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Law The Cannabis Chronicles - Misc Cannabis News

Did Kamala Harris Flip-Flop On Marijuana Again To Adopt Biden’s Anti-Legalization Position?​


Does Vice President Kamala Harris still support legalizing marijuana? According to a short passage buried in a new Bloomberg report about efforts to appoint a new top White House drug policy official, the answer seems to be no.

Harris, who sponsored a comprehensive Senate bill to end federal cannabis prohibition in 2019, has now reportedly adopted the same position as President Joe Biden, who opposes legalization, the outlet reported on Monday.

There have been signs that might be the case, as Harris has stepped back her calls for broad reform in recent months, opting instead to push for cannabis decriminalization and expungements in line with the president’s agenda. She spent significant time during her own presidential campaign making the case for federally legalizing marijuana, but that specific narrative has been largely abandoned since she joined Biden’s presidential ticket in August.

Decriminalization and expungements is the favored policy of Biden, who also backs medical cannabis legalization, modestly rescheduling the plant under federal law and letting states set their own policies on the issue.

Bloomberg reported that an aide Harris’s team said her “positions are now the same as Biden’s,” though the source asked not to be named because the vice president hasn’t announced the policy shift. Marijuana Moment reached out to three press staffers in the vice president’s office for clarification, but they did not respond by the time of publication.

The lack of specificity leaves rooms for the possibility that the staffer was referring to Biden changing his position and embracing legalization as Harris has. But considering that the vice president’s rhetoric on the issue has shifted—with her reaffirming an administration commitment to simply “decriminalizing marijuana” and expunging records, rather than legalize the plant—it appears more likely that it’s Harris whose views have changed.

In September, for example, she simply said that “we will decriminalize the use of marijuanaand automatically expunge all marijuana use convictions and incarceration for drug use alone.”

This wouldn’t be the first time Harris has flip-flopped on cannabis. She was staunchly opposed to legalization and actively campaigned against a California reform initiative on the 2010 ballot during her time as the state’s attorney general, co-authoring an official voter guide argument stating that the measure “seriously compromises the safety of our communities, roadways, and workplaces.”

In 2014, Harris was asked about marijuana legalization in light of her Republican opponent for attorney general supporting it, and she dismissively laughed off the question.



But in 2018, she adopted a pro-legalization stance and signed onto descheduling legislation, saying “we need to start regulating marijuana.”

What this latest reported shift means practically for marijuana reform in 2021 is unclear. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), Senate Finance Committee Chairman Ron Wyden (D-OR) and Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ) are moving forward with plans to introduce a legalization bill this session, and they’ve already met with advocates and stakeholders to gain input on what that legislation should include.

If they were willing to push the issue despite Biden’s ongoing opposition to adult-use legalization, it stands to reason they will stay the course if reports about the vice president’s stance are true. That said, with the Senate split evenly among Democrats and Republicans, her position on the issue could come to the fore in the event that she’s needed as the tie-breaking vote on a legalization bill on the floor.

Coincidentally, it’s likely that parts of Harris’s Marijuana Opportunity, Reinvestment and Expungement (MORE) Act will be incorporated into their proposal, as the House version passed in that chamber last year and advocates favor its strong social equity provisions.

The news about Harris’s apparent change of heart on cannabis policy came as part of a Bloomberg report on the White House search for a “drug czar” to lead the Office of National Drug Control Policy. Former Rep. Patrick Kennedy (D-RI), a cofounder of the nation’s leading marijuana prohibitionist group, has been publicly lobbying the administration for an appointment to the position—much to the chagrin of reform advocates.

Meanwhile, an arguably more consequential nominee when it comes to federal drug policy is going through the confirmation process and said last week that he doesn’t think Justice Department resources should be wasted going after individuals acting in compliance with state marijuana laws.

“It does not seem to me useful the use of limited resources that we have to be pursuing prosecutions in states that have legalized and are regulating the use of marijuana, either medically or otherwise,” Judge Merrick Garland told the Senate Judiciary Committee.

