TG Branfalt

New Iowa hemp regulations restricting the sale and potency of consumable hemp products took effect on Wednesday. The rules are in place despite a federal lawsuit brought by a group of hemp companies seeking to block it.

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and Food and Drug Administration (FDA) sent cease-and-desist letters to five companies selling hemp-derived THC products, accusing them of marketing to children by using packaging similar to mainstream, popular foods.

A hempcrete wall product by Americhanvre Cast Hemp recently received a one-hour fire resistance rating, making the product more attractive for commercial construction projects.

Illinois surpassed $1 billion in combined adult-use and medical cannabis sales this year by July 1, about two weeks earlier than the previous year.

Advocates in the Texas cities of Bastrop, Dallas, and Lockhart have submitted enough signatures to put a cannabis decriminalization question before voters in each of the cities this November.

Delaware is earmarking $6.2 million in funding for social-equity cannabis industry applicants, including $4.2 million from industry application fees and an additional $2 million allocated by state lawmakers.

Massachusetts Inspector General Jeffrey Shapiro has called on state officials to appoint a receiver to oversee the Cannabis Control Commission, which is under scrutiny for regulatory delays and allegations of a toxic work environment.

Cannabis advocates in North Dakota submitted more than 22,000 petition signatures to the Secretary of State’s Office in support of putting an adult-use cannabis legalization question on November ballots. The initiative needs 15,582 valid signatures to qualify.

The National Institutes of Standards and Technology is selling reference materials to help testing labs and law enforcement agencies accurately measure key components in cannabis products and better distinguish between hemp and THC-rich cannabis products.

A new poll found that Florida’s constitutional amendment for the legalization of adult-use cannabis has support among 64% of voters; Florida constitutional amendments require 60% of voters to pass.

Federal lawmakers recently introduced the Marijuana Misdemeanor Expungement Act, a bipartisan House proposal seeking to create an expungement mechanism for low-level, non-felony violations of federal cannabis laws.

Nebraska cannabis advocates have submitted more than 114,000 signatures for their petition to legalize medical cannabis in the state.

Delaware cannabis officials have warned that out-of-state entities are looking to scam potential social equity applicants by contacting them and trying to deceive them into helping pay for an adult-use cannabis license.

A bi-partisan proposal in Michigan is seeking to ease the burdens of cannabis companies and “modernize” the state’s cannabis laws by merging its adult-use and medical cannabis regulations.

A lawsuit filed this week in the U.S. District Court for Wyoming is challenging the recently passed state law banning hemp-derived cannabinoids including delta-8 THC, claiming the law violates the federal Farm Bill.

Delaware lawmakers recently passed legislation establishing protections for banks and other financial institutions to work with state-legal cannabis companies as the state prepares to launch its adult-use market.

Maryland collected about $14.7 million in cannabis taxes during the first quarter of 2024, according to recent data from the state Office of the Comptroller.

The largest school district in Kentucky last week approved a policy allowing students to use prescribed medical cannabis treatments while at school.

The North Carolina Senate gave final approval to a medical cannabis legalization bill this week, sending the proposal to the House for consideration. Notably, the proposal would not legalize adult-use cannabis even under federal reforms.

The NCAA Division I Council has voted to remove cannabis from the list of substances that disqualify players from postseason participation in football and championships.

Officials with the Minnesota Office of Cannabis Management said they had received more than 700 applications for social equity licenses within the first 24 hours of the application window opening.

Cannabis policy reforms in the U.S. have led to about 2.5 million pardons or expungements for cannabis-related convictions, according to a recent NORML tally.

Three pharmaceutical companies in Zimbabwe have started to manufacture cannabis medicines under the country’s five-year-old industrial hemp reforms.

Recent New Hampshire polls found that 65% of state residents either “strongly” or “somewhat” support legalizing adult-use cannabis; the sentiment contrasts House lawmakers’ recent decision to table a cannabis legalization bill, effectively killing the proposal.