Next Tuesday, August 11 is Primary Election Day for the Connecticut General Assembly. This year’s election will be critical in determining whether Connecticut will finally legalize cannabis for adults 21 and older.

We’ve put together a voter guide on where the candidates stand on legalizing, regulating, and taxing cannabis for adults 21 and older. It includes responses to our questionnaire along with past public statements. Unfortunately, this year’s legalization bill stalled due to COVID.

I encourage you to first look up your state legislators by district and precinct location here. Then, check out our voter guides for Connecticut Senate races and Connecticut House races to see where the candidates stand.

After you've a chance to look at our voter guide, please spread the word. And, if your district is not listed in our voter guide, there is not a competitive primary. Check back for our voter guide leading up to the General Election.

Lastly, if a candidate in your district has not taken a public position, we strongly encourage you to ask them these questions yourself! We would be happy to update the voter guide with their answers, so please email dward@mpp.org with any updates.

State legislative races are often close contests that can be decided by just a few votes. Don’t miss out on a chance to decide who represents you in Hartford and will vote on Connecticut’s cannabis policy in the 2021 session.

Registered voters can vote in their party’s primary on August 11 between 6 a.m. and 8 p.m. — or in advance by mail-in ballot.

The legislature is planning to resume its work soon — email your elected officials now and urge them to make passage of S. 54 a top priority!

Vermont’s economy has been crippled in recent months by COVID-19. It is unfortunate that adult-use cannabis businesses were not already operating before the pandemic arrived, because they could have provided an important source of jobs and tax revenue during the crisis. Fortunately, the legislature will have an opportunity to finish its work and pass a final version of S. 54, the bill to legalize and regulate sales, when it resumes work in late August.

To help inform policymakers as they prepare to contemplate final revisions to S. 54, we asked our allies at the cannabis-focused law firm Vicente Sederberg, LLP to analyze the demand for adult-use cannabis in Vermont and project the expected revenues associated with S. 54. Their detailed report, which was published today, illustrates how regulating cannabis markets can help Vermont recover from the economic recession.

The report, which is based on the most accurate and current data available, suggests that previous revenue estimates by the Joint Fiscal Office (JFO) are probably much lower than what would be produced if S. 54 becomes law. Additionally, the report examines what would happen if the legislature amends S. 54 to allow for early-start sales, and it projects that Vermont could generate over $175 million in cannabis taxes through 2025 if it chooses to do so.

Please contact your state legislators and urge them to advocate for passage of S. 54!

The bill, which has already passed the House (90-54) and the Senate (23-5), awaits action from a conference committee that has been formed to work out a final version of the bill. You can read a summary of S. 54 here.

Again, please contact your elected officials and urge them to make this bill a top priority. After you do so, please share this message with your family and friends!

Learn candidates’ positions on cannabis policy and become an active participant in the election!

Our voter guide for the New Hampshire primary elections, which will take place Tuesday, September 8, has now been published. The voter guide includes survey responses, votes cast by incumbents, and any relevant comments. In N.H., it’s never safe to assume a candidate’s position on cannabis policy on the basis of party affiliation, so please take time to read the voter guide and learn where candidates stand!

If candidates on your ballot have not yet publicly taken a position on cannabis legalization, reach out to them and ask their opinion. And if you determine that a candidate is worthy of your support, be sure to thank the candidate for supporting cannabis legalization — you might also offer to volunteer, put a sign in your yard, or donate to their campaign!

Please note that if you are concerned about voting in person due to COVID-19, the state has made it clear that this is an acceptable reason to vote by absentee ballot.

After you read the MPP voter guide, please share this message with your family and friends and remind them that the primary election is Tuesday, September 8.

With less than 100 days until the November election — and with neither presidential contender taking a stand in support of cannabis legalization — the Marijuana Policy Project sent letters to the Biden campaign and the Trump administration urging both candidates to do better when it comes to cannabis policy. 

At a moment when cries for racial and criminal justice reform are echoing throughout the country, and a strong majority of Americans favor making cannabis legal, with support across all demographics, the time for meaningful cannabis policy change is now. 

MPP authored the letter to the Biden campaign in response to recommendations made to the presumptive Democratic nominee by a criminal justice task force created in partnership with Sen. Bernie Sanders. Although the final report contained many key provisions that are a major advancement from the law today, disappointingly, it did not include legalizing cannabis.

MPP urged Biden to adopt a more comprehensive approach and legalize marijuana for adults. Short of that, we advised a Biden administration to remove both criminal and non-criminal penalties associated with cannabis use and change federal law to more clearly open the door for states to regulate. In particular, we asked that equity and racial justice be a driving force behind all cannabis policy reformation. Read the Biden letter here.

