July 21, 2018
THIS IS WEEDWEEK.
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ALEX HALPERIN
IN OTHER WEEDWEEK NEWS:

Did you catch last week's podcast?

DCMJ Activist Adam Eidinger discusses his campaign to legalize REC in Washington D.C. and what comes next.


Coming this Monday:

The WeedWeek podcast is taking a hiatus for several weeks. In the meantime check out some of our favorite episodes like Dan Savage on sex and weed, and Time Magazine journalist Molly Ball on her Jeff Sessions cover story.

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WeedWeek Canada is a Saturday morning newsletter for professionals in the world's largest fully-legal cannabis market. It's the best way to keep up with the Canadian green rush.

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-All the deets on the Tilray IPO
-Ontario retail confusion
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Correction: Last week I incorrectly cited a 2017 article which said Nevada regulators were moving to oppose cannabis business conventions including the annual MJBizCon. In March regulators confirmed industry conferences including MJBizCon are welcome in Vegas . I regret the error.

The 2018 U.S. midterm elections are coming. And the primaries are already here. Register to vote and/or get the information you need to register here.
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Here's the news.
POLITICS
The language legalizing hemp in the federal Farm Bill includes a lifetime ban on anyone with a drug conviction from joining the industry. The ban appears to be the work of Sen. Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.).   
Cannabis Wire tells the “ short, sweet life of a cannabis industry PAC ,” benefitting Florida Republican Congressman Carlos Curbelo.

Colorado’s new top cannabis regulator Dominique Mendiola wants to pressure the illegal market and collect better data.

Julia Ezell, the top lawyer at the Oklahoma health department, faces criminal charges for allegedly sending threatening emails to herself regarding proposed MED rules. The agency’s board had approved two last minute MED rules -- no smokable MED sold and a pharmacist in every dispensary -- which Ezell said exceeded the board’s authority. Gov. Mary Fallin (R) has called for the new rules to be rescinded .

MED activists, with support from some GOP groups, said they would fight the rules in court.

Meanwhile, Oklahoma secretary of state James Williamson said it’s “extremely unlikely” that a REC initiative will make the November ballot even if it collects the required number of signatures.

The N.Y. Times asks why legalization has stalled in New Jersey.

A Michigan judge ruled local governments can’t block MED companies from commercial districts.

In her last six months on the job, San Francisco Board of Supervisors president Malia Cohen wants to add a 1% tax on cannabis businesses gross receipts to support workforce development and similar causes.

Oakland’s equity program may be hurting the individuals it’s supposed to help , the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

Bill Blair, Canada’s point man on legalization, has been appointed to a cabinet post , Minister of Border Security and Organized Crime Reduction. He will continue to oversee legalization. 🍁For more sign up for a FREE four-week trial subscription to WeedWeek Canada!

Leafly reports on Mexico’s small steps towards MED legalization and asks what it would mean for the cartels . For more see AFP .

The White House said it wouldn’t support legalizing all drugs in Mexico or anywhere.

Following a recommendation from accounting firm McKinsey, Lebanon is legalizing cultivation to support its economy.
BUSINESS
Six months into California’s legal REC market “profits are a rarity,” MJBiz Daily reports. The difficulties for businesses owe to taxes, compliance difficulties and competition with the illicit market.
The Wine and Spirits Wholesalers of America, who distribute more than 80% of America’s wine and liquor, endorsed a state’s right to legalize cannabis . The group called for a series of regulations to govern the industry including “policies to prevent vertical monopoly and integration.”

Hoban Law Group attorney Steve Schain argues the industry must prepare for a lawsuit “tidal wave.” While no cases have been reported, he argues there’s potential exposure for products liability, medical malpractice and server (seller) liability tort claims.

In California, the lack of licensed testing businesses is “crippling” dispensaries , Sacramento News Review reports.


Westword details a dispute at Colorado CBD company Full Spectrum Nutrition.

The Orlando Sentinel goes to a big industry conference in central Florida.

A Massachusetts woman is suing food service company Sodexo after it fired her for REC use.

MJBizDaily offers business lessons from the collapse of Sweet Leaf , which lost 26 Denver licenses as the result of a “looping” scheme. No criminal charges have been filed against management, but an investigation is ongoing.