Separately, the Biden administration is instituting a new policy of granting waivers to some White House staff who’ve used cannabis. The Office of Personnel Management has also distributed a memo last week to federal agencies stipulating that admitting to past marijuana use should not automatically disqualify people from being employed in the federal government.
 
momofthegoons said:

Did Kamala Harris Flip-Flop On Marijuana Again To Adopt Biden’s Anti-Legalization Position?​


Does Vice President Kamala Harris still support legalizing marijuana? According to a short passage buried in a new Bloomberg report about efforts to appoint a new top White House drug policy official, the answer seems to be no.

Harris, who sponsored a comprehensive Senate bill to end federal cannabis prohibition in 2019, has now reportedly adopted the same position as President Joe Biden, who opposes legalization, the outlet reported on Monday.

There have been signs that might be the case, as Harris has stepped back her calls for broad reform in recent months, opting instead to push for cannabis decriminalization and expungements in line with the president’s agenda. She spent significant time during her own presidential campaign making the case for federally legalizing marijuana, but that specific narrative has been largely abandoned since she joined Biden’s presidential ticket in August.

Decriminalization and expungements is the favored policy of Biden, who also backs medical cannabis legalization, modestly rescheduling the plant under federal law and letting states set their own policies on the issue.

Bloomberg reported that an aide Harris’s team said her “positions are now the same as Biden’s,” though the source asked not to be named because the vice president hasn’t announced the policy shift. Marijuana Moment reached out to three press staffers in the vice president’s office for clarification, but they did not respond by the time of publication.

The lack of specificity leaves rooms for the possibility that the staffer was referring to Biden changing his position and embracing legalization as Harris has. But considering that the vice president’s rhetoric on the issue has shifted—with her reaffirming an administration commitment to simply “decriminalizing marijuana” and expunging records, rather than legalize the plant—it appears more likely that it’s Harris whose views have changed.

In September, for example, she simply said that “we will decriminalize the use of marijuanaand automatically expunge all marijuana use convictions and incarceration for drug use alone.”

This wouldn’t be the first time Harris has flip-flopped on cannabis. She was staunchly opposed to legalization and actively campaigned against a California reform initiative on the 2010 ballot during her time as the state’s attorney general, co-authoring an official voter guide argument stating that the measure “seriously compromises the safety of our communities, roadways, and workplaces.”

In 2014, Harris was asked about marijuana legalization in light of her Republican opponent for attorney general supporting it, and she dismissively laughed off the question.



But in 2018, she adopted a pro-legalization stance and signed onto descheduling legislation, saying “we need to start regulating marijuana.”

What this latest reported shift means practically for marijuana reform in 2021 is unclear. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), Senate Finance Committee Chairman Ron Wyden (D-OR) and Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ) are moving forward with plans to introduce a legalization bill this session, and they’ve already met with advocates and stakeholders to gain input on what that legislation should include.

If they were willing to push the issue despite Biden’s ongoing opposition to adult-use legalization, it stands to reason they will stay the course if reports about the vice president’s stance are true. That said, with the Senate split evenly among Democrats and Republicans, her position on the issue could come to the fore in the event that she’s needed as the tie-breaking vote on a legalization bill on the floor.

Coincidentally, it’s likely that parts of Harris’s Marijuana Opportunity, Reinvestment and Expungement (MORE) Act will be incorporated into their proposal, as the House version passed in that chamber last year and advocates favor its strong social equity provisions.

The news about Harris’s apparent change of heart on cannabis policy came as part of a Bloomberg report on the White House search for a “drug czar” to lead the Office of National Drug Control Policy. Former Rep. Patrick Kennedy (D-RI), a cofounder of the nation’s leading marijuana prohibitionist group, has been publicly lobbying the administration for an appointment to the position—much to the chagrin of reform advocates.

Meanwhile, an arguably more consequential nominee when it comes to federal drug policy is going through the confirmation process and said last week that he doesn’t think Justice Department resources should be wasted going after individuals acting in compliance with state marijuana laws.

