Welcome back to The Week in Weed, your Friday look at what's happening in the world of legalized marijuana. This week, another cannabis legalization measure cropped up in Pennsylvania. Congress is debating federal hemp restrictions as part of the Farm Bill. In other federal news, funding for cannabis rescheduling could be on the chopping block, while state-legal medical marijuana programs could be protected. And finally, in cannabis pun news, Virginia launched a commission to study setting up a retail cannabis market.
PENNSYLVANIA
Adult-use cannabis has been a case of "always the bridesmaid, never the bride." Measures are introduced, but nothing's ever been passed. The most recent attempt involved adding a provision to the state's budget bill, but it went nowhere. Now there's a new bill, introduced late last week, that would legalize cannabis and set up a retail market. Will it go anywhere? Who knows!
HEMP
Remember when Senator Mitch McConnell (R-KY) signed the 2018 Farm Bill with a hemp pen, and there was campaign advertising footage of him standing in a field of cannabis? Well, that was then; this is now. The former Senate Majority Leader is currently backing a measure that would direct the Food and Drug Administration to set strict limits on the amount of THC in hemp. Proponents want to prevent intoxicating products from being sold without any legal oversight, while critics fear it could wipe out the hemp industry entirely.
FEDERAL RESCHEDULING
We know not much is happening as regards federal cannabis rescheduling. Some folks in Congress would like to make sure that remains the case. A subcommittee of the House Appropriations Committee passed a spending bill that would prevent the Department of Justice (DOJ) from using federal funds to reschedule cannabis. This same bill contains a rider that would prohibit DOJ from using federal funds to interfere in state-legal medical cannabis programs. Keep in mind, this piece of legislation is a long way from law. The bill now goes to the full House Appropriations Committee, then to the House floor, then to the Senate, and so on.
AND FINALLY
As regular readers know, we are solid supporters of marijuana puns here at The Blunt Truth. So this week, we're giving a shout out to the Virginia Legislature, which has just set up a committee to investigate establishing a retail cannabis market. It was established by House Joint Resolution 497, and it is, you guessed it, a Joint Commission. Sure, this is more of an inadvertent pun, but it made us smile all the same.
Be well everyone, and we'll see you next week.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.
