“This is about equal rights. Whenever you pick a certain group and treat them differently, that is discrimination. Patients, renters, the poor, people of color and women are still marginalized for their cannabis use, despite legalization.”
– Madeline Martinez, Executive Director of Oregon NORML

Welcome To The Weekly Roll Up – A Compendium of The Week’s Cannabis News

Vermont 

Heady Vermont Co-Founder Eli Harrington wins Best Vermont Activist award at Boston NECANN


Vermont Colleges Look To Bring Cannabis Into The Classroom


VTCNA Health Tip: As Onion Snow Melts, Cannabis Gardening Begins


Pepper Lee CBD: Awesomeness In A Jar, Handmade With Love

How green is your weed, Vermont?

House Committee advances bill to decrim buprenorphine

State colleges get in on cannabis certification class boom

Scott administration pushes for pot youth prevention funding

Regional

 Connecticut

• Lawmakers weigh legalizing adult use
• Public pushes lawmakers to focus on equity
• Lawmakers Approve Legalization In Key Committee
• Committee adds opioid withdrawal as MMJ qualifying condition

 Maine

• Gov. Mills signs bill designed to protect producers of hemp
• MMJ in Maine: 2019 Update

 Massachusetts

• 1st recreational shop in Boston area open
• Paltry pot sales hardly a surprise to would-be consumers
• Globe ed board urges lawmakers to ensure equitable industry
• Globe Spotlight Team found companies sidestepping ownership limit
• POT TAXES REQUIRE POT STORES
• Brookline recreational shop not the ‘apocalypse’ predicted
• MA probes companies over license accumulation

 New Hampshire

• Legalization Bill Clears Another Major Hurdle
• Dispensary doesn’t agree with own lobbyist on patient grows

 New Jersey

• New Jersey Cancels Legalization Vote
• New Jersey NAACP prez calls for legalization
• Whoopi Goldberg op-ed calls for legalization
• ACLU-NJ: Advocates Redouble Effort to Legalize After Pulled Vote
• 12 Months from Now, Recreational Will Be Easy to Pass
• Legalization Failure: ‘Public has not been educated’
• Newark Officials Ponder Alternatives
• Why the Plan to Legalize Unraveled
• Elected dimwits pass on pot, here’s why they’re dimwits

 New York

• NY Pauses Legalization, Social Justice Advocates Press On
• 10 ways to ensure equity in NY cannabis industry
• NY Only Pretends It Wants Diversity In Cannabis Companies
• Illinois chapter of NAACP tells NY to just say ‘no’
• MMJ businesses fighting for priority in adult-use market
• Rochester City Council backs legalization with conditions
• Legalization Supporters Rally At Capitol
• Elitist ‘Country Club Cannabis’ Pop-Up Appears

Advocates Create ‘Elite’ Cannabis Club In Push For Social Equity

National

 Animals

• Can Pets Get High Off Secondhand Cannabis Smoke?

 Arts/Entertainment

• The artist who turned weed pipes into glass art
• What Broad City taught me about weed

 Business

• 93% of Canadian cannabis company board seats held by men
• The Costco of Cannabis
• Peak Extracts: Tantalizingly Authentic Cannabis Terroir
• Cannabis, psychedelics get a second look from Big Pharma

 Cannabis

• Cannabis can’t be certified organic — but it can be called kosher
• Cannabinoids That Aren’t THC
• Will Dumping Weed On A Campfire Get Everyone High?

 CBD

• Historic Moment For US CBD Industry
• FDAs difficulty in regulating CBD products

 Commerce

• Youth cannabis-themed sweatshirt appears on Walmart website
• CVS selling cannabis-based products in 8 states

 Culture

• Why The Fader Installed CBD Vending Machines at SXSW Concerts
• Margery Eagan on having a pot shop 5 minutes down the road
• Seth Rogen launches weed company
• Charlie Sheen launching cannabis brand called “Sheenius”
• Tom Brokaw uses MMJ to deal with back pain
• A Guide to the World of Cannabis, from Dispensaries to Dinner Parties
• Chris Evans Has ‘Chilled Out on Weed’
• 100 Most Influential People in Cannabis
• Kwame Brown Arrested for Pot Cookies … and Other Weed Stuff

 Driving

• WRT cannabis use and driving, it’s not as simple as a ‘legal limit’
• New study: legalization has impacted road safety

 Economics

• 7 Reasons Legal Cannabis Is a Recession-Proof Industry

 Education

• Community College launches industrial hemp course
• Cannabis 101 At University Of Connecticut

 Events

• High Times Dope Cup

 Fashion

• A nice men’s organic cotton and hemp shirt

 Federal

• House Committee Chair says legalization vote will happen
• Diversity Provisions Added To Banking Bill
• Surgeon General Adams has concerns with legalization
• People lining up to grow cannabis for research
• House committee bars agencies and contractors from asking about criminal records before offering jobs

 Finance

• Mainstream Companies Back Cannabis Banking

 Food & Bev

• New cannabis users eat too much because edibles take time to kick in
• Cannabis-Infused Pizza
• Food Infused With Cannabis Extract Takes a Hit

