Wellness Connection of Maine Joins Cannabis Residency Lawsuit
The company has filed a motion to fight a lawsuit against the state that was brought by two small cannabis businesses over adult-use licenses awarded to out-of-state companies.
Wellness Connection of Maine filed a motion Oct. 29 to fight a lawsuit against the state that was brought by two small cannabis businesses over adult-use licenses awarded to out-of-state companies, according to a Bangor Daily News report.
Wellness Connection, which is controlled by Delaware-based investor High Street Capital Partners and operates four medical cannabis dispensaries in Maine, filed the motion on behalf of its adult-use business, NPG, to ask a judge to dismiss the lawsuit, which was brought by two medical cannabis caregivers who claim that the state cannot refuse to enforce a law restricting out-of-state business owners from participating in Maine’s adult-use market.
Maine eliminated a residency requirement in May that would have required every officer, director and manager of an adult-use cannabis business, as well as a majority of its ownership, to live and file taxes in Maine for at least four years. The rule was set to expire in June 2021, but the state repealed it early as part of an agreement with Wellness Connection, which filed a separate lawsuit in March to challenge the constitutionality of the requirement.
The new lawsuit now puts Wellness Connection on the same side as the state as a defendant, Bangor Daily News reported.
Maine’s first adult-use cannabis sales launched Oct. 9, and NPG currently holds one active manufacturing license, one active cultivation license, and five conditional approvals for another manufacturing facility and four dispensaries, according to Bangor Daily News.
Katherine | Adobe Stock
Ohio Now Accepting Petitions for Its Medical Cannabis Program
The State Medical Board of Ohio will accept petitions for new qualifying conditions through Dec. 31.
Ohio is now accepting petitions to add new qualifying conditions to the state’s medical cannabis program, according to a local WDTN report.
The State Medical Board of Ohio will accept petitions for the Ohio Medical Marijuana Control Program through Dec. 31, the news outlet reported, and may then designate new conditions or diseases as eligible to be treated with medical cannabis.
Petitions will not be considered if they are received after the deadline, or if they seek to add a broad category of conditions or diseases, according to WDTN.
Those petitioning for a condition that was previously considered and rejected by the board may not resubmit documents that have already been reviewed, the news outlet reported, but may present new scientific research for consideration.
Ohio’s current list of qualifying conditions include AIDS; amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS); Alzheimer’s disease; cachexia; cancer; chronic traumatic encephalopathy; Crohn’s disease; epilepsy or other seizure disorder; fibromyalgia; glaucoma; hepatitis C; inflammatory bowel disease; multiple sclerosis (MS); chronic, severe or intractable pain; Parkinson’s disease; HIV; post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD); sickle cell anemia; spinal cord disease or injury; Tourette syndrome; traumatic brain injury and ulcerative colitis.
Irina | Adobe Stock
Two States Propose Regulations for Ingestible Cannabinoid Products: Week in Review
New York and Kentucky are the latest states to develop their own regulations for including CBD and other hemp-derived cannabinoids in products as the industry awaits FDA guidance.
This week, state agencies in both New York and Kentucky have proposed regulations for including cannabidiol (CBD) and other hemp-derived cannabinoids in food, beverages and other products. Both proposals will be open for public comment.
Here are this week’s headlines you might have missed.
Illinois: A research team at Southern Illinois University in Carbondale, Ill., recently harvested its 2020 hemp crop as part of ongoing study into the plant’s weed suppression properties and its potential as part of a rotation in that part of the country. Read more
Kentucky: The Kentucky Department of Health has proposed regulations to permit the sale of CBD in food and cosmetics. Read more
New York: The state department of health has released a proposal laying out regulations for food, beverages and dietary supplements containing CBD and other hemp-derived cannabinoids. The regulations also ban the sale of hemp flower. Read more
Oregon: Two U.S. senators from Oregon who wrote the provision in the 2018 Farm Bill legalizing hemp recently sent a letter to the DEA expressing “strong objections” to its “unilateral and uncalled for” interim final rule (IFR) on the crop. Read more
Miravision | Adobe Stock
Detroit Officials Propose Ordinance to Allow Adult-Use Cannabis Sales, Polls Show Promising Results for Cannabis Ballot Measures: Week in Review
This week, Detroit Councilman James Tate and Mayor Mike Duggan unveiled details of a proposal to license and regulate adult-use businesses within the city.
This week, Detroit officials proposed an ordinance to allow adult-use cannabis sales in the city, after initially opting out of the state’s recreational market. Elsewhere, cannabis legalization polls show promising results ahead of Election Day, when four states—Arizona, New Jersey, Montana and South Dakota—are set to vote on adult-use ballot measures.
Here, we’ve rounded up the 10 headlines you need to know before this week is over.
