As more and more states legalize marijuana, American companies are racing to establish multi-state cannabis empires. It is still illegal under federal law, so exchanges like the New York Stock Exchange and Nasdaq aren’t an option for these outfits. Seven of the multi-state chains have raised war chests and listed their stocks on the Canadian […]
Legal Marijuana
Pennsylvania medical marijuana sales near $100 million in first year
Pennsylvanians bought almost $100 million worth of medical marijuana in the first year it was available, the Department of Health announced Friday. “The first year that the state’s medical marijuana program has been operational tells us that this program is working to help Pennsylvanians in need of this medication,” Governor Tom Wolf said. “Patients are […]
Bipartisan backing for marijuana legalization in New Mexico
For years, most New Mexico Republicans have steadfastly opposed proposals to legalize recreational marijuana use. But with an increasing number of states moving toward cannabis legalization, three Senate Republicans have teamed up with three Democratic colleagues on a bipartisan bill, filed Thursday, that would allow for the sale of marijuana through state-run stores. “Marijuana is […]
Colorado marijuana sales crack $6 billion since 2014 legalization, state says
Colorado marijuana businesses have sold more than $6 billion worth of weed and related products since a voter-approved measure allowing adults over the age of 21 to consume recreational pot took effect in the state on Jan. 1, 2014. The milestone figure was highlighted Tuesday in a news release from the Colorado Department of Revenue’s Marijuana Enforcement Division, […]
Oregon aims to create an export market for marijuana
What a difference a state makes. Last week cannabis industry watchers had their eyes on Idaho, where news broke about the Idaho State Police arresting a truck driver for transporting hemp across the border. That same week the state of Oregon held a hearing on a Senate bill that would eliminate the prohibition on interstate […]
1st legal marijuana stores are open in Massachusetts, but industry is far from mature
After years of preparation and debate, legal marijuana is now a reality in Massachusetts. Any adult can walk into a store, pay cash and walk out with a joint, which they can smoke, legally, in their home. But the roll-out of the first marijuana stores is only the beginning. In the coming year, marijuana entrepreneurs […]
Former Cyclist Floyd Landis To Open Up CBD Cafe In Pennsylvania
Floyd Landis, the Lancaster cyclist whose sensational 2006 Tour de France victory was nullified after a doping scandal, is now setting the pace deep into his second career — peddling state-legal marijuana and its derivatives. A pioneering cannabis entrepreneur, Landis has put the international doping scandal behind him. He has rebuilt his reputation, and become […]
Uruguay Betting on Exports of Medical Marijuana
When he was younger, the only thing that Enrique Morales knew about marijuana was that you smoked it to get high. Today, the former driver is a horticulturist on a cannabis plantation about 80 miles (130 kilometers) west of the Uruguayan capital of Montevideo and he says drops of marijuana oil have been key to […]
Why so many Americans now support legalizing marijuana
American views on marijuana have shifted incredibly rapidly. Thirty years ago, marijuana legalization seemed like a lost cause. In 1988, only 24 percent of Americans supported legalization. But steadily, the nation began to liberalize. By 2018, 66 percent of U.S. residents offered their approval, transforming marijuana legalization from a libertarian fantasy into a mainstream cause. Many state […]
Judge rejects cap on marijuana dispensaries in Florida
Siding with Florida’s largest cannabis operator, a circuit judge for the second time struck down a law capping the number of dispensaries medical marijuana businesses can run. The limit on the number of retail storefronts was included in a 2017 law aimed at carrying out a constitutional amendment that broadly legalized medical marijuana. But Quincy-based Trulieve challenged […]
Marijuana supply far outweighs demand in Oregon’s legal market, new study says
Oregon’s regulated cannabis industry is so overstocked with product that it could meet consumer demand for the next six and a half years, according to the state’s analysis of the market. That was one of the conclusions in the Oregon Liquor Control Commission’s recent analysis of cannabis supply and demand. The report, based on data […]
California’s retail marijuana industry is struggling. Will tax breaks and banks help?
Unfriendly banks, high taxes and black-market competitors are some of the obstacles that licensed cannabis companies say hold them back as they try to cultivate a new industry in California. Some California lawmakers want to give them a hand, and they’re considering a set of bills that would in ways great and small fine tune […]
Missouri Businesses Look to Profit From Medical Marijuana
Bennie Palmentere has been looking for warehouse space lately. The shelves at River Market Hydro, Palmentere’s small gardening store, are already stacked high with fans, grow lights and row after carefully placed row of plant food. The urban hipster movement toward growing more food at home has already been good for business. Now Missouri is about to […]
Baltimore to no longer prosecute marijuana possession
Baltimore’s top prosecutor announced Tuesday that the city will no longer prosecute any cases related to marijuana possession, regardless of quantity or a person’s criminal record. Marilyn Mosby, the state’s attorney in Baltimore, is also seeking to have the courts vacate roughly 5,000 prior marijuana convictions going back to 2011, The Associated Press reported. “No one who is serious about public […]
Illinois state legislators lay out plans for recreational marijuana proposal
Marijuana “bars” would be prohibited, and teenagers caught driving under the influence of marijuana would lose their licenses, a Springfield audience was told Monday night by lawmakers crafting a bill to allow recreational use of cannabis in Illinois. Hearing those details pleased state Sen. Andy Manar, D-Bunker Hill, whose town hall-style meeting on the issue […]
Arizona lawmaker wants to cut expenses for medical-marijuana cardholders
A Republican lawmaker wants to reduce the financial burden on medical- marijuana patients. A proposal by Sen. Sonny Borrelli of Lake Havasu would extend the state’s current one-year certifications for medical-marijuana cards to two years. For patients, that would eliminate both the expense of a required second-year trip to the doctor and of paying the […]
Israeli cabinet ministers approve exports of medical marijuana
Cabinet ministers on Sunday approved the export of medical cannabis, paving the way for Israeli marijuana growers to begin international sales. A cabinet statement said the decision is expected to increase the number of Israeli manufacturers, investments in agriculture, research and production, and create new jobs in the related fields. The move caused stocks in […]
Latest bill to legalize marijuana gains momentum in New Mexico Legislature
Recreational marijuana would become legal for people 21 or older in New Mexico and the state could tax marijuana sold in licensed stores under a bill introduced Thursday by state Rep. Javier Martínez, D-Albuquerque. House Bill 356 would establish a licensing system that supporters say favors small businesses and institute a 9 percent tax on […]
