Law Arizona

[momofthegoons]

​

Arizona Marijuana Opponents Release Five Misleading Attack Ads Ahead Of Legalization Vote Next Week​

A campaign opposing a marijuana legalization initiative in Arizona recently released a series of ads imploring voters to reject the proposal.

The digital spots—which range from 16 to 42 seconds in length—argue that cannabis reform would negatively impact young people, increase impaired driving and create workplace risks. In doing so, they make misleading claims about what the proposed Arizona law would allow and what has occurred in other states that have already enacted legalization.

“When Washington State legalized marijuana, I wasn’t too concerned. What began happening with students, however, was alarming. Marijuana possession increased. We maintained a zero drug policy in our district, and parents and students became confused when students were disciplined for possession of marijuana. Suspensions increased and students lost valuable classroom time. If I could give one piece of advice from this Democrat, school principal from Washington to my new Arizona neighbors vote ‘no’ on 207. It won’t provide the support needed to deal with the problems this law will create. Vote ‘no’ on Prop. 207.”

Actually, a study published last year by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that youth marijuana use declined in Washington State’s largest metropolitan county after legalization. Other research has reached similar conclusions

“Marijuana use damages the developing brain of teenagers. Unfortunately, where marijuana is legal for adults, more teens get it and use it. Under Prop. 207, marijuana-laced candies, cookies and vape pens—all very appealing to teens—are not only legal but marijuana marketers can advertise them on TV, radio and social media, a teen favorite. Vote ‘no’ on Prop. 207.”

The Arizona initiative states that any advertising “involving direct, individualized communication or dialogue shall use a method of age affirmation is twenty-one years of age or older before engaging in that communication or dialogue.”

“Police pull over the driver next to you for swerving, but there’s no standard of impairment. It’s 2021, and using marijuana is legal right under Prop. 207. There’s no roadside test to gauge marijuana impairment, so they let it go. Nearly 70 percent of marijuana users in Colorado admit to driving stoned. Their traffic deaths doubled after legalization. Keep stoned drivers off Arizona roads. Vote ‘no’ on Prop. 207.”

The Arizona initiative explicitly states that it “does not allow driving, flying or boating while impaired by marijuana to even the slightest degree.”

“When you drop your child off at daycare, you expect the caregiver to be sober. Under Prop. 207, employers can only prohibit using marijuana at work. There’s nothing stopping employees from using and then heading to the daycare or elderly care facility or the worksite. Prop 207. ties the hands of employers who want to keep a drug-free workplace. Vote ‘no’ on Prop. 207.”

The Arizona initiative says it “does not restrict the rights of employers to maintain a drug- and alcohol-free workplace or affect the ability of employers to have workplace policies restricting the use of marijuana by employees or prospective employees.” It also “does not restrict the rights of employers, schools, day care centers, adult day care facilities, health care facilities or corrections facilities to prohibit or regulate conduct otherwise allowed by this chapter when such conduct occurs on or in their properties.”

Despite the questionable ad splurge from Arizonans for Health and Public Safety, convincing enough people to vote against the legalization proposal will be a steep task days out from the election, recent polling suggests.

A firm that’s been consistently tracking where residents stand on candidates and ballot questions found that 55 percent of likely voters favor Proposition 207 in a survey released earlier this month. A separate, recent survey showed 56 percent support among registered voters.

Both of those results are largely consistent with an internal poll Smart and Safe Arizona, the campaign behind the initiative, shared with Marijuana Moment last month.

These survey results represent promising signals to reform advocates that Arizona is ready to enact legalization, unlike in 2016 when voters rejected a similar proposal.

Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Mark Kelly also indicated this month that he is inclined to back the legal cannabis measure.

If the Arizona measure is approved by voters, adults could possess up to an ounce of marijuana at a time and cultivate up to six plants for personal use.

The measure also contains several restorative justice provisions such as allowing individuals with prior cannabis convictions to petition the courts for expungements and establishing a social equity ownership program

Cannabis sales would be taxed at 16 percent. Tax revenue would cover implementation costs and then would be divided among funds for community colleges, infrastructure, a justice reinvestment and public services such as police and firefighters.

The Department of Health Services would be responsible for regulating the program and issuing cannabis business licenses. It would also be tasked with deciding on whether to expand the program to allow for delivery services.

To view the ads, follow title link.

 

[Vitolo]

I voted no on prop 207.
I do not like reading stuff and analyzing it... I hate it... but I did it.
Prop 207’s money flow:
Money in -
Initially, “The Department” (the nebulous governing entity, under prop 207, for the medical and recreational marijuana programs.) and the Smart and Safe Arizona Fund they will manage, will receive $20 million dollars, minimum, from the current medical marijuana fund. These funds are to be distributed to various organizations.
To sustain the the program after the initial funds from the medical marijuana program are transferred. Monies will come from privates grants, gifts, donations, contributions, fees collected, and CIVIL PENALTIES.
These penalties start at $100 and dramatically increase to $20,000 (YES TWENTY THOUSAND DOLLARS!). All collected civil penalties from infractions against 207 go DIRECTLY into the Smart and Safe Arizona Fund! The SAME initiative that is defined to PROTECT can destroy lives both criminally and civilly.
This proposition is NOT decriminalization -

YOU CAN HAVE 1oz of cannabis - which no more than 5 grams can be concentrate. THAT IS IT! - Criminal and NEW CIVIL penalties begin over 1oz and then dramatically increases over 2.5oz and other infractions.

Money out -
After they pay themselves, the state and the courts (See longer text below) -
Excess cannabis funds will pay for - THIS IS IT!!!!!
33% to community colleges/provisional community college districts (not for tuition) but to provide various programs (Cool- randomly specific)
31.4% to the police department, the sheriff’s department, and fire departments - (this helps increase civil penalties and create, for me, an uncomfortable sustainability)
25.4% to the AZ highway user fund (weird stuff such as printing magazines- but roads are included!)
10% to the justice re-investment fund (although funds have ALREADY been allotted - see Below)
0.2% to the Attorney general
The funds will only go to these above organizations!
The above CAN NOT be changed - This is a voters initiative - which can only be changed with another voters initiative or a supreme majority vote from the folks in Phoenix.

 

[momofthegoons]

Arizona Voters Approve Marijuana Legalization Ballot Measure​

A measure to legalize marijuana has been approved by Arizona voters, according to a projection by the Associated Press.

Advocates have paid close attention to the ballot initiative, as the state’s voters rejected a prior legal cannabis proposal in 2016.

Under the new legalization law, adults will be able to possess up to an ounce of marijuana at a time and cultivate up to six plants for personal use.

