The legislation won a last-minute reprieve and support from some conservative Republicans.

A bill meant to make it easier for Virginians with severe forms of epilepsy to obtain therapeutic oils made from marijuana got a last-minute reprieve Monday from a Senate panel.

The bill seemed in danger of dying in a Senate committee, where it had lingered for about a week. But on Monday, one day before the deadline for legislation to clear one chamber and cross to the other, the bill received and survived a critical vote in a hastily called meeting of the Senate Courts of Justice Committee.

The action drew tears from some parents with epileptic children, who said they have been struggling to obtain the oils.

The oils are sold legally in Colorado but makers there are wary of shipping it across state lines because doing so violates federal law. The parents also risk prosecution for travelling to Colorado and transporting the oils themselves. And they would have to make frequent trips in any case because the oils have a short, 30-day shelf life,

“I have to be very creative and risk a lot,” said Beth Collins of Fairfax, Va. who had traveled to Richmond to press lawmakers on the legislation.

[Northern Virginia families move to Colorado for medical marijuana]

Mark Obenshain (R-Rockingham), chairman of the committee, warned senators before the vote that passage would bring Virginia “one step closer” to legalizing marijuana.

“This is certainly going to help some folks, but next year we’re going to have a request by somebody to make provisions for people to grow pot,” he said.

Some of the Senate’s most conservative Republicans joined with Democrats to advance the bill. Only one other Republican, Sen. Bryce Reeves (Spotsylvania), joined Obenshain to vote against it. Another, Majority Leader Thomas K. Norment (James City), abstained.

“God bless you guys. You’re awesome,” Sen. Thomas Garrett (R-Buckingham), told Collins and Lisa Smith, of White Stone, Va., who had brought her epileptic daughter, Haley, to watch the vote from her wheelchair.

Last year, the General Assembly passed a law intended to make it easier for people with severe forms of epilepsy to use two oils derived from marijuana, which lack the plant’s intoxicating properties but help alleviate debilitating seizures. The bill provided a way for epileptics or their legal guardians to avoid prosecution for possession of cannabidiol oil (also known as CBD) and THC-A oil.

Passage came as something of a surprise in a legislature that has remained staunchly opposed to legalization of marijuana, but the measure was so narrowly tailored that conservative members were largely on board.

Virginia legalized medical marijuana in 1979 for patients with cancer and glaucoma, but that law requires “a valid prescription” — something doctors cannot legally provide as long as marijuana is federally restricted.

[Va. House approves marijuana oils for epilepsy]

Marijuana-oil bills began sweeping though legislatures — many of them in conservative states — after an August 2013 CNN documentary “Weed” that showed the plight of a family seeking the oil for their daughter’s seizures.

The law passed in Virginia last year was intended to prevent patients or their caretakers from being prosecuted for possession of the oils, but it stopped short of making the oils legal. And it did not provide a way for patients to obtain the oils — a flaw in the eyes of critics on the left and right, who said at the time that would force the use of products purchased on the black market whose quality will be uncertain.

But the original bill laid the groundwork for possibly producing the oils in Virginia after 2017, when and if the legislature votes to re-enact it. The law says that no pharmaceutical processor could produce the oils without first obtaining a permit from the state Board of Pharmacy.

The current bill, which still faces a vote in the full Senate and House, would direct the board to start to develop those regulations. Sen. David W. Marsden (D-Fairfax), who sponsored the measure, said he does not want to wait until the measure is reenacted next year because the regulatory process takes as long as 280 days.

Source: Bill meant to pave way for marijuana-oil production advances in Virginia – The Washington Post

COLUMBUS, Ohio — Marijuana Policy Project has unveiled more details about the medical marijuana amendment planned for Ohio this year. And it has named three Ohioans who will co-chair the campaign.

Language for the constitutional amendment, planned for the November ballot, has not yet been drafted, the president of the national nonprofit said in questions and answers posted on Facebook and sent to cleveland.com Tuesday night. The language will be based off laws in the 23 states where medical marijuana is legal.

