Important news! Next Wednesday, May 4, the application period for the cannabis retailer lottery ends. To date, over 3,000 applications have been submitted for the 12 adult-use retail establishments that are set to open following passage of Connecticut’s 2021 legalization law.

The application periods for the remaining license types close on the following days:

• Micro-cultivator: May 11, 2022
• Delivery Service: May 18, 2022
• Hybrid Retailer: May 25, 2022
• Food and Beverage: June 1, 2022
• Product Manufacturer: June 8, 2022  
• Product Packager: June 15, 2022 
• Transporter: June 22, 2022

Applications can be found here and must be completed through an online portal. Information about what is required to apply for each license type is available at ct.gov/cannabis. Interested applicants can also view a description of each license type here.  

As the adult-use market continues to roll out in Connecticut, we’ll continue to keep you updated on the progress.

Email your rep to vote YES on the final vote!

After seven long years, S. 150 is finally headed to the House floor today! The Senate already passed the bill in February. Earlier this month, the legislation passed the 3M Committee, so we need everyone to reach out to their reps right now before the final vote.

It’s time to double down our efforts to make sure the bill gets past the finish line.

Here’s what we need from you:

• Email your state rep in support of The South Carolina Compassionate Care Act, S. 150.
• Spread the word to friends and family on social media, and rally them to email or call their reps.

Too many have fought for years, and we are in the final stretch to full House passage. Our opponents will be doing everything in their power to defeat this historic legislation — including proposing 1,000 amendments to try to slow down the process. So, we must do everything in our power to make sure S. 150 gets final passage in the South Carolina House.

Let your representative know you support allowing the medical freedom that safe, legal access to medical cannabis brings to patients with debilitating conditions. You can read our summary of the bill here.

Together, we can make the idea of a medical cannabis program a reality in South Carolina. Please have your friends and family around South Carolina have their voices heard! It is up to us to show S.C. representatives that we want the freedom this bill gives patients and doctors to make their own medical decisions.

Legislature to debate and vote on 17 bills!

Cannabis policy reform is on the move in Louisiana!  

Last week, seven bills to improve Louisiana’s medical cannabis program passed through committees without any objections. Those bills are scheduled for floor votes this week. Committee hearings this week will focus on criminal justice reforms.

Ask your state rep to support bills to expand the victory we achieved last year with decriminalization.

The Administration of Criminal Justice Committee will hear four important cannabis-related bills — expungement, excluding certain cannabis convictions from the habitual offender penalty enhancements, and decriminalization of cannabis paraphernalia for medical and adult use. A complete look at the schedule for this week can be found here.

Also this week, two legalization bills will be heard in the Judiciary Committee.

Now is the time to engage your legislators. The session is in high gear, and they need to hear from constituents. Pressure from constituents is the best method to get legislators to support cannabis reform in Louisiana. Here are some helpful hints for lobbying at the capital.

We will alert you this session as cannabis bills continue to move in the legislature. You can view a synopsis of pending legislation here. Be sure to share this with your friends and families in Louisiana!

Call your representative to urge a YES vote on the House floor!

After seven long years, S. 150 is finally headed to the House floor! The Senate already passed the bill in February. Earlier this month, the legislation passed the 3M Committee, so we need everyone to reach out to their reps for this next crucial stage.

It’s time to double down our efforts to make sure the bill gets past the finish line.

Here’s what we need from you:

• Call your state rep in support of the South Carolina Compassionate Care Act, S. 150. (Our call script and pointers make it easy.)
• Spread the word to friends and family on social media, and rally them to call their reps.

Too many have fought for years, and we are in the final stretch to full House passage. Our opponents will be doing everything in their power to defeat this historic legislation — including proposing 1,000 amendments to try to slow down the process. So, we must do everything in our power to make sure S. 150 gets final passage in the South Carolina House.

Let your representative know you support allowing the medical freedom that safe, legal access to medical cannabis brings to patients with debilitating conditions. You can read our summary of the bill here.