AZ Proposition 207: Legalize Marijuana​

Last updated: 11/4/2020, 6:46:35 AM

CANDIDATE	VOTES	PERCENT
Yes	1,596,548	59.85%
No	1,071,255	40.15%

2,667,803 votes counted. 81.64% - 98.11% in.

“Until now, Arizona had imposed some of the strictest prohibition laws in the country; in some instances, the possession of even small amounts of marijuana was classified as a felony,” NORML Executive Director Erik Altieri said. “By rejecting this failed policy, no Arizonan going forward will be saddled with a criminal conviction for engaging in the personal possession or cultivation of cannabis, or face the lifelong stigma that comes with it.”

“Proposition 207 will disrupt the illicit market, end low-level marijuana arrests, create jobs and new revenue,” he added. “This result once again shows that marijuana legalization is not exclusively a ‘blue’ state issue, but an issue that is supported by a majority of all Americans—regardless of party politics.”

Polling was mixed heading into Election Day, with surveys consistently showing the proposal ahead, though by differing margins. In September, the Smart and Safe Arizona campaign shared an internal poll with Marijuana Moment that showed 57 percent of likely voters supported the initiative, but a separate survey found just 46 percent in favor of the policy change. Additional polls last month showed the cannabis measure with a significant and growing lead.

The measure also contains several restorative justice provisions such as allowing individuals with prior marijuana convictions to petition the courts for expungements and establishing a social equity ownership program.

Cannabis sales will be taxed at 16 percent. Tax revenue will cover implementation costs and then be divided among funds for community colleges, infrastructure, a justice reinvestment and public services such as police and firefighters.

The Department of Health Services will be responsible for regulating the program and issuing cannabis business licenses. It will also be tasked with deciding on whether to expand the program to allow for delivery services.

The law technically goes into effect upon passage and after the voters are certified, which is expected to take place on November 30. After that point adults could legally use, possess and cultivate cannabis. However, regulators will still have to promulgate rules for overseeing the commercial industry. They can issue licenses starting in January 2021, and the first shops could be approved by February 1.

“Just four years after legalization was narrowly defeated, voters in Arizona turned out to send a clear message that they support marijuana legalization,” Steve Hawkins, executive director of the Marijuana Policy Project, said. “Following this victory, adults will no longer be treated as criminals for using a substance that is safer than alcohol and will be able to access it from safe and regulated businesses.”

Like other drug policy reform campaigns throughout the U.S., Smart and Safe Arizona faced significant obstacles qualifying its measure for the ballot amid the coronavirus pandemic.

At one point, activists asked the state Supreme Court to allow them to collect signatures electronically amid social distancing mandates, but that request was rejected.

Ultimately, the campaign submitted about 420,000 raw signatures. Secretary of State Katie Hobbs said that her office verified the petitions and determined that approximately 255,080 valid signatures were turned in. At least 237,645 were needed to qualify.

Opponents of the proposal, including Gov. Doug Ducey (R), released official voter guide arguments against the initiative in August. Supporters filed arguments as well, and all were circulated to voters in a pamphlet printed by the state.

Prohibitionists also released a series of attack ads that including misleading claims about what the measure would do and what has occurred in states that have already enacted cannabis legalization.

 

[Baron23]

Arizona may see a marijuana shortage after legalization​

There's no definite timeline for when medical dispensaries will be able to make the transition, but when they do, they may not be able to meet the high demand for cannabis.


Spencer Andrews is a public affair director for March and Ash, a dispensary in Imperial County. He addresses an important matter that happened when California made the switch.


"What we saw in California was a shortage in the supply chain. I mean, you're just working with many aspects of the supply chain: manufacturing, cultivation, testing, distribution," Andrews explained. "All of these ancillary services have to get up and running and be able to meet the demand."






All of these steps take time.


Arizona could face a recreational marijuana shortage of about one year.


March and Ash says its transition was quick when they made the switch in August of this year because recreational marijuana was already legal.


They were originally a medical dispensary because of city regulations.


Arizona's transition will take time because dispensaries are having to start from scratch.


"People hoping for it to be an overnight shift, they're going to be a little bit disappointed because it is a big change for a lot of these medical dispensaries that currently exist in Arizona, and it's going to take some time for DHS to roll out their regulations and get everyone properly licensed," Andrews said.


Medical dispensaries can request a recreational license with the Arizona Department of Health Services, but it will take a local initiative to decide how dispensaries will operate.


"Really, it was left up to the local jurisdictions as to whether or not they want to permit commercial cannabis operations," Andrews stated. "I think that's going to be the same way in Arizona. So, depending on the local jurisdiction that you're in, they can decide to permit X amount of dispensaries or testing facilities or distribution and manufacturing facilities."


Arizona Prop 207 has not yet taken effect and citizens can still be cited. Even when it does take effect, smoking marijuana in public will not be allowed.

 

[momofthegoons]

​

Arizona Releases Draft Marijuana Regulations To Implement Legalization Vote​

One month after Arizona voters overwhelmingly approved a ballot initiative to legalize marijuana for adult use, regulators have already put forward draft regulations to implement the program.

They’re working on a tight schedule to develop rules for the recreational cannabis market, as the measure stipulates that license applications must be accepted starting January 19. But industry stakeholders are optimistic that they will be able to accomplish that given experience in the existing medical marijuana program.

The new draft regulations cover licensing fees, the timeline for license approvals, the structure of the regulatory body, product labeling, public safety protocols and other technical matters. This is the first of what’s expected to be at least one if not more versions of draft regulations that the Arizona Department of Health Services will put out before finalizing rules.

Arizona’s secretary of state officially certified the Election Day results on November 30, which initiated the process of putting these regulations together. Now that they’ve been released in their initial form, stakeholders can use an online survey to submit feedback that regulators can use to amend the proposal. Responses are being accepted through December 17.

Samuel Richard, executive director of the Arizona Dispensaries Association, told Marijuana Moment that medical cannabis operators have an “open and collaborative” relationship with regulators and they expect that the department will be receptive to their input.

“Just a week and a half after Governor Ducey officially certified the will of Arizona voters, the Department is already hard at work to ensure the smoothest transition possible to adult-use in Arizona,” he said.

But again, this is a preliminary step and the provisions outlined in the draft rules are likely to be amended. Richard said he anticipates the department will put out at least one more proposal based on feedback they get and that the rules won’t be finalized until early January.

“They just want to give operators a sense of what the program will look like” before applications go live, he said.

Under the new legalization law, adults will be able to possess up to an ounce of marijuana at a time and cultivate up to six plants for personal use.

The measure also contains several restorative justice provisions such as allowing individuals with prior marijuana convictions to petition the courts for expungements and establishing a social equity ownership program.

