The governor has until March 31 to act on the legalization and expungement bills — write him and urge him to fix the legalization bills today!

Good news! This week, Gov. Ralph Northam signed legislation (HB 2218/SB 1333) that will allow registered patients to obtain whole-plant, “botanical” cannabis from medical cannabis dispensaries. The new law, which takes effect on July 1, will make it possible for patients to use cannabis in whatever form they find to be most helpful.

Gov. Northam has until March 31 to take action on the adult-use legalization and expungement bills. Unfortunately, as we informed you previously, the legalization bills still include one very bad provision that would criminalize bringing small amounts of cannabis into the Commonwealth from other jurisdictions. Both HB 2312 and SB 1406 would create a new criminal penalty, punishable by up to a year in jail, for entering Virginia with less than five pounds of cannabis. The bills do not include an exception for one ounce or less of cannabis.

We are also asking Gov. Northam to move the effective date of legalization from 2024 to 2021. If you haven’t already done so, please write Gov. Northam today and encourage him to request these important amendments.

If you’d like to read MPP’s letter to Gov. Northam, click here.

After you write Gov. Northam, please share this message with your friends and family in Virginia.

Ask your lawmakers to support HB 150!

Today, Delaware’s House Health and Human Development Committee voted 10-5 in favor of HB 150, a bill to legalize, tax, and regulate cannabis for adults 21 and older. It now moves to the House Appropriations Committee before heading to the House floor.

The bill will need a three-fifths supermajority (25 votes) to pass the House, so it’s very important your representatives hear from you.

You can check out our full summary of the bill here.

By passing HB 150 this year, Delaware can reduce the number of cannabis-related arrests and police interactions, free up law enforcement resources to focus on more serious crimes, and generate a new revenue source for the state.

Ask your state rep to stand with 61 percent of Delawareans and vote YES on HB 150! After you contact your representative, forward this message to your networks in Delaware — or share the action link on social media — and encourage them to do the same.

Together, we can end prohibition in the First State!

Click here to contact your state lawmaker about HB 2722.

Members of the Oklahoma House of Representatives recently approved HB 2722, which puts arbitrary caps on the number of medical cannabis businesses allowed in Oklahoma and creates impediments for new entrepreneurs to enter the industry. Passage of this legislation would only reduce competition and limit patients’ options.

HB 2722 is now being considered by state senators. Make sure your voice is heard before they vote by using our legislative action tool.

Oklahoma's medical cannabis program is working and helping patients. The state should avoid overly restricting an otherwise free and healthy medical cannabis market.

Thank you for taking action and contacting your state senator today.

HB 290 would reclassify cannabis possession from a misdemeanor to an infraction — write your elected officials today and urge them to support this reform!

In December, the North Carolina Task Force for Racial Equity in Criminal Justice recommended that cannabis possession should be a civil — not a criminal — offense. Last week, legislators put forward a bill that would do just that.

HB 290, which has 28 legislative sponsors, would reclassify the penalty for possessing up to 1.5 ounces of cannabis from a misdemeanor to an infraction. Under North Carolina law, infractions are punishable by a fine of up to $100.

Please contact your state legislators right now and urge them to support this sensible reform.

Under current law, possessing up to a half ounce of cannabis is a misdemeanor that carries a fine of up to $200, along with the collateral consequences of a criminal conviction. Possession of greater amounts up to 1.5 ounces can result in up to 45 days in jail and a fine of up to $1,000.

Most North Carolina residents — 54% according to a recent Elon College poll — are in favor of legalizing cannabis. HB 290 would not legalize possession, but it would significantly reduce harm to individuals who are charged with possessing small amounts. It would also allow police and courts to waste less time dealing with cannabis possession cases, leaving them with more time to deal with serious crimes.

After you write your legislators, please share this message with your family and friends.

Ask your lawmakers to support HB 150.

The House Health and Human Development Committee has scheduled a hearing for HB 150, legislation to legalize, tax, and regulate cannabis for adults 21 and older. The virtual hearing will take place on Wednesday, March 24 at 11 a.m.

Please write your lawmakers today and ask them to support HB 150.

You can voice your support at the hearing by providing written or oral testimony. We particularly encourage testimony from supportive law enforcement, clergy, substance abuse and medical professionals, educators, and those who have been harmed by cannabis prohibition.

For more information on HB 150, you can check out our summary here. You can find some arguments in support of legalizing and regulating cannabis here.

Written testimony can be submitted by emailing it to HouseCommitteeComment@delaware.gov. Please specify the House Committee (Health and Human Development), the date of the committee meeting (March 24, 2021), and the bill number for which you are submitting public comment (HB 150). Submissions will be accepted in advance of the committee meeting and up to 24 hours after the hearing has concluded.

Oral testimony will be limited to two minutes. You can register to submit oral testimony here. Check out the guidelines under “Minutes and Supporting Documents” for more details on providing testimony.

Help us send a strong message to the General Assembly to end cannabis prohibition in the First State this year! Please show your support at the upcoming bill hearing, contact your lawmakers, and forward this message to your friends and family in Delaware.

Ask your lawmakers to legalize cannabis for adults this session.

