The legislature is planning to resume its work soon — email your elected officials now and urge them to make passage of S. 54 a top priority!

Vermont’s economy has been crippled in recent months by COVID-19. It is unfortunate that adult-use cannabis businesses were not already operating before the pandemic arrived, because they could have provided an important source of jobs and tax revenue during the crisis. Fortunately, the legislature will have an opportunity to finish its work and pass a final version of S. 54, the bill to legalize and regulate sales, when it resumes work in late August.

To help inform policymakers as they prepare to contemplate final revisions to S. 54, we asked our allies at the cannabis-focused law firm Vicente Sederberg, LLP to analyze the demand for adult-use cannabis in Vermont and project the expected revenues associated with S. 54. Their detailed report, which was published today, illustrates how regulating cannabis markets can help Vermont recover from the economic recession.

The report, which is based on the most accurate and current data available, suggests that previous revenue estimates by the Joint Fiscal Office (JFO) are probably much lower than what would be produced if S. 54 becomes law. Additionally, the report examines what would happen if the legislature amends S. 54 to allow for early-start sales, and it projects that Vermont could generate over $175 million in cannabis taxes through 2025 if it chooses to do so.

Please contact your state legislators and urge them to advocate for passage of S. 54!

The bill, which has already passed the House (90-54) and the Senate (23-5), awaits action from a conference committee that has been formed to work out a final version of the bill. You can read a summary of S. 54 here.

Again, please contact your elected officials and urge them to make this bill a top priority. After you do so, please share this message with your family and friends!

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Join us in Denver on September 17 for a fundraiser in support of the Utah medical cannabis campaign!

This November, Utah will vote on a medical cannabis ballot initiative (Prop 2). While most polls suggest that the initiative will pass, a strong opposition campaign has recently emerged. The Utah Patients Coalition — the campaign working to pass Prop 2 — needs your support. We anticipate a misleading opposition ad campaign over the next two months, and the Utah Patients Coalition needs resources in order to present voters with the facts.

So please join MPP’s Deputy Director Matt Schweich for a fundraiser in Denver on Monday, September 17 from 5:30 to 7:00 p.m. MT. Law firm Vicente Sederberg is kindly hosting an event at its office. I will provide a briefing on the campaign and answer your questions. Attendees are encouraged to make a $50 donation to the campaign. Contributions will be accepted at the door, or you can make them online.

WHAT: Briefing on the 2018 Utah medical cannabis ballot initiative

WHEN: Monday, September 17, 5:30-7:00 p.m.

WHERE: Vicente Sederberg, 455 Sherman Street, Suite 390, Denver

We look forward to seeing you in Denver!

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This year, the National Cannabis Bar Association’s Second Annual Cannabis Law Institute will take place on September 7 and 8 in Washington, D.C. at the George Washington University Law School.

Featuring some of the nation’s leading attorneys, academics, and politicians, this event will convene the best minds and visionaries working in the cannabis industry and reform movement for two days of panels and discussion. Programming is focused on education for attorneys, and you can receive 11+ CLE credits for select jurisdictions. Evenings will feature networking events.

We’re excited to announce that MPP’s Deputy Director Matt Schweich will be moderating the panel discussion on Federalism & States’ Rights, which will also include MPP’s Director of Federal Policies, Don Murphy.

You’re invited to attend by registering here. Use the code “friendsofncba” to receive $200 off the full ticket price, and if you are a member of NCBA, you get an additional $100 off.

With over 60 speakers and panelists from organizations like the Brookings Institution, the National Cannabis Industry Association, Americans for Safe Access, and leading cannabis law firm Vicente Sederberg, the conference will address the most challenging areas of law as they relate to the cannabis industry, including banking, tax, finance, intellectual property, labor and employment, corporate governance, and more. Congressmen Earl Blumenauer of Oregon and David Joyce of Ohio will also be in attendance as part of the keynote conversation on Friday morning.

If you live in the D.C. metro area, you don’t want to miss this important event. We hope to see you there!

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Legal marijuana businesses in Colorado made more than a billion dollars in sales during the first 10 months of 2016, exceeding sales numbers from last year.

The Cannabist reports:

Recreational and medical cannabis shops in America’s first 420-legal state have sold nearly $1.1 billion of marijuana and related products in 2016, according to the new October data from the state’s Department of Revenue.

When 2015’s year-end marijuana tax data was finally released in February, Cannabist calculations showed $996,184,788 in sales at Colorado marijuana shops that year — spurring a leading industry attorney to tell us at the time, “I think it’s ethical to round that up to a billion.”

That same lawyer, Vicente Sederberg partner Christian Sederberg, celebrated the billion-dollar news on Monday by also pointing to the Colorado cannabis industry’s increasing economic impact and skyrocketing tax revenues for the state as well as numerous cities and counties throughout Colorado.

“We think we’ll see $1.3 billion in sales revenue this year,” said Sederberg, “and so the economic impact of this industry — if we’re using the same multiplier from the Marijuana Policy Group’s recent report, which is totally reasonable — it suddenly eclipses a $3 billion economic impact for 2016.”

In addition to creating economic benefits, including state and local tax revenue and thousands of jobs, this legal market is on pace to continue stripping billions of dollars a year from the criminal market.

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