Cannabis sales will be taxed at 16 percent. Tax revenue will cover implementation costs and then be divided among funds for community colleges, infrastructure, a justice reinvestment and public services such as police and firefighters.

Read the Arizona draft adult-use cannabis regulations by following title link and scrolling to the bottom of the article.

 

[momofthegoons]

Arizona Prepares To Accept Marijuana Applications Next Week As New Draft Legalization Rules Are Issued​

Arizona is one step closer to launching legal marijuana sales, with state regulators releasing new draft regulations as well as application forms for cannabis business licenses that will be accepted starting next week.

The state Department of Health Services, which issued an earlier version of proposed rulesfor the market in December, recently released its second iteration, with finalized regulations expected in the coming weeks.

Industry stakeholders have been encouraged by the expediency of the department’s rulemaking, which is required since voters overwhelmingly approved a ballot initiative to legalize adult-use marijuana during November’s election.

Applications for existing medical cannabis operators who want to enter the recreational market will open on January 19 and close on March 9. This is a significant development, as it signals that once rules are finalized, approved applicants could start selling marijuana to all adults over 21 as early as next month.

Four new required forms have been made available for applicants on the department’s site. These are largely supplemental, as they’re intended for current medical cannabis dispensaries that have already gone through the state’s existing licensing process. The forms ask for information on financing, zoning and property ownership.

The newest draft regulations cover licensing fees, the timeline for license approvals, the structure of the regulatory body, product labeling, public safety protocols and more. Many of the changes to the prior draft rules are technical, but there is one notable revision concerning credentialing for cannabis workers.

Rather than being credentialed for one specific facility, the worker registration will be expanded so that they’ll be certified to be employed at any cannabis operation in the industry.

“I think that we’re used to this type of steadfastness and quality work from our regulators, but I think it’s interesting to see it juxtaposed with what’s happening across the country,” Samuel Richard, executive director of the Arizona Dispensaries Association, told Marijuana Moment, noting the difficulty New Jersey lawmakers have faced in passing implementing legislation since voters approved a legalization referendum.

The New Jersey situation has been volatile. Implementing legislation was introduced shortly after the referendum vote, but there’s been a back-and-forth between lawmakers and the governor, who expressed concerns about certain provisions concerning underaged people. A “clean up” bill was expected to get a floor vote on Monday, but it was postponed after key legislators pulled their sponsorships.

“We’re getting ever closer to having our first transactions and New Jersey can’t even get it together to have their enabling legislation,” Richard said of Arizona’s relatively smooth process.

Under the state’s new legalization law, adults will be able to possess up to an ounce of marijuana at a time and cultivate up to six plants for personal use.

The measure also contains several provisions aimed at addressing the harms of prohibition such as allowing individuals with prior marijuana convictions to petition the courts for expungements and establishing a social equity ownership program.

Cannabis sales will be taxed at 16 percent. Tax revenue will cover implementation costs and then be divided among funds for community colleges, infrastructure, a justice reinvestment and public services such as police and firefighters.

While it’s not clear exactly when the first sales will launch, it’s possible regulators might want to hold off on announcing a specific date too far in advance, as it could attract a large influx in customers and long lines amid the coronavirus pandemic, Richard said.

That said, medical marijuana businesses in the state have implemented a variety of safety protocols to mitigate the spread of the virus, and Richard is confident the industry will be prepared when the industry officially launches.

“The lines around the block that you saw in Illinois this time last year could be pretty bunched up,” he said. “Our lines around the block are going to be pretty spaced out, and we might have a line around a couple of blocks just because we have a commitment to social distance.”

 

[Baron23]

"Hernandez also noted that dispensaries often used to offer half and full ounces in bulk at significantly discounted rates, but those deals have become harder to find since recreational sales began."

This ^^ is happening in Maryland and we don't even have a rec program. Prices came down, discounted pricing for larger quantities was common....and now that is in full reverse and I attribute it to our local dispensaries being bought by multi-state corporate outfits who have zero interest in the community. Went into a once fav dispensary to buy 1.5 onces and they wanted to charge me 1/8 prices right down the line.

Locally owned dispensaries (rapidly disappearing group) still discount for qty, but generally prices are going in the wrong direction.

How Recreational Legalization Is Affecting Medical Marijuana Patients in Arizona​

Arizona celebrated its first month of recreational marijuana sales yesterday, and there's much to cheer. More than 100 medical marijuana dispensaries have been cleared to sell recreational marijuana to customers 21 years and older, and business is booming. Drive past a Valley dispensary in the middle of the day, and there's a decent chance you'll still find a line outside the door.


For longtime marijuana shoppers in Arizona — MMJ patients, that is — there's been less to celebrate. Ironically, many of them feel that legalization has made marijuana less accessible for them.


One gripe: those lines.


"I should not see young, able-bodied folks coming in and out of a dispensary while there are folks in wheelchairs and using walkers waiting in line," says James Carter, a medical marijuana patient in Mesa.


Some dispensaries, still adjusting to balancing medical and rec sales, have begun implementing new policies that aim to prioritize patients. Many Harvest locations have a special window for medical patients. Territory Dispensary has implemented a cashless, pre-pay system for online orders called TreezPay that expedites the pick-up process, cutting down the amount of time customers have to spend in the store. Raul Molina, COO of The Mint dispensaries, recently told Fox 10 that their goal is to serve medical patients within 10 minutes and recreational patients within 30 minutes.


Herbal Wellness Center has implemented patient-specific shopping hours, from 8 a.m. until 12 p.m. every day. Only those with a medical card can shop during these hours; at noon, the dispensary opens to the general public. The dispensary also offers online ordering exclusively for patients and daily medical patient-only specials.






“We do try to take care of [patients] first and have a side of the dispensary dedicated to rec patients,” said Scott Pierce, head of retail at Herbal Wellness Center. “We just want to make sure that the medical patients get their medicine and that those coming for recreational sales have a great experience too.”


Another complaint: the price specials that have long made medical marijuana affordable for patients have disappeared from local dispensary menus.


“Some of the more generous first-time patient deals aren’t available anymore," says Oscar Hernandez, a local MMJ patient.


Gone, too, are several other incentivized discounts, such as birthday, veteran, and senior discounts. Hernandez also noted that dispensaries often used to offer half and full ounces in bulk at significantly discounted rates, but those deals have become harder to find since recreational sales began.


Some of these specials have crept back onto menus in the past week or so, including bulk deals at Sol Flower and other, non-first-time-patient deals at SWC Tempe. Krystal Poleon with SWC Arizona says, “We have made it imperative to keep the medicinal needs of our consumers a top priority.”