Exciting news! Today, Rep. Ed Osienski introduced his highly anticipated legalization bill — HB 150.

The bill would legalize possession of up to one ounce of cannabis for adults 21 and older, allow for mandatory expungement of past cannabis possession convictions, and promote equity and inclusion in the legal industry from communities disproportionately impacted by cannabis prohibition. You can check out our full summary of the bill here.

Please reach out to your lawmakers today and ask them to support HB 150!

There is increasing momentum for Delaware to move forward with legalization this year. New Jersey has officially enacted its legalization law, and the Virginia Legislature recently sent a legalization bill to its governor. Rep. Osienski has said he is close to the two-thirds majority we need to pass the House.

Replacing cannabis prohibition with sensible regulations would reduce the number of cannabis-related arrests and police interactions, free up law enforcement resources to focus on more serious crimes, and generate a much-needed new source of jobs and revenue for the state.

To help get legalization over the finish line this year, email your lawmakers and ask them to support legalization, share this action on social media, and encourage others to do the same. Stay tuned for future updates on the 2021 legalization effort.

Together, we can end prohibition in the First State!

Please email your senator today, then call Gov. Sununu’s office at 603-271-2121 and urge him to support HB 350!

Yesterday, all three of New Hampshire’s alternative treatment centers (ATCs) testified in favor of HB 350, a bill that would legalize home cultivation for qualifying patients and designated caregivers, in the Senate Health and Human Services Committee. This was a remarkable turnaround from 2019, when a nearly identical bill received no support from ATCs at a hearing in this same committee.

There is still no guarantee that HB 350 will pass and become law, but it’s encouraging that the three ATCs have joined the chorus of support from patients and advocates.

If you’d like to watch video of the hearing, it is available on YouTube here.

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.

Please also email your state senator about this important legislation today. Then, call Gov. Chris Sununu’s office at 603-271-2121 and urge him to support the bill!

After you email your state senator and call Gov. Sununu’s office, please share this important message with your friends and family!

Email your lawmakers and ask them to make 2021 the year Delaware legalizes cannabis for adults.

This Thursday night, the Delaware Cannabis Policy Coalition is holding a virtual town hall to discuss the economic impact of cannabis legalization. Mark your calendars, and we hope you will join us!

There is increasing momentum for Delaware to move forward with legalization this year. Rep. Ed Osienski is expected to file his 2021 legalization bill soon. Stay tuned for future updates.

Join us for this timely discussion on Thursday at 7 p.m., and please also reach out to your lawmakers and ask them to support legalization this year. Be sure to share this message with your family and friends to help us spread the word.

Together, we can end prohibition in the First State!

Please take a couple of minutes to call your state senator in support of the Compassionate Care Act.

“The medicine that saves my life every day is illegal in South Carolina. I am asking my fellow South Carolinians, please support your veterans by asking your legislators to support compassionate legislation to bring this relief to everyone who needs it.” 

— J., a female South Carolina veteran with PTSD and a severely painful kidney condition that medical cannabis has dramatically helped

On March 1, South Carolina veterans made a powerful case for legalizing medical cannabis. They shared the pain they and their brothers and sisters endured — of friends who died of opiate overdoses, the impacts of living with PTSD, and the injustice of their life-saving medicine being deemed illegal by the state. They bravely shared their traumatic stories in hopes of stirring legislators and the public to act.

Please, heed their call. With your help, this can be the year South Carolina finally stops criminalizing patients for using this safe and effective medicine.

Call your state senator TODAY to politely let them know you want them to work to pass S. 150 — the S.C. Compassionate Care Act.

S. 150 is scheduled for discussion in the Senate Medical Affairs Committee this Thursday. With your help, we can get the bill moving in time to advance before South Carolina’s April 10 crossover deadline. More than 70% of South Carolina voters support medical cannabis, but it is vital that lawmakers hear that their constituents want them to act on this bill.

Please also watch and share this coverage of the veterans’ press conference on social media. You can watch the entire press conference — which features Emmy-award winning TV host and multiple sclerosis sufferer Montel Williams — here.

Finally, you can go the extra mile by also calling your state representative, to let them know you want them to push for the House version of the bill — H. 3361 — to get a vote.

Thank you for your compassion! Now, let’s get these bills moving.

Ask Rep. Yamane to schedule a hearing and pass S.B. 767!

Earlier this week, I alerted you that the full Hawaii Senate overwhelmingly approved a legalization bill, S.B. 767, in a historic 20-5 vote.

S.B. 767 has now been referred to the House Health, Human Services, & Homelessness Committee. It is now up to Committee Chair Rep. Ryan Yamane to schedule S.B. 767 for a hearing and a vote.

If the bill is not heard soon, it is effectively dead.

Let Rep. Yamane know you want the Hawaii House to pass legalization this year.

S.B. 767 faces an arduous process in the House, as it needs to make it through the joint judiciary and consumer protection and commerce committee and the finance committee before heading to the House floor for a vote.

But every step forward brings us closer to the day when cannabis prohibition ends in Hawaii. As the bill progresses, we’ll be sure to keep you updated.

Mahalo for your continued support.