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Bulletins from the Beltway 

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Free from the Feds? 

Oregon Sen. Ron Wyden introduced legislation in the Senate — The Marijuana Revenue and Regulation Act—  that would deschedule marijuana by removing it from the Controlled Substances Act (CSA), establish a federal excise tax on legal sales and create a system of permits for businesses to engage in cannabis commerce. This would allow states to establish their own cannabis regulations free from federal interference. 

Wyden also introduced another piece of legislation exempting state-legal cannabis businesses from what is known as 280(E), which prevents them from taking normal business tax deductions that are available to operators in other industries. Co-sponsors include Colorado’s senior U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet.

Forbes Article »

From “unalterably opposed” to legalization to “I’m all in” 

Former U.S. House Speaker John Boehner announced a new, industry-funded group to lobby for marijuana reform in banking, taxes and research in an effort to overhaul federal cannabis policy.

Marijuana Business Daily Article »

Riding the hemp wave

The USDA is now working to implement plans for increased hemp research and provision of oversight to state plans for growing hemp. As the USDA makes laws clearer, CBD retailers will enter the U.S. market in a major wave.

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For a look at the growth of Colorado’s hemp industry:

Colorado Sun Article »

America’s first cannabis  governor and the challenges ahead

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Gov. Jared Polis, considered the most industry friendly governor in the country, takes the reins at a crucial time for Colorado as the state’s regulations come under review and as at least one bordering state considers developing its own legal cannabis industry. The marijuana  industry is optimistic Polis will champion its cause to keep the industry growing and moving legislation that his predecessor vetoed.
Colorado Sun Article »

Indeed, several new marijuana bills were among the first filed as the legislature opened, including a new attempt to add autism spectrum disorders to conditions that qualify patients for medical cannabis;  another would make people eligible if they have a condition under which a doctor would prescribe opiates.
Reporter Herald Article »

Polis takes office as marijuana sales show signs of leveling off after five years of constant and dramatic growth.  New state figures show Colorado has logged over $1.4 billion worth of medical and recreational marijuana sales from January to November 2018, just $93 million behind 2017. And while a dramatic surge is not expected, Colorado is still on pace to finish the year slightly ahead of the year before.
Summit Daily Article »

While sales remain strong in Colorado today, will the state’s industry be impacted by a change in leadership across the border? The Albuquerque Journal takes a look at legislation being proposed to legalize cannabis in New Mexico under a new Democratic governor.
Albuquerque Journal Article »

Quotable

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“Within the next two years, a majority of the United States will have adult-use legal cannabis. And some of that, roughly half of that, could happen through state legislatures.”

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In fact: Marijuana legalization bills have already been filed in half a dozen red states.

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Legal cannabis means early retirement for some officers of the K-9 kind

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The legalization of marijuana is forcing some drug-sniffing dogs into early retirement and prompting trainers and law enforcement departments to rethink whether to include cannabis in the list of substances dogs are trained to detect. The move comes on the heels of a Colorado court case that says that a dog’s reaction to what might be legal marijuana jeopardizes a law enforcement officer’s ability to initiate a probable cause search for any illegal substances.

NY Times Article »

Quotable

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“Since Colorado became the first state to legally regulate marijuana, the national conversation has shifted from whether we’ll legalize to how we should do it.”

Art Way
Colorado State Director for the Drug Policy Alliance.

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Let Cannabis Companies Operate Like Other Legitimate Businesses

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That was the clear message delivered from Ron Kammerzell, who oversaw the Marijuana Enforcement Division at the Colorado Department of Revenue, and Nate Bruggeman, an assistant attorney general at the Colorado Department of Law’s Marijuana Enforcement Division. 

“One specific area that warrants serious consideration is the prohibition on publicly traded companies from holding marijuana business licenses or investing in Colorado marijuana companies,” they wrote in The Denver Post. Not only does the prohibition not enhance public safety, they said, it “is depriving Colorado businesses of access to needed investment capital.”

Kammerzell and Bruggeman also suggested that Colorado update, simplify and streamline it’s marijuana laws.  

Denver Post Article »

Headlines

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Colorado cannabis sales exceed $5 billion

May sales figures pushed the overall sales of recreational and medical marijuana to more than $5.1 billion since adult use was legalized in January 2014.

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Bill would protect federal workers in states with legal cannabis

Congressional proposal would bar feds from firing employers for marijuana use in states where cannabis is legal.

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Keeping it green

Cannabis industry looks to minimize its environmental footprint with more sustainable packaging.

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Industry taxes fund program for at-risk youth

New marijuana tax-funded program helps first-time teen offenders find alternatives to substance abuse. 

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The changing politics of marijuana

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Nothing’s ever certain when it comes to politics, a fact that has become increasingly clear in recent weeks both at home and in Washington, D.C.

Here in Colorado Gov. Joh Hickenlooper, long considered supportive of the strictly-regulated marijuana industry, vetoed three industry-backed measures – including one that allowed for increased capital infusions into the state, which is crucial for keeping the industry growing in the state. It was a disappointing veto that not only jeopardizes tens of thousands of jobs but also ignores the professionals that worked tirelessly during his term to build the safest and most respected cannabis industry in the country.

Representatives from the cannabis industry expressed their discontent with the vetoes at a press conference.  Three Colorado Leads members are quoted here. 

Read the Story »

 

Meanwhile in Washington, D.C., U.S.  Sen.  Cory Gardner, R-Colorado, introduced a bill that would protect the cannabis industry from uncertain federal enforcement policies.

“It’s time that we take this industry out of the shadows,” Gardner said. 

Read the Story »

 

Support for legal cannabis at an all-time high

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Nearly two-thirds of American voters now back legalized marijuana, the highest level of support ever recorded by a Quinnipiac poll. Support for medical marijuana is even higher, at 93 percent, with only about 5 percent of respondents opposed.

The poll also found that 74 percent of Americans support Congress passing a bill similar to the one being proposed by Sen. Cory Gardner, R-Colo., to protect states with legalized marijuana from federal interference.

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The evolution of Corey Gardner

Westword takes a look at the transformation of Gardner from marijuana opponent to states-rights cannabis advocate.

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Under the dome

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Another Colorado first?

Lawmakers have sent Gov. John Hickenlooper a first-of-its-kind bill to allow cannabis tasting rooms.

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But forget about marijuana delivery and social clubs

Like the floundering attempts to create marijuana social clubs, efforts to test drive cannabis delivery in Colorado stalled out in the Colorado Legislature.

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