But access to edibles remains a concern for some. Under Arizona's new regulations, recreational edibles can be no more than 10 mg per piece, and a package of edibles can contain no more than 100 mg.


Michelle Mastin worries about her mother, who has chronic pain. She uses higher potency medical edibles (200 mg gummies) for sleep and relief. But she's concerned that dispensaries might shift their focus to 100 mg edibles, since they can be sold both medically and recreationally, thereby leaving her mother without access to the stronger medicine she has come to rely on.


“I think medical patients are afraid that the market may get too saturated and some of their trusted products may get lost in the water,” Andrew Barnes, an Arizona MMJ patient for five years, says.


At the same time, there's hope that the Arizona market could expand to include new options for patients.


“I hope that there’s more accessibility to different varieties of things like they have in Colorado," Mastin says. "I would be very interested in trying other things for [my mother] to help her throughout the day for her pain management. I would hope that now that it’s legal, more businesses would bring new product to the dispensaries.”


Pierce at Herbal Wellness Center says MMJ patients shouldn't be overly alarmed about first-month hiccups.


“Our priority will always be the medical patients — they’re the ones that have been there with us since the beginning," he says. "We have dedicated ourselves to making them a priority."

 

[arb]

Rec destroys medical in every state it has been implemented so far.
The pricing also guarantees a thriving black market.
Stoopid is as stupid does.........idiots.

 

[Vitolo]

Naturally I am seeing many various "models" in the implementation of recreational use.
My dispensary won't start rec sales until March.
The owner has done this to give patients a chance to absorb the changes and to give
us all time to get used to the idea.
They will be using a 2 door system.
One door and line will be medical, and the line for that door will be on 1 side of the structure,
and patients will go into the back room... while rec users will enter from the building's other side, and
will be served in the front room, which will have products geared for them (lower dosage edibles, and other measures of compliance).
Down the street there's a dispensary that already is doing rec sales.
There are 2 lines that share 1 door.
The Medical line is shorter, and they get called in and are served in a back section as well, while
the rec line gets served at a front window.
The only way that I have been inconvenienced at all is by dispensaries having to tell me that
some lower cost items (shatter... crumbles) are out of stock because other dispensaries are beating them to the punch
in their acquisition of the bargain priced items.
The adventure unfolds!

 

[Vitolo]

The town council in Paradise Valley, an affluent suburb of Phoenix, will be discussing the implementation of an ordinance to ban recreational dispensaries and cannabis testing labs. Medical marijuana dispensaries will not be affected.
The ordinance reads, in part, “the Town seeks to protect the public health, safety and welfare by prohibiting marijuana establishments and/or marijuana testing facilities in the Town.”
The town is also attempting to ban marijuana cultivation.
In late 2020, Payson, Gilbert, Sahuarita and other cities and towns put local restrictions on aspects of the state’s adult-use marijuana law.

AZ Town to Ban Adult-Use Marijuana Dispensaries and Testing Labs

Another Arizona town is attempting to ban aspects of the state's new recreational marijuana law,...

azmarijuana.com

 

[Baron23]

Arizona Cities Ban Recreational Marijuana Establishments​

Hopefully, in time, these cities will reevaluate the deleterious effects these ordinances have on sales taxes and consumer choice.


Arizonans knew zoning issues could cause headaches for dispensary owners. However, what was unanticipated are the new bans by some of the Arizona cities for recreational marijuana establishments.


Shortly after the passage of Proposition 207, otherwise known as the Smart and Safe Arizona Act (the “Act”), several Arizona cities moved to ban recreational marijuana sales, unless the dispensary is a “dual licensee”. A dual licensee means an establishment that is licensed both as a medical marijuana establishment and an adult use (or recreational) establishment.


The Act specifically allows dispensary owners to hold both licenses (medical and recreational) and to sell both types of products from the same dispensary location. The cities in Arizona, like Mesa, found a way to end run the Act by prohibiting, among other things, recreational only marijuana dispensaries. While Mesa and the other Arizona cities are certainly allowed to pass such ordinances, it certainly appears to frustrate the purpose of the Act, even though apparently lawful to do so.


Why did these cities seek a ban of recreational-only establishments? There have been several theories espoused by others. As the Phoenix New Times reported:

Others have since followed Gilbert[] [Arizona’s] lead, creating de-facto monopolies for existing medical marijuana facilities and building barriers for new players looking to get into the new recreational cannabis market in Arizona. In the weeks after the election, several local governments passed similar laws, including Scottsdale, Mesa, Goodyear, and Surprise. Tempe is currently soliciting public input for its own recreational marijuana regulations.

Not only are recreational-only dispensaries banned in some Arizona cities, but so are marijuana testing facilities. For example, as set forth in Ordinance Number 5601 for the City Mesa, “[t]he operation of a marijuana testing facility is prohibited in the City [of Mesa].” Click here to view the entire Mesa Ordinance.


Mesa likewise has banned (a) “the possession and consumption of marijuana and marijuana products on City property”, (b) “delivery of recreational marijuana and marijuana products within the City”, and (c) “the consumption of marijuana and marijuana products on prohibited property.” See Mesa City Ordinance No. 5601.

Photo by Florian Schneider via Unsplash


In addition to these issues, the new ordinances will also have a negative effect on the new Social Equity Opportunity Program in Arizona. As noted in the New Times Article:

[Mason] Cave [president and chairman of the Arizona Cannabis Chamber of Commerce] added that the new restrictions will create obstacles for people to obtain Prop 207’s 26 so-called social equity licenses, which are intended to go to dispensary operators who come from communities disproportionately impacted by cannabis criminalization.

What is likely the most fascinating part of these new restrictions are the purported reasons for such ordinances. As part of the preamble to the Mesa Ordinance, Mesa provided the following reasons for the new bans:

WHEREAS, the City of Mesa, Arizona (the “City”) finds that Proposition 207 authorizes marijuana establishments and testing facilities to use chemical extraction or chemical synthesis, including butane and other flammable gases, to extract marijuana concentrate, which poses a threat to the health, safety and security of the community and increases the responsibilities of law enforcement and other City departments to respond to violations of state and local laws, including building, electrical, plumbing, and fire codes.
WHEREAS, marijuana contains tetrahydrocannabinol, which remains on Schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act pursuant to 21 United States Code sections 811-814, and any possession or use is a violation of federal law pursuant to 21 United State Code sections 841-865.

According to Mesa, marijuana extraction is so dangerous and it creates such a heavy burden for City employees, that it needs to be banned. What about other industries that use similar extraction and chemical techniques? Will they be banned by Mesa next? Since there are taxes imposed on the sale of marijuana, one would assume that these taxes would cover any such additional expenditures by Mesa. And this argument completely overlooks the fact that medical licensees are not banned from these activities. The reasons for the passage of the new ordinance seem rather flimsy once you dig a little deeper.