 Health

• Will smoking cannabis make you psychotic? Not likely
• MMJ and Parkinson’s Disease Event
• Clearing the air on cannabis
• AHPA adopts Guidance Policy on CBD

 Hemp

• Hemp Authority Awards Seal For 13 CBD Companies
• Farmers struggle to keep up with demand for industrial hemp
• 5 Other Uses for Hemp
• Hemp shows a bright future for farming family
• Hemp Giving Renewed Life To Tobacco Farmers

 History

• Writers Who Liked Cannabis

 Hypocrisy, Prevarication, and Outright Lies

• White House, Federal Scientists Saying CannabisIs Laced With Fentanyl

 Labor

• Legalization Gives Hiring Managers Headache

 Law Enforcement

• Legalization Keeps Law Enforcement Honest
• Pot or hemp? Local police lack technology to tell difference
• Cops keep arresting truck drivers after mistaking hemp for cannabis

 Legalization

• The only reason to make growing at home illegal is corporate greed
• Majority of Republicans Support Legalization
• Centre for Social Justice’s Cannabis: The Case Against Legislation

 Medical

• MMJ, Opioids and Non-Opioid Pain Management
• Can You Donate or Receive a Kidney If You Use Cannabis?
• Oral THC Mitigates Night Sweats

 Military/Veterans

• VFW Using Hemp to Feed and Educate

 Podcasts

• Cannabis Business In Michigan
• 7 Must-Listen Podcasts About Weed
• The Takeaway
• Tenants in the Cannabis Business are Good to Have
• Waiting Is Not An Option In The Cannabis Industry
• Will Texas Finally Go to Pot?
• Cannabis Gaining Acceptance Across Europe

 Presidential Campaign

• Where Pete Buttigieg Stands On cannabis
• Yang proposing decrim possession of opioids
• O’Rourke wants to visit NV stores to see what legalization looks like
• Hickenlooper says feds must allow cannabis banking
• Hickenlooper claim about cannabis use rates in CO is “Half True.”

 Politics

• Mapping Legalization Politics: Not Just Red vs. Blue
• The politics of pot are changing

 Science

• Cannabis Analysis: Investing in Testing

 Seniors

• More seniors seek pot for age-related aches
• MMJ Access Linked To Greater Employment Among Older Adults

 Sex

• Weed Makes Women Want Sex and Increases Orgasm

 Social Justice

• Cannabis Industry Should Embrace Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

 Social Media

• Instagram shuts down, reinstates dispensary’s page

 Social Responsibility

• Drug Policy Alliance’s memo on SR in the cannabis Industry

 Sports

• What pushed David Irving to pick weed over Cowboys
• Doctors, ex-players push NFL to change its pot policy
• Golfer Robert Garrigus suspended over positive cannabis test

 Studies

• Nearly Half of Anxiety Patients Find MMJ More Effective Than Pills
• Support rises in all age groups for legal pot
• States With More Immigrants More Likely To Legalize
• THC use does not reduce immune function in people with HIV
• CBD can help with TBI trauma
• Cannabis improves motor functions after nerve compression injury

 Technology

• 5 Ways Technology Can Transform Cannabis Industry

 Women

• Women naturally drawn to MMJ
• Cynthia Salarizadeh, Cannabis Entrepreneur
• The LA Women of Weed
• Working in weed lets their families live the high life
• Women in cannabis are breaking the ‘grass ceiling’
• Find The Good People, The Smart People, The Nice People To Work With
• Cannabis offers promise for endometriosis
• 1933 Industries’ Ester Vigil Honored In Women of Weed Awards

States

 Alabama

• MMJ bill with bi-partisan support filed in House

 Arizona

• House of Reps defeated bill clarifying legality of edibles
• House Committee increasing dispensaries in rural areas
• Activists push industry to uphold social responsibilities

 Arkansas

• State Oks second MMJ cultivator
• Senate bans MMJ edibles

 California

• Gov says it’s time to crack down on illicit market
• Pop-Up Helping Athletes Incorporate Cannabis Into Recovery
• LA County expands smoking ban to vaping tobacco and smoking pot
• LA May Launch New War On Weed

 California – First Nations

• Tribes at odds with officials over the right to sell cannabis

 Colorado

• Did cannabis use spike after legalization?
• Cannabis-related ER visits jump threefold after legalization
• Lawmakers Tackle Black Market For Delivery
• House Committee OKd social consumption areas

 Florida

• Could hemp deliver salvation for farmers?
• Senate Committee advanced hemp legalization bill
• Florida bank closing MMJ group’s account
• With smokable MMJ legal, GOP House looks to restrict highs

 Georgia

• Senate bill allows hemp cultivation and CBD extraction
• Senate Committee bill allows sales of CBD MMJ oil
• Georgia is one step closer to approving MMJ

 Guam

• Senate approves additional fees on MMJ
• Catholic Church against legalization
• Senate expected to vote on legalization bill
• Archbishop Says Legalization Would Ruin ‘Identity of Our Island’
• Guam 1st US Territory In 2019 To Send Legalization To Gov

