As Canada became the 2nd country to legalize cannabis, the states saw growing support for state options for legislation. Even Hemp had a triumphant week as the Agricultural Improvement Act passed through a senate committee with language favoring industrial legalization. The road to legalization couldn’t be more clear. We still have some obstacles and intentional roadblock to go through first. Attorney General, Jeff Sessions, still sees the plant as a “dangerous controlled substance” despite the progress. Many state legal states saw pushback in many different facets of the cannabis industry.
Multiple State Crackdown on Cannabis
The last week same numerous raids and stings of cannabis businesses in multiple legal states. One of these situations was actually a product of the lingering issues facing the California market. A commercial cannabis grow who was registered but yet to be issued licensing was raided last week after a county ban took effect. The grow, Railroad Flats, was given a 90-day grace period to come into compliance but reconnaissance proved they had not. 1300 plants and a little over 171 pounds of processed cannabis was seized. Two people that were on site were charged with misdemeanors while one other was charged with a felony.
California wasn’t the only state putting on pressure. Denver police ran an undercover sting operation targeting two different cannabis tour buses that operate in the state. Colorado Cannabis Tours and My 420 Tours. After officers signed into the members-only tours, a patrol car pulled over the Colorado Cannabis Tours bus for a turn-signal violation. According to the founder and CEO of CCT, Michael Eymer, a turn signal was used.
“They were forcible with the guides — forcibly removed them from the bus — two young girls, held their hands behind their back like criminals. Honestly, it was very heavy handed — and it was meant to send a message.”
— Michael Eymer, CEO and founder of Colorado Cannabis Tours, via Denverite
Colorado Cannabis Tours does intended to pay for the citations of anyone on their bus at the time of the sting which is expected to be around $6000.
In addition to these instances, District of Columbia police arrested 30 individuals at a pop-up cannabis event.
Adult-use cannabis is legal in the district but only to posses, grow, and consume. Grey areas of the industry have thrived in their environment, usually charging for trinkets or food and gifting “cannabis” along with it. According to the bulletin-board posting, pounds of cannabis, three firearms, and more than $10,000 was seized at the event. 22 people were charged with misdemeanor drug possessions and intent to distribute.
Though the events have been gaining popularity in the area, the narcotics department states that it isn’t looking for them but will respond to a complaint.
Cannabis Legislation Introductions
Though a lot of pro-cannabis news is taking place in Canada, there was still some to celebrate here in the US. Last wednesday, the house appropriations committee blocked an amendment in favor of banks dealing with cannabis businesses.
The Safe Banking Amendment wasn’t all about cannabis, however. It dealt more with things on the banking side of business. If it was approved, these companies would have an easier time conducting day-to-day operations causing them to “be willing to offer more consumer-friendly prices instead of inflating them at the point of sale to cover backended costs associated with operating as an all-cash business.”
Though this one was defeated, the SAFE Banking Act, introduced by senator Jeff Merkley, is pending vote. The legislation introduced by Jeff Merkley was the source material for the banking amendment.
“With the majority of states now allowing for some form of recreational or medical marijuana, we have reached a tipping point on this issue and it’s time for Congress to act,” says Rep. Ed Perlmutter of Colorado, one of the bill’s lead sponsors.. “Allowing tightly regulated marijuana businesses the ability to access the banking system will help reduce the threat of crime, robbery and assault in our communities and keep the cash out of cartels.”
At the moment, banking for cannabis business is nearly out of the question with the uncertainty of some regulations and the DOJ’s advancements against the industry over the past months. The legislation would make it much easier but, check out ways to make the process for your business and the bank much easier here.
Legal-State Obstacles
After Ohio legalized MMJ in 2016, the market has run into some problems starting sale of cannabis. The state has had some issues as legislators have tried to licensing shops, cultivations, and producers but have yet to finish the task. Pure Ohio Wellness has been inspected but was not certified to begin growing.
As a result, the sale date has been delayed to September 8th. This, unfortunately, has caused stores that opened to not have any product available. In place of selling product, on-site doctors have been meeting with prospective patients to educate them on cannabis and guide them through the process of signing up for their medical program.
“Our goal is to get people aware of the program, enrolled in the program and then guide them throughout the program.”
— Dr. Anand Dugar, of Green Health Docs, to ABC6 in an interview
In addition to the issues that the newly legal Ohio is going through, California has had a bumpy road as they transitioned into a recreational market. July 1st will mark the end of the 6-month transition period into recreational sales. The grace period was given so that companies could adjust and becoming compliant with the new regulations. Many of who have not taken the necessary steps, however, may be in for a difficult month. Failing to stock up of lab-tested and state-approved products as well as working to create newly complaint products can lead to some financial issues. Cannabis businesses were instructed to:
- Sell only product that has passed full compliance testing.
- Ensure that all products are properly packaged and labeled, including child-resistant packaging.
- Comply with edibles potency limits: 100 milligrams per edibles package, 1,000 milligrams per topical package for recreational cannabis and 2,000 milligrams per topical for medical marijuana patients.
With only 28 testing facilities in the state, and some not fully functional, it’s unclear how easy the process has been. In the end, it may work in the benefit of those in the state that have strived to be compliant while others have not.
Written by: Joycelin Arnold
