On Thursday, the Florida House voted 111-7 in support of a bill that will exempt a limited group of very sick people from criminal laws for using marijuana that is low in THC and high in CBD if certain requirements are met. Gov. Rick Scott has stated that he’ll sign the bill if the Senate agrees to the House version today. Please email your lawmakers today and thank them for recognizing marijuana’s medical benefits.

[caption id="attachment_7594" align="alignright" width="200"] Gov. Rick Scott[/caption]

The bill allows patients with cancer and conditions that result in chronic seizures or severe muscle spasms to use marijuana that contains 0.8% THC or lower and 10% CBD or higher. Patients can administer the medicine via pills, oils, or vaporization. Smoking is prohibited. The bill also requires the state to register five dispensing businesses, spread out across the state, to grow and dispense the medical marijuana. Unfortunately, the bill places heavy burdens on physicians who wish to recommend marijuana to their patients, arguably forcing them to violate federal laws in order to do so.

Florida took a small step forward this year, but the law is so incomplete that MPP will not be counting it as a “medical marijuana state.” Voters will have an opportunity to enact a comprehensive, workable medical marijuana law by voting "yes" on Amendment Two this November.

A new proposal has been put forth in the Minnesota House of Representatives to gut the existing medical marijuana bill and replace it with language that would only allow for clinical trials for medical marijuana. While it’s heartening to know lawmakers are working on the issue, this proposal would not provide any patients with the medicine they need. Among its other flaws, federal law would preempt it by requiring the health department to contract with a marijuana manufacturer. If you are a Minnesota resident,  please contact your lawmakers NOW and ask them to support a workable medical program similar to the laws in 21 states and the District of Columbia.

The clinical study amendment to H.F. 1818 was offered on the heels of the Senate medical marijuana bill clearing yet another legislative hurdle. Fortunately, the Senate proposal, which will be heard tomorrow in the Senate finance committee, would create a workable program that would protect seriously ill Minnesotans from arrest and prosecution for using marijuana with the recommendations of their doctors. It would also create a regulated medical marijuana dispensary program to provide safe and immediate access to that medicine.

On April 24, the Missouri House and Senate passed a bill that would eliminate the possibility of jail time for people caught with up to 10 grams of marijuana — at least the first time. The bill, SB 491, was sent to Gov. Jay Nixon for his signature on April 28. He has until May 13 to sign the bill or veto it.

[caption id="attachment_7589" align="alignright" width="201"] Gov. Jay Nixon[/caption]

Nearly half a million Missouri residents already live in cities, including St. Louis and Columbia, which have local ordinances that treat possession of 35 grams or less as a non-arrestable offense.

SB 491 isn’t the only marijuana-related bill on the move.

Earlier this month, SB 951 passed out of committee; it may soon receive a vote in the Senate. While far from perfect, it would allow a broad range of severely ill patients to use medical marijuana products that include THC, CBD, and other cannabinoids. A second, very limited bill, HB 2238, would allow some patients to access CBD-rich cannabis oil with trace amounts of THC. It passed both houses and will be sent to Gov. Nixon for his signature. For an overview of the bill, click here.

The Missouri Legislature made significant progress this year to improve marijuana-related laws, due in large part to the hard work from groups like Show-Me Cannabis.

Once again, the medical marijuana bill authored by Sen. Scott Dibble and Rep. Carly Melin cleared another legislative hurdle. The Minnesota Senate Judiciary Committee just voted to refer the bill to the finance committee. The legislation has already been approved by the Senate health and government committees. As you may know, session time is running out, so, if you have not already done so, please find out if your lawmakers support medical marijuana.

Polling shows that a majority of Minnesotans, regardless of political affiliation, age, income, education, or region, support medical marijuana legislation. However, lawmakers tend to lag behind the public on sensible and compassionate marijuana policies, so if you are a Minnesota resident, please let your lawmakers know that their constituents support medical marijuana and they should, too.

On Wednesday, the Vermont Senate gave final approval to a bill that will improve access to medical marijuana and remove the arbitrary cap of 1,000 patients who may benefit from dispensaries. S. 247 was approved by the House last week, and the bill will now move forward to Governor Peter Shumlin’s desk where it will receive his signature.

Sponsored by Sen. Jeanette White (D-Windham), this bill will increase possession limits for dispensaries, allow them to deliver medical marijuana to patients, and permit naturopaths to certify patients for the program. Additionally, the bill was amended by the House to initiate two studies: One will explore the possibility of adding post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) as a qualifying condition for the state's medical marijuana program, and one will evaluate the potential impact of making marijuana legal for adults and regulating it similarly to alcohol.

[caption id="attachment_7396" align="alignright" width="148"] Sen. Jeanette White[/caption]

That’s right — not only did Vermont legislators improve the medical marijuana law this year, but they are already gathering the information they will need to consider sensible marijuana policy reforms during next year’s legislative session.

