As more states legalize marijuana, the number of adult consumers has been on the rise. But there are only three major metro areas where cannabis is more popular than cigarettes and other products containing nicotine, according to new market-research data. And — you guessed it — Seattle is one of them. More than 700,000 people age […]
Legal Marijuana
Recreational marijuana sales in Massachusetts generated $400M in sales in first year
In its first year of recreational cannabis sales, the state generated $61 million in total taxes on nearly $400 million in marijuana sales, according to figures released Wednesday by state agencies. But state officials say the work to build the industry is just getting started. The figures from the Department of Revenue and the Cannabis […]
POLITICO-Harvard poll: Despite vaping crisis, Americans view e-cigarettes as far more dangerous than marijuana
Americans now think marijuana is much less harmful than alcohol, tobacco or e-cigarettes, according to new polling results from POLITICO and Harvard’s T.H. Chan School of Public Health released Monday. Just 1 in 5 Americans believe marijuana is very harmful to people who use it. Twice as many said the same about alcohol, 52 percent characterized e-cigarettes […]
U.S. Support for Legal Marijuana Steady in Past Year
Americans’ support for legalizing marijuana has held steady at 66% over the past year, after rising 30 percentage points between 2005 and 2018. The latest results are based on Gallup’s annual Crime survey, conducted Oct. 1-13. Not only have 66% favored legalizing marijuana in the 2018 and 2019 Crime polls, but the same level of […]
Thousands of Missourians can now use marijuana as medicine. They just can’t get it legally — yet.
When Matthew Prater drives, he keeps his marijuana out of reach in a sealed container labeled with a state-issued number certifying he has a legal right to possess and use marijuana as medicine. “If I get pulled over I tell them I have a card, am in possession and where it is — and don’t […]
Slow rollout in marijuana sales costs Maine revenue and jobs
From legalization to legal sales, Maine is inching toward the slowest adult-use marijuana rollout in the U.S., with economists saying the three-year wait for stores to open will have cost Maine more than $82 million in taxes and 6,100 industry jobs. The delay has caused some investors and industry experts to take their dollars and […]
Where the 2020 Democratic candidates for president stand on marijuana legalization
The Democrats running for president have thoughts on marijuana legalization. Here they are. The Democrats seeking the 2020 presidential nomination all share a commitment to reducing the penalties for using and possessing marijuana, which remains illegal at the federal level. Many of them support full legalization — as permitted in 11 states and the District of […]
Is Thailand the next big marijuana market?
In East and Southeast Asia, democracies and dictatorships alike have long skewed toward severe penalties for marijuana users. Thailand, a key ally in America’s global war on drugs, has been no exception. But the perception of cannabis has begun to change with astonishing speed. Thailand’s right-wing government recently legalized medical cannabis — and identified the creation of […]
California has the biggest legal marijuana market in the world, despite black market
California is on track to post a record $3.1 billion in licensed cannabis sales this year, solidifying its status as the largest legal marijuana market in the world, according to a study released Thursday by financial analysts who advise the industry. Legal sales are up significantly from an approximate $2.5 billion in 2018, the first […]
D.C. Opens Medical Marijuana Dispensaries To Patients From Most States Where It’s Legal
Medical marijuana patients from across the U.S. can now buy their medicine at D.C. dispensaries. Mayor Muriel Bowser announced Thursday that the list of states with medical marijuana programs whose residents can purchase their pot in D.C. is expanding from 19 to 27, with four more states currently under review. The new states added include Alaska, Arizona, […]
Is cannabis use the same as off-duty drinking by workers? Many companies still say no
An employee has a beer or two with colleagues at a local bar after the work shift is over. Another heads home for a glass of wine with dinner. The next day, there is no alcohol impairment in the worker, and that’s why an employer would not have a problem with either of these scenarios. […]
How Legal Marijuana Is Helping the Black Market
Expensive regulation and high demand across the country have made the illicit trade more profitable than going legit. When the new marijuana shop opened up just down the street from his own marijuana shop, Greg Meguerian, owner of The Reefinery in Los Angeles, kept an eye on it. When that shop stayed open past the […]
When the Law Says Using Marijuana Is O.K., but the Boss Disagrees
Smoking pot cost Kimberly Cue her job. Ms. Cue, a 44-year-old chemical engineer from Silicon Valley, received an offer this year from a medical device manufacturer only to have it rescinded when the company found out that she smoked prescription marijuana to treat post-traumatic stress disorder. “My email was set up with the company,” she […]
The Next Threat to Big Marijuana Companies Comes From Way South of the Border
There used to be more than 180 rose growers along the highway in California’s Monterey County. Now there’s only one. The flower industry went south to the lower-cost country of Colombia. With marijuana legalization in California, Monterey’s greenhouses have shifted from growing roses to growing cannabis. But Paul Henderson—whose Salinas-based company Grupo Flor was instrumental […]
Maine hopes to avoid pitfalls during marijuana legalization push
Sales of recreational marijuana in Maine are on track to begin next March, and the state is looking to learn from mistakes that other states have made in legalizing the drug. The state’s voters chose to legalize adult use marijuana in November 2016, and months of delays and political squabbles have caused the implementation of […]
Here’s what happens if the TSA catches you with marijuana at Logan Airport
The Transportation Security Administration has a message for marijuana consumers: We won’t look for your pot, but if we find it, we can’t ignore it either. It’s a clarification the federal agency wanted to make clear as more states legalize marijuana in some form. “Are we cool? We like to think we’re cool. We want […]
Some California cities would be forced to allow marijuana sales under bill to triple pot shops in state
Escalating a feud with cities over marijuana, state lawmakers are pushing to require municipalities to lift bans on cannabis stores if voters there supported Proposition 64, the 2016 initiative that legalized sale of the drug for recreational use in California. A bill moving through the Legislature would require those cities to permit at least one […]
Arkansas’ First Medical Marijuana Dispensary Opens Its Doors
Two and a half years after Arkansans voted to legalize medical marijuana, qualifying patients could begin buying the product Saturday morning when the state’s first dispensary opened, though the celebratory mood was dampened by confusion about operating hours and fears the dispensary wouldn’t be able to serve all the patients by closing time. Doctor’s Orders […]
