Delaware legal marijuana bill advances; POTUS candidate pledges health coverage for medical cannabis; WV voters reject decrim ballot measure

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There are now 1,120 cannabis-related bills moving through state legislatures and Congress for 2019 sessions.



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/ TOP THINGS TO KNOW



Federal Reserve Board of Governors member Michelle Bowman pledged during a Senate hearing to proactively clarify for banks that hemp is a legal crop and they can serve hemp businesses without punishment.

The Delaware House Revenue & Finance Committee approved a marijuana legalization bill.



Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), a presidential candidate, released a far-reaching cannabis platform that includes a plank to “require coverage for medical marijuana in all health insurance plans, including Medicare, Medicaid, and the VA.”



Salem, West Virginia voters rejected a marijuana decriminalization measure. But organizers behind the effort are already working to pursue similar initiatives in other localities and in three additional states.



/ FEDERAL



National Institute on Drug Abuse Director Nora Volkow said, ““We have 480,000 people dying from tobacco and none have died from marijuana, but it’s a distorted argument because marijuana harms your humanity, your brain.”



Nevada’s U.S. attorney said that the state “is not safe with marijuana at every corner” and that he wouldn’t rule out cannabis-related prosecutions but that it’s not one of his top priorities.



The Department of Agriculture is being sued by the Flandreau Santee Sioux Tribe over its delay in reviewing state and tribal hemp regulatory plans.



Surgeon General Jerome Adams said he is concerned about increasingly potent marijuana products and that descheduling would send the wrong message.



Former Vice President Joe Biden (D), a presidential candidate, said, “We should not be putting people in prison for drug offenses.”



Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT), a presidential candidate, tweeted, “Trump’s Mexico tariffs aren’t about trade, it’s about a fake border ‘crisis’ to scapegoat migrants. No wonder it’s unpopular. We should be working to address migration’s root causes by ending our militarized drug war and race-to-the-bottom trade policies.”



Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D-HI), a presidential candidate, tweeted, “A majority of states, incl. HI, have legalized #cannabis in some form. State-legal cannabis businesses generate billions of dollars/yr in sales, generate +$1 billion in tax revenue, & support the livelihood of +200k Americans—including many #veterans. These veterans should not be penalized or risk losing their VA benefits for working in the state-legalized cannabis industry. This must be corrected immediately by the VA, and Congress must pass my bipartisan Ending Federal Marijuana Prohibition Act.”



Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), in a House floor speech, said that tactics used today to oppose immigration reform come from the same “playbook that was used to pass the 1994 crime bill, mass incarceration, the War on Drugs, to target a community, to make sure to dehumanize them into increased enforcement.”



Rep. Ed Perlmutter (D-CO) tweeted, “BREAKING: The #SAFEBankingAct now has 200 cosponsors in the House. Time to pass this important piece of legislation to get cash from legitimate marijuana businesses off our streets and into the banking system.” He also tweeted, “UPDATE: #SAFEBanking now has 206 cosponsors in the House, including 26 Republicans.”



Former Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (D-CA) said he thinks federal marijuana reform will happen with the support of President Trump.



The House bill to respect state marijuana laws got five new cosponsors, for a total of 52.



The House bill to deschedule marijuana got one new cosponsor, for a total of 30.



The House bill to deschedule marijuana and provide money for expungements and women- and minority-owned businesses got two new cosponsors, for a total of 37.



The House marijuana banking bill got 15 new cosponsors, for a total of 206.



The House bill to undo the 280E tax penalty on marijuana businesses got four new cosponsors, for a total of six.



/ STATES



Nevada Gov. Steve Sisolak (D) tweeted, “As we look to the future of our legal cannabis industry, it’s time also to provide a better future for those who face barriers to success because of an old marijuana conviction. Proud to sign this bill that will provide a better life for so many Nevadans.”



Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) deflected a question about marijuana legalization by noting that it has been considered by lawmakers and rejected.



Kentucky’s agriculture commissioner tweeted, “Happy Hemp History Week! My great-grandfather grew hemp on the banks of the Kentucky River during World War II when the U.S. Navy needed rope, and now we’re seeing farmers growing this crop again in our Commonwealth. We have a lot to celebrate this week!”



The New York Assembly majority leader suggested that Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) is not currently participating in talks about marijuana legalization. Meanwhile, an informal survey of Senate Democrats found that 30 have pledged to support legalization or are leaning toward doing so—just two votes shy of the 32 needed for passage. Meanwhile, Senate Democrats are also reportedly set to discuss a legalization bill next week and a vote could soon follow.



Louisiana lawmakers sent Gov. John Bel Edwards (D) a bill to let patients inhale medical cannabis.



The North Carolina Senate Agriculture Committee approved a hemp bill that includes a delayed ban on smokable hemp.



Pennsylvania courts are ordering regulators to release information about medical cannabis license applicants and the panel that scores their proposals.



Virginia’s Supreme Court is being asked to reconsider a request from a local prosecutor who wants to be able to unilaterally drop marijuana cases despite judges’ objections.



The Ohio House of Representatives could consider a hemp bill on Thursday.



Maine regulators provisionally adopted marijuana rules, which will now go before the legislature for consideration.



Utah regulators held a public hearing about medical cannabis regulations.



Washington State regulators are being sued by the organizers of Seattle Hempfest over a bulletin they issued that discourages marijuana businesses from advertising at the event.



Vermont police have issued 42 tickets for public marijuana consumption since legalization went into effect last year.

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Marijuana Moment is already tracking more than 1,000 cannabis bills in state legislatures and Congress this year. Patreon supporters pledging at least $25/month get access to our interactive maps, charts and hearing calendar so they don’t miss any developments.



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/ LOCAL



The St. John the Baptist Parish, Louisiana coroner says that a woman died of a THC overdose.



A Queens, New York district attorney candidate pledged to review “cases prosecuted during the predatory tough-on-crime and ‘war on drugs’ era.”



/ ADVOCACY



New York marijuana activist Doug Greene has died after being struck by a subway train.



Prohibitionist organization Smart Approaches to Marijuana released a report detailing what it sees as the failures of cannabis legalization.



/ SCIENCE & HEALTH



A review found that “CBD has proven therapeutic efficacy for serious conditions such as Dravet and Lennox-Gastaut syndromes and is likely to be recommended off label by physicians for other conditions” but that “[adverse effects] and potential drug-drug interactions must be taken into consideration by clinicians prior to recommending off-label CBD.”



A review concluded that “the evidence for cannabis acting as a causal factor for schizophrenia has so far not been established.”



/ BUSINESS



Herban Industries CA LLC is suing Eaze Technologies, Inc in a bid to block its processing of credit and debit cards over alleged violations.



Accela is working on marijuana regulatory software.



Law firm Sheppard Mullin is launching a team of 70 attorneys from 12 offices focused on the marijuana industry.



The CEO of Canopy Growth Corp. is walking back comments he made on TV about fentanyl-laced marijuana.



Minnesota medical cannabis companies lost a combined $2.4 million in 2018.

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