Archive

Good news! Yesterday evening, the Louisiana House of Representatives voted to reduce the penalty for possession of 14 grams of cannabis to a fine of up to $100 with no jail time. This bill would save Louisianans the trauma, humiliation, and disruption caused by being locked in a jail cell for possessing a substance that is safer than alcohol.

We're writing to note a correction and a handful of updates in regard to the Louisiana email sent yesterday. After the House Administration of Criminal Justice Committee approved HB 524, it passed another legalization bill — Rep. Candace Newell’s HB 243 — in a 6-5 vote. Both bills are headed to the House floor and could receive a vote as early as next week.

Great news! In a 6-5 vote, the Louisiana House Administration of Criminal Justice Committee voted to advance Rep. Richard Nelson’s bill to legalize and regulate marijuana for adults 21 and older. It now heads to the full House of Representatives!

Next week, two legislative committees in Baton Rouge will be hearing testimony on bills that would bring Louisiana’s cannabis policies into the 21st century.

On Monday, lawmakers returned to Baton Rouge for their 2021 legislative session. More than a dozen cannabis policy bills have been proposed — including bills to legalize cannabis and to allow flower cannabis in the state’s medical cannabis program.

A new poll by Starboard Communications found 72% of South Carolina voters support allowing medical cannabis and only 15% are opposed! But because South Carolina doesn’t have a citizens’ initiative process, the only way to translate that overwhelming support into law is for the state legislature to act.

Last year, the Alabama Senate overwhelmingly approved the Compassion Act — which would have legalized medical cannabis — but it stalled in the House when the coronavirus derailed the legislative session. This year, Sen. Tim Melson, MD, has already filed the 2021 version of the bill, SB 46.

Ask your state legislators to cosponsor the South Carolina Compassionate Care Act. On Wednesday, Sen. Tom Davis (R) and Rep. Bill Herbkersman (R) pre-filed bills that would allow seriously ill patients to use and safely access medical cannabis in South Carolina.As Rep. Bill Herbkersman explained, “It is unacceptable that South Carolinians with serious illnesses have to break the law to alleviate their suffering. My brother [who died of cancer] deserved better. Our friends, family, and neighbors…

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…

Exciting news! Yesterday, Gov. Phil Murphy’s administration took another important step to preserve safe access to medical cannabis during COVID by issuing a waiver that would allow home delivery of medical cannabis to patients and designated caregivers. The waiver implements one of the key provisions contained in Jake Honig’s Law that was signed into law in 2019. At the onset of the COVID public health emergency, Gov. Murphy’s administration issued waivers providing for curbside pick-up, remote…