Here are the basics, according to organization President Rob Kampia.

What would the amendment do?

The amendment will establish a system where patients with certain medical conditions can apply for a medical marijuana ID card that allows them to buy and possess marijuana. The state would license businesses to grow, process, test, distribute and sell medical marijuana, and sales tax would be applied. License fees and tax revenues would pay for the program’s administrative costs.

Kampia said patients and their caregivers could grow their own marijuana as soon as the amendment becomes law.

And there will not be a monopoly, a sticking point with the recreational marijuana amendment last year.

“The retail price in Ohio will inevitably be slightly lower than in other states, because the Ohio initiative won’t impose large taxes or bureaucratic hurdles that would translate into higher prices,” Kampia wrote. “Also, the Ohio initiative will embrace a healthy, free-market approach to the production of medical marijuana, which will drive down the cost as compared to, say, an oligopoly or a government-run monopoly.”

Kampia said there will likely be two types of cultivation licenses: one costing “thousands of dollars” and another, larger “expensive license.”

Who is leading the Ohio effort? Marijuana Policy Project registered an Ohio political action committee called Ohioans for Medical Marijuana last month. The organization chose Ohioans Michael Revercomb, Lissa Satori, and John Pardee to lead the campaign.

Revercomb served on the board of the central Ohio chapter of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML).Pardee was the president of Ohio Rights Group, an organization that has been collecting signatures for a medical-only constitutional amendment since 2013.

Sartori was an Ohio Rights Group leader who worked on last year’s Issue 3 legalization campaign. Kampia said Ohio has the “highest per-capita level of infighting” among marijuana activists and said there are “no hard feelings” for people who don’t want to work with the leaders.

“This campaign needs to be a team effort, and we’re hoping that Ohio can surprise the nation by showing that people can, in fact, work together successfully to promote a common cause,” Kampia said.

Strategic Public Partners, a Columbus-based Republican consulting firm, is no longer working on the campaign. The firm’s president, Brandon Lynaugh, declined to discuss the decision.

What’s the timeline?

Amendment language is expected in early March, and the campaign expects to begin collecting signatures of registered voters on April 2.Supporters need 305,591 valid signatures by July 6 to qualify for the November ballot. The campaign wants volunteers to collect between 100 and 1,000 signatures each during that time and will also pay signature collectors.

Read the full story from the Source: Ohio medical marijuana amendment details released | cleveland.com

Hawaii may be a tropical paradise for tourists, but companies that win licenses to grow and sell medical cannabis in the state might feel as if they’re in purgatory for a while.

Businesses will face enormous challenges at first because of high licensing fees, a patient base that might be reluctant to purchase MMJ from dispensaries, exorbitant electricity costs and strict prohibitions on advertising.

Startup costs could approach $6 million or more, according to estimates from several companies that have applied for licenses, and it might take a while to recoup those expenses and climb into the black.

Dr. Michael Bennett, who now runs the Retina Institute of Hawaii, predicts it will take his company at least two years to reach profitability if it wins a license.

“I think the business will be much tougher than what everybody else believes. The costs are going to skyrocket,” said Bennett, who has recruited Robert and Dawn Barnes, the growers behind Kona Rainforest Organic Coffee Company, to cultivate his company’s cannabis should he land a permit.

Companies in it for the long haul, however, should find a profitable climate after the initial turbulence ends.

Applications In

The state recently closed the application window for the eight business licenses it intends to award, and officials are now reviewing submissions before making final decisions by April 15.

Despite the potential challenges of running a marijuana business in Hawaii, 59 groups submitted 66 applications for the licenses.

The applicants are simultaneously the most colorful and most normal group of medical marijuana license applicants in America. The list includes a retired two-star U.S. Navy admiral, a surfing legend, the developer of a blockbuster video game and actor Woody Harrelson. One applicant even has former Surgeon General Kenneth Moritsugu on its team.