“It does not seem to me useful the use of limited resources that we have to be pursuing prosecutions in states that have legalized and are regulating the use of marijuana, either medically or otherwise,” Judge Merrick Garland told the Senate Judiciary Committee.

Separately, the Biden administration is instituting a new policy of granting waivers to some White House staff who’ve used cannabis. The Office of Personnel Management has also distributed a memo last week to federal agencies stipulating that admitting to past marijuana use should not automatically disqualify people from being employed in the federal government.
Click to expand...

Absolutely shocked that the guy who wrote the lock'em up crime bill and a literal over reaching,corrupt prosecutor who enslaved cannabis users in California would lie about cannabis to get elected.
I would laugh at the people who voted them in...........but they were warned and absolutely knew what they were voting for.
War,arms deals,no stimulus.......endless list of lies but hey,no "mean" tweets anymore........am I right?
Almost as disgusting and shameful as the second shrub.........almost.
 
momofthegoons said:

Did Kamala Harris Flip-Flop On Marijuana Again To Adopt Biden’s Anti-Legalization Position?​


Does Vice President Kamala Harris still support legalizing marijuana? According to a short passage buried in a new Bloomberg report about efforts to appoint a new top White House drug policy official, the answer seems to be no.

Harris, who sponsored a comprehensive Senate bill to end federal cannabis prohibition in 2019, has now reportedly adopted the same position as President Joe Biden, who opposes legalization, the outlet reported on Monday.

There have been signs that might be the case, as Harris has stepped back her calls for broad reform in recent months, opting instead to push for cannabis decriminalization and expungements in line with the president’s agenda. She spent significant time during her own presidential campaign making the case for federally legalizing marijuana, but that specific narrative has been largely abandoned since she joined Biden’s presidential ticket in August.

Decriminalization and expungements is the favored policy of Biden, who also backs medical cannabis legalization, modestly rescheduling the plant under federal law and letting states set their own policies on the issue.

Bloomberg reported that an aide Harris’s team said her “positions are now the same as Biden’s,” though the source asked not to be named because the vice president hasn’t announced the policy shift. Marijuana Moment reached out to three press staffers in the vice president’s office for clarification, but they did not respond by the time of publication.

The lack of specificity leaves rooms for the possibility that the staffer was referring to Biden changing his position and embracing legalization as Harris has. But considering that the vice president’s rhetoric on the issue has shifted—with her reaffirming an administration commitment to simply “decriminalizing marijuana” and expunging records, rather than legalize the plant—it appears more likely that it’s Harris whose views have changed.

In September, for example, she simply said that “we will decriminalize the use of marijuanaand automatically expunge all marijuana use convictions and incarceration for drug use alone.”

This wouldn’t be the first time Harris has flip-flopped on cannabis. She was staunchly opposed to legalization and actively campaigned against a California reform initiative on the 2010 ballot during her time as the state’s attorney general, co-authoring an official voter guide argument stating that the measure “seriously compromises the safety of our communities, roadways, and workplaces.”

In 2014, Harris was asked about marijuana legalization in light of her Republican opponent for attorney general supporting it, and she dismissively laughed off the question.



But in 2018, she adopted a pro-legalization stance and signed onto descheduling legislation, saying “we need to start regulating marijuana.”

What this latest reported shift means practically for marijuana reform in 2021 is unclear. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), Senate Finance Committee Chairman Ron Wyden (D-OR) and Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ) are moving forward with plans to introduce a legalization bill this session, and they’ve already met with advocates and stakeholders to gain input on what that legislation should include.

If they were willing to push the issue despite Biden’s ongoing opposition to adult-use legalization, it stands to reason they will stay the course if reports about the vice president’s stance are true. That said, with the Senate split evenly among Democrats and Republicans, her position on the issue could come to the fore in the event that she’s needed as the tie-breaking vote on a legalization bill on the floor.

Coincidentally, it’s likely that parts of Harris’s Marijuana Opportunity, Reinvestment and Expungement (MORE) Act will be incorporated into their proposal, as the House version passed in that chamber last year and advocates favor its strong social equity provisions.