 Idaho

• HEMP: A CEO’s plea
• Senate amends bill to legalize hemp

 Illinois

• Illinois NAACP chapter president opposed to legalization
• Bill Would Make MMJ Program Permanent
• Cannabis issue sparks debate
• We need jobs — treat cannabis like other regulated substances
• Voters support legalization, 66%-32%
• Studies underestimate cannabis demand

 Indiana

 Iowa

• Hemp program gaining support
• House tweaks MMJ law

 Kansas

• House of Reps approved hemp bill

 Kentucky

• Hemp Industry showed explosive growth in 2018
• South’s First Organic Hemp Co-Op

 Louisiana

• LSU gets ok to move MMJ grow into larger facility
• MMJ backers demand product by May 15
• Pro-MMJ vets upset about CBD advisory
• Legislator proposes industrial hemp bill

 Maryland

• Stalemate between Baltimore prosecutors and police force
• MMJ company suing to stop awarding new cultivation licenses

 Michigan

• Legal Market Will Be Uncompetitive With Illegal Dealers
• State shouldn’t set driving limit for pot
• Lake Superior State U putting $1M for Center for Cannabis Science
• Grand Rapids to raise African-Americans’ stake in cannabis boom
• Will legalization redeem lives ruined by war on cannabis?
• Top cannabis regulator ran state’s MMJ program
• Midwest Farmers Unions support hemp cooperative

 Minnesota

• Mayor Frey reaffirms support for legalization
• Is it ‘high time’ for legalization?

 Missouri

• MMJ program releases rules for facilities
• Cities Hear MMJ Zoning Questions
• House Committee approved hemp expansion bill
• House of Reps approved expungement bill
• How to pick who gets dispensary license?

 Montana

• Lawmakers said no to recreational cannabis

 Nevada

• Vegas business owner pitches weed on wheels
• Lawmakers filed a cannabis banking bill
• Gov. Sisolak supporting greater transparency in licensing
• U.S. attorney for NV refused to rule out cannabis prosecutions

 New Mexico

• New Mexico strikes towards legalizing leisure cannabis

 North Carolina

• MMJ could be legalized

 North Dakota

• Senate expands MMJ program

 Ohio

• Farmers back hemp legalization
• Why aren’t Ohioans rushing to buy MMJ?
• Dayton decreases number of possession charges
• Senate unanimously approved hemp bill

 Oklahoma

• DAs disagree about MMJ use on probation
• Dispensary caters to women

 Oregon

• Activists file cannabis rights initiative
• Hemp, Inc. holds educational seminar
• Ballot Initiative: Justice with Legalization
• Hood River Hotel’s Cannabis Package

 Pennsylvania

• 59% of voters support legalizing recreational cannabis

 Rhode Island

• Legalization plan pulled back for revisions
• Demand for MMJ skyrocketing

 South Carolina

• Industrial hemp shows promise

 South Dakota

• AG says hemp and CBD remain illegal

 Tennessee

• House Committee looks to decrim, protect out-of-state MMJ patients

 Texas

• Texas to legalize hemp
• TX Medical Assn wants cannabis rescheduled and expand CBD access
• Committee Approves Decrim
• DEA looking for contractors to burn cannabis

 Utah

• Utah is looking for software to run its MMJ program
• High court hears challenge to MMJ law changes

 Virginia

• Farmers Attracted To Hemp Summit

 Washington

• Regulators updated list of allowed cannabis pesticides
• US Supreme Court won’t examine WA Supreme Court ruling re: denial of cannabiz license because of criminal history of owner’s spouse

 West Virginia

• Governor Signs MMJ Banking Bill

 Wisconsin

• Legalization advocates say it will cut down on veteran suicide rates

International

• MMJ research programs driving global legalization
• Global Cannabis Oil Market Research

 Barbados

• Prime Minister Mottley announced plans to develop MMJ industry

 Canada

• Surge in cannabis use among youth preceded legalization
• Why do Canadians hate to buy cannabis online?

 China

• Hemp forum to be held in Heilongjiang Province in July
• Officials issued a warning about the trading of cannabis-related stocks

 Europe

• Europe’s weed and CBD market tipped to soar over 2400% and 400%
• European MMJ Conference Launches This Fall

 France

• Legal System Tries to Blame Murder On Cannabis

 Hong Kong

• Hong Kong Prohibits Cannabis and THC in Food and Drinks

 India

• How convenient it is it to start hemp business with existing policies

 Ireland

• Medicinal cannabis should be treated like other drugs, MPs told

 Israel

• Startup Unveils “World’s First Automated Cannabis Farm”

 Kenya

• Govt disputes American company’s claim to MMJ cultivation license

 Liberia

• Government officials meeting with U.S. MMJ business interests

 Malaysia

• Government open to MMJ research

 Mexico 

• Regulators revoked cannabis guidelines from prior administration

 Netherlands

• Cannabis Regulation in Europe: Netherlands

 Philippines

• President Duterte accused of associating with drug traffickers

 Spain

• ICBC, Spannabis, & A Women in Cannabis Exhibit Come to Barcelona

 UK

• London establishments serving cannabis-infused dishes