Registered patients will have safe, in-state access to low-THC oil.

Yesterday, Gov. Brian Kemp (R) signed the Georgia’s Hope Act — HB 324 — into law. At long last, patients will be able to safely access low-THC medical cannabis oil within Georgia.

In 2015, the Georgia General Assembly passed a bill allowing patients to register to possess up to 20 fluid ounces of medical cannabis oil with up to 5% THC. The legislature later expanded the law to include more medical conditions, and more than 8,000 patients are signed up. However, the law didn’t include any access to cannabis oil.

Under the Georgia’s Hope Act, six producers will be allowed to cultivate medical cannabis preparations in Georgia, as could two universities. Pharmacies will sell the medical cannabis preparations, and regulators could authorize private dispensaries. (Due to medical cannabis’ federal illegality, it is far from certain that universities or pharmacies would participate.) It is expected to take at least a year before legal sales begin.

You can check out MPP’s summary of the law here.

MPP is grateful to CompassionateGA, and its lobbyist Jacob Eassa, for their advocacy efforts and to all the patients and loved ones who spoke out for so many years. We also appreciate the leadership of bill sponsor Rep. Micah Gravley (R) and former Rep. Allen Peake (R) and all the lawmakers who supported the legislation.

Stay tuned for updates during implementation, along with next year’s efforts to improve the law.

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If you live in Alabams, contact your lawmakers now in support of decriminalization!

Today, the Alabama Senate Judiciary Committee unanimously approved SB 98, which would reduce the penalty for possessing up to an ounce of cannabis to a fine. The bill now heads to the Senate floor. Don’t let this chance to stop jailing cannabis consumers pass the state by.

Contact your lawmakers in Montgomery and ask them to support this commonsense policy reform.

Currently, anyone found possessing marijuana in Alabama faces up to a year in jail. Under SB 98, people caught with one ounce or less would be punished by a fine of up to $250 for the first two offenses and up to a $500 fine on all future offenses. Twenty-four states, including neighboring Mississippi, have stopped jailing adults for possession of small amounts of marijuana. It’s time for Alabama to reform outdated laws that do nothing to make the state safer. A recent report from the Alabama Appleseed Center for Law and Justice and the Southern Poverty Law Center showed that marijuana prohibition is a costly and ineffective law that harms thousands of people. Enforcing prohibition costs the state roughly $22 million a year when you add up the costs incurred by the police, courts, and corrections.

Please contact your lawmakers today, and then get the word out by forwarding this email to friends and family. Together we can stop arresting Alabamans for possessing a substance safer than alcohol.

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Join us at 6 p.m. to learn more about what is happening in the legislature and how you can help!

The Connecticut Legislature has taken important steps to advance marijuana legalization this session, but we know that victory remains far from certain. The bills are still works in progress, and many legislators remain undecided on the issue, so it’s clear that our coalition will need to ramp up efforts in the coming weeks.

Fortunately, legislative leaders have made it clear that the issue is a priority this session. They have also indicated that they will continue to consider policy details, including the equity provisions and whether or not to allow home cultivation, before the bills receive a final vote. It’s critically important that advocates work together to maximize our chances of success in the legislature.

Please consider joining us for our first coalition meeting of the year, which will take place in Hartford on Thursday, April 18, from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. This will be a great opportunity to learn more about what is happening in the state house and also to begin phone banking undecided legislators.

Here are the details:

WHO: Members of the Connecticut Coalition to Regulate Marijuana and coalition co-directors Kebra Smith-Bolden and Adam Wood

WHAT: Coalition meeting to discuss legalization efforts and volunteer phone banking operations

WHERE: The Meeting Room at Hartford Public Safety Complex (253 High St.)

WHEN: Thursday, April 18, from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.

If you haven’t already done so, please contact your legislators and urge them to support the legalization bills. Then, please share this message with your family and friends.

We hope you’ll be able to join us on Thursday!

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Lt. governor's marijuana legalization listening tour will visit Downington, State College, McConnellsburg, and Clarion this week.

Over the next few days, Lt. Gov. John Fetterman will be hearing constituents' views on marijuana legalization in four counties. If you live in any of those counties, try to stop by to make your voice heard.