The news about Harris’s apparent change of heart on cannabis policy came as part of a Bloomberg report on the White House search for a “drug czar” to lead the Office of National Drug Control Policy. Former Rep. Patrick Kennedy (D-RI), a cofounder of the nation’s leading marijuana prohibitionist group, has been publicly lobbying the administration for an appointment to the position—much to the chagrin of reform advocates.

Meanwhile, an arguably more consequential nominee when it comes to federal drug policy is going through the confirmation process and said last week that he doesn’t think Justice Department resources should be wasted going after individuals acting in compliance with state marijuana laws.

“It does not seem to me useful the use of limited resources that we have to be pursuing prosecutions in states that have legalized and are regulating the use of marijuana, either medically or otherwise,” Judge Merrick Garland told the Senate Judiciary Committee.

Separately, the Biden administration is instituting a new policy of granting waivers to some White House staff who’ve used cannabis. The Office of Personnel Management has also distributed a memo last week to federal agencies stipulating that admitting to past marijuana use should not automatically disqualify people from being employed in the federal government.
Click to expand...

I need to be very careful....I'm not sure I can comment without dragging this wonderful and informative thread into political hell....but, with that said, I really don't think Harris has a true internal value in her body. She is, to me, the ultimate Machiavellian and shifts with the wind as it suits her ambition.

@momofthegoons - if this is over the line, I completely understand and ask that you just delete it.
arb said:
Almost as disgusting and shameful as the second shrub.........almost.
Click to expand...

Second shrub???...shrub as in small leafy bush?????
 
Rick Steves
Chair, NORML Board of Directors
Screenshot_2021-03-02_at_3.29.25_PM.png

I didn’t know this!
 

Veterans Groups Want Marijuana And Psychedelics Access Through VA, They Tell Congress​


Leaders of military veterans organizations sent a clear message to congressional lawmakers this week: federal marijuana and psychedelics laws are outdated and should be reformed to give service members alternative treatment options for conditions like post-traumatic stress disorder.

During joint hearings before House and Senate Veterans Affairs Committees on Wednesday and Thursday, three veterans service organizations (VSOs) submitted written testimony backing a policy change to expand access to or increase research on medical cannabis, and one argued in favor of loosening restrictions to enable veterans to utilize psychedelics in their mental health treatment.

Cannabis’s medical potential and the way that federal policy impedes research was also raised during one of the hearings by a freshman Republican member of Congress.

“The epidemic of substance use disorder and other mental health crises among veterans demonstrates the need for innovative therapies that extend beyond traditional psychopharmacological interventions,” Minority Veterans of America (MVA) said in its written testimony. “As such, we believe it is necessary to include cannabis and psychedelics in the [Veterans Health Administration’s] psychopharmacological repertoire.”

“Research into cannabis demonstrates its effectiveness in treating PTSD and SUDs in veteran populations (although more research is needed), as well as reducing the use of opioids and opioid-related deaths,” the group continued. “Additionally, research into psychedelics has demonstrated its efficacy to treat both substance use disorders and for post-traumatic stress disorder.”

MVA said that while the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is allowing ketamine-based therapy for severe depression on a case-by-case basis, studies have demonstrated that other psychedelics have shown promise in the treatment of conditions that commonly afflict veterans and lawmakers should “consider allowing psychedelics and cannabis to be included in the psychopharmacological repertoire.”

“Additionally, we would urge the Committees to support and remove existing governmental impediments to cannabis and psychedelic research and therapies within the Department and throughout the United States generally,” the organization said.

Last year, a federal commission tasked with developing recommendations to improve mental health treatment for military veterans reached a similar conclusion about the potential usefulness of psychedelics and marijuana. The panel advised that Congress and the executive branch should promote research into the therapeutic potential of these substances.

Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA), meanwhile, said in its written testimony that “medical cannabis has been growing in support among the veteran population for quite some time” and “can bring relief to millions, save taxpayers billions and create thousands of jobs for veterans nationwide.”

