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Legalization Bill Dies in New York Legislature, California Will Extend Provisional Cannabis Licenses: Week in Review

Efforts to legalize cannabis in New York died June 19 after failing to gain enough support in the state Senate.

Cannabis Plants Adobe Stock Credit Borispain69 Resized
borispain69 | Adobe Stock

This week, an adult-use cannabis legalization bill died in the New York legislature after lawmakers failed to gather enough support in the Senate. Elsewhere, in California, state officials announced plans to extend provisional cannabis licenses by five years.

Here, we’ve rounded up the 10 headlines you need to know before this week is over.

  • Federal: House lawmakers on Wednesday explored efforts to ease rules and boost small business owners in the legal cannabis industry. The hearing before the House Committee on Small Business, “Unlocked Potential? Small Businesses in the Cannabis Industry,” brought witnesses from the cannabis industry to discuss the obstacles they face in accessing programs from the Small Business Administration. Read more
  • Nevada: Gov. Steve Sisolak has signed a bill that would effectively overhaul regulation of the state’s marijuana industry by creating a Cannabis Compliance Board. Modeled after Nevada’s gaming industry regulation system, the board is designed to be a comprehensive regulatory board with seven members who have expertise in areas ranging from finance, law enforcement and medicine to legal compliance. Read more
  • Texas: Gov. Greg Abbott has signed House Bill 3703, allowing doctors to legally allow patients with medical seizure disorders, multiple sclerosis, spasticity, terminal cancer, Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, Huntington’s, autism and ALS to obtain medical cannabis with up to 0.5-percent THC from a state-licensed dispensary. Read more
  • Connecticut: Five new conditions were accepted for treatment to the state’s growing medical marijuana program at a recent Board of Physicians meeting. The program now has more than 33,000 patients and 1,111 prescribing physicians. Read more
  • California: In another sign that California’s legal cannabis market is in deep trouble, state officials plan to extend the period that growers and sellers can operate with provisional licenses by five years, giving them a delay in complying with stricter rules for regular permits. The change, included in legislation related to the state budget, was proposed by Gov. Gavin Newsom as hundreds of marijuana farmers faced the expiration of temporary licenses and the prospect that they would have to shut down operations, industry officials said. Read more
  • Michigan: Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has joined a coalition of 19 governors in singing a letter that calls on congressional leadership to pass the Secure and Fair Enforcement (SAFE) Banking Act. The legislation would remove legal limitations and allow financial institutions to bank with state-licensed cannabis businesses. Read more
  • New Hampshire: The New Hampshire Legislature is sending a handful of medical marijuana bills, including one that would allow limited "home grow" of cannabis for qualified patients and caregivers, to Gov. Chris Sununu. Another bill would establish a procedure for the annulment of arrests or convictions for possession of three-quarters of an ounce or less of cannabis, if it occurred before Sept. 16, 2017—the date “decriminalization” of marijuana took effect. Read more
  • New York: Efforts to legalize marijuana in New York died following a failure by advocates to convince reluctant, fence-sitting senators that legalization would not harm public safety and health. Sources involved in the negotiations, who privately distributed a fourth version of a marijuana legalization bill that was partially rewritten to try to build support in the Senate, said the efforts failed overnight June 19. Read more
  • While legalization failed to garner enough votes this legislative session, lawmakers have flipped the script, working on laws that would decriminalize the use of recreational marijuana in New York State. A new bill says possessing or smoking a small amount of marijuana would likely not get you arrested any longer, but you would have to pay a fine. Read more
  • Canada: Health Canada announced June 14 its final regulations for additional cannabis products, including edibles, extracts and topicals. The production and sale of these products will be legal under the Cannabis Act starting Oct. 17, 2019, but the items will likely not be available in physical or online stores until mid-December, according to Health Canada’s website. Read more
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