Federal prosecutions over marijuana dropped again in 2021, with fewer than 1,000 people charged in cannabis trafficking cases—yet another sign that the plant is becoming a lower enforcement priority as the legalization movement scores wins in more states. There were 996 federal marijuana trafficking cases last year, according to an analysis from the federal U.S. Sentencing Commission (USCC). Those cannabis busts account for 5.7 percent of the total drug-related cases that when through the federal justice system in the fiscal year 2021 This represents a continuation of a trend that’s been playing out in recent years, especially as more states have moved to legalize cannabis and federal officials have seemingly adopted policies placing less emphasis on going after people over marijuana. In 2020, USCC documented 1,118 cannabis cases. Federal prosecutions of drug-related crimes overall increased in 2019, but cases involving marijuana dropped by more than a quarter, according to an end-of-year report released by Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts that year.

Kyle Jaeger, Marijuana Moment, 03/17/2022 16:20:00

Open article: https://www.marijuanamoment.net/federal-marijuana-cases-continue-to-decline-with-fewer-than-1000-cannabis-charges-in-2021/

The Kentucky House of Representatives on Thursday passed a bill to legalize medical marijuana in the state. The legislation now heads to the Senate. The measure, sponsored by Rep. Jason Nemes (R), was taken up by the full chamber about a week after clearing the House Judiciary Committee. Meanwhile, separate adult-use and medical legalization bills were filed by Democratic lawmakers last month. The vote on the floor was 59-34. “This is Kentucky grown, Kentucky processed, Kentucky tested,” Nemes said ahead of the vote. “Grown by Kentucky farmers on Kentucky land with Kentucky seeds for our Kentucky brothers and sisters and the Kentucky patients from across the Commonwealth.” Nemes filed a medical legalization bill in 2020 that soundly passed the House but later died in the Senate without a vote amid the early part of the coronavirus pandemic. He reintroduced the legislation for the 2021 session, but it did not advance. In the months since, the lawmaker has worked to build support—and recently earned the endorsement of Senate Judiciary Chairman Whitney Westerfield (R), for example, who said he will back the House bill despite personal reservations about marijuana reform because he’s heard from constituents who stand to benefit from the treatment option.

Kyle Jaeger, Marijuana Moment, 03/17/2022 17:17:00

Open article: https://www.marijuanamoment.net/kentucky-house-passes-medical-marijuana-legalization-bill/

A Rhode Island Senate committee on Tuesday held the first hearing on a much-anticipated bill to legalize marijuana in the state. But while activists are eager to end cannabis criminalization, the measure faced pushback over a key provision concerning the proposed process for expunging prior convictions. The bill from Sen. Joshua Miller (D), which was unveiled earlier this month, was heard in the Senate Judiciary Committee. A companion House version from Rep. Scott Slater (D) has not yet been scheduled for a committee hearing. This development also comes two months after Gov. Dan McKee (D) included a proposal to end cannabis prohibition as part of his annual budget plan. Miller, who sponsored an earlier legalization proposal that was approved in the Senate last year, told fellow lawmakers that “observing and incorporating what works best in other states has helped to guide us to what we have before you today.” Preempting concerns about expungements language that would later be voiced by advocates testifying at the hearing, Miller said “we’ve made our best attempt” to get the provisions right. “The courts have been involved, the attorney general’s been involved, many of you have been involved,” he said.

Kyle Jaeger, Marijuana Moment, 03/16/2022 13:21:00

Open article: https://www.marijuanamoment.net/kansas-senators-hold-first-of-three-medical-marijuana-legalization-hearings-in-committee/

For years the Pennsylvania Department of Health allowed the state’s medical marijuana companies to sell hundreds of medicines that the agency now considers potentially unsafe. Something changed in November when regulators started a process that led last month to a massive recall and ban of 670 types of cannabis concentrates for vaping — $12 million worth — they had previously approved for sale in Pennsylvania’s roughly 150 marijuana dispensaries. The move blindsided patients and an industry dominated by companies hyper focused on broader legalization of marijuana. And regulators declined to explain the action beyond saying the medicines contained “added ingredients that have not been approved for inhalation” by the FDA. The episode reveals the agency’s regulation of medical marijuana either to be weak – for allowing unsafe products to be sold, in some cases since the program began in 2018 — or capricious for mandating the recall of products it had previously approved without citing patient harm. The program had more than 380,000 patients in November. Since early 2018, patients have spent $2.4 billion on medical marijuana.

Cannabis Business Executive – Cannabis and Marijuana industry news, 03/17/2022 09:16:00

Open article: https://www.cannabisbusinessexecutive.com/2022/03/pennsylvanias-sudden-move-to-recall-marijuana-vapes-raised-questions-like-were-these-products-harmful-all-along/

New rules in Montana help clear up confusion over how those previously convicted for pot-related offenses can get their records cleared. The Montana Supreme Court on Tuesday issued temporary rules related to expungement procedures for individuals previously convicted for a pot-related offense. As reported by local television station KPAX, the new adult-use recreational cannabis law in Montana “says anyone convicted of an offense that would now be legal in the state can petition to have their conviction removed from their record, get a lesser sentence for it or reclassify it to a lesser offense.” On Tuesday, per Montana Public Radio, the high court “approved temporary rules that outline procedures for expunging or revising marijuana-related convictions.” Those temporary rules “are effective upon approval and adoption by the Montana Supreme Court,” the state said, adding that they will remain in effect until “a marijuana conviction court is created as authorized by the [Montana Marijuana Regulation and Taxation Act].” KPAX, citing a state court administrator, reported that “the biggest clarification [the state] wanted to make was letting people know they could submit their expungement request to the court where they were originally sentenced.”

420 Intel – Marijuana Industry News, 03/17/2022 20:00:00

Open article: https://420intel.com/articles/2022/03/18/montana-supreme-court-oks-temporary-rules-cannabis-expungement