Together, we can make the idea of a medical cannabis program a reality in South Carolina. Please have your friends and family around South Carolina have their voices heard! It is up to us to show S.C. representatives that we want the freedom this bill gives patients and doctors to make their own medical decisions.

Great news! Last week, the New Jersey Cannabis Regulatory Commission (CRC) approved the licenses of seven medical cannabis companies to allow the sale of adult-use cannabis products to adults 21 years and older without a medical card later this month.

On Friday, the Commission announced that 13 individual dispensaries have been approved to begin offering cannabis products to adults ages 21 and older beginning as soon as April 21.  Under guidance issued by the CRC, medical patients may purchase up to three ounces every 30 days, while adult-use consumers will be able to purchase up to one ounce per transaction. This milestone culminates years of advocacy by supporters like you to bring an adult-use cannabis market to fruition in New Jersey.

Earlier this month, the commission also approved 102 conditional licenses for smaller cultivators and manufacturers, many of which have social equity ownership. However, those licensees aren’t expected to begin operations until next year. Additionally, the CRC recently completed a public feedback tour throughout the state focused on ways to allocate cannabis tax revenue.

As the adult-use market continues to roll out in the Garden State, we’ll be sure to keep you updated on the progress.

Ask your legislators to support improvements to the medical cannabis law.

On Tuesday, April 19 at 8:30 a.m., the House Committee on Health and Welfare will hear testimony on nine bills that would revise Louisiana’s medical cannabis program. 

The bills would increase the number of pharmacies and the number of growers, protect patients visiting from other states, expand the types of medical professionals who can recommend medical cannabis to patients, and change which state agency regulates the program. Links to the bills — and short summaries — can be found here under the heading “Medical Cannabis.”

Let your legislators know you want to see improvements to the medical cannabis program.

Last year, legislators heard your cries for improving the medical program and convened the Medical Marijuana Commission. Many patients came to the capitol and expressed their frustrations over accessibility, lack of variety of medicine, and the cost of medical cannabis. The bills being heard aim to rectify the issues patients brought to the Commission’s attention.

If you’d like to make your voice heard in support of one or more of these bills, here are some tips on testifying, along with directions to the capitol and tips on navigating to Committee Room 5 (in the basement of the House side) to get to the hearing room. You can submit written testimony to h-hw@legis.la.gov before noon on Monday, April 18. Be sure to identify which bill you are testifying in support of.

This is the first time the legislature has considered increasing therapeutic cannabis growers and pharmacies. Your voice is critical to seeing expansion to the program to better meet the needs of patients.

Learn more and get tickets!

MPP is proud to be an official advocacy partner of the 6th Annual National Cannabis Festival (NCF), and we're excited to be joining in the festivities on Saturday, April 23 in Washington, D.C.!

Please join us as we celebrate progress toward ending cannabis prohibition with a day of education, advocacy, music, fellowship, and fun! Wiz Khalifa will headline this year's concert, along with performances from Lettuce, Ghostface Killah, Backyard Band, Dupont Brass, and more. Get tickets here.

MPP President and CEO Toi Hutchinson will be speaking on a panel — The Evolution of the Cannabis Reform Community — in the Culture Pavilion at 4:15 p.m. The discussion will center on the changing cannabis industry, how cannabis reform is tied to other national movements for justice, and how allied organizations can work together to continue to advance cannabis reform and justice for all. MPP’s Manager of Development Alex Langer will moderate the session.

Before that, Toi will also be moderating another panel — In Conversation: Gary Chambers & Doug Gansler — at 2:30 p.m. in the Culture Pavilion, where the focus will be on two pro-legalization candidates, Gary Chambers (candidate for U.S. Senate, Louisiana) and Doug Gansler (Gubernatorial candidate, Maryland). It should be an interesting discussion!

In addition, Toi will be offering the introduction for a special message from Congressman Dave Joyce (OH) at the National Cannabis Policy Summit on Friday, April 22 at the Ronald Reagan Building & International Trade Center in D.C. Rep. Joyce is co-chair of the Cannabis Caucus and an ally who is dedicated to the swift and responsible end of cannabis prohibition.

