The Louisiana House Health and Welfare Committee recently passed House Bill 707 in a unanimous vote to propose a regulatory framework for the state’s cannabis legalization. The measure, which prefiled in March, doesn’t directly legalize adult-use cannabis but it does start the process of building a foundation for reform. The goal, according to Rep. Edmond Jordan who introduced the bill, is to attempt to get HB-707 passed in the legislature in 2024, followed by introducing two other bills in 2025 which would address adult-use possession and cannabis taxes. Toward the end of a meeting on April 2 ..read more

The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration has urged a federal appeals court to deny a doctor’s attempt to administer psilocybin to dying patients under so-called Right to Try legislation, arguing that such laws do not provide for exemptions to the federal Controlled Substances Act (CSA).  Dr. Sunil Aggarwal, co-founder of the Advanced Integrative Medical Science Institute, a psychedelics research and treatment clinic based in Seattle, has sued the DEA several times for authorization to use psilocybin as a treatment for depression and anxiety by terminally ill patients. Aggarwal’s legal act ..read more

There’s yet another compelling reason to legalize weed. According to new research, states that have legalized cannabis also experience a “moderate relative decrease” in immigrant deportation rates compared to states where the drug is still illicit. As a study featured in the American Journal of Community Psychology details, immigration raids and deportations create widespread fear and mistrust, which have cascading effects throughout entire communities. As the fear of being targeted grows, people are less likely to engage with local institutions such as churches, schools, health clinics, cultu ..read more

An Arizona church has reached a settlement in a lawsuit against the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration and other federal agencies that allows the Indigenous religious organization to use the psychedelic brew ayahuasca for sacramental purposes. Under the agreement, the Church of the Eagle and the Condor (CEC) will be permitted to import, prepare and distribute ayahuasca to its members at religious ceremonies. “The Church of the Eagle and the Condor has reached a settlement to secure its religious freedom and the right to use Ayahuasca as its sacrament,” the church wrote in an announcement of ..read more

In an announcement last week, Governor Kathy Hochul announced that the state of New York reached a significant milestone: the grand opening of the state’s 100th Conditional Adult-Use Retail Dispensary (CAURD) brick-and-mortar store.  Big Gas is located in the village of New Paltz, located near Poughkeepsie. The Office of Cannabis Management (OCM) and a handful of state leaders joined Big Gas owners, Kareem Haynesworth and Zymia Lewis for the grand opening of the store for public sales. “Big Gas is proud to be the first licensed cannabis dispensary in the City of New Paltz,” Big Gas Owners ..read more

The Drug Abuse Resistance Education, aka D.A.R.E., has been teaching kids about substance abuse since 1983 with a mission of delivering science and evidence-based curricula. Recently, a D.A.R.E. documentary published by Channel 5 with Andrew Callaghan on April 12 spoke with numerous individuals regarding the D.A.R.E. program and discussed the failure of the War on Drugs. Callaghan attended D.A.R.E.’s annual conference, which was held in Las Vegas, Nevada last July. An estimated 500 attendees were present for D.A.R.E. officer training. Part of the conference included presenting awards for 2023 ..read more

More than 440,000. That is the approximate size of the cannabis industry’s labor force in this country, according to newly published research. The data, compiled by Vangst and Whitney Economics, shows that the United States’ legal marijuana industry added almost 23,000 jobs last year, amounting to a 5.4% year-over-over increase. That brings the total number of full-time workers in the industry to 440,445.  The increase in 2023 may be a “sign that the business climate has begun to stabilize somewhat nationally after the turmoil of the past two years,” the report said. More from the jobs re ..read more

The nascent cannabis market in Japan has reportedly seen a massive increase in recent years.  That is according to a newly published report by Euromonitor International, which revealed a “staggering growth in Japan’s cannabis market over the past four years.” The market, according to the report, expanded “approximately sixfold from JPY4 billion (USD26.3 million) in 2019 to JPY24 billion (USD173.8 million) in 2023,” a surge that was “attributed to the rising demand for products offering relaxation, sleep improvement, and stress relief.” Euromonitor International, a market research firm bas ..read more

A new article published in the Federal Register in February, which prefaced a digital Drug Testing Advisory Board (DTAB) meeting that was held on March 5. The topic of the article and the meeting covered the Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) drug testing panels and considered adding fentanyl, while also removing MDMA. Section 8105 from the Fighting Opioid Abuse in Transportation Act (which is included in the SUPPORT for Patients and Communities Act) requires the Secretary to justify whether or not to include fentanyl or other Schedule I or II substances in the Mandatory Guideline ..read more

A Maine man was arrested and held without bail last week for allegedly operating an unlicensed cannabis operation in a rural area about 60 miles north of Bangor, according to law enforcement officials and court records. Police seized 40 pounds of processed marijuana from a house in Passadumkeag, Maine and arrested Xisen Guo, who is accused of drug trafficking and turning the property into a sophisticated cannabis cultivation operation.  Maine legalized recreational marijuana in 2016 with the passage of a ballot measure that also established a regulated market for adult-use cannabis. The M ..read more