Thursday 28 February – State By State Digest: FDA, Alaska, Florida, Georgia, Maine, Maryland, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Vermont

FDA

The cannabis industry is begging the FDA for some CBD regulations as Gottlieb heads to the Hill

  • Companies selling food and drinks with CBD want the FDA to regulate the industry.
  • Under FDA rules, it’s illegal to add CBD to food or drinks.
  • Commissioner Scott Gottlieb will face questions about CBD at a congressional hearing Wednesday.

https://www.cnbc.com/2019/02/27/the-cannabis-industry-is-begging-the-fda-for-some-cbd-regulations.html

 

FDA Is Exploring ‘Alternative Approaches’ To CBD Regulation, Commissioner Says

 

 

ALASKA

Alaska’s marijuana business owners at odds with new governor’s plans for industry

Alaska cannabis industry stakeholders are pressing their case against Republican Gov. Mike Dunleavy’splan to abolishthe Marijuana Control Board, arguing it could harm the state’s MJ market.

At a legislative reception in Juneau on Feb. 22 hosted by the Alaska Marijuana Industry Association, business owners told a group of 50 legislators and staffers the new governor’s plan to dismantle the board is a power grab that will undermine the industry’s input in the rulemaking that governs the commercial cannabis sector.

 

FLORIDA

Florida Lawmakers Propose Legalizing Recreational Cannabis

Two Democrats have filed bills to legalize and tax recreational marijuana in Florida.

This week, Miami-area Rep. Michael Grieco and Orlando Rep. Carlos Guillermo Smith introduced HB 1117 and HB 1119 — linked bills that would pave the way for legalization.

Collectively, they would allow people 21 and older to buy limited amounts of marijuana and smoke it inside their own homes or other private places.

Anyone caught smoking pot in a public place could be fined $100.

The bills would create a pathway for approved retail stores to sell marijuana and accessories.

https://www.wtsp.com/article/news/politics/florida-lawmakers-propose-legalizing-recreational-marijuana/67-1301ee5e-ab3b-4eed-8846-99e9a9481980

GEORGIA

Georgia hemp cultivation clears hurdle

ATLANTA – A proposal to allow industrial hemp to be grown in Georgia has cleared a key hurdle, moving the state closer to joining the majority of states that have already green-lighted some form of hemp cultivation.

The House overwhelmingly backed a measure that would let a dozen producers grow the new-to-Georgia crop, but that didn’t happen without some behind-the-scenes work, said Rep. John Corbett, a Republican from Lake Park, who sponsored the measure.

“The biggest hurdle we had initially was just educating everybody on the difference between industrial hemp and marijuana,” Corbett said in an interview. “It lacks the psychoactive properties that marijuana has so it doesn’t get you high.

“It’s a philosophical thing where you hear ‘hemp,’ everyone automatically thinks ‘marijuana,’” he said.

Hemp is related to cannabis, but it has less than 0.3 percent of THC, which is the psychoactive element in marijuana. Cultivation of the plant was legalized nationwide through the federal farm bill last year.

Growers can apply for a permit through the state Department of Agriculture if they pay a $100,000 fee, which drops to $25,000 in subsequent years.

https://www.valdostadailytimes.com/news/local_news/georgia-hemp-cultivation-clears-hurdle/article_15baa9a3-e6d3-5d09-b7a7-bb11d0c68999.html

MAINE

Bill Restoring CBD to Store Shelves Advances in Maine

Maine lawmakers have introduced and passed through committee legislation to lift the ban on CBD products in the state.

Bill Restoring CBD to Store Shelves Advances in Maine

MARYLAND

Maryland Sets Sights on Cannabis Bills—18 of Them

Creating and selling edible medical cannabis products, allowing inmates to receive medical cannabis treatment, and prohibiting employers from asking about marijuana use could become law in Maryland under bills being pushed in this year’s General Assembly.

The Senate’s Judicial Proceedings Committee is expected to hear 18 bills regarding medical cannabis and marijuana use in the state on Tuesday.

https://www.leafly.com/news/politics/maryland-sets-sights-on-cannabis-bills-18-of-them

MISSOURI

Missouri just posted rules for medical marijuana patient cards. Here’s the FAQ.

In late February, Missouri’s Department of Health and Senior Services posted its first draft of rules for the medical marijuana system that state voters overwhelmingly approved as a constitutional amendment in Nov. 2018.

The first batch of draft rules lists requirements and responsibilities related to ID cards for the program. State officials are writing other medical marijuana rules, too.

The rules are just drafts at this point, not finalized regulations. The state is asking for public input at forum meetings and online. The rules must be completed by early June, when applications and forms for the program go out, according to a timeline published by state officials.

https://www.news-leader.com/story/news/local/ozarks/2019/02/26/missouri-medical-marijuana-cannabis-weed-pot-card-rules-news-leader-faq/2952208002/

 

NEW HAMPSHIRE

New Hampshire House Passes Marijuana Legalization Bill

A bill to legalize marijuana in New Hampshire was approved by the state House of Representatives on Wednesday.

The legislation, sponsored by Rep. Robert “Renny” Cushing (D), would allow adults 21 and older to possess, gift, consume, cultivate and purchase certain amounts of cannabis from licensed retailers.

A governor-appointed commission would be responsible for approving and issuing licenses for commercial marijuana cultivators, product manufacturers, testing facilities and retailers under the bill. A separate, 11-member panel would be established to solicit public and expert input on the legal market in order to inform the commission.

The floor vote comes one week after the chamber’s Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee advanced the bill in a 10-9 vote. The full chamber voted 209-147 in favor of the legislation.

New Hampshire House Passes Marijuana Legalization Bill

 

New Hampshire House endorses adult-use marijuana, but major hurdle remains

NEW MEXICO

New Mexico’s 450-Plant Grower Limits Expire Friday

Unless further action is taken by the Health Department, the 450-plant limit for medical cannabis growers in New Mexico is set to expire on Friday.

New Mexico’s 450-Plant Grower Limits Expire Friday

 

OKLAHOMA

Oklahoma House Panel OKs Bill To Legalize Extracts Under Medical Cannabis Law

A House committee voted Wednesday to ensure that edible forms of marijuana remain available for sale in Arizona, no matter what the Arizona Supreme Court eventually decides.

HB 2149 would spell out that the 2010 voter-approved law that allows marijuana to be used for medical purposes also legalized anything made from the resins.

https://tucson.com/news/local/house-panel-oks-bill-to-legalize-extracts-under-medical-marijuana/article_f13a1c24-a315-5bca-99db-6f100536901e.html

 

VERMONT

Vermont Senate Expected To Vote On Legal Marijuana Sales Bill This Week

A bill to tax and regulate marijuana in Vermont is heading to a vote before the full Senate this week after clearing the latest in a string of committee victories on Tuesday.

Vermont became the first state in the country to legalize marijuana via legislative action—as opposed to by voters through a ballot measure—last year. The law currently allows the possession of up to an ounce and the cultivation of two mature plants by adults. The state lacks a system to tax and regulate marijuana markets, however.

The specifics of how that system should be structured and operate has been the subject of discussion around two bills in the House and the Senate. House bill 196 has been backed by more than a third of the chamber’s members and has been referred to the House Committee on General, Housing and Military Affairs.

Senate bill 54 is a similar piece of legislation that would establish a Cannabis Control Board as the state’s regulatory body for a legal marijuana market and set up five types of licenses for various businesses. If approved by lawmakers and signed into law, the Board would form on July 1 of this year, with licenses for retailers set to be issued on or before April 1, 2021.

Vermont Senate Expected To Vote On Legal Marijuana Sales Bill This Week

 

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