 Colorado could be sealing any past marijuana convictions that Amendment 64 would have rendered impotent. If Senate Bill 218 is passed, Coloradans could petition to have their previous marijuana-related convictions sealed if they would have not been crimes under current Colorado law.

The bill has bipartisan support and was announced Tuesday, April 29. The proposed bill comes with only a few days left in the 2014 session, but its impact could be huge, possibly giving thousands of residents the right to petition.

“There are tens of thousands of people with previous cannabis offenses that hurt them from getting things like loans, housing, and employment,” Jason Warf, a marijuana advocate and director of Colorado Springs Medical Cannabis Council, told The Denver Post late last week.

Sens. Jessie Ulibarri, D-Westminster, and Vicki Marble, R-Fort Collins, are the sponsors of the proposal, which is scheduled to be heard today by the Colorado Senate Judiciary Committee. If approved, petitioners would have to file in the district where their conviction occurred, and they would have to pay the court filing fees to have their records sealed.

Facing a reelection race in Oregon this fall, Portland Rep. Earl Blumenauer aired a television ad on April 25 focusing on marijuana legalization. Blumenauer’s heavily Democratic district lends him an easy reelection, but that hasn’t diluted his fervor to advocate for his signature issue.

In the ad, Blumenauer points out how "our marijuana laws don't work and cost the government billions." Later, he calls for the federal government to "let states set their own laws -- tax it, use the money to fund education and let the police focus on real drug abuse."

It is unclear how many ads he plans to run, but Blumenauer said he plans to spend six figures on campaign advertising that will broadcast not only in Oregon, but online and in other states, drawing national attention to the issue.

Blumenauer said the purpose of his ad isn’t just about reelection -- it’s about transparency and letting his constituents know what he is doing in Congress. In a response to releasing the ad, Blumenauer told The Oregonian that, while he appreciates letting the states move forward on marijuana laws, the Obama administration is doing the "absolute least the federal government can do."

On April 28, 2014, Quinnipiac University released poll data showing that Coloradans still “feel good” about legalizing marijuana. With a 14 percent margin (52-38 percent), voters believe marijuana legalization has been beneficial for the state, and, when asked about whether legalization “eroded the moral fiber” of people in Colorado, voters resounding replied with 67 percent disagreeing and only 30 percent agreeing.

"Colorado voters are generally good to go on grass, across the spectrum, from personal freedom to its taxpayer benefits to its positive impact on the criminal justice system," said Tim Malloy, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University poll.

The poll also found voters aged 18-29 support legalization at a margin of 2-to-1, but, surprisingly, the same age group said they have not smoked marijuana since it became legal on January 1 at the same 2-to-1 margin.

The Quinnipiac poll’s results were collected April 15-21, via telephone survey, from 1,298 registered voters with a margin of error at plus or minus 2.7 points. Live interviewers called landlines and cell phones.

In case you missed it, Ballot Measure 2, which would regulate marijuana similarly to alcohol in Alaska, has been moved off the primary election ballot and will now appear on the general election ballot on November 4.

The reschedule is due to a constitutional provision that requires initiatives to be placed on the first statewide ballot 120 days following the end of the legislative session. When the state legislature failed to adjourn its session on time this past Sunday night, the initiative was automatically moved to the November ballot.

The date of the election is not an issue for the Campaign to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol in Alaska because Alaska voters support regulating marijuana like alcohol by a wide margin. According to a recent poll, 55 percent of voters in Alaska agree that it's time to make marijuana legal, with only 39 percent opposed.

Additionally, the change of ballot provides extra time to organize volunteers, register voters, and spread the word that it's time for a new approach that would take marijuana sales out of the hands of criminals in the underground market and put it behind the counters of licensed, taxpaying businesses.

Earlier this month, patients practically begged the New Hampshire Senate Health, Education, and Human Services Committee to approve HB 1622, a bill that would allow them to grow up to two mature marijuana plants until a dispensary opens within 30 miles of their residences.

Sadly, even though this bill had already passed the New Hampshire House with 227-73 (76%) support, and even though all five senators on the committee had previously supported home cultivation, the committee refused to move HB 1622 forward. Only Senator John Reagan(R-Deerfield) spoke up on behalf of patients who can’t afford to wait for dispensaries to open, but his appeals fell on deaf ears. After very little discussion, the committee voted 3-1 to recommend the bill for “interim study,” which would effectively kill it for the year.

[caption id="attachment_7564" align="alignright" width="255"] Sen. John Reagan[/caption]

It’s clear that the Senate has no actual intention of studying this bill. Less than a week after the Senate refused to consider a House-approved decriminalization bill, senators are again attempting to avoid a vote on whether or not patients should be allowed to grow their own cannabis.