Cannabis Legalization News

75 percent of Americans believe that cannabis should be made legal, whether at the state or federal level.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) told reporters Wednesday that legislation to end the federal prohibition of cannabis is coming soon.

New Mexico lawmakers have advanced legislation to legalize adult-use cannabis and expunge prior cannabis criminal records. The governor said she intends to sign the bills into law.

Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam proposed changing the state’s legalization bill to allow cannabis home grows and to launch adult-use sales this July instead of in 2024.

North Dakota is considering legislation that would put the cannabis legalization question to state voters via a ballot initiative next year.

Cannabis use and possession are officially legal in New York after Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) signed the state’s legalization bill into law on Wednesday.

Nebraska’s Legislative Judiciary Committee has advanced legislation to establish a comprehensive medical cannabis program in the state, setting the bill up for a floor vote.

Just over two-thirds of Louisiana residents say they support legalizing adult-use cannabis in the state, according to recent polling data.

New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham (D) called lawmakers back to the capital for a special legislative session specifically to reach a cannabis legalization deal.

New York lawmakers have reportedly reached a cannabis legalization deal and a vote on the still-unfiled legislation could come as early as next week.

Legislation to legalize adult-use cannabis in Maryland has officially stalled for the year after failing to make it out of committee.

New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham (D) said she is planning to call a special legislative session after lawmakers failed to approve a cannabis legalization bill by its Saturday deadline.

The New York Parent Teacher Association is pushing back against legalization in the state, saying it’s concerned about legal cannabis leading to increased youth access.

New Mexico state senators have pulled the state’s cannabis legalization bill from their agenda just days before the session’s end, citing disagreements over taxation, licensing, and the bill’s criminal justice reform provisions.

South Dakota’s medical cannabis legalization initiative will take effect as planned after state Senators stymied an attempt by House lawmakers to delay implementation for six months.

New Mexico Senate Speaker Brian Egolf said legalization is a top priority for lawmakers this session and he is “cautiously optimistic” the reforms will pass this year.

Mexican lawmakers have approved a bill legalizing the production and sale of cannabis for adults, setting Mexico up to become the world’s largest legal cannabis marketplace.

A Rhode Island Senate legalization proposal would establish an adult-use cannabis marketplace with a 20 percent tax rate.

According to a recent poll, two-thirds of Maryland residents support legalizing adult-use cannabis in the state.

A recent poll found that 60 percent of Texans are ready to legalize cannabis “for any use.”

The NAACP’s New Jersey chapter said the state’s Cannabis Regulatory Commission breaks the law because it does not meet its own social equity requirements.

Gov. Daniel McKee, Rhode Island’s new governor following the confirmation of Gina Raimondo as President Biden’s Commerce Secretary, reportedly said in January that it’s time to legalize cannabis.

Virginia is set to become the first Southern state to legalize after lawmakers advanced legislation to undo cannabis prohibition starting in 2024.

Lawmakers in New Mexico’s House of Representatives voted to legalize adult-use cannabis last week, setting the state up for another legalization showdown in the Senate after a similar attempt failed there in 2019.