Tag Archives: medical marijuana

Last week the Maryland Cannabis Administration (MSA) released its draft emergency regulations for the state’s adult-use marijuana market which is set to come online on July 1. The draft regulations are subject to review by the Joint Committee on Administrative, Executive, and Legislative Review (AELR) and do not go into effect until approved by the AELR Committee and printed in the Maryland Register. The approval could come as soon as 10 business days after the AELR received the draft regulations.… More

UPDATE: With Texas’ 88th legislative session having ended on May 29th, Texas will not see an expansion of qualifying conditions for medical cannabis this year. HB1805, which would have amended the Texas Compassionate Use Act to include as qualifying conditions any condition “that causes chronic pain, for which a physician would otherwise prescribe an opioid,” did not pass through the State Senate before the end of the legislative session.… More

Today is April 28, and Texas and Florida both accepted the expected dozens of applications for a limited number of medical cannabis licenses in those respective states. In the background, Kentucky recently legalized medical cannabis, while Delaware will soon welcome adult use sales. It looks increasingly likely both states will follow the example of other capped license jurisdictions and hold merit-based application sweepstakes to award a set number of licenses.… More

Significant changes to DC’s medical cannabis program are currently unfolding after the Medical Cannabis Amendment Act of 2022 (MCA) went into effect last month. Previously, DC’s medical cannabis program licensed dispensaries, cultivation centers and testing laboratories, but there has been a proliferation of unlicensed establishments that take advantage of a loophole in the current laws. So-called “gifting” shops do not sell cannabis, but instead the shops sell common goods like art and clothing and give “gifts” of cannabis.… More

There has been big news out of the Sunshine State. The Florida Office of Medical Marijuana Use has set the due date for applications for 22 more Medical Marijuana Treatment Center licenses. The applications will be due no earlier than April 24, 2023 and no later than April 28, 2023 at 5:00 PM. Among many other criteria, the license application requires the applicant entity to have been registered to do business in the state of Florida for the previous five consecutive years;… More

Big news out of the Sunshine State today. The Florida Office of Medical Marijuana Use has set the due date for applications for 22 more Medical Marijuana Treatment Center licenses. By Emergency Rule published today, the OMMU set an application due date of window of 9:00 AM on April 24, 2023 through 5:00 PM on April 28, 2023, and will make available for award 22 vertically integrated MMTC licenses. … More

It’s official: New York’s first cannabis dispensaries will be owned by social equity applicants who have prior cannabis-related convictions.

During Thursday’s meeting, the Cannabis Control Board (“CCB”) voted to adopt final regulations for the (CAURD) licenses. The Board also signed off on a mockup of the application, which can be found here. In order to qualify for a CAURD license, applicants must prove they are justice-involved (meaning they or a direct family member were convicted of a marijuana crime before March 31,… More

New York’s Cannabis Control Board (the “Board”) held its first public meeting today, kicking off a series of public meetings that will begin setting the regulations and guidelines for the adult-use cannabis market in New York. Led by Board Chair Tremaine Wright, the meeting was largely administrative. Some notable announcements from the meeting:

• Jason Starr is appointed as Chief Equity Officer to the Office of Cannabis Management (“OCM”).…

More

The decision by Attorney General Sessions to repeal the Cole and Ogden memos has brought greater legal uncertainty to an industry that is used to uncertainty.  What does the decision mean for Massachusetts?

First, at least in the short term, the decision should not have a major effect on our medical marijuana industry in the Commonwealth.  Under the Rohrabacher-Farr amendment, federal prosecutors may not use resources to prosecute those in the medical marijuana industry who are acting consistently with state law. … More

In a landmark decision, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court (“SJC”) ruled on Monday that an employee who is fired for testing positive for marijuana due to her lawful off-duty use of medical marijuana can pursue a claim of handicap discrimination against her former employer. With the ruling, Massachusetts has become the first state to afford such job protections to workers who lawfully use medical marijuana. Moreover, the ruling essentially precludes Massachusetts employers from adopting blanket drug-free workplace policies.… More