Federal: Fifteen percent of seniors report having used cannabis products within the past three years, primarily for therapeutic purposes, according to data published in the Journal of the American Geriatric Society. Investigators affiliated with the University of California at San Diego surveyed 568 respondents at a geriatric clinic in southern California. All of the study’s participants were at least 65 years of age, and 73% of respondents were older than 75. Read more
Polling numbers vary, but the most recent results indicate that voters in the four states with recreational legalization on the ballot—Arizona, New Jersey, Montana and South Dakota—will vote in favor of legalization. A shift in public perception and potential tax revenue are two key reasons the measures are likely to succeed, according to Fox Rothschild attorney Melissa T. Sanders. Read more
A recent study by the Resource Innovation Institute (RII) found that indoor cannabis cultivation facilities that utilize LED lighting systems were, on average, more energy-efficient and more productive than facilities using non-LED lights. The non-profit organization analyzed data from 84 indoor cultivators who submitted energy use and production data to the group’s Cannabis PowerScore tool, a benchmarking platform that gathers confidential facility information about energy use, production output and cultivation methods, and provides operators with ranking relative to other respondents. Read more
Michigan: Detroit Councilman James Tate and Mayor Mike Duggan shared details of a proposed ordinance this week that would allow adult-use cannabis sales in the city. Detroit initially opted out of Michigan’s adult-use cannabis market, instead placing a moratorium on sales to buy the city time to draft an ordinance to regulate the industry. Now, city officials plan to propose their ordinance as an amendment to the Detroit City Code, which will be considered at upcoming public hearings led by the city council. Read more
New Jersey: The New Jersey Assembly Appropriations Committee approved legislation Oct. 26 that would require workers’ compensation and personal injury protection (PIP) auto insurance benefits to cover medical cannabis in certain situations. A1708 was approved by the Assembly Committee on Financial Institutions earlier this year, and advanced out of the Appropriations Committee Monday in a 7-4 vote. Read more
Missouri: Lyndall Fraker, the director of Missouri’s medical cannabis program, believes voters could legalize adult-use cannabis in the state as early as 2022. Fraker told FOX 2 Now that he believes medical cannabis legalization was a step toward adult-use in the state. “Absolutely, I think that was the intent of the drafters,” he said. “We’ve already heard that they are going to try and work and get it on the ballot, but I don’t think the legislature will do it; I think it will have to be a petition. It’s going to be on the ballot in 2022, I’m very confident in that, but I don’t know what that language will look like.” Read more
Mississippi: Madison Mayor Mary Hawkins Butler is challenging one of Mississippi’s two medical cannabis ballot measures with the state supreme court. Butler filed the complaint Oct. 27, just one week before Election Day, alleging that the number of signatures gathered to put the issue before voters does not meet standards set in the state’s constitution. Read more
Illinois: Curaleaf announced this week that the multi-state operator is expanding its line of Select Oil brand products to Illinois, the 15th state to carry Select Oil products. Select Elite Live cannabis oil cartridges will be the first offered in the state. Read more
A judge has ordered Illinois officials not to rescore cannabis dispensary applications in an ongoing licensing dispute over the state’s plan to issue 75 new retail licenses. The move comes after three finalists included in the licensing lottery filed a lawsuit over Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s plan to offer unsuccessful retail applicants a second chance to qualify for the controversial lottery. Read more
International: Although full election results are expected to be published Nov. 6, preliminary election results show that New Zealand is set to reject adult-use cannabis legalization. The country’s Electoral Commission has reported that 53.1% of voters opposed the cannabis referendum, but also said there are nearly half a million mostly overseas special votes that have not yet been counted and that might be enough to get legalization across the finish line. Read more
A segment of the mural by Jeff Jacobson, also known as Weirdo, on the exterior of Shawn Kemp's Cannabis
Photo courtesy of Shawn Kemp's Cannabis
From the Court to Cannabis: Q&A with Shawn Kemp
The six-time NBA All-Star will open Shawn Kemp’s Cannabis in Seattle Oct. 30 and plans to roll out four more stores across Washington with his partners at Main Street Marijuana.
A green-hued mural in Seattle displays the energy that Shawn Kemp put into the game of basketball—and signals the start of something new for the six-time NBA All-Star power forward.
On Oct. 30, the “Reign Man,” of Seattle SuperSonics fame, will open Shawn Kemp’s Cannabis, an adult-use dispensary that will work to increase equitable participation in the industry.
Kemp will be joined by former Sonics teammate Gary Payton during the opening-day event, which will include a green ribbon-cutting ceremony. The dispensary, a partnership with Main Street Marijuana co-founders Matt Schoenlein and Ramsey Hamide, is the first in a planned line of stores.
Earlier this week, Cannabis Dispensary spoke with Kemp about the new store’s reminiscence of when Seattle had an NBA team, the importance of social equity in the cannabis industry and some of the wariness that athletes and entertainers still have about the plant.
Editor’s note: This interview has been edited for length, style and clarity.
Photo courtesy of Shawn Kemp's Cannabis
Shawn Kemp
Patrick Williams: What got you interested in cannabis?