Serving as a counterpoint to the Biden letter, MPP sent a similar letter to the Trump administration. Our letter to Trump covered similar areas of policy and outlined five actions the president could take now to help end the costly and destructive war on cannabis. Our suggestions to Trump included: 1) removing cannabis from the Controlled Substances Act; 2) pardoning federal, nonviolent cannabis offenders and championing expungement; 3) removing federal barriers for cannabis businesses; 4) issuing an executive order allowing all patients access to medical cannabis; and 5) expediting cannabis research. Read the Trump letter here. 

As the election cycle continues, MPP will continue holding the candidates accountable and injecting our issue into the dialogue, with the goal of pushing them to evolve their positions on cannabis policy. 

As of today, Louisiana’s list of qualifying conditions for medical cannabis has gone from one of the most restrictive to one of the more expansive!

Three new medical cannabis laws took effect today, August 1, 2020. Perhaps the most important of the new laws is HB 819, which allows doctors to recommend medical cannabis for any medical condition the physician “considers debilitating to an individual patient” that the physician is qualified to treat.

Previously, patients could only receive a recommendation for cannabis if they have a medical condition that is specifically listed. HB 819 also adds several qualifying conditions, including Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, ALS, traumatic brain injury, and chronic pain associated with sickle cell anemia or fibromyalgia. The bill also removes the Board of Medical Examiners’ role in regulating medical cannabis recommendations. Now, physicians may communicate a recommendation by any means allowed by the Louisiana Board of Pharmacy.

The other two laws that took effect today are HB 211, which protects banks serving medical cannabis businesses from state penalties, and HB 418, which protects physicians and medical facilities involved in medical cannabis.

While HB 819 will allow tens of thousands more individuals to qualify, Louisiana’s medical cannabis program fails patients in some other important areas. Louisiana is one of only two comprehensive medical cannabis states that prohibits cannabis in its raw, flower form. This prohibition drives up prices and deprives some patients of the option that works best for them. The state also has an absurdly low number of manufacturers (two) and dispensing pharmacies (nine or 10), reducing access and options.

Consider reaching out to your state lawmakers to let them know what reforms you want them to champion in 2021 — whether it’s improving medical cannabis, decriminalization, or cannabis legalization.

Starting today — August 1, 2020 — Minnesotans with chronic pain qualify for medical cannabis!

Qualifying patients whose healthcare providers are willing to certify them for the medical cannabis program can enroll through the Department of Health.

Until today, pain only qualified if it was “intractable,” meaning its “cause cannot be removed” and “the full range of [appropriate] pain management modalities … has been used without adequate result or with intolerable side effects.” Expanding the program to include “chronic pain” allows tens of thousands of additional pain patients to qualify and avoids steering them to more dangerous treatments.

Our allies at Sensible Minnesota petitioned the Department of Health to add chronic pain last year, and it recommended doing so. However, new conditions aren’t added to the program until the following summer to give the legislature a chance to reject them.

While the addition of “chronic pain” is welcome news, voters want the legislature to go further. According to Civiqs research, 67% of Minnesotans support allowing adults to use cannabis. Legalizing and regulating cannabis can grow the economy at a time when jobs and revenue are desperately needed. And, it is an essential piece of the needed policing and racial justice overhaul. Cannabis legalization removes the number one pretext for unnecessary civilian-police interactions — the supposed smell of cannabis.

Let your lawmakers know it’s past time to legalize marijuana. And stay tuned for a voter guide — so you can help elect a more supportive legislature.

Now it’s up to the Senate, and you can help.

Several big measures have been put forth by the House of Representatives in the past 24 hours. Here is a quick rundown of the key provisions and how you can help:

Protections for legalization programs
The House voted to protect state legalization programs from federal law enforcement. The Blumenauer-McClintock-Norton amendment was added to a budget bill called the CJS, which received a huge vote in support (254-163). Thanks to all those who reached out to their lawmakers! The bill now goes to the Senate. Click here to send a message to your Senators in support of this measure.

Access to banking
Cannabis businesses need access to the banking system, and social equity businesses, in particular, need resources. Key language was added to a funding package that passed the House on a vote of 217-197. This would be a huge help for businesses and would keep costs down for consumers. Click here in support of this key measure to allow cannabis businesses to access banks.

Research
Also part of the funding package that passed the House, an education rider would allow colleges and universities to use state-legal cannabis for research. Importantly, this sidesteps many of the limitations imposed by the FDA and DEA that can keep researchers from getting cannabis to study. Click here to support better access for cannabis research.

D.C.
Today, the District of Columbia is prevented from creating a regulatory system for adult-use cannabis, despite what residents clearly want. The House vote would remove that blockage, opening the door for a better system in our nation’s capital. We want to make sure that ban isn’t reinserted by lawmakers in the Senate. Click here to get that message to your Senators.

Much is happening as lawmakers meet the many challenges of COVID-19. Unfortunately, many of these provisions are likely to be opposed in the Senate, so we are asking for your help. Please take a moment to reach out to your lawmakers and make your voice heard. Then, you can help by forwarding this message to your contacts. And stay tuned!

