August 4, 2018
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ALEX HALPERIN
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-An imperfect breathalyzer device approved
-Canopy pushing the envelope on REC marketing
-A retail license rush in Calgary

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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
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) set up a working group to recommend rules for legalizing REC .

Primary challenger Cynthia Nixon (D) who was ahead of Cuomo in calling for legalization, said her no corporate donations rule applies to cannabis money . Cuomo has accepted donations from Columbia Care and MedMen , both of which have MED licenses in the state. 

Manhattan district attorney Cyrus Vance said he will end almost all prosecutions for minor pot offenses.
To defeat Trump Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh, a Daily Beast piece says Democrats should ask him about marijuana .

The Congressional Black Caucus considers ending pot prohibition a must do in the first 100 days of a Democratic congress.

Los Angeles started accepting license applications after a monthslong delay which left hopefuls frustrated. For more see MJBizDaily . The city also pulled a tax measure from the November ballot.

Massachusetts regulator Shaleen Title discussed the state’s slow REC rollout .

New Jersey asks how much will the state raise in MED taxes?


A Houston Chronicle opinion piece called on the Texas GOP to legalize.

In Missouri, three separate MED initiatives have qualified for the November ballot.

Oklahoma’s health board revoked or amended onerous rules they approved last month. Meanwhile, the state bar association warned lawyers not to get involved in the industry. Almost 300 applied for Oklahoma’s top MED regulator job.


To boost recruiting, the US Army is issuing more waivers for past drug use.

Conservative legalization critic J.J. McCullough predicts legalization in Canada will further destabilize the US/Canada relationship.

MJBiz Daily says lifetime US bans for Canadian cannabis pros have had a chilling effect on the Canadian industry.

Ontario premier Doug Ford’s move towards a private retail model for the province is causing confusion. A Globe and Mail investigation found that Ford dealt hash for several years in the 1980s.🍁 For more sign up for a FREE four-week trial subscription to WeedWeek Canada!


China, which is upset about illegal weed arriving from Canada, is the world’s largest hemp producer .


Georgia, the nation, effectively decriminalized .

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BUSINESS
Marijuana Moment asks if Facebook is “shadow-banning” cannabis related sites , including government sites such as California’s Bureau of Cannabis Control. The practice makes sites harder to find.

“It’s clear that something’s happened,” an attorney said. “But it’s not clear what.” Facebook did not comment.
Cannabis companies are on track to raise a record $8 Billion in 2018.

Molson Coors Canadian unit said it is starting a new joint venture with Quebec producer Hydropothecary to develop non-alcoholic, cannabis-infused beverages (Financial Post) for the Canadian market. The beverages won’t be legal in Canada until 2019 at the earliest. For more see Bloomberg .


Colorado-based United Cannabis Corp filed a patent infringement lawsuit against Pure Hemp Collective which didn’t immediately respond to the Denver Post’s question about the suit.

MJBiz looks at how Trump’s trade war could affect the cannabis industry . Most vulnerable are vaporizer companies which manufacture in China.

Roc Nation founder Jay Brown joined the MedMen board .

The Daily Beast calls for public banks to protect cannabis businesses from crime.

New California testing standards have led to shortages in dispensaries.

California’s Carr fire hit acclaimed grower Alien Labs in Redding. The company has set up a Go Fund Me page .

New studies found oversupply in Oregon, a more balanced market in Colorado, and plunging prices in both .

Bucking the trend, wholesale prices are climbing in Nevada. And the first year of sales surpassed regulators’ most optimistic projections .

The Boston Globe looks at the wide range of businesses eager to join the green rush.

Maryland MED dispensaries have seen slowdowns with their state tracking software Metrc, made by Franwell .

Pennsylvania dispensaries started selling flower.

Americans are losing their taste for beer , the WSJ reports.

Bloomberg Law has an explainer on patent and trademark issues for the industry.

Canadian producer Delta 9 has partnered with US firm Nanosphere Health Sciences to develop cannabis products absorbed through the skin . It could lead to products with a more powerful and longer lasting high.

With REC legalization 80 days away, Canada’s retail picture remains up in the air . 🍁 For more sign up for a FREE four-week trial subscription to WeedWeek Canada!

The Canadian Cannabis LP Stock Index dropped 13% in July .

Canada may look to the blockchain to track product.

Green Entrepreneur profiles Hoop Beauty, a CBD company started by three teenage girls .

Quebecois company Art du Chanvre wants to bring the building material hempcrete mainstream . Chanvre means hemp in French.

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WeedWeek: RECHARGE 2018 will include a special live-streamed event, “Recharged: Back from the Brink.”
This 80-minute afternoon session will feature stories from cannabis leaders on the toughest challenges they’ve faced. 

Do you have a Back From The Brink story you want to share? Tell us about it!

The ideal stories will focus on one crucial episode, and how you overcame it with smart thinking and innovative problem solving. 

To be considered, apply through our site,   BACK FROM THE BRINK

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HEALTH & SCIENCE
The Next Web called a study which found cannabis use impairs brain function in mice “dangerously misleading” since it used a synthetic cannabinoid rather than cannabis. The researchers dispute the characterization.
Research in mice suggests CBD could extend life for pancreatic cancer patients.

Regulators are investigating Arizona’s largest MED grow Copperstate Farms , following a chemical spill and complaints about poor working conditions.

Despite ongoing federal barriers, some cannabis studies are moving forward. San Diego’s VA hospital is supporting a study on whether CBD helps PTSD patients .

Synthetic cannabis products like K2 are becoming deadlier , Cannabis Wire reports. Fatal overdoses in New Zealand have led to cannabis legalization talks .

A new federal bill would require clean-ups of illegal grows in the Emerald Triangle.

Leafly meets Washington State University prof Jon Davis who is “hot-boxing lab rats” to figure out what causes the munchies .



Vice asks experts how to beat a drug test and visits Marijuana Anonymous , a support group for cannabis addicts.

In California there are still benefits to having a MED card .
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CRIMINAL JUSTICE
Vanderbilt Law professor Robert A. Mikos, suggests the Sweet Leaf “looping” case, which cost the company more than two dozen Denver licenses, might demonstrate regulators’ shortcomings. Looping means repeated sales to the same customers to sidestep maximum purchase rules.

“I know that the common refrain that you hear, at least publicly from law enforcement and regulators, is that things are going well,” Mikos said. “Yet it took an awful long time for the (regulators) to shut down that operation.”

An investigation is ongoing. No one in Sweet Leaf management has been charged with a crime, and most charges against the budtenders have been dismissed.
Oregon’s industry is “ out of control, ” US Attorney for the state Billy J. Williams said following a new High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area report . "The industry’s considerable and negative impacts on land use, water, and underage consumption must be addressed immediately."

Andrew Lelling, the US Attorney for Massachusetts said he wouldn’t prosecute cannabis customers, but didn’t rule out prosecuting banks who serve the industry.

Jersey City’s mayor and top prosecutor explained why they decriminalized in the N.Y. Times. The Asbury Park Press asks why New Jersey cops are the “nation’s toughest weed enforcers.”

CULTURE
Ahead of Utah’s November MED vote, the L.A.Times and Cannabis Wire , look at conflicting views towards cannabis in the Mormon Church. Polls suggest the measure will pass easily in the majority Mormon state, despite the church’s official opposition.
A photo exhibit in Oakland celebrates the underground pioneers who legalized weed by “outgrowing the government.”

A video of a stoned dog went viral .
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Alex 

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