Shawn Kemp: I've been a fan of the cannabis business for a long time, even before it was legal, but just always having the dreams and hopes of opening up a shop one of these days after it became legal. It was always in the back of my mind, I guess, but obviously, with cannabis shops and getting into this business, it's about the team that you create. So, I always had a problem creating a good team, having good people around me. Really here in the last year or so, I just was able to meet some people that I really trusted, and then we started to talk and develop some relations, and we were able to create the cannabis store.
PW: How did you link up with Main Street Marijuana?
SK: I've just been a fan of theirs through what they've done through the state, and then having some mutual friends that knew one of the workers inside Main Street gave me the introduction to them. And then things took off from there, definitely.
PW: I read that you have a 10% stake in this?
SK: No, not at all. When I got into this cannabis business, I got into it with these guys just to create opportunity for other people, not just Blacks but anybody, Asians, whites—this is such a white-branded business, so I just wanted the opportunity for different cultures to be into the store. So, this is the first of four stores is the way that it works. It’s the first of five stores. And we're going to four more stores in the next two years.
PW: In Seattle or across Washington?
SK: Across Washington.
(Editor’s note: Shawn Kemp’s Cannabis recently released a statement that stated that the first Shawn Kemp’s Cannabis store is a structured deal. Main Street Marijuana, it reads, “invested in creating a store that can serve as a social equity incubator, to train people of color and women to become successful cannabis store owners.”)
PW: Is Gary Payton an owner, as well, or is he just coming out to hang out on Friday?
SK: No, he's not an owner, but he's going to be here for the opening-day event. He's actually also promoting his Gary Payton strain. So, Gary's also in the business. He'll be here promoting his own product, and he'll just be here in our shop for the opening day.
PW: Do you have any Shawn Kemp- or Sonics-branded strains or products?
SK: No, I'm really just educating myself on the business before I come out with any product or anything. I actually just want to educate myself, top to bottom, on everything. Then, eventually, I think you'll see some Shawn Kemp, some Reign Man products. But for now, I'm just a shop owner, just trying to build a good team. But I think eventually, absolutely, we'd like to create some type of strain and some products.
The mural by Jeff Jacobson, also known as Weirdo, on the exterior of Shawn Kemp's Cannabis
Photo courtesy of Shawn Kemp's Cannabis
PW: With the store and the mural, would you say that your big public-facing space in Seattle, if locals or tourists are looking to relive that era of the SuperSonics and the NBA, is that where they go?
SK: Absolutely. Actually, that's why I created this, absolutely, simply because we have no basketball team here. We're in hopes of getting a basketball team in the future. If we do get a basketball team in the future, I'm sure it's going to be right down the street from this shop. So, I'm in hopes of thinking that one of these days, in the next three to four years, that we're going to receive an NBA team back in Seattle. And we're hoping to be part of it.
PW: Do you have a lot of memorabilia or other nods to the Sonics in the store?
SK: Yeah, I do, I do. I saved memorabilia throughout the years, a lot of pictures, posters and jerseys, and we've definitely hung them up throughout the shop.
PW: You’re doing a green ribbon-cutting ceremony. Is that a reference to the Sonics, cannabis or both?
SK: It's representing cannabis culture. It's a green ribbon, and it's my first ribbon-cutting ceremony, so I'm looking forward to having some fun with it out front, and we invited everybody from the city down, also.
PW: Could you talk about the importance of having Black-owned businesses in the space? I saw that you're one of the first in the city.
SK: To me, it's not just about being Black-owned, but it's about being just multi-colored-owned and then inviting different cultures in here. When I walk by here, what makes me fool good is that we have different cultures here—we have Blacks, whites, Latinos, Asians--that's what makes me smile. I don't want a shop where it's just all Black. I want mixed cultures up in here. So, that's what we're after.
PW: Do you feel like athletes and celebrities could play a larger role in destigmatizing and legitimizing cannabis?
SK: I do. I think if they speak up as I have, things could make it easier. But also, I think there's a backlash to that because in some places, it's still illegal. So, I think there are still people very, very afraid to speak up on cannabis. I feel fortunate and blessed that I can come out and say it, but I'm not going to pressure any more athletes or entertainers to come out and say anything. But if they do, I'm definitely going to stand with them.
PW: What else would you want the industry to know about this business and your entering the space?
SK: Just the fact that cannabis and weed has been known as kind of dirty for a long time. My way is just to come into this business. You're not going to probably see me on poster boards or videos smoking joints like Snoop Dogg or anything, but I think with me coming into this business, it's just a way of bringing more of a professional touch to it, letting people know that cannabis is OK, there's a professional way of using it. You don't have to always be so vocal, so loud or whatever, but it's okay to [do] whatever you do in your own privacy.
Legislative Map
Cannabis Business Times’ interactive legislative map is another tool to help cultivators quickly navigate state cannabis laws and find news relevant to their markets. View More