ARKANSAS
New Arkansas marijuana laws include restrictions, but no reversal of November vote
After 53% of Arkansas voters approved the state’s Medical Marijuana Amendment in November, legislators passed 24 laws that changed it. But none severely restricted the availability of the drug, said David Couch, sponsor of the amendment.
“They did some crazy things, but it wasn’t anything that would affect the overall stability or the overall ability to get medicine, marijuana to the patients,” he said.
All of the laws passed required a two-thirds vote under the terms of the amendment. Fifteen of the laws were sponsored by Rep. Douglas House, R-North Little Rock, who was tasked as the point man on medical marijuana legislation prior to this year’s legislative session by Speaker of the House Jeremy Gillam, R-Judsonia.
CALIFORNIA
California Set To Harmonize Recreational And Medical Marijuana Laws
This will no doubt have a major impact on how other states — and the country — regulate and tax cannabis.
http://abovethelaw.com/2017/04/california-set-to-harmonize-recreational-and-medical-marijuana-laws/
With passage of the Medical Cannabis Regulation and Safety Act (“MCRSA”) in 2015, California took a huge step towards comprehensively regulating its medical cannabis industry after more than 20 years of little to no such state government oversight under Proposition 215. Under the MCRSA, California medical cannabis businesses can expect a bevy of regulations spanning packaging and labeling requirements, mandatory quality assurance testing, advertising, seed to sale tracking, environmental impact restrictions, plant canopy and potency limitations, and financing and ownership restrictions. The same level of regulation and government oversight can also be expected under the Control, Regulate, and Tax Adult Use of Cannabis Act (“AUMA”), California’s legalization of recreational marijuana initiative that passed in 2016.
COLORADO
Colorado Supreme Court sides with city on local controls for marijuana licensing
Case stemmed from dispensary chain Rocky Mountain High’s unsuccessful attempt to enter the Northglenn market three years ago
Northglenn City Council had the right to deny a medical marijuana license because the new dispensary was deemed superfluous, the Colorado Supreme Court ruled Monday.
The state’s highest court ruled that Northglenn’s code language listing criteria such as “number, type, and availability” of existing medical marijuana centers when considering new applications was not “unconstitutionally vague.”
The decision, which reverses a district court ruling, serves as an affirmation for local control — for the discretion granted to cities to craft locally appropriate ordinances for licensing and regulating marijuana centers and related facilities, said Kevin Bommer, deputy director of the Colorado Municipal League, which filed an amicus brief in support of Northglenn.
IOWA
Iowa gov has CBD oil expansion bill on his desk. Will he sign?
http://www.thecannabist.co/2017/04/24/iowa-cbd-oil-program-legislation/78222/
Lawmakers met privately for hours Friday and early Saturday to negotiate the bill, which now heads to Gov. Terry Branstad, who has not said if he’d sign it. The Senate initially backed broader provisions, but did not have enough traction in the House.
Also in
MAINE
Pot Progress: Maine’s post-election cannabis conundrum
http://www.dailybulldog.com/db/features/pot-progress-maines-post-election-cannabis-conundrum/
Mixed feelings have emerged from Maine’s cannabis community since the state’s legalization of recreational marijuana this year, following the outcome of the November 2016 referendum.
State legislators continue to work to outline and implement infrastructure and a regulatory framework for a legal recreational cannabis marketplace in Maine. Following word of a possible crackdown on recreational states from the Trump Administration, the state is pressing through some 55-plus bills related to cannabis.
Because of the gap between recreational sales and recreational use, Mainer and tourist experiences with the new law have varied. The lack of infrastructure for a recreational system, and the relatively slow speed of legislative proceedings, have fostered incentives for growers and tokers alike to turn to black market services. Many growers, and especially caregivers, have been overwhelmed with messages and questions about acquiring cannabis products– both in-state and out of state.
This has created a unique situation for producers and consumers, alike. Caregivers are restricted to supplying medicinal cannabis products to their patients only, while many people without a qualifying medical condition or who cannot afford the fees for acquiring one are left without a legal marketplace. Many growers have attempted to skirt restrictions.
