Federal Policy

Bernie Sanders said in an interview this week that, if he is elected to be the next U.S. president, he would legalize cannabis nationwide via executive order.

A new proposal in the U.S. Senate would lift federal restrictions on cannabis research and direct multiple federal agencies to develop a cannabis research agenda.

Federal officials say that Utah’s medical cannabis plan — which some had worried would jeopardize the state’s federal funding — can move forward.

Massachusetts regulators have warned residents and tourists against bringing cannabis out to sea, and into other federal waterways, despite the plant being legalized in the state.

With $1.6 million already spent this year, the cannabis industry’s 2019 Capitol Hill lobbying efforts on are on pace to break the record set last year at $2.7 million.

Lawmakers yesterday held the first Senate committee hearing to be aimed at addressing banking challenges for the cannabis industry; the hearing included arguments from financial institution representatives, state-legal cannabis professionals, and elected officials from states with reformed cannabis laws.

As part of a bipartisan effort in the U.S. Senate, New Jersey Sen. Robert Menendez has proposed a bill aiming to open up business insurance opportunities for state-legal cannabis companies.

Democratic Rep. Jerry Nadler and Sen. Kamala Harris are introducing a federal cannabis reform bill called the Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement (MORE) Act to both decriminalize cannabis and set up the expungement of prior cannabis convictions.

The Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs has scheduled a hearing to consider the SAFE Banking Act despite hints from the Republican committee chair in April that such a hearing was unlikely.

FDA officials say they will rush the release of federal CBD rules and regulations, potentially by the end of summer or early fall.

Federal lawmakers yesterday hosted the first-ever bipartisan hearing to recognize and address the racial disparity in cannabis laws and enforcement actions. During the hearing, members from both parties pushed for the end of prohibition.

Federal lawmakers from Oregon have introduced legislation to allow the state’s recently passed interstate cannabis commerce legislation to move forward; part of said state law requires federal permission before cannabis products can start shipping across state borders.

Oregon Gov. Kate Brown has signed into law several cannabis policy updates, including a bill allowing the state to export cannabis products to other states with cannabis programs.

The House of Representatives has approved a federal spending bill amendment that would block the Department of Justice from interfering in state-legal cannabis programs. The rider must now be approved by the Senate before it can take effect.

The House Committee on Small Business heard testimony on Wednesday from cannabis industry operators about the difficulties they face accessing Small Business Administration programs, despite the industry being primarily comprised of smaller firms.

The U.S. Postal Service has updated its policies to clarify that hemp and hemp products — including CBD — are legal to mail so long as they comply with hemp rules laid out by state agricultural programs.

The Flandreau Santee Sioux Tribe in South Dakota is suing the USDA for having failed to approve its proposed plan to regulate hemp production on tribal lands within the 60 days required under last year’s Farm Bill.

The FDA’s first-ever CBD hearing took place last Friday. The agency heard from a host of speakers including nutritional supplement experts, private citizens, medical cannabis patients, hemp businesses, and more.

Idaho law enforcement says it will continue arresting long-haul truck drivers who ferry industrial hemp through the state and confiscating their cargo, despite hemp’s federal legalization and a USDA memo that clarifies interstate hemp transport is legal.

A federal appeals court has ruled that a lawsuit challenging the prohibition of cannabis can remain open — despite being dismissed last year — so that actions can be taken against the Drug Enforcement Agency if it fails to address the issue of cannabis’ Schedule 1 status.

Utah Gov. Gary Herbert (R) accused the federal government this week of “lack of action and attention” on medical cannabis policies. The governor, however, originally opposed the creation of Utah’s medical cannabis industry.

Sens. Chuck Schumer and Hakeem Jeffries announced they will reintroduce the Marijuana Freedom and Opportunity Act, which would legalize cannabis nationwide and authorize spending for cannabis crime expungement.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture — which is the only agency in the country capable of certifying agricultural products as “organic” — has issued its first-ever organic certification for a hemp flower product.

A consultant for the Department of Veteran Affairs said that until the DEA and Department of Justice establish clear guidelines, the agency could not move forward with approval of cannabis for vets.