The second reason set forth above — that marijuana remains a Schedule I drug — likewise misses the point. Mesa permits the sale of both medical and recreational marijuana by dual licensees, so why does it now use federal law as a justification to ban recreational only marijuana sales and related activities? Again, this seems to defy logic. If the federal ban on marijuana was really such a monumental issue, one would assume that Mesa would seek to ban the sale of medical marijuana as well (to the extent permitted by law). If the federal ban on marijuana is eventually lifted, will Mesa and other cities move to retract these ordinances? That would seem logical if that is truly a sound basis to ban recreational use sales.


Unfortunately, these ordinances seem to have gained traction in the Phoenix area cities. Hopefully, in time, these cities will reevaluate the wisdom of these ordinances and the deleterious effects they have on sales taxes and consumer choice.

 

[arb]

Social equity is some racist shit.
Showing preference for one race discriminates against others.

 

[Vitolo]

Social equity is some racist shit.

I believe the intent as well as the actuality, at least so far, is the opposite.

Stop Pot Monopolies From Gobbling Up Arizona's 'Social Equity' Licenses, Group Urges

Arizona's 26 remaining "social equity" licenses are the only chance many have of breaking into the state's cannabis market.

www.phoenixnewtimes.com

 

[Baron23]

I believe the intent as well as the actuality, at least so far, is the opposite.

Well, I try not to reinvent the English language although that does seem to be a core method of political spin these days.

I'm just a simple guy....if actions, eligibility, status, decisions, or anything else is made based on race it is then by definition racist. There is just some racism that is applauded and other racism that is condemned.


Now, here is a story from AZ. Trulieve is buying Harvest. I really dislike the corporate buyouts here in MD of locally owned/operated dispensaries and growers (and yes, it was all supposed to stay locally owned) as I think the price goes up, the quality goes down, and innovation goes away. But, in this case, and IMO, its one lousy big corp buying another. We don't have Trulieve here in MD but I have watched their maneuvers in FL. We do have Harvest and I can't understand how they consistently publish very high test numbers for very mediocre MJ. I do NOT shop there at all anymore.

$2.1B blockbuster deal will take in Arizona's biggest marijuana company​

Trulieve, the largest marijuana company in Florida, is buying Harvest, the largest marijuana company in Arizona, in a $2.1 billion deal that could create the biggest cannabis company in the nation, the companies announced early Monday.

The blockbuster deal comes just a few months after recreational sales of marijuana launched in Arizona following passage of Proposition 207 in November, allowing anyone 21 or older to possess up to an ounce of marijuana and permitting medical dispensaries to sell it to adults.

If the deal goes through the merged company will have about 126 dispensaries and operations in 11 states, according to the announcement.

Harvest Health and Recreation Inc. today has 39 operating shops in five states.

Trulieve Cannabis Corp. has 84 operating shops in four states, with 79 of them in Florida.


"We were blown away as I’m sure most of you were in terms of their execution and just the way they moved into the recreational market here in Arizona," Trulieve CEO Kim Rivers said on a conference call with analysts Monday. "It was seamless and it was really impressive to watch."

Rivers called the companies a "natural fit."

"Our teams have worked incredibly well together," she said. "We are excited to have them as partners moving forward."


If they merged today, the combined entity would be the largest U.S. cannabis company based on the combined retail and farming footprint, and it also would be the most profitable marijuana company in the nation, Trulieve and Harvest said.

"We are thrilled to be joining Trulieve, a company that has achieved unrivaled success and scale in its home state of Florida," Harvest CEO Steve White said in the announcement.

On the call with analysts, White said that the combined company will benefit from the operational knowledge both companies have accumulated on their way to becoming market leaders.

"We will just be able to deliver better products and better experiences to customers across the company," White said.

Harvest has been involved in big merger negotiations before, with an $850 million deal to purchase Chicago-based Verano Holdings announced in early 2019 before that deal fell apart amid the pandemic last year.

The new deal with Trulieve includes a $100 million breakup fee if either company fails to uphold its end of the deal.

The deal needs approval by Harvest shareholders and various regulators. Similar deals have taken about a year to complete.

While Trulieve doesn't currently own any shops in Arizona, the companies do have some overlap in Florida and Pennsylvania and California.

Both companies have stock traded on the Canadian market and the over-the-counter market in the U.S.

Markets react to news of sale​

Harvest stock shot up Monday on the news, as the proposed purchase price is about a 34% premium to what the company's value was Friday when the markets closed.

Everyone who owns a share of Harvest stock will get 0.117 of a share in the new Trulieve company.


Harvest shares, which use the ticker symbol HARV, closed Friday at $4.35 per share. They opened Monday at $5.20 on the early-morning announcement. The stock uses the ticker HRVSF on the U.S. over-the-counter market, where shares saw a similar bump Monday.

Trulieve shares, which use the ticker symbol TRUL, closed Friday at $49.70 per share and were down slightly on the news Monday. The stock uses the ticker TCNNF on the U.S. over-the-counter market, where shares saw a similar drop Monday.

Some analysts thought Trulieve could have found a better acquisition target but also noted the dominance the newly merged company will represent in the U.S. cannabis market.

"With the Harvest deal, Trulieve gains No. 1 status in Arizona and gets close to No. 1 in Pennsylvania, besides adding to its dominant Florida franchise," Cantor Fitzgerald & Co. analyst Pablo Zuanic said in a note to investors after the announcement Monday.

 

[momofthegoons]

​

Arizona Supreme Court Launches Site To Help People Expunge Marijuana Convictions​

The Arizona Supreme Court on Wednesday announced that it has launched a website to help people expunge their past marijuana conviction records, pursuant to the legalization initiative that voters approved last year.

“Provisions for expunging records that show the arrest, charge, adjudication, conviction, or sentence of certain marijuana-related offenses take effect July 12, 2021,” the court said. “The website will help individuals determine if they qualify for expungement and will provide forms and instructions for filing.”



Arizona voters overwhelmingly approved a measure to legalize adult-use cannabis in the state last year, and sales started in January—a notably quick implementation compared to the speed with which other legal states have rolled out retail operations.

But with respect to the expungements provisions of the initiative, that’s taken some additional time. Now the state Supreme Court is assisting in the facilitation of the record clearing process with this new website.

People who have been convicted of possessing up to 2 1/2 ounces of marijuana, six plants or marijuana paraphernalia are eligible for expungements.

