The Trump administration has doled out millions in forgivable emergency loans to companies selling CBD gummies, oils and vape cartridges, despite blocking state-legal marijuana dispensaries from accessing those same rescue funds. At least three specialty CBD vendors scored a total of over $4 million in federal loans in April, according to Securities and Exchange Commission […]
marijuana industry
In win for local control, Michigan Supreme Court sides with township in marijuana case
The state Supreme Court said that a municipality can enforce zoning laws for medical-marijuana growers. The court reversed a Kent County judge’s ruling, upheld by the state Court of Appeals, that Michigan’s medical marijuana law pre-empted local laws. It was a legal victory for local control when it comes to zoning of Michigan’s relatively young […]
Feds Try To Undermine California’s Legal Marijuana Industry Via Selective Prosecution Of Advertising Companies
Although California’s Proposition 64, the “Control, Regulate and Tax Adult Use of Marijuana Act” which legalized the sale of recreational marijuana, won by an overwhelming victory four years ago (Yes 7,979,041 = 57.13% vs No 5,987,020 = 42.87%) it was — and still is — opposed by law enforcement in rural areas, some urban localities, […]
Cannabis In Colorado Isn’t Like A Normal Business. The Challenges Of Coronavirus Really Drive That Home
In about two hours, Denver Mayor Michael Hancock taught public officials a valuable lesson about the meaning of the word “essential.” When he announced the city’s stay-at-home order on March 23, Hancock said recreational marijuana dispensaries, as well as liquor stores, would not rise to the level of “essential.” The Denver residents who quickly formed long […]
Marijuana industry tested in virus crisis
The unofficial holiday celebrating all things cannabis arrives Monday as the nation’s emerging legal marijuana market braces for an economic blow from the coronavirus crisis, with many consumers reducing spending or going underground for deals. It was supposed to be a long weekend of festivals and music culminating on April 20, or 4/20, the code […]
Marijuana Has Been Deemed ‘Essential’ — But Essential for Whom?
As the coronavirus spread across the country in March, and stay-at-home orders began to go into effect, every state with a regulated cannabis system allowed weed sales to continue in some form, deeming medical-marijuana businesses essential during the pandemic, along with groceries and pharmacies. This, The New York Times declared, was “official recognition that for some Americans, cannabis is as necessary as milk and bread.” This is […]
Coronavirus Is Legitimizing Pennsylvania’s Marijuana Industry
Medical marijuana is essential. According to Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf’s executive order and Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney’s list of restrictions on business activity, cannabis is just as essential as food and toilet paper amid the global coronavirus pandemic. In mid-March, when both leaders mandated the closure of all non-essential and non-life-sustaining businesses to help reduce the spread of COVID-19, […]
From chefs to chemists, Massachusetts’ burgeoning marijuana industry is creating jobs that use a wide range of skills
When Gene Ray was studying biology at Fisk University in Nashville, he started to use marijuana regularly. At the time, he wasn’t thinking that if combined, his scientific expertise and interest in cannabis could make a career. While studying medicinal plant extracts in Hawaii later, it was the first time Ray, a pharmaceutical chemist, thought […]
What is social equity in Colorado’s cannabis industry? Regulators look to level the playing field for marginalized communities
With about 40 states expected to allow some form of legalization by the end of December, 2020 is poised to be a breakout year for cannabis. But as the movement toward normalization gains steam across the United States, legislators and activists are adding a moral provision to the burgeoning marijuana industry: to rectify decades of racial persecution […]
Could cannabis be the next big American export?
In a large warehouse, LivWell Enlightened Health feeds its cloned cannabis plants a custom blend of nutrients, sprays them with filtered water and pumps extra carbon dioxide into the air. LivWell releases three types of insects to clear the plants of unwanted pests without the use of toxic pesticides. Every part of the growing process […]