Here are upcoming stops:

TONIGHT: Downington (Chester County)
Monday, April 15, 6:00 to 7:30 p.m.
Downington High School West
455 Manor Avenue

State College (Centre County)
Tuesday, April 16, 7:30 to 9 p.m.
Penn State University
Hetzel Union Building, Alumni Hall
16802 Pollock Road

McConnellsburg (Fulton County)
Wednesday, April 17, 6:00 to 7:30 p.m.
McConnellsburg Volunteer Fire Hall
112 E. Maple Street

Clarion (Clarion County)
Thursday, April 18, 6:00 to 7:30 p.m.
Hart Chapel Building
Wood Street

Consider arriving early: In some cases, crowds have been standing-room only.

When deciding what you'd like to say, feel free to draw from our document on the Top 10 reasons to end marijuana prohibition or other materials. You may want to consider making a pitch for an inclusive, diverse industry, for allowing home cultivation, and for expunging past convictions.

Even if you're not up for speaking in public, you can still make your voice heard. Fetterman has been asking for a show of hands for supporters and opponents, and the governor's office is soliciting feedback on the issue online.

This is a great opportunity to build momentum for commonsense, humane marijuana laws. Don't miss your chance to let your elected officials know it's time to stop branding Pennsylvanians criminals for a substance that's safer than alcohol. And please spread the word to help grow the chorus for reform.

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If you live in New Hampshire, urge your senator to support HB 364!

In four of the last five years, the N.H. House has passed bills that would have allowed patients and caregivers to grow a limited supply of cannabis. Sadly, these bills have all failed to pass the Senate. Instead, all four were referred to so-called “interim study” and then completely ignored.

This year, it appears that a home cultivation bill may finally have a good chance of passing the Senate. HB 364, which has already passed the House in a voice vote, is currently being considered by the Senate Health and Human Services Committee. The committee appears likely to vote on the bill next Tuesday.

For the sake of patients who are still struggling because of limited access to cannabis, please contact your senator right now and urge him or her to support HB 364!

If you are a patient who would personally benefit from this bill’s passage, or you are a friend or family member of a patient, please email all five members of the Senate Health and Human Services Committee and share your story.

As amended by the House, HB 364 would allow possession of three mature plants, three immature plants, and 12 seedlings for each patient. The bill is critically important because many patients are unable to afford the products that are available at dispensaries, which are not covered by health insurance. For some patients, home cultivation is simply the best, most affordable option.

After you contact your senator in support of the home cultivation bill, please share this message with your family and friends.

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If you live in Hawaii, contact your senator and ask them to vote YES on HB 1383, then ask your representative to get the bill to a conference committee to refine it.

Last week, the Senate Committee on Ways and Means voted to pass a bill that would decriminalize marijuana possession in the Aloha State — making possession of three grams or less punishable by a $30 fine. The bill will now head to the Senate floor.

An earlier version of the bill, HB 1383, was already approved by the full House. While the Senate amendment improved the bill by reducing the fine, HB 1383 still only decriminalizes possession of up to three grams, which would be the smallest amount of any decriminalization or legalization state. Typically, decriminalization laws apply to one ounce, which is around 28.5 grams.

However, if the bill passes the Senate and goes to conference committee, there will be an opportunity to increase the possession limit.

Click here to ask your senator to vote "yes" on the bill and to ask your representative to NOT agree to the Senate amendments. That way, the bill can be improved in a conference committee. If the Senate approves the bill and the House accepts the Senate amendments, it will be sent to the governor as is.

Hawaiians should not be jailed or branded with a life-altering criminal record for simple possession of marijuana. The current possession limit of three grams is too low, and lives will continue to be needlessly derailed as a result.

Hawaii is lagging behind the 24 states and D.C. that have decriminalized marijuana. Contact your senator and representative today, and forward this message to your friends and family in Hawaii. Together, we can bring sensible marijuana policy to Hawaii!

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If you live in Maryland, please ask your legislators to support legalizing, taxing, and regulating marijuana for adults 21 and older!

The Maryland General Assembly wrapped up its 2019 legislative session on Monday, April 8. It was a somber end to the legislative session with the passing of House Speaker Michael Busch, who was Speaker of the House of Delegates for 16 years.

A number of cannabis reform bills were introduced this session, including legislation to legalize, tax, and regulate marijuana for adults' use. Unfortunately, neither those bills nor the bill that would legalize cannabis following voter approval in 2020 passed this session.

But, the state is positioned to seriously consider legalizing and regulating cannabis in 2020. A work group will be convening during the interim to study how to best implement the legalization of marijuana in Maryland. The work group will report its findings by December 31, 2019, just in time for the 2020 session. Stay tuned for updates from the work group and opportunities to weigh in on meetings!