“Adult and juvenile arrests, charges, adjudications, convictions, and sentences are eligible for expungement if the applicant meets the requirements,” the court said in the notice. ” The expungement process seals records from the public, while keeping them available to the person arrested, charged, adjudicated, convicted, or sentenced.”

“Implementation can be complicated in part because records eligible for expungement can be included on documents with other, ineligible offenses or that include information about codefendants not eligible for expungement,” it continued. “Depending on the facts of the arrest, charge, adjudication, conviction, or sentence, the petition may need to be filed in a municipal court, justice court, or superior court. There is no filing fee to file a petition for expungement.”

Meanwhile, Arizona regulators published final rules on social equity for the industry this week.

General rules for the state’s adult-use market took effect on January 15. They cover licensing fees, the timeline for approvals, the structure of the regulatory body, product labeling, public safety protocols and more.

 

[Vitolo]

Thanks for posting good info.
I actually tried it!
While my charges back in 2015 were all reduced to misdemeanor status, my attorney advises me
that I am not eligible for expungement or further reduction of charges... since my weight .. "out of the ground" was greater than the formula allows...
.. and I signed acceptance of the plea agreement... which stated I would try for no further reduction/elimination/dismissal of the charges that were reduced to misdemeanor status.
All good for sure.
A gift that has accompanied my 70th year is not giving a shit about Governmental repercussions!

 

[bulllee]

Arizona’s Pot Prohibitionists Haven’t Gone Away​

DAVID ABBOTT AUGUST 19, 2021 6:00AM

momsstrong.org

The war is over: Arizona voters legalized recreational marijuana at the ballot box last year by a 60-to-40 margin, ten years after medical marijuana was made legal in the state. Since January, when recreational sales began, it’s been rare to drive past a Phoenix dispensary that didn’t have a line out the door. Marijuana is pumping cash into the economy and tax revenue into the state’s coffers.

But the fight for rights is never truly won. And for many of the state’s most ardent pot prohibitionists, the battles continue.

A handful of marijuana-related bills were put forth in Arizona’s most recent legislative session, including an effort to limit dispensaries from advertising and publicly sponsoring community events and a push to incorporate THC blood-level limits into DUI assessments. The year before, House Speaker Rusty Bowers introduced HCR 2045, which would have asked voters to set a two percent cap on THC in medical marijuana. (Marijuana found in a modern cannabis dispensary generally has 20 to 25 percent THC content, while concentrates have levels that are much higher.)

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In more rural parts of the state, some communities have been struggling to make sense of Proposition 207 and are reluctant to open up to the economic benefits of this billion-dollar industry.

That dynamic has been on full display lately in Graham County, where a zoning battle between the board of supervisors and a Valley-based prohibitionist group could hamper legal cannabis businesses in eastern Arizona.

On June 12, the Graham County Board of Supervisors approved the rezoning of 236 acres in Bonita for cannabis cultivation. The property is owned by Willcox-based company NatureSweet, which owns two greenhouses in Bonita and seeks to diversify its property there.

Two referenda have since been filed attempting to overturn that decision.

One, by a group calling itself “Respect the Will of the People,” recently submitted more than 2,200 signatures in support of overturning the zoning change, outpacing the 1,064 it needed in the days leading up to the Aug. 5 deadline. According to Graham County Elections Director Hannah Duderstadt, once the department verifies the signatures and they are found to be sufficient, the referendum will go on the November 2022 ballot. (A call to George Khalaf, who is representing “Respect the Will of the People,” which is registered at a P.O. box in Safford, was not returned.)

A different group calling itself “Protect Graham County No To Drugs” has submitted two applications to the county: one to overturn the zoning change, and another that would amend county codes and levy prohibitive taxes on cannabis businesses in the county. It has until July 2022 to get the signatures required for a November 2022 initiative.

Specifically, the “No To Drugs” group wants to impose a $1,000 occupational permit fee as well as a $1,000-per-pound tax on all cannabis and cannabis byproducts “sold or transferred” from the facility. The chairman of the organization is identified as Kenneth Daniel Krieger, a former Peoria chiropractor, who, according to a report in the Gila Herald, has a history of attempts to stop grow facilities across the state. Krieger reportedly led a group known as “Citizens for a Safer Snowflake” that sued to stop Copperstate Farms from setting up its successful grow facility in Snowflake on another former NatureSweet site. That case was dismissed.

Timothy Sifert, the treasurer of “Protect Graham County No To Drugs,” told Phoenix New Times “I’ll forward this to the committee leadership, I’m just the treasurer,” and didn’t respond to a follow-up.

Focusing on the Family​

Leading up to the legalization of adult-use, recreational pot in 2020, a group calling itself Arizonans for Health and Public Safety, chaired by anti-cannabis activist Lisa James, sought to stop Prop 207, filing a challenge against Smart and Safe Arizona, the advocacy group behind Prop 207, alleging the 100-word summary on its petitions to qualify for the ballot was “fraudulent.”

The Arizona Supreme Court swatted down James’ group’s challenge. Prop 207 made it to the ballot, where Arizona voters made clear their support for legalization.

James called the results of the election “a sad day” that was caused by the “deceit and self-interest” of individuals in the cannabis industry who backed the initiative. In the wake of the election, the Facebook group that rallied around James in her attempts to stop legalization has reverted back to a group calling itself AZ Parents Concerned About Legal Recreational Pot, administered by Sally Schindel, who lost her son Andrew Steven Zorn to suicide in 2014.

According to Schindel, the 31-year-old Army veteran blamed his “addiction to marijuana” in his suicide note, stating, “marijuana killed my soul & ruined my brain.” Schindel said that Zorn had many mental health problems, was hospitalized and underwent “state-ordered care,” but she blames it mainly on his marijuana use.

Schindel said she volunteers for eight different organizations working to educate people about the risks and harms of cannabis and is focused on narratives outlining the dangers of the drug.

One of the organizations Schindel is connected to is MATFORCE, a Yavapai County group focused on addressing opioid and other drug addictions. It has more than 300 volunteers, as reported on the website marijuanaharmlessthinkagain.org. MATFORCE itself is connected to several programs devoted to drug prevention and education in schools, including “the Yavapai Reentry Project, Trauma Lens Care, public awareness and education campaigns, and advocating for policy change at the state and local level.”

“I fully understand that some people find medical benefits from it and I know that people find recreational benefits from it,” she told New Times. “But I'm all too familiar myself with the risks and the harms in this.”

“I don't read very much science about the benefits of marijuana,” she added. “I believe that they are out there, but I don't need to know that much. I think it's such a dangerous drug that we should not be commercializing it and promoting it the way we do.”

Like many other prohibitionists, Schindel believes the high THC levels found in commercial marijuana are "leading to deaths." She admits that she used cannabis recreationally when she was in college in the 1960s and '70s, but now with increased potency and increasing legalization, she says people are using more potent pot more often, creating millions of new users in a lethal environment.