This week, MPP sent a letter on behalf of the organization and its supporters to all members of the U.S. House of Representatives, calling on them to sign on as cosponsors of the Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement (MORE) Act of 2019 (H.R. 3884). The measure would federally decriminalize and deschedule cannabis, thus allowing states to set their own policies. It also contains strong social equity provisions with an emphasis on restorative justice for communities most impacted by cannabis prohibition. The act was introduced by Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler (D-NY) just over a year ago, and historically received committee approval last November, but has since awaited further action to advance to the House floor. 

Just days ago, Marijuana Moment reported that the House of Representatives is planning a floor vote on this legislation for September, according to an aide for a key congressional committee chair and several advocates. The hope is to get as many cosponsors on the legislation as possible, which will hopefully compel Speaker Nancy Pelosi to put it on the calendar for September. 

But the calendar is tight, and the path forward is complicated. There is a host of speculation on its likelihood, and among COVID-19, partisan wrangling, and the politics leading up to the election, there are many unknowns. You can read more about that here.

MPP views this legislation as an opportunity for the federal government to enter the cannabis conversation in an impactful and supportive way, as the measure addresses two key challenges we currently face. First, it would be a major step forward in criminal justice reform at a critical time as we work to address injustices and inequalities in our criminal justice system. Second, it would empower states to implement programs that can encourage economic growth when it is urgently needed. 

As our own Director of Federal Policies Don Murphy told Marijuana Moment, “ [MPP] supports the MORE Act because platform planks, task force reports, and political rhetoric will not stop 600,000 of our citizens from arrest, prosecution, and incarceration every year. The MORE Act will.”

Read MPP’s letter to House members here.

Last Wednesday, Dale Quigley, deputy coordinator for the National Marijuana Initiative, a project of the High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) program, spoke virtually with North Dakota lawmakers, who began a study of adult-use cannabis 10 months ago. As policy makers in North Dakota continue to examine how legal cannabis is working in other states, Quigley presented findings from Colorado, one of the first two states to legalize adult-use cannabis in 2012.

During his presentation, Quigley acknowledged that youth cannabis use has declined in Colorado and other states that have legalized cannabis for adults, contrary to arguments commonly expressed by prohibitionists. “For some reason, the use rate among this age bracket is going down,” Quigley said. “We’re not 100 percent sure why it’s going down. It’s a good thing that it’s going down, but we don’t understand why.”

Using data from the U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Organization (SAMHSA), which conducts annual surveys on drug use, Quigley admitted that, “In looking at the state of Colorado for 12-to-17 year old current use, we had a spike in ’14, but overall the use rates in Colorado have been declining, and that matches what we’re seeing in other states and also the trend we’re seeing nationally.” (Note: SAMHSA defines “current use” as use within the past 30 days.)

Despite his concession that teen cannabis use is on the decline (and his admission that he doesn’t understand why), Quigley followed up with a few anecdotal and dubious claims about youth and cannabis. And although legalization laws are designed to only allow legal cannabis access for adults 21 and older, a persistent fear among prohibitionists and skeptics is the potential impact of legalization on youth use rates.

But the data speaks for itself, and other studies looking at teen use rates after legalization found similar declines, or at least no evidence of increased youth use, once again showing that the sky hasn’t fallen in legalization states. 

For a deeper dive into Quigley’s comments, check out the Marijuana Moment story here. You can also watch Quigley’s presentation via archived video of the hearing (Quigley’s remarks begin around the 9:22 a.m. mark), and slides from his presentation can be viewed on the North Dakota Legislature’s website.

Click here to support new protections for businesses in adult-use legalization states.

MPP supports laws that protect state-licensed businesses from being targeted by federal law enforcement. It’s good for patients, consumers, and for those running cannabis shops. We’d like your help as an important measure is being considered by Congress.

Currently, federal law enforcement that operates through the U.S. Department of Justice is prohibited from targeting medical cannabis businesses that follow state law. This set of protections has been in place for several years, and we want to see them extended to apply to all full-use cannabis programs and the District of Columbia. It’s a modest step but an important one that can keep people out of trouble and out of prison.

Representatives Earl Blumenauer, Tom McClintock, Eleanor Holmes Norton, and Barbara Lee are seeking to add those protections to an appropriations bill under consideration called the CJS (Commerce-Justice-Science) Funding Bill for fiscal year 2021. We want members of Congress to support this important addition. Click here to send a message to your Representative and ask them to support this important protection.

Businesses that are considered “essential” during a global pandemic and are following state law should not have to wonder if they will be targeted by federal agents. D.C. businesses should get protections like similar businesses in states with medical programs. Let your Congressional representative hear from you on this. And help us get the word out by forwarding this message to your network!