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.

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.

Last week, Sen. Sharif Street filed a bill with the Judiciary Committee to decriminalize up to 30 grams of cannabis. Currently, possession and distribution of 30 grams of cannabis (or eight grams of hashish without intent to sell) is a misdemeanor punishable by up to 30 days imprisonment and a $500 fine.

Voters in Kansas City — the largest city in Missouri and the sixth largest city in the Midwest — overwhelmingly approved a ballot measure on Tuesday to reduce the city's penalties for marijuana possession. The Kansas City Star reports: The measure lowers the maximum fine for marijuana possession in city court to $25 from $500 and eliminates jail time as a penalty. Under the old ordinance, a sentence of 180 days was possible. The change applies only to cases in Kansas City Municipal Court in which…

[caption id="attachment_8810" align="alignright" width="200"] Gov. Larry Hogan (PHOTO: Washington Post)[/caption] Late Friday afternoon, Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan (R) vetoed SB 517 — a common-sense bill that would decriminalize marijuana paraphernalia. His veto is deeply disappointing. If we can garner votes from three-fifths of the House and three-fifths of the Senate, his veto will be overridden and the measure will become law. If you are a Maryland resident, please email your state delegate(s)…

Last month, the Maryland Legislature sent Gov. Larry Hogan (R) a bill to remove the criminal penalty for possession of marijuana paraphernalia. The time for Gov. Hogan to act on this bill is running out, so please email him today and encourage him to sign this reform into law. [caption id="attachment_8795" align="alignright" width="214"] Gov. Larry Hogan[/caption] By removing the criminal penalty for possessing marijuana paraphernalia, SB 517 will fix the current legal absurdity that makes possessing…

On Tuesday, the Montgomery County Council unanimously adopted a resolution de-prioritizing certain marijuana offenses and urging the state to decriminalize possession of marijuana paraphernalia. This is just the latest step towards humane and sensible marijuana policies in Maryland. The county’s resolution comes on the heels of Gov. Martin O’Malley signing into law SB 364, which will impose civil fines — not criminal penalties — on possession of less than ten grams of marijuana. The law, which goes…

What’s older than Florida’s senior population? The Florida Legislature’s mindset when it comes to marijuana. Last Friday, the state Senate voted 31-2 in favor of a bill that would ban the sale of assorted pipes, bongs, and hookahs. House Bill 49 passed in the House days earlier by a vote of 112-3. [caption id="attachment_6350" align="alignright" width="120"] Sen. Jeff Clemens[/caption] Sen. Jeff Clemens (D-Lake Worth), one of the few dissenting voices in the Senate, argued that marijuana is far safer…

UPDATE: As of Nov. 7, charges against Willson Nixon have been dropped. Too bad that only seems to happen for the children of the powerful. In other news, Missouri will consider dropping marijuana charges for everyone! ORIGINAL:In other Missouri news, college student Willson Nixon was arrested for possession of marijuana at a house party earlier this week. This happens every day in Missouri and around the country, unfortunately endangering the ability of students to continue their educations or find…

On Friday, April 22, police at a checkpoint in Connecticut stopped Rhode Island House Minority Leader Robert Watson. Representative Watson cooperated with the police, agreeing to a Breathalyzer that resulted in a 0.05 reading (0.08 is legally impaired). During the stop, police also uncovered a small amount of marijuana and a pipe. Rep. Watson has since stated that he uses marijuana for medical purposes, but that he decided not to become a registered medical marijuana patient in Rhode Island out of…