A Republican lawmaker’s efforts to overhaul Ohio’s medical marijuana program and expand the number of Ohioans eligible for a cannabis prescription were put to the test Wednesday. The House Government Oversight Committee held its fourth hearing on Senate Bill 261, introduced by Sen. Steve Huffman (R-Tipp City), to streamline the process for businesses vying for a medical marijuana license and permit physicians to prescribe the drug where they “reasonably” believe it will help a patient. “It makes it more patient-centered, and as a physician, I’ve always been for making it patient-centered, that they can get it for the right conditions and the right way for a good price,” Huffman said. Under current law, Ohio’s medical marijuana program falls under the purview of the Ohio Board of Pharmacy. Huffman’s bill would transfer most of the authority to the Department of Commerce – a move he said will spur the provision of business licenses at a quicker pace to keep up with the market’s demand. Huffman said businesses seeking a license are often bounced back and forth between the Ohio Board of Pharmacy and the Department of Commerce, so SB 261 would eliminate the bureaucratic red tape around the process.

Cannabis Business Executive – Cannabis and Marijuana industry news, 04/28/2022 08:46:00

Open article: https://www.cannabisbusinessexecutive.com/2022/04/more-ohioans-could-become-eligible-for-medical-marijuana-under-senate-bill/

Tennessee lawmakers have tabled legislation aimed at regulating delta-8 THC products in the state. House Bill 1927, sponsored by Rep. William Lamberth, R-Portland, would essentially ban the sale or possession of any hemp-derived products containing more than 0.3% THC on a dry-weight basis. Delta-8 THC products are currently legal to sell and consume in Tennessee since the compound is produced from hemp, but lawmakers have expressed concerns about the lack of regulations governing it and other cannabinoids in the state. H.B. 1927 was not heard during an April 27 House floor session and will not likely be revived unless the Senate Finance Committee calls a special session on April 28 to discuss it, according to ABC News affiliate News Channel 9. A Senate spokesperson told the news outlet that if the Senate Finance Committee does not take up the bill Thursday, the legislation will be dead for the year and delta-8 products will continue to be sold in the state as they are now.

William Freedman, Cannabis Business Times, 04/28/2022 10:41:00

Open article: http://www.cannabisbusinesstimes.com/article/tennessee-lawmakers-table-bill-regulating-delta-8-thc

Virginia adults 21 and older can legally possess up to 1 ounce of cannabis, but the possession of up to 1 pound of will remain a civil violation with a max fine of $25, at least for now. While first-year Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin signed 700 bills into law April 11, he added a proposed amendment to Senate Bill 591, one of the 141 bills he did not sign. His proposal was to establish new criminal misdemeanor penalties for people in possession of more than 2 ounces of cannabis. That effort was squashed April 27 when the General Assembly held its veto session. Specifically, the amendment was defeated when legislators voted to re-refer the legislation to the Senate Rehabilitation and Social Services Committee for the next legislative session—killing the governor’s amendment for this year. JM Pedini, NORML’s development director, said in a new release that there were pluses and minuses to the Senate kicking the can down the road. Pedini also serves as the executive director of Virginia NORML.

William Freedman, Cannabis Business Times, 04/28/2022 11:44:00

Open article: http://www.cannabisbusinesstimes.com/article/virginia-cannabis-misdemeanor-penalty-governor-youngkin-senate-reject

Georgia voters will get the chance to make their opinions known on adult-use cannabis legalization in next month’s primary election. One of the non-binding advisory questions on the state’s ballot asks if Georgia should legalize, regulate and tax cannabis like alcohol, according to The Dales Report. The cannabis question is one of nine advisory inquiries that will appear on the ballot, the news outlet reported, and proposes legalizing cannabis for adults 21 and older and using the tax revenue generated from the market to fund health care and infrastructure. If the majority of Georgia’s voters indicate support for the advisory question, it will not trigger immediate changes to the state’s laws but will signal to lawmakers that their constituents are ready for cannabis policy reform. In the meantime, Georgia continues to grapple with the rollout of a medical cannabis program that would allow the state’s roughly 20,000 registered patients to access low-THC oil. Gov. Brian Kemp signed a law in 2019 to establish a regulated medical cannabis program in the state after years of regulatory limbo that allowed registered patients to possess—but not purchase—cannabis oil containing no more than 5% THC.

William Freedman, Cannabis Business Times, 04/28/2022 11:08:00

Open article: http://www.cannabisbusinesstimes.com/article/georgia-voters-will-weigh-in-on-adult-use-cannabis-legalization

The U.S. attorney general on Tuesday reiterated that he believes it is “not an efficient use” of federal resources to go after people for possessing marijuana. But he declined to directly answer a senator’s question on whether the Justice Department would be reinstating Obama-era enforcement guidance on not interfering with state cannabis programs that were rescinded during the Trump administration. Attorney General Merrick Garland was pressed on the issue at a Senate Appropriations subcommittee hearing by Sen. Brian Schatz (D-HI), who asked the nation’s top prosecutor whether he intended to reissue guidance encouraging federal prosecutors to use discretion in cannabis cases in states that have legalized. “I laid this out in my confirmation hearing, and my view hasn’t really changed since then,” Garland replied. “The Justice Department has almost never prosecuted the use of marijuana, and it’s not going to be.” Marijuana prosecutions are “not an efficient use of the resources given the opioid and methamphetamine epidemic that we have,” he said.

Kyle Jaeger, Marijuana Moment, 04/26/2022 11:47:00

Open article: https://www.marijuanamoment.net/u-s-attorney-general-reiterates-that-marijuana-enforcement-wastes-department-resources-but-declines-to-comment-on-formal-guidance/