This is WeedWeek, because cannabis news is everywhere. 

Like  it on Facebook ,  follow it on Instagram  and Twitter and share it with the link  weedweek.net . Subscribers’ names and contact info are confidential.  You can also list  your conferences, festivals and parties for free on the site. 

Here's the news:

Politics

Marijuana Business Daily interviewed pro-cannabis Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-Ore.) about the new administration’s approach to cannabis. Asked about the worst-case scenario, Blumenauer said:

" I think [federal raids and prosecutions are] over the top. And I’m not trying to just put some kind of gloss on this. …But I don’t see raids and arrests and things like that. There are just too many states that have some level of marijuana use allowed in their state right now."

The interview is part of a $50 report MBD has put together on Trump and the industry.

Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D) wants cannabis businesses to have access to banks.  

Georgia state senator Allen Peake (R) wants a statewide referendum on home MED growing. Other Republicans, including Gov. Nathan Deal, oppose home growing.  

Arkansas will award MED licenses through a “ merit-based” process, as opposed to a lottery. The application fee will be $15,000, plus an annual license fee of $100,000. Gov. Asa Hutchinson said pot taxes should only fund pot regulation, not additional government programs.

 The Boston Globe profiles Massachusetts state senator Jason M. Lewis (D), a legalization opponent who seeks to co-chair the state’s Committee on Marijuana. MED patients in Massachusetts confront red tape.

Maine Gov. Paul LePage (R) signed off on legalizing REC, but questions remain. Connecticut is in the running to be the first state to legalize REC through the legislature.  

Oregon has excellent product, but laws that lag behind Washington and Colorado, Willamette Week says. Portland approved delivery services.

Adams County, Colorado is taking its fight to collect a REC sales tax to the state supreme court.  
Advertisement 

Business

North American legal marijuana sales totaled $6.7 billion in 2016, an increase of 30% over 2015, according to ArcView. The consultancy’s editor in chief compared it to the growth of cable TV in the 1990’s and broadband in the 2000’s. BDS Analytics is ArcView’s data partner on the forthcoming report, a change from last year’s alliance with New Frontier. For more see here.

New Cannabis Ventures found that the public company Cannabis Science “misreprenents” itself with a press release that claims a partnership with “Dana Farber/Harvard Cancer Center.” Alan Brochstein writes that it’s the latest in the series of misleading press releases from the company which has only $11,000 in cash, and which, since going public in 2009 “has demonstrated little success except in greatly expanding the number of shares outstanding (now over 2.3 billion as of November 7th). Insiders have been heavy sellers of the stock, often after press releases.”

Andrew Freedman, is leaving his post as Colorado’s head of marijuana coordination to start a consulting firm with another public official and John Hudak, a scholar at the Brookings Institution.

California will push to connect cannabusinesses with banking services.

Leafly explains how the federal government avoids counting legal cannabis jobs.

Rabble.ca says that with legalization up north workers’ rights can’t be ignored.

AdWeek says cannabis marketing will be “ bigger than ever” in 2017. Business of Fashion says dope could be the luxury industry’s next big opportunity.

More efficient dehumidifiers could cut the energy cost of indoor grows by 60%, according to Pacific Standard.  

Marijuana Business Daily runs through 10 business trends for the year ahead. Plus, 10 developments from 2016. It also looks at the Nevada REC market.

The Colorado-based Brewers Association, which represents microbreweries nationwide, put out an economic study finding “no evidence that legalization has had an effect on beer sales in the short term.” See the study here.  

LAWeekly offers a guide to 280E, the industry’s least favorite section of the tax code.  

Ophelia Chong of Stock Pot Images writes that cannabis companies need to “ stop stealing intellectual property.”  

The University of Louisville is studying the economics of industrialized hemp.

Health and Science

The U.S. Government will study the effects of cannabis on drivers, under legislation signed by President Obama.  

The U.K. will classify CBD as medicine. Huck Magazine profiles a British combat veteran who uses MED for PTSD.

LAWeekly looks into Marijuana Anonymous.


Wisconsin will allow CBD oil.

For most people, obesity is more dangerous than pot, according to Psychology Today.

Last week I forgot the link for the Vocativ article on Phylos Bioscience.
  Advertisement
Product reviews by Carolyn Lipka:

Van der Pop  
$29

The Joint Card from Van Der Pop includes rolling papers, a box of matchsticks and Van Der Pop’s signature “grinder card,” which grinds your weed into a powdery texture perfect for joints. Like all the products from this aesthetic-forward company, the card is sleek and beautiful I’m not partial to matches but in the context it’s a nice touch for a one-stop joint rolling experience. As much as I like the fashion-conscious aspects of this brand it reads a little cheesy: the matchbox reads “One must smoke 800 joints to overdose. And you didn’t. So be cool.” That aside, it’s an appealing gift. 