“For years, IAVA members have sounded off in support of researching and legalizing medical cannabis use for treating the wounds of war,” it said, citing member surveys on the issue. “Veterans consistently and passionately have communicated that cannabis offers effective help in tackling some of the most pressing injuries we face when returning from war.”

“Across party lines, medicinal cannabis has been rapidly increasing in support,” it continued. “Yet our national policies are outdated, research is lacking, and stigma persists.”

The group said that it will continue advocating for research into the medical potential of marijuana, but the plant’s classification as a Schedule I drug under the Controlled Substances Act and “federal bureaucratic hurdles” continue to “stymie good research” while making the scientific process “stagnant, cumbersome, and convoluted.”

“While not impossible, federal research into cannabis faces many bureaucratic hurdles that hinder good research,” IAVA said. “We will never get a definitive answer on the efficacy of cannabis as a treatment option while federal regulations that actively undermine solid research studies remain in place. The system is antiquated and must be adjusted to match state laws and research needs.”

Meanwhile, Disabled American Veteran (DAV) said simply in its testimony that it supports “VA research into the efficacy of cannabis for treatment of service-connected veterans.”

These submissions come from two out of three VSO presentations that have been scheduledby the joint committees this month, with other veterans groups set to share their views with the panels on March 18.

At Thursday’s hearing, Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks (R-IA) said she believes marijuana’s Schedule I status needs to be changed, and she asked the veterans group representatives to share their views on the issue.

David Zurfluh, the national president of of Paralyzed Veterans of America, replied that “we fully support medical marijuana research” and noted that cannabis is “heavily used for pain” by military veterans.

“It’s something we should look into more,” he said. “I think it could be beneficial in the long run.”

The Wounded Warrior Project’s Mike Linnington said that his group supports a bill that the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee approved last year to require VA to conduct clinical trials on the medical potential of cannabis.

“We support H.R. 712, and certainly anything that helps veterans with symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder [and] traumatic brain injury,” he said. “We need to make every available resource to them, consistent with federal laws of course.”

The House panel’s chairman, Rep. Mark Takano (D-CA), said it was helpful to know that Miller-Meeks, who just joined Congress this year, supports reclassifying cannabis and increasing research into its benefits, especially as a doctor and a member from the other party.

The issue has “been gathering up bipartisan support for this research for quite some time,” he said. “I’m hopeful we’re going to be able to move forward with something.”



After Takano’s panel voted last year to approved the research expansion bill and another piece of legislation to allow VA doctors to recommend medical marijuana to their patients in states where it’s legal, the proposals died without a vote on the House floor.

In January, Rep. Greg Steube (R-FL) filed a new bill to codify that VA doctors can discuss the risks and therapeutic potential of cannabis with their patients and to shield veterans from losing their government benefits over marijuana use. It has not yet been scheduled for any hearings or votes.

The testimony from the veterans groups this week largely aligns with previous hearingsbefore the joint House and Senate panels.

Going back to 2018, for example, leaders of veterans service groups called on Congress to require VA to do more to provide access to and conduct research on medical cannabis. But the psychedelics-focused testimony from MVA this year reflects a more recent public recognition that controlled substances beyond marijuana could prove beneficial to veterans and that policies around those drugs should be revisited.
 

Retail Prices for Marijuana Rise in Response to Record Demand​


The average retail price for smokable recreational marijuana products in four Western states continued to increase throughout the coronavirus pandemic, thanks to record demand. Retail flower prices in California, Colorado, Nevada and Washington state collectively grew 17 percent, with the price of pre-rolls also increasing 15 percent.



The retail data, provided by Seattle-based cannabis analytics company Headset, reflects the average item price for the past 90 days compared to the same period last year. The rise in prices is good news for cannabis retailers, because wholesale flower prices continue to increase because of robust consumer demand.
Colorado’s wholesale flower price reached its highest level since 2016, with the average market rate per pound of flower jumping 31 percent from the beginning of October 2020 to the end of January of this year. While the retail price of smokable adult-use marijuana products rose in California, Colorado, Nevada and Washington state, the retail price of other product categories were a mixed bag depending on the market.
Nevada experienced a 25 percent increase in retail flower prices over the past 90 days versus a year earlier, but all other categories fell. Prices in the state’s infused beverage category declined 31 percent over the same period last year, while the tincture and sublingual category tumbled 51 percent.