But the applicant list also includes lawyers, physicians, educators and a businessman specializing in tourism and hospitality, reflecting marijuana’s acceptance in the mainstream.

Each winner will be allowed to open up to two cultivation and two dispensaries, with overall operations spread out on the islands of Oahu, Maui, Kauai and the Big Island. Companies that receive licenses can begin selling marijuana as soon as July, pending state approval.

Applicants who win a license will get socked financially right away, as they will have to submit $75,000 to the state for a permit. They’ll have seven days to do so after getting notice that they won or the license goes to the next qualified applicant.

License winners then must pay $50,000 annually in renewal fees – which are among the largest in the country.

License winners must also show that they have $1 million in capital plus $100,000 for each dispensary location, so deep capital reserves are a must.

Home Grow Holdovers

Hawaii legalized medical cannabis in 2000, allowing patients to grow their own marijuana or get it from caregivers but not paving the way for dispensaries until last year.

There are now around 13,150 patients and 2,849 caregivers registered in the state, and those numbers are expected to grow once dispensaries open.

While caregivers will be prohibited from home growing – except for approved minors, and adults not capable of home growing or living on an island without a dispensary – after 2018, winning over patients used to cultivating their own cannabis will still not be easy at first, applicants acknowledged.

“That’s the big unknown, the conversion rate of cardholders that would actually go to the dispensaries,” Bennett said. “There’s a real thirst in Hawaii for informed care. I think that will eventually drive the business aspect…But how long that transition will take is unknown.”

The fear is that most patients will find it cheaper – and better, in terms of quality – to continue growing their own marijuana. The key will be for dispensaries to effectively communicate why buying from a strorefront location is ultimately better.

“That is definitely one of the challenges we’re going to see, getting them even to accept the idea of going to a dispensary to buy their medication,” said Aaron Nelson, who owns a dispensary in Bellingham, Washington State, and is a representative on the team for 2020 Solutions Maui, a group in Hawaii put together by hospitality magnate Craig Hill.

“People will continue to grow their own medical cannabis and some people will opt for the professional environment and having that knowledgeable team there with tested product so they know exactly what they’re getting,” Nelson added.

Bennet said he heard that the state may expand the number of dispensaries if just 500 more patients register- a virtual certainty after dispensaries open.

Breaking home grow patients of old habits will be that much harder because of advertising restrictions that prohibit license winners from using traditional advertising methods like newspaper ads, as well as new ones through social media. License winners will be allowed to have websites that list their hours and menus, and one 1,600-square-inch sign with plain text on their storefront. 

But applicants said they believe they can overcome those restrictions through community education and developing word-of-mouth.

“Once people learn all the various things that medical marijuana can do, the market’s going to grow,” said Melvin Chiogioji, a retired Navy admiral who is behind a company – Bridge International – that applied for a license. “The way that we need to do this is to show that we have the best quality product out there, and that we know what the various doses ought to be for particular ailments. The home growers are doing it strictly on the basis of trial and error.”

Nelson said his team would like to see advertising restrictions loosened, but he is confident the current ad rules won’t hinder licensees from connecting with patients.

“It’ll be more of a community education piece than an advertising piece,” Nelson said. “The best form of advertising is word-of-mouth. If you take care of your patients in a way that you would also like to be treated, then that word of mouth advertising will be quick to follow.”

Cost of Living Hurdles

Another major concern will be the island’s high cost of doing business and high cost of living. Hawaii often ranks in the bottom ten or bottom five in those categories on list that track such metrics nationwide. Real estate, salaries and other common business expenses are extraordinarily high in Hawaii.

Source: Hawaii No Paradise for Companies That Win Medical Marijuana Licenses – Marijuana Business Daily

Some Hawaii lawmakers and advocates say medical marijuana dispensary applicants could be at a disadvantage because health department rules don’t allow greenhouses.

Right now, rules posted on the Hawaii Department of Health’s website say that isn’t allowed, and medical marijuana must be grown in an enclosed structure. Janice Okubo of the Hawaii Department of Health said the department doesn’t plan on changing the rules unless there’s a change in state law.

