Two bills expanding medical marijuana in Louisiana will become law after Gov. John Bel Edwards signs the last one this weekend. House Bill 579 by Rep. Ted James, D-Baton Rouge, adds Parkinson’s, glaucoma, severe muscle spasms, chronic pain and post traumatic stress disorder to the 10 conditions currently qualifying for medical marijuana. Edwards’ spokesman Richard Carbo […]
Louisiana
LSU AgCenter Finalizes Contract to Begin Medical Marijuana Operations
The LSU AgCenter has finalized its agreement with GB Sciences Louisiana LLC to operate the center’s medical marijuana business. GB Sciences Louisiana is a subsidiary of GB Sciences, a Las Vegas cannabis company focused on biopharmaceutical development. The parent company has filed patent applications for using cannabis for chronic pain and heart therapies as well […]
LSU Board of Supervisors Gives OK to Build Medical Marijuana Production Facility
The LSU Board of Supervisors June 24 authorized the university’s AgCenter to move forward with plans to build a medical marijuana production facility, a major decision that answers a fundamental question about Louisiana’s new medical marijuana law. A spokesman at Southern University, the other institution authorized under state law to become a production center, said […]
Full Legalization in Louisiana Could Drive as Much as $128 Million in Tax Revenue
Louisiana could earn as much as $128 million in annual revenue if it were to legalize and tax marijuana, according to a Washington, D.C., think tank’s new report. The Tax Foundation, a nonprofit research organization most often described as conservative and pro-business, based its calculations on current demand for pot in Colorado and Washington, states […]
Louisiana Governor Signs Bill Legalizing Medical Marijuana
Gov. John Bel Edwards signed a landmark medical marijuana bill into law that is expected to make medical marijuana available to patients for the first time in Louisiana history. Edwards signed the bill Thursday during a ceremony on the fourth floor of the Capitol in front of key legislators who guided the bill to passage, […]
Louisiana House Passes Sweeping Medical Marijuana Legislation
The Louisiana House of Representatives on Wednesday passed medical marijuana legislation designed to allow patients access to the drug nearly 40 years after the state first legalized the drug in the late 1970s. The bill passed by a much wider margin than expected, 61-32, clearing the lower chamber after a series of personal appeals made […]
New Orleans the Latest City to Reduce Penalties For Marijuana
New Orleans police will have even more leeway to issue citations for simple marijuana possession after the City Council voted 7-0 Thursday (March 17) to enact new standards aimed at reducing the number of arrests for low-level drug crime. Local law already allowed NOPD officers to write a ticket for first-offense possession, and they still […]
Will Louisiana Be the First Southern State to Legalize Marijuana?
Notorious for its strict marijuana laws, Louisiana is looking at legalized weed as a way to get out of debt. What will happen to its prisoners? One of the harshest states on pot offenders is reportedly exploring the idea of a recreational marijuana program. Saddled with $850 million in state debts, experts say Louisiana’s […]
Louisiana Gov. Jindal Signs Bills Reforming Marijuana Penalties, Medical Access
Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal on Monday signed two bills that in one year represent more progress on reforming marijuana laws than the state has made in the 24 years since legalizing medical marijuana in 1991. In the case of one of the bills, which would set up a framework for dispensing marijuana for medical purposes (SB 143), […]
Louisiana on the Verge of Legalizing Medical Marijuana
Both chambers of the Louisiana Legislaturehave now approved medical marijuana legislation that seeks to give certain patients who need it access to the drug. The House of Representatives OK’d the measure Thursday (June 4), by a vote of 70-29. If the bill becomes law, Louisiana will become the 24th state, plus Washington, D.C., where patients have […]
Louisiana Governor Says He’ll Sign Medical Marijuana, Pot Penalties Bills
Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal said Thursday he plans to sign legislation that would change the state’s medical marijuana laws and soften penalties for marijuana offenders. There are three bills moving through the state legislature affecting Louisiana’s marijuana laws. Two of them (SB 241) and (HB 149), which are nearly identical, would reduce the tough sentences judges […]
Medical Marijuana Bill Clears Another Hurdle, Close to Passage in Louisiana
One last legislative hurdle and a signature from Gov. Bobby Jindal are all that stands between Louisiana patients seeking medical marijuana and a legal path to get the drug. A House committee approved legislation Wednesday (May 27) — without objection from any member — that would give state boards authority to create and regulate a system for […]
Bill to Reduce Marijuana Penalties Passed by Louisiana Senate
A proposal to soften Louisiana’s harsh marijuana laws by reducing penalties for possession continues to gain steam in the Louisiana Legislature. The Senate voted 27-12 Monday (May 25) to advance legislation that would create a new penalty system for marijuana possession dealing with amounts less than 2.5 pounds. The measure’s sponsor, J.P. Morrell, D-New Orleans, said his bill (SB 241) brings Louisiana’s marijuana […]
Surprise: Louisiana Senate Passes Medical Marijuana Legislation
The Louisiana Legislature moved closer Monday to authorizing pharmacies to dispense medical marijuana to patients in Louisiana. The Senate rubber-stamped the legislation, which spells out how the state’s medical marijuana industry would work, by a vote of 22-13. If the bill is adopted into law, those with a prescription could obtain the drug in non-smokable form at […]
Louisiana’s Marijuana Legislation Struggles to Get on 2016 Ballot
About a week before the Louisiana Legislature convened, state Rep. Dalton Honore trekked to Denver for field research related to legislation he’s pushing in Louisiana. The journey brought him just a few blocks from the Colorado State Capitol, to a marijuana dispensary. “Some of the (pot) shops look like Apple stores,” said Honore, a Democrat […]
Marijuana in Wonderland: Making Sense of a Judge’s Anti-Cannabis Ruling
By Barry Gainsburg “When I use a word,’ Humpty Dumpty said in rather a scornful tone, ‘it means just what I choose it to mean — neither more nor less.’ ” — Lewis Carroll, from Through the Looking Glass Last week, the U.S. District Court in Northern California declined to declare the federal classification of marijuana […]
LSU Survey Finds Louisiana Residents More Tolerant Towards Marijuana
Louisiana residents, for the most part, have a much more relaxed and tolerant approach toward marijuana than current state laws reflect, according to findings from a statewide survey conducted by LSU this winter. LSU conducted its poll of 980 state residents between Jan. 12 and Feb. 13. The margin of error is 3.1 percentage points in either […]
Louisiana Legislator: Get It Before the People and Legalization Will Come
A Louisiana legislator has proposed putting marijuana legalization to a statewide vote during the presidential election in 2016. Rep. Dalton Honore, D-Baton Rouge, has filed legislation to put possession, distribution and dispensing of marijuana and its derivatives on the Louisiana ballot Nov. 8, 2016. Voters would be deciding on not only the presidential race, but also congressional […]
