Spurred by a landmark pro-marijuana decision by its Supreme Court, Mexico has decided to move ahead with a national debate on reforming cannabis policy.
The country will hold a series of five debates across the nation, from January to March, that will …
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By John Schroyer and Omar Sacirbey
Maryland pushes back a decision on medical cannabis business permits, a prominent Marijuana Policy Project official resigns over the industry’s newfound influence on activism, and Minnesota expands its MMJ conditions list.
Here’s a closer look at several notable developments in the marijuana industry over the past week.
Hurry Up and Wait
The hundreds of marijuana companies that applied for business licenses in Maryland are stuck in a holding pattern after the state decided this week that it needs more time to review the 1,081 applications it received by the November deadline.
Officials
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Week in Review: Waiting Game in Maryland, Industry vs. Activism & Good News for New Market is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs
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And then there was one.
Recreational marijuana legalization ballot measure in Massachusetts, that is. On Tuesday, after handing in all the signatures it had collected, Bay State Repeal acknowledged that its initiative wouldn’t qualify for the 2016 ballot.
“We didn’t make it,” the group’s spokesman, Steve Epstein, told Boston.com.
The group needed to submit at least 64,750 signatures of registered voters to make the ballot, and Epstein said they fell short of that mark.
That leaves only the Campaign to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol standing in Massachusetts, which submitted more than 103,000 signatures on Tuesday for its
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Only One Rec Cannabis Initiative Now in Massachusetts is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs
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Marijuana growers and retailers may have fewer options for marketing now that the US Postal Service recently issued a directive warning that advertisements about selling or buying cannabis constitute a felony.
The Nov. 27 directive also warned publishing companies that mailing newspapers, magazines, catalogs, hand-bills and similar materials containing such ads is also a felony.
“If an advertisement advocates the purchase of clinical marijuana through a Medical Marijuana Dispensary, it does not comply with (US law),” the directive said.
It’s unclear, however, if federal officials have the authority to enforce the directive because of a recent
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Postal Service Issues Warning About Marijuana Ads is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs
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By John Schroyer
A new day has dawned for Minnesota’s medical marijuana industry.
The two companies licensed to cultivate and sell marijuana – LeafLine Labs and Minnesota Medical Solutions (MinnMed) – will benefit immensely from Wednesday’s decision to add intractable pain to the state’s list of qualifying medical conditions.
The move, announced by the state’s health commissioner, promises to catapult Minnesota’s sluggish market by helping boost the patient base significantly.
LeafLine Labs and MinnMed can now breathe a huge sigh of relief about the future – and potentially capture millions of additional dollars in sales annually.
“This
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Minnesota Medical Cannabis Companies Find Relief in Pain is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs
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It looks like it’ll take more persuading before Georgia entrepreneurs have a chance to begin making and selling CBD oils.
Gov. Nathan Deal basically put the kibosh on CBD production in his state on Wednesday, even though CBD oil has already been legalized for medical patients.
Currently, CBD is legal for those in the state to use, but there’s no way for anyone to obtain it legally, since patients would have to acquire the marijuana-based oils in another state and then break federal law by transporting it across state lines to bring it home.
One local
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Georgia Gov Says No to CBD Production is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs
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As part of Washington State’s ongoing effort to roll medical cannabis into the same regulatory system that oversees recreational marijuana businesses, officials have begun issuing endorsements to retailers that meet its medical threshold.
So far, the Liquor and Cannabis Board has handed out 142 medical endorsements, while roughly 1,100 dispensaries have also applied for new state rec licenses, according to the Olympian.
Dispensaries must obtain state permits by July 1 if they want to remain in business. The medical endorsement on top of the rec license will allow stores to sell to MMJ patients as well as rec customers.
It’s
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Washington State Begins Issuing MMJ Endorsements is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs
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Canada’s federal police have raided three dispensaries in Nanaimo, British Columbia, further muddying the situation surrounding cannabis as the country moves forward with legalization marijuana for recreational use.
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) followed through on threats made Nov. 12, when agents hand-delivered letters to 10 Nanaimo medical marijuana dispensaries, ordering them to shut down within a week.
Dispensaries are technically illegal under federal law in Canada, though scores exist in the western part of the country.
Several complaints had been made against the dispensaries, officials with the local RCMP unit said, including selling to minors and soliciting
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Canadian Feds Raid Dispensaries is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs
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Minnesota’s health commissioner announced Wednesday that he will add intractable pain to the state’s qualifying condition list for medical cannabis, which will breathe new life into the state’s MMJ industry.
His game-changing decision overrules a previous panel recommendation to keep pain off the list.
“In the end I determined that with Minnesota’s cautious and well-designed program, we can safely and responsibly give patients and providers the option of adding medical cannabis as a tool to treat intractable pain,” Health Commissioner Ed Ehlinger said in a statement.
The change will mean an almost certain boost for the state’s two
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Minnesota Adds Pain to Medical Cannabis Conditions List is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs
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Maryland will delay announcing the winners of medical cannabis business licenses for an undetermined amount of time, leaving entrepreneurs in a holding pattern and introducing uncertainty into the process.
The Natalie M. LaPrade Maryland Medical Cannabis Commission (MMCC) said it wants more time to review applications “due to the number of submissions received,” adding that it plans to issue an updated timeline “in the near future.”
Previously, the commission had said it would announce license winners in January.
As a result, the industry could launch later than initially planned – which is quite common in new markets.
The delay coincides with an announcement
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Maryland Delays MMJ Licensing Decisions is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs
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