WeedWeek readers get a 10% discount with the code WEEDWEEK10.

Stashlogix
$69

The Stashlogix EcoStash is essential travel gear, for a cannabis aficionado.  Divided into four sections and a small zipper pocket, the hemp (or nylon) bag includes a charging port, a combination lock, a “stash journal,” 2 storage jars with white board caps, a marker and a smell-cancelling bean bag. I love the stash journal to take strain notes. It’s a great way to keep track if you’re new to weed or have short term memory problems like me (oops)! My favorite feature of the pack is the lock if you’re traveling someplace that lacks privacy.

WeedWeek readers get a 10% discount with the code WeedWeek.


Got anything you think Carolyn should try? Send it to:
 
Carolyn Lipka
WeedWeek
3154 Glendale Blvd #122
Los Angeles, CA 90039
                                                                          ****

Criminal Justice

California Gov. Jerry Brown (D) has nominated Congressman Xavier Becerra (D), a Trump critic, as state attorney general. Becerra has pledged to defend REC legalization and other liberal causes. The state has also hired former U.S. attorney general Eric Holder “ as legal bulwark against Donald Trump.”

Sen. Check Grassley (R-Iowa) says criminal justice reform isn’t dead. President Obama wrote an analysis on why it’s essential. ProPublica examines Obama’s record on commutations and pardons.

Stanford psychiatry professor Keith Humphreys says California still needs federal marijuana eradication programs.

The LATimes details a raid on a Yolo County (Calif.) grow:   “I told my 2-year-old son to stay upstairs,” said Mears, 35. “When I opened the security door, there were 15 cops with assault rifles drawn, pointed, with their fingers on the trigger, in vests, ski masks. They grabbed me and pulled me out front, put me in handcuffs. There were 20 to 30 officers. My son walked downstairs and my wife had to grab him. They had guns pulled on them. It was real painful.”  

Politico tells the story of Johnny Boone, 73, of Kentucky, considered the largest outlaw weed grower in U.S. history. He was recently arrested in Canada, and hopes to receive a pardon from President Obama.  
A bill allowing landlords to ban MED smoking is headed for the desk of Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder (R).

A Kansas judge threw out a lawsuit filed by mom Shona Banda after she lost custody of her son for using cannabis oil for her Crohn’s disease. She also faces criminal cannabis charges that could send her to prison for 30 years.  

Houston’s new top cop plans to scale down cannabis prosecutions.

Twelve states and D.C. still suspend drivers’ licenses for those convicted of drug offenses. The NY Times editorializes that these laws are “ cruel and stupid.”

A federal court barred a Missouri technical college from drug testing every student. Missouri decriminalized possession of less than 10 grams.

Vermont’s outgoing governor Peter Shumlin (D) pardoned nearly 200 non-violent pot offenders.

Culture

An artist known as JesusHands claimed responsibility for altering the Hollywood sign to read “Hollyweed.” He said it was an attempt to make people “laugh out loud” after a difficult year. He faces trespassing charges. Vandalism charges were dropped since the sign was not damaged.

Reason thinks growing acceptance of legalization and same-sex marriage suggest more public support for “ maximizing individual freedom.”

Trying to sell your home? COnsider getting rid of the plants.

The D.C. Cannabis Coalition plans to give out thousands of joints at the Trump inauguration.

Here's the WeedWeek list of pot journalists on Twitter and the list of cannabusiness people on Twitter. Both are works in progress. Recommendations welcome.

Want to reach a devoted audience of top cannabis professionals? Advertise in WeedWeek. Contact Adrienne Nascimento at  [email protected]  for details. 

Alex

Advertising policy:  Advertisers have no influence on WeedWeek's editorial content or on the content of articles that I write for other publications. In an effort to replicate the separation of business and editorial operations practiced at reputable news organizations, a WeedWeek salesperson will be responsible for all sales-related contact with advertisers and will work, as much as possible, without input from me. Any future advertising queries sent to me will be referred to a salesperson. In the newsletter, all ads and other forms of paid content will be clearly marked. I will not approach potential advertisers to solicit business, and reserve the right to reject ads if they present a conflict of interest, the appearance of a conflict of interest or for any other reason.

alexhalperin.com
All rights reserved.