Last, but not least, MPP will have a booth at NCF in the Advocacy Area, so please stop by to say hello! We’ll have MPP merch available, and we can tell you all about the work we’re doing on a daily basis to end cannabis prohibition across the country. 

We hope to see you at NCF!

Ask your state senator to support legalization.

Great news! For the first time ever, legalization has passed a New Hampshire Senate committee and is headed to the Senate floor! This morning, the Senate Judiciary Committee passed HB 629 in a 3-2 vote. HB 629 already passed the House and is now headed to the full Senate.

Ask your state senator to vote “yes” on HB 629, which would legalize simple possession and home cultivation of cannabis. (Check out our summary for more details.)

Meanwhile, New Hampshire State Rep. Daryl Abbas’ bill (HB 1598) to legalize cannabis but create a state-run cannabis monopoly will receive a hearing in the Senate Ways and Means Committee next Wednesday. Unlike HB 629, HB 1598 does not include home cultivation.

Rep. Abbas’ model for legal sales is almost surely unworkable due to federal law. Requiring state workers to commit federal felonies is preempted (or nullified).

MPP is encouraging the committee to amend HB 1598 in a number of ways — including to at least create a “Plan B” with automatic licensing of privately run retailers in the event that state-run stores don’t get off the ground.

What: Senate Ways and Means Committee hearing on HB 1598, the state-run stores legalization bill

Where: Room 100, State House, 107 N Main St, Concord, NH 03303

When: Wednesday, April 20 at 9:00 a.m.

If you’re not comfortable attending in person but want to make your voice heard on this bill, you can email comments to the committee.

And don’t forget to write your senator to express your support for HB 629. Then, spread the word to other Granite Staters, so they, too, can raise their voices to encourage the state to live up to its “Live Free or Die” motto.

Email your lawmakers today and ask them to legalize cannabis for adults this year!

Today, two separate cannabis legalization bills were passed in committee!

HB 371, which would simply legalize possession of up to one ounce of cannabis for adults 21 and older, was approved by the House Health and Human Development Committee.

HB 372, which would regulate and tax cannabis sales for adults in Delaware, was approved by the House Revenue and Finance Committee.

Please reach out to your lawmakers today and urge them to end cannabis prohibition in Delaware this year!

Next, HB 372 must be considered by the House Appropriations Committee before heading to the House floor. Because it has no fees or taxes, HB 371 should head straight to the floor. It only requires a simple majority of 21 votes to clear the House, while HB 372 will require a supermajority of 25 votes.

By passing both HB 371 and HB 372 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.

A strong majority of Delawareans support legalization, but the legislature must act to bring this important policy change to Delaware. Ask your lawmakers to stand with a majority of Delawareans and legalize cannabis for adults this year.

Stay tuned for future updates!

As the legislature sets to adjourn its 2022 legislative session at midnight tonight, cannabis policy reform has crossed the finish line!

On Friday, Gov. Hogan (R) announced that he would let HB 837, “Cannabis Reform,” become law without his signature. As you may recall, the legislature already passed HB 1 — which will refer the question of legalization to voters on the November ballot.

The question that HB 1 lays out to appear on the ballot is: 

“Do you favor the legalization of the use of cannabis by an individual who is at least 21 years of age on or after July 1, 2023, in the State of Maryland?”

If voters approve HB 1 on the ballot, HB 837 will allow residents 21 and older to legally possess up to 1.5 ounces and cultivate up to two plants beginning July 1, 2023. The bill also includes limited expungement, funding for minority- and women-owned businesses, and a community reinvestment and repair fund.

You can check out our summary of the bill here.

Thank you to the lawmakers, advocates, and residents across the state who helped to achieve this big step to finally end cannabis prohibition in the Free State!

We look forward to continuing to work to bring equitable legalization to Marylanders.