothes achy joints. That product alone rakes in $3,000 per day, according to Meeusen.
https://abcnews.go.com/Busines
U.S. Congressman Urges Trump Administration Not To Turn Back Cannabis-Industry Canadians At Border (USA – Cannabis Politics)
National Post (September 19, 2018) Canadians with ties to the cannabis industry have a new champion in the U.S. Congress, and he’s urging the Trump administration not to bar people from entering the States because of their links to the marijuana business. In fact, California Rep. Luis Correa half-jokingly suggests that trade in cannabis be included in the NAFTA negotiations. Correa wrote to Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen this week, asking for clarification after her department officials said someone who invests in or works for a legal Canadian cannabis firm could be turned back at the border. Some investors have already been barred.
DEA’s Approval Of Canadian Weed Imports Shows U.S. Agencies ‘Don’t Know Who’s In Charge,’ Drug Policy Expert Says (USA – Cannabis Research)
The Star (September 19, 2018) An announcement Tuesday that the United States has approved the importation of medical cannabis from Canadian producer Tilray exposes a deep contradiction at the heart of U.S. drug enforcement, says one policy expert. While Tilray’s achievement signals that the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency is willing to make an allowance for the importation of pharmaceutical-grade cannabis for clinical purposes, U.S. Customs and Border Protection continues to enforce border policy that states Canadians associated with the medical or recreational cannabis industries are inadmissible to the United States. And under the current U.S. president, who can overturn the work of bureaucrats with a single tweet, incoherence between agencies is fairly unsurprising, said Sanho Tree, director of the Drug Policy Project at the Washington, D.C.-based Institute for Policy Studies.
Hundreds Of Millions Of Dollars Have Surged Into The US’s Only Marijuana ETF Amid The Cannabis Craze (USA – Cannabis Investments)
Markets Insider (September 21, 2018) Weed stocks have been on fire recently, and for US investors not wanting to pick a single name, there’s only one exchange-traded fund option. ETFMG’s Alternative Harvest ETF has nearly doubled in less than a month, and investors have poured hundreds of millions of dollars into the ETF this year. The fund currently has a market value of $707.19 million — up more than 10 times from when it first switched to cannabis from Latin American real estate in December. At the same time, the ETF has seen $139 million worth of inflows over the past month alone. Most of the fund’s holdings are medical marijuana companies, though some of its biggest holdings — Canopy Growth, Tilray, Cronos, and Aurora Cannabis — have recreational arms which collectively make up 40% of its investments. There are also some smaller companies, especially pharmaceutical firms, that have entered the space and are also held by the fund.
Recode Daily: How High Can The World’s Most Valuable Cannabis Company Go? (Canada – Cannabis Investments)
Recode (September 20, 2018) Canadian cannabis producer Tilray became the first marijuana company to go public on the Nasdaq in July. Its initial share price was $17; Tilray’s stock has recently skyrocketed well past $200, making the company worth more than $20 billion — more than American Airlines. Some 76 percent of the company’s shares are held by Privateer Holdings, a private equity firm backed by investor Peter Thiel. Sparking the boom: Canada is about to legalize marijuana; the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration just signed off on Tilray’s plan to import marijuana from Canada to the University of California San Diego’s cannabis research center for medical research.
Tilray Shares Plunge, Capping A Wild Week For The Cannabis Company (Canada – Cannabis Investments)
CBS News (September 21, 2018) The money-losing cannabis company Tilray is finding that there’s nothing mellow about the stock market. Shares of Tilray plunged more than 25 percent in early trading on Friday, capping a wild week that’s sent the Canadian company’s shares into a volatile spin of ups and downs. Even with the decline, the company has a market value of $12 billion, making it more valuable than Macy’s or Harley-Davidson. The swift fall comes after wild trading earlier this week. On Thursday, the shares surged in early trading before sliding more than 20 percent by midday, lopping roughly $4 billion off its market value in a matter of hours. Yet since going public on Nasdaq in July, the company’s shares have jumped more than sevenfold, prompting comparisons with speculators’ interest in bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/t
Aurora Cannabis Contemplating U.S. Stock Listing (Canada – Cannabis Investments)
Investopedia (September 20, 2018) Cannabis stocks have skyrocketed this week ahead of the anticipated legalization of marijuana in Canada and an encouraging announcement from the world’s largest weed company, Tilray Inc. regarding an approval from Drug Enforcement Administration to import weed to the U.S. for medical research. The rally looks like it will extend into October as Alberta-based Aurora Cannabis Inc. plans to list its shares on a major U.S. stock exchange by next month. In an interview with the Financial Post on Tuesday, Aurora’s Chief Corporate Officer Cam Battley indicated that the dual-listing would help broaden the scope of Aurora’s would-be investors, which he said includes “U.S. institutional investors, not all of whom are able to trade in OTC-listed securities.” The Toronto-listed stock is currently available for purchase as an over the counter (OTC) market ticker which allows US investors to purchase shares in foreign-listed companies.
https://www.investopedia.com/n
