Graham Abbott

The U.S. Department of Energy is funding a $5 million study into the agricultural benefits of hemp cultivation and biochar, a charcoal mixture similar to planting soil.

The website for submitting cannabis business license applications to the Minnesota Office of Cannabis Management was unexpectedly shut down just a few short hours before the application window’s scheduled finish.

A proposal filed in the Nevada Assembly would establish a psychedelics therapy program for certain patients with mental health conditions.

The Massachusetts cannabis control is asking the state for $30.8 million in funding for fiscal year 2026, a 55% bump from the agency’s current annual budget of $19.8 million.

Idaho lawmakers have passed a House-approved bill that will ask voters to give up their right to pass any citizen-led ballot initiatives to legalize cannabis or enact other drug reforms.

Eyeing a potential $4 million annual revenue bump, the San Diego City Council has voted to raise the local tax rate on licensed cannabis businesses from 8% to 10%.

A proposal in the Texas Senate would expand the state’s medical cannabis program by allowing more cannabis administration methods and change the rules to measure doses by milligrams instead of weight.

An Alabama court has overturned the temporary restraining order blocking medical cannabis licenses in the state, which have been on hold since lawsuits brought the industry’s launch to a halt in 2023.

The Ohio House could consider its own proposal to strip down the state’s voter-approved cannabis legalization law after the Senate recently passed a package of new industry restrictions.

The Idaho House of Representatives voted to send a ballot question to voters asking them to give up their right to pass cannabis legalization laws via citizen-led ballot initiatives.

Lawmakers in the Missouri House Committee on Veterans and Armed Forces voted unanimously to advance a bill establishing clinical trials testing the effectiveness of medical psilocybin as a treatment for PTSD and other conditions.

The California Governor’s Office has announced over $18 million in funding for local governments to support cannabis social equity applicants and licensees.

The California Cannabis Awards — now an annual event at the California State Fair — is adding new product categories this year for blunts, hash, and cannabis-infused chocolates.

A key Utah Senate committee last week advanced a proposal containing minor expansions to the state’s medical cannabis program.

The Republican-controlled Ohio Senate voted in a 23-9 party-line vote to override parts of the state’s voter-backed cannabis legalization law, including removing social equity provisions, reducing home grows from 12 to 6 plants, and setting new THC caps on cannabis flower products and concentrates.

A Florida proposal to restrict intoxicating hemp products in the state seeks to ban hemp-derived delta-8 THC products outright and cap hemp products’ delta-9 THC content at two milligrams per serving and 20 milligrams per container.

A coalition of New Jersey cannabis businesses and advocacy groups is calling on the Legislature to legalize home grows, contradicting an argument from the governor and other lawmakers that doing so would undermine cannabis licensees.

Officials with the Nevada Cannabis Compliance Board told lawmakers during a presentation that illicit cannabis sales, which have grown to a $242 million industry, are cutting into the state’s cannabis tax revenue by undermining the legal market.

Indiana House lawmakers have failed to advance any of the proposed cannabis legalization and decriminalization bills this session.

New Jersey cannabis officials have collected over $6 million in cannabis social equity excise fees but the state has yet to allocate any of the funds.

The New Hampshire House of Representatives has passed a proposal to legalize personal possession and consumption of cannabis by adults.

The Idaho Senate passed a bill adding a mandatory $300 fine to any cannabis possession cases. The proposal, already passed by the House, goes next to the governor for consideration.

Russian authorities have released Kalob Byers, the 28-year-old American who was arrested in early February for carrying cannabis-infused gummies into the country.

Hopeful Minnesota cannabis licensees can now submit their adult-use business applications. The application window will remain open until March 14.