MMJ Business Daily

QuickBooks Cancels, Reactivates Cannabis Firm’s Account

It’s not uncommon for marijuana-related companies to lose their bank accounts, have problems with advertising, or even get booted from mainstream business competitions. But over the last week, a new hurdle almost amusingly popped up, before shrinking quickly under the glare of journalistic scrutiny.

Evan Nison, a longtime cannabis activist on the East Coast who now has his own consulting and public relations firm, had his account with financial services company QuickBooks closed on Nov. 16. QuickBooks allegedly said it “refuses to do business with companies that have ‘any affiliation’ with medical marijuana,” Nison

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QuickBooks Cancels, Reactivates Cannabis Firm’s Account is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

Alaska to Revisit Marijuana Residency Requirement

After loosening residency rules last week for the state’s upcoming recreational marijuana industry, the Alaska Marijuana Control Board has now decided to take up the issue once again.

Under new rules adopted last week, an entrepreneur who wants to fulfill the residency requirement to own a marijuana business in Alaska just has to qualify for voter registration. That means simply living in Alaska, having a physical address and not being registered to vote in any other state – nothing more.

A non-resident could therefore conceivably fly in, find a place to live and immediately start a rec business.

Board members

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Alaska to Revisit Marijuana Residency Requirement is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

Hawaii to Award Contract for MMJ Tracking System

Another state contract for marijuana software developers is up for grabs.

The Hawaii State Department of Health has issued a request for proposals for seed-to-sale tracking software. The agency will award a contract by Dec. 23, according to Pacific Business News.

The tracking system will be used for all of Hawaii’s planned 16 dispensaries, which are slated to begin opening in July.

In addition to tracking inventory and sales, Hawaii officials want the system to be able to trace the amount of unused material produced by each plant at harvest. They also want to keep tabs on the

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Hawaii to Award Contract for MMJ Tracking System is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

Canadian Officials Want Cannabis Sold Through Liquor Stores

As Canada’s new government struggles with how to implement marijuana legalization, at least a few public figures are urging officials to allow sales through the country’s tightly controlled liquor stores.

In the central Canadian province of Manitoba, the Liquor & Gaming Authority expects to serve as a marijuana regulator and is now preparing for that role, according to the Winnipeg Free Press.

In a Monday speech, Manitoba Premier Greg Selinger said the liquor authority “will be well positioned to regulate the sale and distribution of marijuana in a safe and socially responsible manner.”

The head of the Ontario Public Service Employees

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Canadian Officials Want Cannabis Sold Through Liquor Stores is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

Wholesale Cannabis Prices Sky-High in Colorado, Dampening Fears of Crash

By John Schroyer

In early 2015, a number of Colorado’s longtime marijuana industry insiders predicted an impending price crash for wholesale cannabis.

But the crash failed to materialize this summer as feared. In fact, the opposite trend is playing out: prices have skyrocketed in recent months.

In October, the online marijuana wholesale marketplace Cannabase saw recreational product being moved for as much as $3,000 per pound at one point. That’s up from a maximum price point of $2,200 per pound in January and February, Cannabase CEO Jennifer Beck said, and an average sale of about $1,900 early this year.

“To

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Wholesale Cannabis Prices Sky-High in Colorado, Dampening Fears of Crash is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

Missouri CBD Program Lacking Physician Support

The two Missouri companies that have been licensed to grow and produce CBD medicine from industrial hemp are looking at a super-slow start, mostly because neurologists in the state are hesitant to write recommendations for the drug.

Missouri is one of more than a dozen states that have legalized CBD-based medicines derived from either industrial hemp or marijuana with low THC concentrations. It’s also one of only two states (the other being Florida) with a workable CBD program that paves the way for business opportunities.

But whether or not the program is viable may not matter if doctors don’t

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Missouri CBD Program Lacking Physician Support is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

Florida Announces Winners of CBD Licenses

At long last, Florida’s health department has announced the names of nurseries that will receive cultivation and dispensary licenses as part of its CBD program.

The five companies are dispersed geographically across the state to ensure there will be CBD producers in each region of Florida.

The winners include Chestnut Hill Tree Farm in the northeast region of the state, Costa Nursery Farms in the southeast region, Knox Nursery in the central region, Hackney Nursery Company in the northwest region, and Alpha Foliage in the southwest region.

Under the state’s CBD law, licenses will only be awarded to long-time, large existing nurseries.

All

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Florida Announces Winners of CBD Licenses is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

Cost of MMJ Rules Could Leave CA’s Black Market Untouched

Will California’s forthcoming medical marijuana regulations eliminate the state’s cannabis black market?

Not if the costs for businesses to participate are too onerous, MMJ growers and retailers say.

The regulations will cost an estimated $20 million-$50 million to implement and maintain, according to the Press-Democrat of Santa Rosa, citing a legislative analyst’s report.

Oversight would be paid for by industry license fees, which – assuming 5,000 annual applications – would have to cost about $4,000 apiece to cover the lower end of the estimate, the newspaper reported.

Hezekiah Allen of the Emerald Growers Association told the paper that

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Cost of MMJ Rules Could Leave CA’s Black Market Untouched is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

Alaska MJ Board Votes for In-Store Consumption

In a major policy shift, the Alaska Marijuana Control Board has voted to allow people who buy marijuana at a retail store to consume it in a designated area on the property.

The 3-2 vote on Friday follows months of debate over whether marijuana buyers would have any place to consume their marijuana, besides their homes or other private spaces.

If the amendment is approved by Lt. Gov. Byron Mallott, it would make Alaska the first state to have explicitly permitted public marijuana consumption. Alaska’s Department of Law must review the proposed regulations next before they head to Mallott’s desk.

Previously,

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Alaska MJ Board Votes for In-Store Consumption is a post from: Marijuana Business Daily: Financial, Legal & Cannabusiness news for cannabis entrepreneurs

Chart of the Week: Massachusetts Medical Marijuana Market Quickly Gaining Steam

By Becky Olson
Talk about pent-up demand.
The number of medical marijuana purchases and the quantity of cannabis sold in Massachusetts are surging now that three dispensaries geographically dispersed across the state have opened their doors to patients…