This line of thinking — that the commercial-grade marijuana sold at modern dispensaries is so powerful as to be dangerous, and that therefore THC limits are necessary — is likely the next battle in the war.

Arizona NORML Director Mike Robinette told New Times that these arguments have been made throughout the long history of marijuana's demonization and that any attempts to put limits on potency go directly against the will of the Arizona electorate.

“Voters in Arizona not only chose to legalize the flower of the plant but they also voted to permit the sale and consumption of products extracted from the plant,” he said. “We find it repugnant that there are those who now seek to silence the voice of the majority of Arizona voters by promoting the concept of THC caps. Medical patients rely on higher potency THC for relief from myriad health conditions and adults should always have the freedom of choice to consume higher potency THC products. Therefore, we are in strict opposition to the imposition of THC caps into a controlled, medicinal or adult-use market.”

Schindel said she understands that legal cannabis is not going away and that she is against incarcerating people for possession of small amounts, but she holds close the idea that the harms of cannabis far outweigh the benefits. Hence the fact that she is devoting her life to getting her message out to the public.

“We have the focus of educating and regulating, not getting rid of marijuana, it's not going to happen,” she said. “It's just not going to happen. I don't know anybody who thinks that could happen.”

 

[momofthegoons]

Arizona Court Clears Over 3,600 Cannabis Charges in Clean Sweep​

Maricopa County maintains the lead in Arizona’s expungement process.

Righting the wrongs of the War on Drugs is in full gear in Arizona. According to an August 30 press release, the Superior Court of Arizona in Maricopa County granted 3,643 petitions for expungement of cannabis-related charges since the process started last month.

The court announced that following the passage of Proposition 207 in 2020, an average of 650 people per week are filing petitions with the Superior Court of Arizona in Maricopa County to have felony cannabis-related convictions wiped off their records.

“The Law Library Resource Center worked hard to ensure the forms and instructions are easy to complete for customers seeking to expunge their felony marijuana conviction or arrest record. They can download the forms and instructions for free on our website and follow the instructions for the remainder of the process,” said Paula Collins, administrator of the Law Library Resource Center.

The Superior Court in Maricopa County’s Law Library Resource Center, among many organizations throughout Arizona, is helping with the expungement process, has posted all the necessary forms that petitioners can find online as well as instructions on how to complete the process.

If a court grants a request to expunge a cannabis-related criminal charge, three things could happen: the case file and police records will be sealed, the conviction and sentence will be vacated along with any outstanding court debt imposed in connection with the expunged charge, and the defendant’s civil rights will be restored in terms of cannabis-related charges.

To see what offenses are eligible, visit the website.

Before filing a petition for expungement, people should check with their respective court. In the event that the conviction was adjudicated in a justice or city court, that court should be contacted for more information. If the case was resolved in the Juvenile Department of Superior Court, there is a separate juvenile petition to expunge. Anybody who has been arrested but not charged will need to file a civil petition to expunge the record.

“Customers can also schedule an appointment on our website to visit any of the Law Library Resource Center location and purchase the packet if they are unable to download and print the forms,” Collins added.

A fee is not charged for the petition to expunge the conviction.

Arizona Court Decisions Under Proposition 207​

Proposition 207 which passed with 60 percent of the vote in favor of legalizing cannabis, also included a 16 percent tax on sales that helps fund community colleges, public safety, public health programs and roads and highways.

The cannabis conviction program was launched last July 13. Under the program, Arizona residents with convictions for possessing, transporting or consuming 2.5 ounces or less of cannabis—no more than 12.5 grams can be a cannabis concentrate or extract—are eligible to have their records expunged.

People with convictions for possessing, cultivating, processing or transporting up to six cannabis plants at their primary residence are also eligible. Expungements are also available for convictions for possessing, using or transporting paraphernalia related to the consumption, cultivation and processing of cannabis.

Assistance is also available from several organizations including the cannabis advocacy group Minorities for Medical Marijuana (M4MM), which has been offering expungement clinics through its Project Clean Slate initiative.

A similar initiative, Proposition 205, failed to be approved in 2016. It would have legalized adult-use cannabis with tax revenue going to the Arizona’s school system.

In Maricopa County, prosecutors took the lead early on in enacting the legalization of cannabis as mandated by the people through Proposition 207. Following the bill’s approval in November 2020, the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office began filing motions to dismiss charges in pending cases covered by the initiative,

 

[bulllee]

Phoenix Woman Who Used Marijuana During Her Pregnancy Appeals Child Endangerment Case​

DAVID ABBOTT JULY 15, 2021 6:00AM

Photo by Ryan Franco on Unsplash


A group of organizations and individuals led by National Advocates for Pregnant Women and including comedian Amy Schumer have weighed in on a lawsuit in support of a Phoenix woman accused of child endangerment for her legal use of cannabis during a difficult portion of her pregnancy.

On July 1, the group filed an amicus brief with the Arizona Court of Appeals on behalf of “45 leading health organizations, doctors, ethicists, scientific and medical experts, and advocates,” in support of Lindsay Ridgell, who was found guilty of civil child neglect and placed on Arizona’s Child Abuse Central Registry because she used medical marijuana during her pregnancy to allay the symptoms of hyperemesis gravidarum, or HG, a condition that causes severe and life-threatening nausea, vomiting and dehydration.

The registry is a clearinghouse of reports related to child abuse and neglect, and the information may be used for purposes including determination qualifications for persons employed in positions providing service to children.

It is also a tool used to “determine the nature and scope of child abuse and neglect” and compare Arizona data to national trends, regardless of whether that neglect or abuse arose from the lawful or unlawful use of substances, a mental illness or incapacity, or simply an inability to properly care for a child. Inclusion in the registry can have a detrimental effect on the lives of those included, with a 25-year term that can follow a person for the majority of their adult lives.

The Ridgell case is an appeal of the Department of Child Safety's decision to keep a former employee of the department on the registry.

“The law is abundantly clear,” said Scottsdale attorney Julie Gunnigle. “The AMMA [Arizona Medical Marijuana Act, passed in 2010] was designed to prevent these sorts of issues.”

Ridgell, a qualified medical marijuana patient for more than 10 years, found that she was pregnant in September 2018 and used cannabis to alleviate nausea and vomiting experienced as a result of her pregnancy.

The following month, she complained to her doctor about anxiety, nausea, lack of appetite, and difficulty sleeping. Her doctor prescribed medication for her condition, but she found that those did not relieve her symptoms, so she used cannabis to find relief.