Average Item Price Last 90 Days (Percent change from 2020)​

Adult-use marijuana percent change in price since 2020 for combined market including California, Colorado, Nevada and Washington state. Source: Headset
The pricing shift is no surprise: Nevada’s marijuana market faced significant losses in tourism dollars because of the pandemic-related shutdown of the travel and convention industries. Governments in most state-legal marijuana markets labeled cannabis businesses as essential during the coronavirus pandemic, leading to double-digit sales growth.
However, sales for Nevada’s combined medical and recreational markets grew only 7 percent through September 2020, the latest numbers available. That said, sales in September jumped 32 percent compared to 2019. While Nevada has stabilized with the support of local consumers, they prefer a different product mix than convention travelers, declining pricing data in some categories shows.
 

Black market for marijuana still thriving even as it becomes legal in more states​


State by state, America is moving toward legalizing marijuana, in part as an effort to decrease illegal drug sales and bring the cash from the street corner to the state cash register.
More than a dozen states have legalized the use of medical marijuana to date, while nearly the same number have legalized it for recreational use.
But illegal pot sales are still taking place, in part because street prices are considerably cheaper, sometimes costing half as much as tax-laden cannabis sold in legal dispensaries.
Some officials also blame mixed messaging between police departments who make arrests for marijuana-related crimes and prosecutors who don’t see them as a priority.
Map of legalizing marijuana across US




With more than 80 recreational and medical marijuana dispensaries licensed and operating in Illinois, not to mention another 75 facilities in the pipeline, you might think drug dealers have moved on from marijuana. But police in the Chicago area say the black market for weed is red-hot.
“When [dispensaries] opened-up last year, we saw lines out the door,” said Kane County Sheriff Ron Hain. “But that quickly faded when [customers] compare prices and convenience. They’re going to stick with the guy they know.”
And that’s leading to dealers carrying more cash as well as weapons to protect themselves and their score.
“When people are selling drugs in neighborhoods, we’re afraid that there’s going to be robberies associated with it,” said Lansing, Ill. police Lieutenant Al Phillips.
Police have busted into Lorynda Welton’s home in the middle of the night three separate times in recent years. They were looking for her son, who was suspected of selling marijuana out of her home in Lansing, south of Chicago.
“I could very well be shot,” Ms. Welton said outside her home, which still has a broken door frame and a lock damaged during the most recent raid.
The question isn’t whether police have a right to raid Welton’s home. They had a warrant.
Rather, some police officials say individuals, like her son, who are arrested for marijuana-related crimes see charges that are too lenient if they are charged at all.
Welton’s son never received a sentence stiffer than probation for previous marijuana-related charges until he was recently arrested during a traffic stop and hit with a felony drug charge.
“There’s got to be some consequences and people have to go to jail, unfortunately, to make this stop,” Lt. Phillips said.
 
Baron23 said:
sometimes costing half as much as tax-laden cannabis sold in legal dispensaries.
Some officials also blame mixed messaging between police departments who make arrests for marijuana-related crimes and prosecutors who don’t see them as a priority.
Click to expand...
No, its the taxes.....all of our asshole politicians acted like they had seen the face of God when they realized that they might be able to partially bail themselves out of their decades of prolific spending by taxing legal MJ. If you think these polticians are really concerned with your individual rights and discretion as an adult, "social justice", or really any other reason other then the Benjamins then I personally think you are misguided or at least a bit naive! (haha...how's that for my never humble opinion! LOL)

But then again, I'm a card carrying cynic....came with life experiences.

Cheers
 
IMO, a very typical Government requirement that shows the ignorance, idiocy, and frankly laziness of our politicians who write such broad, unspecific, and flawed legislation. And they think they are our "leaders" FFS

Mail Ban: How This Crisis Will Effect the Cannabis Vaping Industry​


For those who struggle day-to-day with constant pain from chronic medical conditions, a vape pen can be the perfect way to discreetly provide instant relief with less lung inflammation than traditional flame-to-flower combustion.


Vaping heats cannabis, rather than burning it, so there is no combustion and no smoke, which makes it the preferred method for a lot of users.


Unfortunately, the cannabis vaping industry is facing a crisis that could make it difficult for patients to receive their medicine.


Mail Ban Categorizes Vaporizing Devices as Nicotine Product​


Concealed in last December’s federal bill, a new law banned the USPS delivery of vape products. This caused reputable cannabis vaporizer companies to struggle delivering products to their customers.


Due to the broad wording of the law, this generalizes any vaporizing device as a nicotine product, which will consequently cause shippers to maneuver through a strenuous list of mandatory requirements.


The Preventing Online Sales Of E-Cigarettes to Children Act calls for vape companies to follow the Prevent All Cigarette Trafficking (PACT) Act.

PACT contains a list of strict rules and regulations that vape manufactures must follow. This includes:

  • Registering with the U.S. Attorney General
  • Confirming the age of customers
  • If shipping to a state that taxes cigarettes and smokeless tobacco, businesses are required to apply to the federal government and the tobacco tax administrators of the states.
  • Keep thorough documentation of all names and addresses that the product was sold, as well as the quantities sold.
  • Keep a record for five years of all of the times a delivery was interrupted due to the buyer of the delivery violating the PACT Act.

The strict language of the PACT act includes serious repercussions if a regulation isn’t followed, including prison time. This will cause a domino effect of hardship for vaporizer companies.

Hundreds of vaporizer businesses could close, and dwindling direct-to-consumer sales will force consumers to seek other means to obtain their medicine.

Consumers Will Flock to the Black Market​


Dana E. Shoched, the president and CEO of the woman and veteran-owned vaporizer company 02VAPE, said that the stimulus package law change misrepresents their vape customers as nicotine addicts and their technology as tobacco driven, which effectively destroys their ability to serve them with safe and responsibly-produced equipment.


“The ‘stimulus’ in this case actually puts people’s livelihoods at risk and businesses like mine in an even greater struggle than the pandemic caused. And additionally, it will force consumers into a dangerous black market that should not exist,” said Shoched.


Shoched is right that the black market shouldn’t exist.


Patients shouldn’t have to risk their wellbeing with less than quality products in order to get their medicine.


However, strict regulations like this contribute to the black market’s survival.


For example, the Cannabis Advisory Committee warned California legislatures in their 2019 draft annual report that high taxes, regulations, and local bans cause illegal sales to be three times higher than legal sales in their state.


Not All Vapes Are Trustworthy​


Today, innovative technology and design are constantly evolving to create a safer, more efficient vape.


The most prominent risk in the illegal vape market is contaminated vape cartridges that have problematic cutting agents or pesticides that can cause health problems when inhaled.


For example, according to an NBC News article, a 26-year-old Wisconsin man was put into a medically induced coma after smoking from a new vape cartridge that he bought off the street.


These are the risks people face when unable to purchase from a reputable vape store.


Companies like 02VAPE are constantly pushing the envelope to create unique, portable cannabis vaporizers, and rigorously perform certified testing for heavy metals on all of their cartridges.


Shoched stresses that they have worked hard to get where they are by always putting the safety of their customers first.


“The thing I’m most concerned about is this law will choke the supply chain of equipment that many of my fellow veterans and other medicinal cannabis patients around the country use to take their medication,” said Shoched.
 

Mexico is about to legalize marijuana, which will put pressure on Biden to do the same​


Mexico’s likely approval of a law legalizing marijuana — possibly next month — could make it the world’s most populated country to authorize cannabis for medical and recreational purposes. That would have a big impact on the United States.

Some marijuana industry advocates, such as Mexico’s former President Vicente Fox, say the country’s expected passage of this law will push the Biden administration to legalize weed at the federal level in the United States.

On March 10, Mexico’s Chamber of Deputies approved the marijuana-legalization bill, which the pro-government majority Senate is expected to pass. It then would be signed by President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador.

Mexico’s Supreme Court has given an April 30 deadline for Congress to pass the bill.
Fox, who is on the board of the Khiron Life Sciences Corp. — a Colombian-Canadian partnership that sells marijuana for medical uses — told me that he expects Mexico to become a major exporter of legal marijuana to the United States.

“The new bill leaves the door open to imports and exports of marijuana products,” Fox said in an interview. “And marijuana production is five times cheaper in Mexico than in the United States.”

Even if U.S. or Mexican authorities place regulatory hurdles, Fox said that, “Mexico will take advantage of this opportunity. There are 1 million border crossings a day to and from Mexico to the United States, and Mexico will have a big (price) advantage in U.S. states where marijuana is not legal.”



Mexico’s legalization of cannabis would come two years after Canada authorized the possession, sale and distribution of the product. That means that the United States would be sandwiched between two major markets that allow marijuana for medical and recreational use.

“If the whole world is going in that direction, the United States won’t stay behind,” Fox told me.

Mexico, with a population of 130 million, would be the world’s biggest legal-marijuana market, followed by Canada, with a population of 38 million. In 2013, Uruguay was the first country to legalize production, consumption and sales of marijuana.

Fox foresees the day in which the United States, Canada and Mexico will produce and export marijuana to the rest of the world. Under the North American Free Trade Agreement, “It will be an impressive boom,” he told me.

Biden has not yet indicated support for legalizing pot for recreational use nationally. More than 30 states already allow marijuana sales for medical use, and 14 others have legalized consumption for recreational use. There are high expectations among marijuana advocates that Biden will at least de-criminalize marijuana nationally.
Most cannabis research firms are skeptical about Fox’s forecast that Mexico’s legal marijuana sales will skyrocket. Marijuana consumption is still low in Mexico, there will be many regulatory burdens and it will take years for the cannabis business to develop, they say.

A preliminary estimate by the Chicago-based Brightfield Group, a cannabis research firm, says the Mexican market will hit $327 million by 2025. By comparison, the firm expects the U.S. market to grow to $45 billion in 2025.

Also, many experts doubt the 1-million-a-day border crossings will translate into massive marijuana smuggling, because of strict customs controls. Still, there will be an impact on the United States, they say.

Jamie Schau, Brightfield’s research manager, says that Mexico’s legalization would put more pressure on neighboring U.S. states that have not legalized marijuana, such as Texas and New Mexico, to move toward legalization.

“Texas and New Mexico have massive populations that are influenced by Mexico’s culture,” Schau told me. “If it becomes more normalized by Mexico’s population to use it, more culturally accepted, less demonized, the fear around it will subside.”

Mexico’s legalization of pot “could also have some potential impact on Florida and even markets where it’s legal,” because, “There will be a wider de-stigmatization, and that leads to more acceptance,” she told me.
I agree. We probably won’t see the “impressive boom” in Mexico’s legal pot sales to the United States that Fox talks about, or a North American legal weed market, anytime soon.
But as late Mexican Nobel laureate poet Octavio Paz once told me, “Geography is the mother of history.” If both Mexico and Canada have legalized marijuana, it will be only a matter of time until it spills over to the United States.
 
arb said:
I am glad to see legalization for anyone and welcome the competition.
The outdoor suppliers will have some competition but the indoor suppliers will be ok........if they can compete on quality and price.
Click to expand...
So are we going to be smoking $110/lbs brick weed again? haha
 
arb said:
Sorry what I should have said is.......after regulating,taxing,tariffing and good old skimming that bricks gonna be around $5000.00 a lb.
Prolly make you miss the old cartel bricks.......idiots.
Click to expand...
Outdoor growing is low budget however COLAS R my aim.
MX is in the dark ages////!
Lobster is sweet there??
Surfing & COLAS R decent 4 some?
 
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