Welcome back to The Week in Weed, your Friday look at what's happening in the world of legalized marijuana.
We'll start this week with some financial news. CBD sellers looking for a payment processing method got some good news. Square has just announced that they will start servicing the industry. The state of California has issued guidance for financial institutions on how to deal with cannabis businesses. And data compiled by the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) show that more and more financial institutions are serving the industry, even without federal legislation on the practice.
There was some action in the world of hemp this week. In South Dakota, where Governor Noem vetoed an industrial hemp legalization bill earlier this year, legislators are working on new legislation to be introduced in 2020.
One of the governor's concerns was the inability of law enforcement to tell the difference between hemp and cannabis. The Douglas County Sheriff's Office in Nebraska may have a solution to this problem.
Meanwhile, the USDA is funding research on hemp pollen migration. And researchers at the University of Georgia will be studying medical cannabis as a treatment for chronic pain.
Members of the cannabis industry, optimistic after the House passage of the SAFE Banking Act, have a plan for the future. Not surprisingly, it involves descheduling marijuana.
In state news, Maine may soon see legal sales of recreational marijuana. And in Florida, there's yet another cannabis legalization ballot initiative (this makes three).
MedMen and PharmaCann will not be tying the knot. The deal was terminated by mutual consent, according to press releases from both companies.
And finally, some demonstrations on Capitol Hill gather a bit more attention than others. A giant, inflatable joint is something you don't see every day.
See you next week!
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