Portland lawyer Amy Margolis is launching “The Initiative” a cannabis business accelerator for women .

Brian Athaide, CEO of Canadian firm Green Organic Dutchman, predicts cannabis beverages will be a big deal .

The US Postal Service declined to deliver a small Alaska newspaper which had a pot ad. The paper had to cut the ad out of the issues bound for out-of-town subscribers.

Counterfeit vape pens -- the batteries -- are becoming a problem .

Canadian MED company Tilray, owned by Seattle-based Privateer Holdings, became the first grower to IPO on a major US stock exchange. It enjoyed a 32% bump on its first trading day.

In Canada, Facebook is cracking down on ads which reference pot (including WeedWeek ads promoting WeedWeek Canada’s FREE trial offer. )

Toronto’s WeedVR is launching a virtual reality dispensary to “allow consumers to virtually touch and smell (!)  weed products online.” Strict marketing rules will ban both in normal reality at Canadian dispensaries.

Canadian companies raised more than C$3 Billion, a record, in the first half of this year. Canadian company insiders have sold C$250M worth of stock in the past year. 🍁For more sign up for a FREE four-week trial subscription to WeedWeek Canada!

HEALTH & SCIENCE
New Colorado data shows youth cannabis use hasn’t increased since legalization while adult use has increased slightly.
A study found an association between states with permissive MED laws and higher rates of serious mental illness . It did not establish causation.

In DC, a bad batch of K2 (synthetic cannabis) may be responsible for four deaths and sickening 140.


Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia will offer graduate level certificate courses in MED.

The Colorado widow of an electrician crushed to death by a ski escalator , is being denied half her workers comp payments on account of THC in his system.

MED programs have seen shrinking patient counts in states with legal REC.


Korea wants to allow access to cannabis-based pharmaceuticals such as Sativex.

A cool infographic from MedReleaf has a 6,000 year history of MED .
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Affiliations: CA State Bar; Board Member, Adelanto Growers Association
Critical Mind, Inc. is a Medical Cannabis Cultivation and Manufacturing Facility located in Adelanto, CA. Providing the highest quality Cannabis products. Compliance without Compromise!
CRIMINAL JUSTICE
HuffPost profiles Adam Sandusky who is imprisoned at the federal “supermax” prison in Colorado for running a state legal MED business in California. Now Sandusky hopes Trump will grant him clemency.
Peter Pockington, a former owner of the Edmonton Oilers and convicted felon, is involved in a prospective  cannabis project in the Coachella valley.

Pew Trusts finds more cannabis bills focus on social justice issues . But the Boston Globe reports individual cities are undermining equity efforts.

Reuters meets a top Reagan administration lawyer who now partly owns a pot farm .

Chicago cannabis arrests are at less than 1% of 2011 levels, but still disproportionately target African Americans.

A Georgia jury acquitted a man who acknowledged he grows MED at home.

Kern County, Calif. (Bakersfield) Supervisor Leticia Perez faces two misdemeanor charges related to a conflict of interest of her husband profiting from cannabis.

The ACLU and Drug Policy Alliance are suing SoCal city Fontana over whether individuals with criminal records or accrued fines can grow at home . Similar issues are popping up around the state.

For the first time in years, those found hauling marijuana backpacks across the southern Arizona desert will face a charge for illegally crossing the border .

A study in Police Quarterly found improved police case clearance rates in Colorado and Washington after legalization.

The New Yorker talks to Lowell Herb Co. -- top selling pre-roll in California -- about its interest in hiring individuals with criminal records .

Vice explains CBD’s very complicated legal situation . Canna Law Blog says hemp derived CBD is highly restricted in California .

In an editorial the Toronto Globe and Mail endorsed decriminalizing all drugs .

In the U.K., the reduction in cannabis prosecutions shows police are effectively decriminalizing it .

Thailand, known for its tough drug laws, wants to be a leader in Asia’s MED industry.
CULTURE
Architectural Digest encountered the weed bar at Wiz Khalifa’s L.A. home. The rapper has boasted about his $10,000 a month cannabis habit.
The NHL is more progressive than the NFL on cannabis, but still hasn’t figured out what to do about legalization in Canada.

Popula talked to Anthony Bourdain about his cannabis and much else.
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Alex 

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