Cannabis legalization is being considered in the Senate this week! Earlier this year, the House passed HB 629 — legislation to legalize possession and limited home cultivation of cannabis for adults 21 and older.

It’s been a busy week for cannabis policy reform in Annapolis! The legislature has approved HB 1 — which will refer the question of legalization to voters on the November ballot. Marylanders have long supported legalizing cannabis for adults, and this fall they will have the opportunity to weigh in to end cannabis prohibition in the Free State.

Two bills will be heard in the House Committee Administration of Criminal Justice on Wednesday, April 6. Both bills are very important to making our medical program just and functional.

Exciting news! Adult-use cannabis sales begin today in the Land of Enchantment. New Mexicans 21 and older are now able to begin making retail purchases of cannabis.

Earlier today, the Senate Finance Committee approved HB 1 (7-4), which would allow voters to decide whether to legalize cannabis for adults’ use in November 2022. And, earlier this week, both the Senate Finance and Senate Budget and Taxation Committees approved HB 837/SB 833 — twin bills that would take effect if voters approve legalization.

Tomorrow, the U.S. House of Representatives will once again vote on the Marijuana Opportunity, Reinvestment and Expungement (MORE) Act, which would end the federal prohibition of cannabis and create important protections for individuals, the emerging cannabis industry, and those harmed by prohibition policies.

Last week, New Hampshire’s bill to legalize cannabis possession for adults and create a state-run monopoly narrowly passed out of the Ways & Means Committee (12-10). Now, it’s headed to the House floor again. While the committee made some amendments to the bill, it did not address our biggest concerns — HB 1598 would continue to re-criminalize edibles, and it doesn’t even include a Plan B in the likely event that state-run stores fail to get up and running.

Louisiana’s 2022 legislative session has convened and it will be an exciting one for cannabis policy reform. More than 20 cannabis-related bills have been introduced, including bills to legalize cannabis, expunge records, free some cannabis prisoners, prevent the smell of cannabis from being used for a warrantless search, and to expand the number of therapeutic cannabis pharmacies and cultivators.

The Senate Finance Committee will hold a hearing tomorrow on HB 1 and HB 837 — a pair of bills that would allow voters to decide whether to legalize cannabis for adults’ use in November 2022. The hearing will begin at 1 p.m. and will be available to view online here.

Good news! The Kentucky House of Representatives passed HB 136 — a compressive medical cannabis bill — yesterday, with a vote of 59-34. First, a House floor amendment added PTSD to the covered conditions.