She was hospitalized twice, receiving additional prescriptions from her OBGYN for medications to treat HG, and gave birth to her baby boy in May 2019.

There were medical issues with the baby from the beginning. He was transferred to Phoenix Children's Hospital for further evaluation. Blood tests found that the boy had several prescription drugs in his system, all prescribed to Ridgell by her doctor, as well as a positive test for marijuana.

At the end of May 2019, DCS informed the new mother that she was being placed on the registry.

Eventually, Ridgell requested an appeal, stating, “I have a medical marijuana card. I did not use an illegal drug. It was prescribed by a doctor. I used medical marijuana due to being diagnosed with hyperemis (sic) gravidum—severe nausea and vomiting.”

On Feb. 6, 2020, an administrative law judge found that most of DCS's evidence was “double hearsay,” and “was not the kind of evidence on which a reasonable person would rely.” The AJL directed DCS to amend its previous finding as “unsubstantiated” — thereby removing Ridgell from the registry — “because [Ridgell] used medical marijuana under her doctor's care and according to their instructions during her pregnancy.”

But DCS refused to comply, stating that Ridgell had neglected the child by exposing him prenatally to cannabis that “was not the result of a medical treatment administered to the mother or the newborn infant by a health professional.”

A judicial review of the case in Maricopa County Superior Court upheld the DCS decision, which led to the current appeal to the Arizona Court of Appeals to determine “whether the administrative action was illegal, arbitrary, capricious, or involved an abuse of discretion.”

Should the appeal be successful, it would set a precedent and help clarify the law for future cannabis patients who may get pregnant.

At issue is whether the AMMA's anti-discrimination provision applies to the DCS's Central Registry. That law allows all adults, including those who are pregnant, to benefit from medical marijuana without penalty.

“My client was the only one who presented any science,” Gunnigle said. “She [submitted evidence] showing cannabis is a choice to treat HG during pregnancy, and that the risks to the fetus are not extreme. … Compared to the risks of the pharmaceuticals prescribed for HG that weren't working, or the risk of having untreated HG, which is a one in three chance of a miscarriage? It's minimal risk, and it's a decision that she was completely entitled to make.”

The case is unusual in that Ridgell is a former DCS employee who is familiar with the inner workings of the department, according to Gunnigle. She believes provisions of the AMMA that protect patients from discrimination would preclude her inclusion in the state's registry.

Gunnigle believes a lot of people on the registry are there for similar, unjust reasons, but they do not come forward due to the stigmatization of both cannabis use and being associated with the registry in the first place. She also believes it is a harmful situation because it might lead medical marijuana patients to forgo prenatal treatment out of fear of retribution by the state.

“The response isn't, 'Let me reevaluate my medical choices with my doctor.' The response instead, for a lot of people, is 'Let me forego prenatal care,' because they don't want this experience,” Gunnigle said. “That is a public health nightmare and it's one more reason why policing these really private medical choices is terrible public policy.”

Gunnigle has her hands full these days as director of politics and civic engagement for Arizona NORML, given the organization's push to help those affected by the war on drugs with expungement of their pot-related records. Since cannabis has become legal in the state of Arizona, she has joined in the fight to destigmatize the drug, a tall order in a state that has so many legislators and agencies working to undermine the laws.

Gunnigle sees this as an important case that can guide future decisions and keep others from suffering Ridgell's fate and protect the civil rights of cannabis users, particularly in underserved communities throughout the state.

“This has happened to so many other families, but she's the one who was able to get the resources together within the community and fight,” Gunnigle said. “That's actually why I took this case, because it would set precedent and it would stop this disgusting practice ... I can only imagine when you're coming forward and saying 'I have a previous child neglect charge, I'm on the central registry for neglect' — the shame and stigma of coming forward for something like that has got to be great.”

When the NAPW heard about the case, the organization quickly offered its support, as the case fits in with its mission of protecting the rights of pregnant women throughout the country.

Samantha Lee
“We advocate for people who have their liberty taken from because of their pregnancy, because of some action or inaction that they've taken during their pregnancy,” NAPW staff attorney Samantha Lee said. “I think we're seeing an increase of people being charged either in criminal court or family court for legal medical marijuana use, during pregnancy, and this is an instance where people are being treated differently because they're pregnant. … This person was a qualified user under the Arizona Medical Marijuana Act.”

Lee credits the uptick of such cases in part to the legalization of cannabis in some form in a majority of states and sees this case as a continuation of the fight to protect the overall rights of the cannabis-using community.

Both NORML and NAPW have enjoined this case as a chance to further repair the damage done to communities throughout the destructive history of the war on drugs.

“This is the 50th anniversary of the war on drugs in the United States, and there's no question that is at least some explanation for this kind of misuse of the Arizona law,” NAPW Director Lynn Paltrow said. “It should come as no surprise that war is continuing, and in this case, it's particularly targeting people who can get pregnant and are parents.”

Schumer has joined the amicus brief to add some celebrity heft after chronicling her own experience with HG in the HBO Max series, Expecting Amy. Other organizations that signed onto the brief include the Academy of Perinatal Harm Reduction, Arizona Attorneys for Criminal Justice, Arizona Center for Women’s Advancement, Central Arizona National Lawyers Guild, Drug Policy Alliance, North American Society of Psychosocial Obstetrics and Gynecology, Pima County Defender’s Office, and the Women’s Law Project.

 

[bulllee]

AFC Gamma expands loan to marijuana MSO Nature’s Medicines by $30 million​

Published 6 hours ago



Florida-based cannabis business real estate lender AFC Gamma loaned an additional $30 million to Arizona-headquartered multistate marijuana operator Devi Holdings, which does business as Nature’s Medicines.
Nature’s Medicines operates cannabis dispensaries in Arizona, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan and Pennsylvania, according to its website, with a pending location in Missouri. The company also cultivates cannabis.

In May 2020, AFC Gamma announced it was lending $42 million “to streamline Nature’s Medicines’ capital structure and support its expansion initiatives, which include growth in its home state of Arizona and significant expansion into the Michigan market.”
AFC Gamma said in a Monday news released that $20 million more went to expanding the credit facility, with $10 million “syndicated to an affiliate.”
The credit facility now totals $62.5 million, secured against Nature’s Medicines’ “owned real-estate and other commercial-security interests.”
The expanded loan “is designed to provide Nature’s Medicines with additional capital to complete strategic acquisitions and further expand its existing business operations,” AFC Gamma noted.
“With favorable supply and demand fundamentals across its operating and targeted markets, we believe Nature’s Medicines is poised for additional growth,” AFC Gamma CEO Leonard Tannenbaum said in the release.
AFC Gamma shares trade on the Nasdaq exchange as AFCG.