In the meantime, be sure to keep up the momentum and let your delegate(s) and senator know you want them to support legislation to legalize, tax, and regulate marijuana for adults 21 and older.

In other news, several bills to improve Maryland's medical marijuana program were also introduced this session. A bill that will allow edible cannabis products to be an option for patients was passed on Monday. It will be effective upon signature by Gov. Larry Hogan or 30 days after presentment by the General Assembly.

A bill to add opioid use disorder as a qualifying condition and a bill to ensure medical marijuana patients do not lose their gun rights were also introduced this session. Unfortunately, these bills did not advance.

There is increasing momentum for marijuana policy reform in Maryland. Keep the pressure up by contacting your lawmakers today and sharing this message with your family and friends in Maryland. Together, we can end prohibition!

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If you live in Florida, contact your representatives and ask them to vote NO on HB7117.

Just two weeks after the legislature and Gov. Ron DeSantis repealed a ban on smoking medical cannabis in the face of a lawsuit, the House Appropriations Committee approved a bill that would limit cannabis flowers to just 10% THC. The bill, HB7117, now heads to the Florida House floor.

Please ask your representatives to protect patients and vote NO on HB7117!

This THC limit would leave patients behind who respond best to medical cannabis with higher proportions of THC.

THC has proven medical benefits, including relieving nausea and appetite loss. Patients who benefit from strains of cannabis that have more than 10% THC deserve legal access to the medical cannabis they need to treat their conditions.

Patients and their allies in Florida have fought for years to establish a comprehensive system to create safe access to medical cannabis. This bill would roll back progress that has been made and is an affront to the 71% of voters who enacted the state’s medical cannabis law.

Ask your representatives to support patients across the Sunshine State and vote NO on HB7117. Then, forward this message to your friends and family in Florida and encourage them to do the same.

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Contact your state legislators and ask them to support decriminalizing marijuana possession.

Great news! In a 37-10 vote, senators in North Dakota’s legislature passed legislation last Thursday to replace criminal penalties for possession of up to half an ounce of marijuana with a civil fine of $250. The proposal, introduced by Fargo Republican Sen. Kristin Roers, gained traction as the local marijuana policy reform organization, Legalize ND, announced plans to pursue a 2020 ballot initiative to legalize marijuana for adult use.

Please take a minute to send a message to your state legislators and urge them to pass marijuana decriminalization this year!

Members of the North Dakota House narrowly defeated a similar decriminalization proposal earlier this year, but lawmakers are expected to reach an agreement on the details of this legislation and ultimately send it to Gov. Doug Burgum, who has expressed support for decriminalization in the past.

The bill would also establish a process for the state to study the possibility of legalizing marijuana for adult use. Advocates with Legalize ND say that passage of this law will not deter them from efforts to put a legalization measure on the ballot in 2020.

It’s encouraging to see state lawmakers acknowledging the harms of marijuana prohibition and taking steps to end arrests for low-level possession offenses. There is more work to be done, but thanks to the tireless work of local advocates, we are finally seeing significant progress in the North Dakota Legislature. 

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Judiciary Committee votes to end marijuana prohibition — contact legislators today!

We’re excited to announce that two co-directors have joined our team to lead the Connecticut Coalition to Regulate Marijuana: Kebra Smith-Bolden and Adam Wood. You can read more about them here. They have already begun working to expand and activate our coalition as we rally support for efforts to legalize, regulate, and tax cannabis, with a focus on equity and social justice.

There is a very real opportunity for the legislature to pass a legalization bill during this year’s session, which is scheduled to end on June 6, but nothing is guaranteed. With Kebra and Adam at the helm, we can make sure the opportunity is not lost this year in Hartford!

Please stay tuned for ways to help. We’re going to need all hands on deck to pass this historic reform.

We’ve already made huge progress with the legislature in 2019. Today, the Joint Committee on Judiciary took an important step forward when it voted to pass SB 1085, a bill that would legalize possession of cannabis for adults 21 and older and expunge records for past marijuana possession convictions. A separate bill that would regulate the production and sale of cannabis for adult use, HB 7371, has already been approved by the General Law Committee. Links to summaries of these bills are available here.

Please email your elected officials and urge them to support the bills to legalize, regulate, and tax cannabis!

Finally, we’d like to thank Sam Tracy for all his hard work building the Connecticut Coalition to Regulate Marijuana and advocating for sensible marijuana policies in Connecticut. Thank you, Sam!

Please share this message with your family and friends and encourage them to join our coalition!

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