Lawmakers appear poised to allow Hoosiers to buy and sell CBD oil. What's far less certain is whether or not local companies will actually be able to manufacture the low-THC cannabis extract.

House Bill 1214 and Senate Bill 52 passed out of both chambers with language legalizing the sale, possession and manufacturing of CBD oil, if it contains less than .3 percent THC and is labeled correctly. Lawmakers are now backtracking after Gov. Eric Holcomb told legislative leaders that he didn't want manufacturing to be legalized, Senate Pro Tempore David Long said. 

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CHARLESTON — The Senate Judiciary Committee made major changes Thursday to a medical marijuana bill that came out of the House of Delegates.

Chief among the changes to House Bill 4345 is a section allowing the state medical marijuana advisory board to come up with rules to allow smoking the drug as a means of treatment.

When the original medical marijuana bill was approved by the Legislature in 2017, it did not allow smoking the drug.

But some senators and delegates feared many people who need the drug the most would not be able to afford processed forms of medical cannabis. Those lawmakers have been working behind the scenes to try to allow smoking the drug.

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A police investigation targeting Brazil’s most prominent marijuana researcher has ignited a wave of protest among scientists. They say that the move by authorities from the state of São Paulo threatens research freedoms at a time when science in the country faces severe problems because of draconian budget cuts.

Police questioned Elisaldo Carlini, a retired professor of psychopharmacology at the Federal University of São Paulo (Unifesp), on 21 February on suspicion of inciting drug crime, according to authorities. They are still investigating the case and have not charged Carlini with anything.

RELATED: International Cannabis News

According to documents from Rosemary Porcelli da Silva, the public prosecutor in São Paulo state who requested opening the case against Carlini, she saw “in theory, strong hints of incitement” in a marijuana symposium that he organized in May last year. One of the proposed guest speakers was the head of the Rastafari church in Brazil, who is still serving jail time under drug trafficking charges and did not participate in the symposium. Marijuana use, production and sale are illegal in Brazil. Da Silva declined to comment on the inquiry.

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A bill to legalize medical marijuana in Kentucky was shelved Wednesday after it ran into strong opposition from law enforcement officials during a round of testimony before a legislative panel.

A day after hearing from medical marijuana supporters, the panel took comments from law enforcement officials and a Warren County prosecutor. They warned that legalization could exacerbate Kentucky’s drug addiction woes.

RELATED: Kentucky Lawmakers Begin Review of Medical Marijuana Bill

“This is a road we do not want to go down,” said Chris Cohron, representing the Kentucky Commonwealth’s Attorneys Association.

Legalizing medical cannabis would send the wrong message, creating “a dangerous illusion” that marijuana is safe, Daviess County Sheriff Keith Cain said. That would be “a sure prescription for increased use,” especially among young people, he said.

“My opposition to this legislation isn’t because I lack compassion for the sick, but because I think it’s wrong to herald marijuana–-with its many proven negative qualities,” the sheriff said.

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