Hawaii lawmakers said it wasn’t their intention to ban greenhouses or outdoor growing as long as facilities are secure. Hawaii has some of the highest electricity costs in the nation, and potential marijuana business owners say they could save thousands of dollars in electricity costs growing marijuana with sunlight.

“We think that this bill would remedy a very bad oversight or misstep in the admin rules,” said Pam Lichty, president of the Drug Policy Forum of Hawaii.

Some lawmakers and advocates said some Hawaii residents may have been deterred from applying because it would have been so expensive to grow indoors. They questioned whether the Hawaii Department of Health should reopen the dispensary application process entirely if rules are changed.

“Do you think maybe we ought to just say, ‘Well, I think we screwed up,’” said Rep. Richard Creagan, vice chair of the House Health Committee. “Maybe we should draw back and reopen the dispensary applications?”

The Hawaii Attorney General’s office said current applicants could still benefit if the bill passed this session. Medical marijuana businesses could change their business plans to instead incorporate greenhouses or shade houses.

The Health Department is currently in the process of reviewing applications for dispensaries, which will be awarded in April. Actor and marijuana advocate Woody Harrelson and video game designer Henk Rogers were among 59 who applied to open dispensaries, which can open as soon as July.

Under a law passed in 2015, the state will grant eight licenses for marijuana business owners across the islands. The law allows medical marijuana businesses to have two production centers and two retail dispensaries, for a total of 16 dispensaries statewide. The Department of Health’s rules allow for more businesses to apply for dispensary licenses after 2017.

Hawaii became the first to legalize medical marijuana through the legislative process 16 years ago. Lawmakers have introduced laws to legalize recreational marijuana; however they don’t think they’re likely to pass this year.

Source: Hawaii bill seeks to allow growing marijuana outdoors – Washington Times

State health authorities Friday more than doubled the amount of medical marijuana that patients can buy, a move made after regulators determined laboratories can ensure the safety of the drug.

The state Department of Public Health had imposed a stricter limit since the first medical marijuana dispensary opened in June.

Patients will now be allowed to buy up to 10 ounces of marijuana every two months.

The changes come as two more dispensaries are poised to open.

Patriot Care in Lowell is scheduled to open Tuesday.

New England Treatment Access in Brookline sent a notice Friday to patients that the dispensary would start filling orders by appointment only.

Read the full story and local concerns for contaminants and labeling from the source: Massachusetts boosts the amount of medical marijuana patients can buy – The Boston Globe

Vermont’s Senate Finance Committee approved marijuana legalization on Friday, moving the issue closer to the Senate floor. Essentially, VT marijuana legalization clears its second hurdle.

The committee settled on a 25 percent tax rate. Sen. Tim Ashe, D-Chittenden, said earlier that the committee’s task was to set a tax rate that would make marijuana cheap enough to compete with the existing black market.

The Finance committee also changed the proposed possession limit to one half an ounce. The previous version of the bill set a 1-ounce limit.

The vote comes two weeks after the bill cleared the Senate Judiciary, which focused early in the session on drafting a legalization bill.

The judiciary’s proposal stirred controversy among legal weed advocates when the senators took out the option of homegrown marijuana, pending further study by a commission created to examine marijuana issues. Sen. Dick Sears, D-Bennington, the chairman of Judiciary, said the homegrown issue was a line in the sand, and its inclusion would force him to vote against legalization.

Several other Senate committees heard testimony about the legalization issue this week as well.

Source: VT marijuana legalization clears 2nd hurdle

Learn More About Vermont Seed to Sale Here

 A bill introduced to the state legislature in January would create a certification program for commercial marijuana growers to label their products “pesticide-free.”

As the legal marijuana industry and the authorities that regulate it try to figure out the snowballing pesticide issue in Colorado’s cannabis products, state representatives Jonathan Singer of Longmont and KC Becker of Boulder have proposed House Bill 16-1079 to create a certification process for medical and recreational marijuana products and industrial hemp that would tell consumers if the products potentially contained pesticide residue. The bill will be presented to the House Public Health Care and Human Services Committee on Tuesday, February 9.

