A renewed effort to legalize marijuana by separating proposed legislation takes its first step in the House – with two new bills released from committee. Legislation to legalize possession of one ounce or less of marijuana clears the House Health and Human Development Committee. The bill’s sponsor Ed Osienski explains what would be legal and remain illegal under the measure. “Legalizes the personal possession of an ounce or less, but it still is illegal to be under 21 in possession, possessing over an ounce, and it’s still illegal to drive impaired,” said Osienski. He notes it would also remain illegal to smoke in public. The legislation was released in a party-line vote with Democrats supporting, and Republicans either voting no or not voting. There was controversy as a vote to release was moved and seconded prior to public comment. GOP State Rep. Ruth Briggs King argued public comment was needed. Committee Chair David Bentz – after consulting House counsel – moved on without public comment -prompting most GOP members to walk out with one more bill on the agenda. Meanwhile, a second bill on regulating and taxing legal marijuana cleared the House Revenue and Finance Committee.

Cannabis Business Executive – Cannabis and Marijuana industry news, 04/14/2022 09:16:00

Open article: https://www.cannabisbusinessexecutive.com/2022/04/marijuana-legalization-bills-are-released-from-house-committees-in-delaware/

Democratic senators leading a push to legalize marijuana say they are now on track to introduce legislation before recess in August, after initially announcing plans to file a comprehensive reform bill later this month. Senate Majority Leader Charles Scumer (D-N.Y.) – who is heading the effort along with Sens. Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Mark Warner (D-Va.), and Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) – said in a joint statement on Thursday that he’s proud of the progress senators have made in “bringing this vital bill closer to its official introduction” before the recess in early August. Schumer said the bill, dubbed the Cannabis Administration and Opportunity Act (CAOA), will remove “cannabis from the federal list of controlled substances, and “help repair our criminal justice system, ensure restorative justice, protect public health, and implement responsible taxes and regulations,” among other measures. The announcement comes after Schumer said weeks back that senators behind the effort aimed to bring a reform bill forward later this month. “We hope to do that towards the end of April,” Schumer said then. He also noted at the time that he has been reaching out to “a few Republicans to see what they want.”

Aris Folley, The Hill – covering Congress, Politics, Political Campaigns and Capitol Hill, 04/14/2022 18:41:00

Open article: https://thehill.com/news/senate/3269145-timeline-for-marijuana-legalization-bill-slips-in-senate

South Dakota activists say they’re falling behind on signature gathering for a ballot initiative to legalize marijuana in the state—and they’re urging supporters to step up their efforts to secure the remaining signatures ahead of a looming turn-in deadline next month. South Dakotans for Better Marijuana Laws (SDBML) held a press conference on Wednesday to give a status update on the campaign and convey the urgency of collecting the remaining signatures to give voters a chance to decide on reform after the legislature failed to enact it this year. Matthew Schweich, campaign director of SDBML, said that the campaign’s conservative estimate of how many valid signatures they’ve currently processed is around 13,500. In order to qualify for the ballot, activists will need to submit 16,961 legitimate signatures from registered voters to the state by May 3. South Dakota voters already approved legalization during the 2020 election, but the reform was struck down by the state Supreme Court following a challenge from the governor’s office. Schweich said that the court ruling was an “injustice,” but “we can’t change that.” However, he said that “what we do have control over is getting on the ballot—so let’s go get on the ballot.”

Kyle Jaeger, Marijuana Moment, 04/13/2022 15:14:00

Open article: https://www.marijuanamoment.net/south-dakota-marijuana-activists-issue-yellow-alert-for-signature-drive-to-put-legalization-on-ballot-as-deadline-nears/

The Pennsylvania Senate on Wednesday approved a bill to safeguard banks and insurers against being penalized by state regulators for working with state-legal medical marijuana businesses. The bipartisan legislation from Sens. John DiSanto (R) and Sharif Street (D) moved through two committees in recent days before being taken up on the floor and passing in a 46-3 vote. It now heads to the House. This effort is yet another example of how states are working to provide financial protections to institutions that are willing to service the cannabis market as Congress continues to stall on a federal fix. “Federal prohibition has forced the cannabis industry to deal with cash, as proceeds may be considered a federal crime,” DiSanto said on the floor on Wednesday, adding that the cash-intensive nature of the existing marketplace “makes dispensaries a target for armed robbery.” “Improved access to financial services will reduce this public safety risk,” he said. “Banking this cash in Pennsylvania will grow our economy and lower costs for medical patients.”

Kyle Jaeger, Marijuana Moment, 04/13/2022 12:54:00

Open article: https://www.marijuanamoment.net/pennsylvania-senate-approves-marijuana-banking-bill-sending-it-to-the-house/

A pair of complementary bills to legalize marijuana and set up regulations for cannabis commerce in Delaware were approved in separate House committees on Wednesday. Rep. Ed Osienski (D), the sponsor of both measures, previously tried to pass a comprehensive bill that would have accomplished both goals at once, but it failed to receive the required three-fifths supermajority vote on the floor last month. Rather than throw in the towel, the lawmaker devised a two-track approach to reform by introducing one basic legalization bill that would allow adults 21 and older to possess and share up to an ounce of cannabis and another that lays out a specific regulatory framework for an adult-use market. The former bill would only require a simple majority to pass, and so if that measure is enacted, the thinking is that it would put “extra pressure” on lawmakers to advance the complementary legislation with a supermajority, rather than have legalization without regulations in place, Osienski said earlier this month. So far, things are going according to plan. The simple legalization bill, HB 371, passed the House Health & Human Development Committee.

Kyle Jaeger, Marijuana Moment, 04/13/2022 15:30:00

Open article: https://www.marijuanamoment.net/delaware-house-committees-approve-complementary-marijuana-legalization-and-regulations-bills/