WeedWeek, August 13, 2016

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Now the news:

The DEA rejected a petition to reschedule marijuana on grounds that it is not a proven medicine. See the 186-page entry in the Federal Register here. The DEA also put hemp growers on notice .

Following the decision, The Washington Post’s Christopher Ingraham wrote: “The FDA cannot determine it has a medical use in part because of the highly restrictive legal status of the drug. It's a classic bureaucratic Catch-22.” Ingraham also collected responses from members of Congress.

For additional details and analysis on the DEA decision see Scientific American, John Hudak at Brookings and Wednesday’s special edition of WeedWeek. The industry weighs in here and here.

At SFWeekly, I argued that the 2016 Presidential candidates have dodged their responsibility to discuss legalization.

A Gallup poll found that 13% of U.S. adults currently use cannabis, up from 7% in 2013.

Ohio is looking for an experienced pot grower to help write the state’s MED rules. The successful applicant will likely have to pass a drug test.

Some Ohio communities are taking action to keep out MED businesses, though dispensaries won’t open in the state until at least 2018.

The alcohol industry wants Congress to know that cannabis-impaired driving is a problem. Officially, the Wine & Spirits Wholesalers of America is neutral on legalization, but this year an industry group donated to stop Arizona's REC initiative.

Politifact rated Sen. Dianne Feinstein’s (D-Calif.) claim that California’s REC initiative would allow pot ads in prime time, ‘mostly false.' The San Jose Mercury News editorializes in favor of AUMA. So does the East Bay Times.

The National Conference of State Legislatures endorsed rescheduling.

North Dakota will vote on MED in November. Arizona will vote on REC. Supporters of the Oklahoma MED initiative are “ cautiously optimistic” that they gathered enough signatures to make the ballot.

Two MED initiatives could qualify for the Arkansas ballot. The question of which one voters get to decide may end up in court. The Arkansas Farm Bureau and the state’s Chamber of Commerce oppose both.

Denver’s limited public use initiative collected more than double the number of signatures needed to qualify for a vote in November.

Nashville may decriminalize. The Chicago Tribune visits a grow house, and catches up on the Illinois industry.

High Times lists its “ hateful-eight,” the country’s most influential legalization opponents.

New York-based Tuatara Capital has raised $93M to invest in the industry. It's the largest known cannabis investment fund, so far.

It’s possible that Canadian cannabis companies could list on U.S. stock exchanges before American ones, since the Canadian outfits would have the support of their federal government. Last month, Ontario’s Canopy Growth became the first cannabis producer to trade on a major exchange (Toronto).

In Tampa, Regions Bank furnished a $100,000 credit line to nutrient and equipment business Efftec International. The bank’s parent company Regions Financial is a Fortune 500 company that trades on the New York Stock Exchange.

Illegal drug sales on the so-called dark web have tripled since the 2013 closure of the site Silk Road.

Watch out for knock-off vaporizers.

In Oregon, some Craigslist sellers ask for payment in cash or cannabis. Minnesota’s two MED producers are both losing money.

A member of the local health board wants Marin General Hospital in Greenbrae, Calif. to be the first hospital in the country where MED is used “openly and transparently.”

A lab at Stanford is working on a saliva test for police to use on drivers. PLOS describes a newly discovered anti-psychotic mechanism for CBD.

A vaccine for cocaine addiction will be tested on humans.

Missouri is suing two stores for providing CBD-oil without a license. Following the DEA announcement, Time listed seven questions scientists want to study.

A European study found no correlation between cannabis use and an elevated need for health care services.

A Minnesota MED patient tells the story of her quest to relieve disabling back pain.

Denver lawyer Robert J. Corry writes that some patients do need 75 plants. Colorado recently limited the number of plants patients can have to 75, and suspended four doctors for recommending higher plant counts to hundreds of patients. Without special permission, Colorado patients can have six plants at home. The four doctors, who didn’t violate an established rule, have asked for their suspensions to be lifted.

Vice says policy reform is overlooking home growers.

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A new law will allow Canadian MED patients to grow a “ limited amount” at home. A Canadian mom says hospital nurses in Toronto refuse to administer MED to her very ill son, due to opaque regulations.

Legalization in Canada could be the end of the country’s formal MED program.

Two dozen were treated after eating edibles at a festival in Ohio. There was a similar incident at a bachelorette party in South Lake Tahoe, Calif.

In Esquire, author Don Winslow argues that legal weed is responsible for the opiate epidemic. As demand for Mexican marijuana has fallen, The Mexican Sinaloa Cartel “increased the production of Mexican heroin by almost 70 percent, and also raised the purity level, bringing in Colombian cooks to create ‘cinnamon’ heroin as strong as the East Asian product. They had been selling a product that was about 46 percent pure, now they improved it to 90 percent.

"Their third move was classic market economics—they dropped the price. A kilo of heroin went for as much as $200,000 in New York City a few years ago, cost $80,000 in 2013, and now has dropped to around $50,000. More of a better product for less money: You can't beat it.”

While President Obama has commuted drug sentences in record numbers his State Department is providing $32M to law enforcement in the Philippines, where President Rodrigo Duterte has called for citizens to kill drug dealers.

In New York City, marijuana arrests were up in the first half of the year. More than 90% of the arrests were of minorities.

NYPD commissioner Bill Bratton will resign in September and be replaced by the department’s top uniformed officer James O’Neill. He’s known for his commitment to improving police/community relations.

In Michigan, some of the fees paid by MED patients fund police raids.

A chart at The Influence compares current penalties in California with what penalties would be if AUMA passes.

Snoop Dogg and Martha Stewart will host a dinner party/cooking show on VH1. Yes, Stewart knows how to roll a joint. Probably very well.

On the web site NakedWeedReport, naked women read cannabis news. Bree Whitehead, CEO of parent company Stoned Media Group doesn’t care if you think she’s a bad feminist.

In related news, I've shelved plans for a "Man of WeedWeek" promotional calendar.

HBO has released the trailer for its new show “ High Maintenance,” which started as a web series of the same name.

In the new web series, HIKEA, subjects take psychedelics and then try to assemble IKEA furniture.

Leafly recommends some cannabis books.

First daughter Malia Obama may have been spotted smoking a joint at a music festival.

Canna Law Blog chides The Oregonian for its recent profile of celebrity joint roller and artist Tony Greenhand. The Oregonian article didn’t mention that Greenhand’s work is illegal under state law.

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

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Bye,

Alex

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