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 […]
Louisiana
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 […]
