From Our Writers

A recent raid on several unregulated dispensaries and smoke shops in San Diego, some of which were operating within 1,000 feet of schools, yielded a large volume of illicit narcotics including 60,000 counterfeit fentanyl pills, as well as cocaine, meth, and ecstasy.

Minnesota’s Office of Cannabis Management has indicated that regulators anticipate launching the state’s adult-use cannabis industry in 2025.

Five years after the United Kingdom legalized medical cannabis products for use on the National Health Service (NHS), the government still has not funded the trials that would allow physicians to prescribe cannabis products.

A proposal introduced last week in Wisconsin aims to decriminalize possession of up to 14 grams of cannabis by adults and reduce the penalties for possession from a misdemeanor to simple fines.

A New York judge has approved a settlement between the state Cannabis Control Board and four military veterans who had sued the state over its social equity licensing plan, ending the months-long injunction on the state’s cannabis licensing process.

According to a recent Congressional Research Service report, there was a nearly 50% reduction in the amount of hemp crops planted in the U.S. from 2021 to 2022.

Alabama medical cannabis regulators have finally awarded 20 industry licenses. It is the third time this year the commission has awarded licenses — the previous two attempts were negated by claims of incorrect application scoring, and multiple lawsuits.

A New Jersey proposal is seeking to legalize the home cultivation of cannabis for patients who are registered under the state’s medical cannabis program.

About 67% of Florida voters plan to vote ‘yes’ on the proposed ballot question to legalize adult-use cannabis in the state, according to a recent poll by the University of North Florida’s Public Opinion Research Lab.

A bill in South Carolina aims to regulate and tax intoxicating hemp-derived products such as delta-8 and delta-10 THC; under the measure, hemp products would require laboratory testing.

Ohio lawmakers are seeking to change the state’s voter-approved cannabis legalization bill with a proposal that would remove provisions to stop municipalities from banning cannabis operations and home cultivation, and change how cannabis taxes are earmarked in the state.

Oklahoma officials said this week that the number of medical cannabis cultivators in the state has dropped from about 9,400 in 2021 to about 3,200 today; the decline comes amid a crackdown by regulators on alleged bad actors in the industry.

New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu (R) this week introduced two non-negotiables to any adult-use cannabis rules in the state: a 15-store cap statewide and a ban on lobbying and political contributions by cannabis licensees.

The New York Cannabis Control Board this week approved a settlement in a lawsuit brought by military veterans that has prevented more than 400 adult-use cannabis dispensaries from moving forward in the state.

A recent report found that because medical cannabis prices in Virginia are so high, about 90% of registered patients are purchasing products from outside the state’s medical cannabis market.

A bipartisan Wisconsin proposal is seeking to make it easier for researchers to treat patients with post-traumatic stress disorder with psilocybin.

Data from the cannabis tech company Weedmaps found that retail cannabis sales on the day before Thanksgiving — dubbed “Green Wednesday” by the industry — surpassed average cannabis sales on Black Friday.

The Lower Sioux Indian Community in Minnesota is constructing a vertically integrated campus for the manufacturing of hempcrete. The campus, once complete, will be the first facility of its kind in the U.S.

The University of Utah Health is set to launch the Center for Medical Cannabis Research, which aims to “advance scientific understanding of medical cannabis and help patients and providers make informed health decisions about this increasingly common medication.”

A recent study found that about 80% of people who consume cannabis to help with sleep quit using prescription and over-the-counter sleep aids such as melatonin and benzodiazepines.

Following a recent Georgia Court of Appeals ruling, state cannabis regulators are finally issuing medical cannabis licenses after a more than two-year legal fight.

The Maryland Supreme Court has declined to review a lower court’s injunction against the enforcement of a state law banning intoxicating hemp products. Under this development, the injunction will remain in place and retailers can continue to sell products containing delta-8 THC and delta-10 THC.

A recent study found that high schoolers in Massachusetts were not more likely to use cannabis after legalization but were more likely to use cannabis if they perceived that their family or friends used cannabis themselves.

Budtenders at the Strawberry Fields dispensary in Columbus, Ohio voted to join Teamsters Local 413, becoming the first dispensary workers in the state to join the union.