“The Department of Agriculture will certify third parties who can certify whether the marijuana or hemp cultivated or processed at a particular cannabis facility is free of pesticides,” the bill reads. Currently, the Colorado Department of Agriculture has a list of approved pesticides for commercial marijuana grows that was last updated in January.

Since March 2015, over 1 million retail marijuana plants or products have been quarantined or recalled by the Denver Department of Environmental Health for using banned or potentially harmful pesticides to treat pests and fungi. In November 2015, Governor John Hickenlooper declared marijuana treated with unapproved pesticides a threat to public safety.

“It doesn’t require that all marijuana be pesticide-free, but for those who want to meet that market demand, they need a state certification program to do so,” Becker said in a statement on Facebook.

Because of marijuana’s federally illegal status, Colorado marijuana growers are barred from applying for organic certification from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, but that doesn’t stop many marijuana companies from using the term loosely: Some dispensaries and their products have the words “organic” and “all-natural” on them, whether they truly are or not. In September, the Denver Post reported Colorado Attorney General Cynthia Coffman’s office was looking into pot businesses using the word “organic” in advertising.

Source: Inside the Pesticide-Free Marijuana Certification Program | Westword

After my time last week, in Oregon, at the Dispensary Next and CCN-con Conferences, I am not surprised to hear more about the efforts for research of marijuana in the state. Oregon’s marijuana industry and its regulators are collaboratively motivated to maintain the integrity and reputation for health benefits of the plant. This is demonstrated through the states strict testing and labeling requirements and the communities push for natural grow procedures. In essence, Oregon strives to be a leader in Research.

Oregon should fund an independent marijuana institute to support and conduct world-class research into the drug’s medical and public health benefits, says a task force that includes state officials, scientists and leading physicians. Tax dollars generated through recreational marijuana sales would supplement private funding to underwrite the quasi-public Oregon Institute for Cannabis Research. The center would hire research scientists, as well as staff to help academic researchers navigate the complexities of federally sanctioned cannabis research.

Source: Oregon should fund marijuana research institute, task force says | OregonLive.com

Today, I learned of place called Unalaska, Alaska, unfortunately it wasn’t for good reason.

By a narrow 4-3 vote and with the mayor breaking the tie, the Unalaska City Council last week took its first step towards banning local sales and commercial growing, testing, and manufacturing of marijuana products.

Opt out is a cop-out on the voters,” said Jerry Swihart, a city worker, who said local residents voted heavily in favor of legalization in 2014.

The new ordinance still requires another vote for passage, which is set for the Feb. 9 council meeting.

Read the full story from the Source: Unalaska set to ban commercial marijuana sales | Alaska Dispatch News

After hearing numerous arguments on both sides of the issue, a panel of Utah lawmakers on Thursday approved a bill that would allow tens of thousands of residents with chronic or debilitating conditions to consume edible marijuana products but the bill bans smoking pot.

Patients, caregivers and doctors spoke to the drug’s track record as a safe and effective treatment, one without the addictive qualities and side effects of certain approved prescription drugs.

On KVNU’s For the People program Thursday, Dr. Michael Holmstrom, president of the Utah Orthopedic Association, said he has testified many times about his support for such a bill.

“In other states that have had medical cannabis, there has been a 25% decrease in annual opioid overdose mortality rate since they adopted those rules,” Dr. Holmstrom said. “It’s proven fact that adopting this type of a bill can actually reduce our opioid epidemic.

“There’s a big question of what happens to our kids. In those states it was not accompanied by increasing use of marijuana, alcohol or cocaine in high school students.”

The senate bill now moves to the full Senate where lawmakers will likely consider a much broader marijuana plan.

Source: President of Utah Orthopedic Association speaks up for medical marijuana – CacheValleyDaily.com : Politics