MMJ Business Daily

Oregon Marijuana Banking Bill May Be More of a Symbolic Win Than a Game-Changer

By Omar Sacirbey

Marijuana businesses in Oregon shouldn’t expect financial institutions to suddenly open their doors to the industry if Gov. Kate Brown signs a cannabis banking bill that is currently sitting on her desk.

The unfortunate reality is that banks are unlikely to start serving cannabis clients until Congress or federal regulators take action to change marijuana’s status as a federally illegal drug, regardless of any changes at the state level, banking experts say.

“The primary issue for our banks remains the fact that this is a Schedule 1 federally controlled substance,” said Kevin Christiansen, government affairs director at

…

Oregon Marijuana Banking Bill May Be More of a Symbolic Win Than a Game-Changer is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

Julian Marley Cannabis Company Targeted by Lawsuit

Julian Marley, one of the sons of legendary reggae musician Bob Marley, is being sued over a cannabis company to which he leant his name.

Marley’s company, JuJu Royal, is being sued by one of the co-owners of Dropleaf, which owns JuJu Royal, for payment of a loan that was intended to help launch the brand, according to News Americas Now.

The Hackney Family Trust is behind the suit, and family spokesman Erin Hackney wrote in the suit that the trust had put up over $74,000 last September to help fund the brand. But the principal amount, plus interest and

…

Julian Marley Cannabis Company Targeted by Lawsuit is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

Arizona MMJ Business Park in the Works

A public medical cannabis real estate company in Scottsdale, Arizona is developing what they say is the state’s first MMJ business park.

Zoned Properties has signed a deal to lease 25,000 square feet in a Tempe warehouse to Catalina Partners LLC, which is behind the Catalina Hills Care dispensary in North Tucson, according to the Phoenix New Times. The deal includes an option to lease an additional 40,000 square feet.

Zoned agreed with the city of Tempe to invest $2.5 million to develop the site, and will make the money back through rent that will increase

…

Arizona MMJ Business Park in the Works is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

Colorado Banking Regulator Eases Up on Cannabis

For Colorado banks that do business with marijuana-related clients, life got a little easier last week.

The state division of banking will no longer require financial institutions to duplicate what are called “Suspicious Activity Reports,” or SARS, with the state if they’ve already been filed with the federal government, the banking commission announced on Thursday.

According to a report by the Boulder Daily Camera, the commissioner has been looking for ways to cut regulations on banks, and this is an area he identified as repetitive.

Regardless of the reason, it could make it easier for Colorado cannabis businesses

…

Colorado Banking Regulator Eases Up on Cannabis is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

Senators Urge Feds to Issue Clearer MJ Banking Guidelines

A group of four U.S. Senators are urging federal regulators to come together to issue clearer guidance to financial institutions serving licensed marijuana businesses so they won’t have to operate in cash.

Oregon Sens. Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden, Washington Sen. Patty Murray, and Colorado Sen. Michael Bennet wrote a letter to the six top federal financial regulators, asking that their agencies collaborate on an effort to improve the Feb. 14, 2014 guidelines issued by the U.S. Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN). Banking officials have said the guidelines are cumbersome, unclear, and do not offer sufficient

…

Senators Urge Feds to Issue Clearer MJ Banking Guidelines is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

Chart of the Week: Snapshot of Cannabis Employment Growth in Colorado

By Marijuana Business Daily staff

Colorado’s red-hot marijuana industry is creating an avalanche of jobs as new cannabis companies launch and existing businesses expand, underscoring the impact legalization can have on the broader economy.

As of December 2015, the state had issued 26,929 occupational licenses to workers employed at medical and recreational cannabis companies – a whopping 68% increase from December 2014, according to data provided by the Colorado Department of Revenue.

At the end of 2013, when only medical marijuana businesses existed (the rec industry launched in 2014), there were less than 7,000 occupational licensees in the state.

Colorado

…

Chart of the Week: Snapshot of Cannabis Employment Growth in Colorado is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

Chart of the Week: Snapshot of Cannabis Employment Growth in Colorado

By Marijuana Business Daily staff

Colorado’s red-hot marijuana industry is creating an avalanche of jobs as new cannabis companies launch and existing businesses expand, underscoring the impact legalization can have on the broader economy.

As of December 2015, the state had issued 26,929 occupational licenses to workers employed at medical and recreational cannabis companies – a whopping 68% increase from December 2014, according to data provided by the Colorado Department of Revenue.

At the end of 2013, when only medical marijuana businesses existed (the rec industry launched in 2014), there were less than 7,000 occupational licensees in the state.

Colorado

…

Chart of the Week: Snapshot of Cannabis Employment Growth in Colorado is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

Poll: Marijuana Legalization Support in U.S. Hits 61%

A new survey conducted in February has found that a record high number of Americans now support full legalization of cannabis.

A whopping 61% of respondents agreed with the statement that “the use of marijuana should be made legal,” according to the poll, which was conducted by the Associated Press and the University of Chicago.

But there are caveats. Of that majority, 43% said there should be restrictions on purchase amounts. Another 24% said it should be legal to purchase “only with a medical prescription,” and 33% said there should be no restrictions at all.

Still, the results

…

Poll: Marijuana Legalization Support in U.S. Hits 61% is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

Hustler Publisher Invests in Ancillary MMJ Company

The cannabis industry is attracting investors from all walks of life. Including porn.

Larry Flynt, the famed publisher of Hustler Magazine, has thrown down $100,000 for 100,000 shares of stock in Pineapple Express, a publicly traded company in Los Angeles that provides consulting, property rentals and technology investments to marijuana businesses.

Pineapple Express hired Flynt’s daughter Theresa Flynt in December to become its vice president of business development.

Shares of Pineapple Express, which trade on the OTC Pink exchange under the symbol PNPL, closed Thursday at $10.49 and were down almost 4% to $10.39

…

Hustler Publisher Invests in Ancillary MMJ Company is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

First Alaskan Rec Permit Issued?

The city of Juneau, Alaska’s state capital, has handed out what may be the first recreational marijuana business permit in the state.

The Juneau Planning Commission gave the green light this week to a conditional use permit to Fireweed Factory, a grow operation that will be set up in a small building about the size of a two-car garage, according to the Associated Press.

The state won’t begin issuing rec licenses for another few months, and there’s no express requirement that businesses obtain local permission, but state rules do say that no business will be granted

…

First Alaskan Rec Permit Issued? is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs