Nov 5, 2015 | California Marijuana Laws, Marijuana Legalization, Proposed MMJ Law Changes
California’s 2016 legislative program has some interesting measures pending. These are 15-0103 (Control, Regulate, and Tax Adult Use of Marijuana Act) and 15-0104 (Cannabis Control and Taxation Act). The Attorney General has these posted for comment. Interested parties are free to express opinions by following the given links.
The proposed Control, Regulate, and Tax Adult Use of Marijuana Act could become one of the most significant marijuana laws in California if eventually approved. However, those on the extreme right are keen to stop it dead in its tracks if they possibly can. So what is all the fuss about? Who is backing 15-0103 and what does the Sutton-Lyman initiative contain?
The measure is supported by big money in the form of heirs to the Hyatt hotel chain and Napster’s co-founder, and has a broad support base on both sides of the house. This is because it strengthens law enforcement, makes it tougher for kids to lay their hands on pot, protects health and safety, and promises generous support for preservation of the environment.
Marijuana Laws in California: What’s the Trend?
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Nov 2, 2015 | California Marijuana Laws, Marijuana Legalization, Proposed MMJ Law Changes
I find an intriguing dichotomy in California’s Control, Regulate, and Tax Marijuana Act proposed Friday October 2 for review. On the one hand, the draft is positively socialistic. It permits Californians aged over 21 to possess an ounce of marijuana (eight decent-sized joints) and have six pot plants in the garden of which their mother may or may not approve. The rest of the 51-page draft focusses on squeezing tax money out of a to-be-regulated industry. Regardless, it would be a huge step forward for the industry to make marijuana legal in California.
The sponsors make for interesting reading. Sean Parker, Napster co-founder and ex Facebook president kicked the ball onto the pitch although his sidekick denies he supports the latest version. The leading sponsors are now Progressive Insurance, the founder of Weedmaps Media (an app guiding consumers to marijuana dispensaries) and a bunch of heirs to the Hyatt Hotel chain. This could make an interesting story line someday but you connect the dots. The Hyatt money might just be enough to inspire consensus on the bill this year.
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Oct 21, 2015 | California Marijuana Laws, Proposed MMJ Law Changes
The sponsors of the Rohrabacher-Farr Amendment passed 2014 aimed to prevent the federal government from meddling in state medical marijuana policy. The battle between the medical marijuana lobby and law enforcement reached new heights when a California federal judge gave the amendment teeth this week. Senior District Judge Charles R. Breyer supported its intention that the department of justice may not use federal money “to prevent such states from implementing their own state laws that authorize the use, distribution, possession, or cultivation of medical marijuana”.
The Case against MAMM and Lynette Shaw-
Marin Alliance for Medical Marijuana (MAMM) and its founder Lynette Shaw were in the spotlight. They had federal injunctions against them for providing medical marihuana under the conditions of the California program, and were asking for relief. The justice department took up the position that the Rohrabacher-Farr Amendment did not apply to dispensaries or individuals, and merely prevented it from “impeding the ability of states to carry out their medical marijuana laws.”
This ran counter to the motives of amendment authors’ Dana Rohrabacher (R-Calif.) and Sam Farr (D-Calif.) Their plan had been to counter efforts of the DOJ to launch a renewed onslaught on the medical marijuana industry in California, where the product has been legal since 1996 – and providers are cooperating with state regulations. Messrs. Rohrabacher and Farr sided strongly with MAMM, calling the prosecution and conviction “a violation of the law”.
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Oct 16, 2015 | California Marijuana Laws, Collective Operations, Proposed MMJ Law Changes
The amended versions of California’s Assembly Bill 266 and Senate Bill 643 containing California’s take on medical marijuana may seem complex – but at least this time everything is neatly set out in Regulation AB 266 the Governor signed into law on October 9, 2015. However this is no guarantee that they are practical).
The regulations really are little more than a bureaucratic shove to get participants past the corncob-chewing era, and out in the open behaving like the rest of the food and drug fraternity. Cutting out the legalese (the authors must be paid per word) here is the bottom line on rules for packaging under Article 7 (Licensed Distributors, Dispensaries, and Transporters) at Section 19347(a).
- While MMJ products must be labeled and be in tamper-proof packages, these may not attract interest from children.
- Packaging must prominently display the following in clear and legible font (could be problematic when supplying individual doses)
– Date and place of manufacture
– The words “SCHEDULE I CONTROLLE SUBSTANCE.”
-“KEEP OUT OF REACH OF CHILDREN AND ANIMALS” in bold print
– The restriction “FOR MEDICAL USE ONLY.”
- Packaging must also display the following warnings, again in clear and legible font.
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Oct 11, 2015 | California Marijuana Laws, MMJ News
America has a tradition of banning things, and then unbanning them and welcoming them to the mainstream. Boardroom gender rights and embargoed booze during prohibition spring to mind. This makes it doubly interesting to watch tradition face off with medical marijuana, and see the innovation legalization is bringing to it.
Take the recent TechCrunch Disrupt knockout held in San Francisco this September for example. This competition celebrates the successes of disruptive businesses. These are firms turning the world upside down as Uber is doing to the taxi industry. If they had one for countries, the winner would probably be China. The 2015 TechCrunch Disrupt award went to an online greenhouse hydroponics system. Is anybody out there listening in the MMJ business?
First runner-up is even closer to the interests of this blog. In fact, MMJ delivery company Green Bits was bang on the button with its point of sale solution running off an iPad. “I am deeply honored to have made it to the TechCrunch Disrupt Battlefield finals,” said Ben Curren, its founder and CEO. It doesn’t get much more c-suite that that, does it?
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Oct 6, 2015 | Marijuana Legalization, MMJ News
Robert Hunt brings is an attorney, entrepreneur, activist and cultivation expert. He has been involved in multiple aspects of Cannabis for over 20 years and as a result has the ability to help new MMJ businesses succeed. Mr. Hunt started the Coalition for Responsible Patient Care in Massachusetts, a trade group for Medical Marijuana Industry. He also works with a small private equity firm that makes investments in the marijuana space – the firm doesn’t invest in growing or the direct sales of cannabis per se but other aspects of the industry. Here is a summary of his talk at the Cannabis World Congress and Business Expo in Los Angeles:
This is a great time to be in the marijuana industry. We currently have four states allowing recreational use of marijuana, Oregon started sales Oct 1st, all NE states now have MMJ laws, Hawaii is now accepting applications for dispensaries, and CA is on track for recreational use of marijuana being legalized in 2016.
At the current time there are very few investment professional involved in the marijuana industry. There is a lot of grey area with the laws in many states and more issues arise when MMJ crosses state lines. People need to read and fully understand the regulations in their state before investing. Many states still reject profiting from medical marijuana. In other states an investment can be made in a round about way. Take MA as an example: A for profit business can license intellectual property (IP) to non-profit medical marijuana facility. This allows the auxiliary business to reap profits while not directly selling cannabis. The laws in many states are not cut and dry. Something that is working today may soon be outlawed so stay informed and be ready for change.
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Sep 29, 2015 | California Marijuana Laws, Marijuana Legalization, Proposed MMJ Law Changes
Medical Marijuana Regulation and Safety Act is A Combination of Three New Laws
When Gov. Jerry Brown signs three new bills to regulate California’s maverick medical marijuana industry, several things are going to change forever. Old enemies in law enforcement and the MMJ industry will have to learn to collaborate. Medical marijuana dispensers will find themselves more in the open. The state has multiple registrations looming, and more transaprity will be required.
Teaming with a Consultant No Longer a Luxury
The legislation contained in the three new bills is complex and we will be keeping you in the loop as the system beds down. As California’s MMJ industry evolves into a mainline business there will be hurdles we previously avoided. On the positive side, there is now a real possibility of finally making a lot of money from medical marijuana – we will be moving away from the not-for-profit model that is currently required. The rules of engagement are just going to become more formal.
California MMJ Law Eliminates Collectives and Cooperatives
Californians active in the industry – or wanting to enter will have to apply for a state license as commercial grower, distributor or seller. If operating in a “wet” jurisdiction they will also need a license from their city / county. As California Norml’s Nate Bradley recently told his members “it’s better than having your doors kicked in.” The best gatekeeper is knowledge, the foreknowledge we provide.
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Sep 26, 2015 | MMJ News
Ethan Nadelmann was one of the keynote speaker at the Cannabis World Congress and Business Expo last week in Los Angeles. Nadelmann is the founder and executive director of the Drug Policy Alliance, which is the self described leading organization in the United States promoting alternatives to the war on drugs. He received his B.A., J.D., and Ph.D. in Political Science from Harvard as well as a Masters’ degree in International Relations from the London School of Economics, and taught at Princeton University for seven years. So needless to say he is an extremely well educated, intelligent marijuana activist. Believe it or not he was also a very entertaining and engaging speaker who received a standing ovation.
He originally felt a little torn by the idea of a cannabis business expo – the goal of most attendees was to learn how to earn money (or make personal gains) from this industry. His priorities had always been about legalizing as part of civil liberties and create a better society. It was while he was recently at a cannabis expo is Spain when he decided to reframe his ideas about the business side of marijuana. He saw anything helping to bring it more main-stream was a good thing in the end.His hope is that:
1) The industry emerges as an outstanding model and cares about what’s ultimately good for our nation as a whole.
2) Cannabis entrepreneurs make a lot of money ethically
3) They donate to the cause and help end all drug wars
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Sep 15, 2015 | MMJ News
The first major addition to California’s medical marijuana laws took place last Friday – the CA Assembly and the Senate passed Assembly Bill 243, Assembly Bill 266, and Senate Bill 643. This is a huge step forward for the MMJ industry and will provide teeth to the original Prop 215. Governor Brown’s office worked on the drafting of these bills and he is expected to sign these into law in the upcoming weeks.
Patients should benefit from these bills as medicine/flowers will be subject to quality standards. Cities will retain the right to ban dispensaries but delivery services will continue to thrive as they have been during the last couple years (which will expand to areas in CA currently un-served). There will be 12 medical marijuana licenses available including specialty, small, and medium indoor, outdoor, and mixed-light commercial grows; manufacturers, testers, transporters, distributors, and dispensaries.
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Sep 1, 2015 | Collective Operations, MMJ News
Most banks still won’t provide services to marijuana dispensaries. California’s Board of Equalization (BOE), the nation’s only elected tax commission, is coming up with a solution. They would like to fill that void and serve as sort of bank for the state’s legal marijuana sector.
‘That should be the minimum until the federal government acts,’ Fiona Ma, a member of the board said. “This is a big problem.” She is in charge of the tax policy administration and tax collections. She envisions the state’s cannabis businesses depositing money into an account with the board. The businesses would be able to withdraw from those accounts to pay employees and taxes through wire transfers. This would be very useful to marijuana dispensaries and allow for a simpler, new means of payment.
California becoming the first state in the U.S. to legalize medical marijuana usage – this law passed by voters in 1996. Now California is in line to legalize cannabis for recreation purposes similar to the other four states (Colorado, Washington, Oregon and Alaska) and District of Columbia that are currently paving the way. Because banking laws havent come up to speed, marijuana-related businesses in those areas are largely forced to operate as all-cash enterprises.
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