Industry rarely calls out for more regulation, but a new marijuana startup sees creating nationally standardized rules as key to the future of the pot business.

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Cleveland, OH--JUNE 24, 2018 -- PRESS RELEASE -- The Medical Cannabis Pioneers Picnic will be held at Rid All Green Partnership, a thriving urban farm in Cleveland, Ohio, on July 22, 2018 from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. Guests will enjoy healthy and organic picnic fare, while several certified-to-recommend doctors from Cleveland/Akron-area private practices discuss their path to recommending cannabis to their patients.

Food and drink included in price of ticket ($16). All children are free. Doctors will be available or patient questions. Cannabis industry businesses and activist organizations will be providing information on the status of Ohio’s medical program and professional opportunities and products. Keynote speakers are Dr. Solomon Zaraa of Compassionate Cleveland and Dr. Janet Levatin of Patient Focus.

A visit to Rid All Farm is always a treat, with “regenerative agriculture” on display amid a campus of greenhouses and orchard in Cleveland’s own “Innovative Agriculture Zone." Sustainable agriculture talks and tours will be provided by the experts at Rid All. Children’s entertainment will be provided by Magic Nate, energy elixirs provided by Urban Farm Doctor, and food will feature locally-sourced plant-based foods with meat options. Wine-tastings, gift basket raffles, and giveaways throughout the evening.

Midwest CannaWomen is an organization formed by and for women from diverse backgrounds who are pioneering into the Midwest regional cannabis industry. Our mission at Midwest CannaWomen is to provide resources, education, skills training, and unique networking opportunities to women to unify, build a base of support for each other, and to connect with quality opportunities within the industry. Tickets at: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/medical-cannabis-pioneers-picnic-tickets-47119280035

U.S. Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) filed a sweeping marijuana decriminalization bill June 27 that would leave regulation in the hands of states. The bill would also remove cannabis from the Controlled Substances Act.

The bill would, however, maintain federal law enforcement's authority to prosecute interstate "drug trafficking."

As a point of differentiation from other decriminalization and legalization bills, Schumer's bill would involve the Small Business Administration and create "dedicated funding streams" to support women- and minority-owned cannabis businesses to the tune of 10 percent of all cannabis tax revenue or $10 million (whichever amount is greater).

And tracking with other legislative trends in states that have legalized cannabis, Schumer's bill would help fund states' marijuana conviction expungement processes.

“The time to decriminalize marijuana is now,” Schumer said in a press release. “The new Marijuana Freedom and Opportunity Act is about giving states the freedom to be the laboratories that they should be and giving Americans – especially women and minority business owners as well as those convicted of simple possession of marijuana intended for personal use- the opportunity to succeed in today’s economy. This legislation is simply the right thing to do and I am hopeful that the balanced approach it takes can earn bipartisan support in Congress and across the country.” 

Schumer first announced this bill more than two months ago. "I'll be introducing legislation to decriminalize marijuana at the federal level from one end of the country to the other," he said at the time. "The legislation is long overdue."

Read the full bill here:

Marijuana Freedom and Opportunity Act by sandydocs on Scribd

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U.S. Rep. Jared Polis, for whom a prominent marijuana protection legislative amendment is named, has won the Democratic gubernatorial primary in Colorado. He will face State Treasurer Walker Stapleton, a Republican, in November’s general election.

“President Donald Trump, marijuana and big money are expected to dominate November election,” as the Denver Post put it, teasing a volatile campaign trail between now and November. 

For the state’s growing cannabis industry, Polis’s win is a positive sign. He has been a vocal supporter of the legal, regulated cannabis space, and his campaign canvassed dispensaries in the run-up to the primary.

Polis recently co-sponsored the STATES Act, which would legitimize state-legal marijuana laws in the eyes of the federal government. The McClintock-Polis amendment, which has yet to earn formal approval in Congress, would achieve the same ends.

“It’s an honor to be the Democratic nominee for Governor of Colorado,” Polis wrote on Facebook following the election. “This would not have been possible without all of your help. We’ve got a lot of work ahead of us to transform our bold, positive, inclusive vision for our future into reality—and it starts with bringing home another victory for the people of Colorado this November. We will need your help in the days ahead, but know that tonight I couldn’t be prouder to be in this fight with you. Let’s get to work.”

Stapleton won the Republican gubernatorial primary. He has been less clear on the matter of Colorado’s legal marijuana market. “I don’t think a repeal is a realistic option, so as governor, I will work with the industry and stakeholder groups to make this work,” he told Westword in April. “We need to have better guardrails in place to keep it out of the hands of children and to address some of the unintended consequences we have seen develop.” 

Gov. John Hickenlooper is term-limited and ineligible to run for reelection this year.

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