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Crosscurrents

Cannabis News Roundup: Few cities ready for January sales

BY CC FLICKR USER MOMENTO MORI, RESIZED AND RECROPPED
Untitled

Berkeley ready for adult sales ... Smoking lounges may come to San Francisco ... State banking group considers armored cars ... Health, Opinion and more. 

[Click the blue hyperlink headline to read the full story.]

LEGISLATION & REGULATION                                   

Berkeley seems ready for New Year’s adult use sales // SF Chronicle

“Commercial sales to people 21 and older can legally begin New Year’s Day in California, but pot shops need both a state and a local license to conduct such transactions. Unlike San Francisco or Oakland, Berkeley has become one of the very few of the 400-plus cities and counties in California to create such a license.”

It may be possible to smoke in SF dispensaries // SF Chronicle

“’ I think we’re going to need to have indoor consumption sites,’ said committee chairman Mark Farrell. ‘This is legal. This is coming. We have tenants with “no smoking” provisions in their leases and nowhere to go.’”  The issue will be considered by the full Board of Supervisors on November 14.

State cannabis banking group reports // Treasurer.ca.gov

Four suggestions are highlighted for dispensaries to get around their current cash-only businesses. One is a “multistate consortium” to “pursue changes to federal law to remove the barriers to cannabis banking.” Armored cars could also be considered.

California marijuana businesses still await regulations // KALW

It was just a year ago this week that California voters approved the legal sale of cannabis to adults.  And in less than two months that law is supposed to go into effect. But there seem to be some complications.” [Audio.]

Ex-supes hold joint news conference // SF Chronicle

Two former San Francisco supervisors have formed an unlikely alliance to intervene in the city’s cannabis debate, putting pressure on their successors to adopt policies that would promote the industry and accelerate permits to sell recreational marijuana in the city.”

Massachusetts needs $5 million to establish cannabis commission // BostonGlobe

“If lawmakers approve the request, which the commission submitted to the Legislature late last week, the sum would be used to hire around 38 full-time staffers, rent office space, and buy software to issue licenses and track the growth and sale of marijuana plants and products.”

BUSINESS

What small Emerald Triangle growers have to do to survive // SFWeekly

“[P]atients now are accustomed to A-grade products, and are no longer willing to settle for lesser quality. While in the past, growers with subpar yields were often able to move their crops at reduced prices to stave off financial loss, now the market for B-grade cannabis is all but nonexistent.”

Insurance now available to California marijuana industry // Reuters

“The insurer, Golden Bear Insurance Co, can now begin writing policies and offer coverage for cannabis business owners,” a first for the state.

Not all players in the Green Rush are sure money makers // MJbizDaily

At one point, MassRoots was flying high, raising millions of dollars from investors and attempting to become the first cannabis company listed on the Nasdaq.

“Over the course of 2017, however, the marijuana-centric social media network has nosedived and now finds itself in a precarious position.”

HEALTH

Good news / bad news on Texas CBD // MJbizDaily.com

The state of Texas is authorizing cultivation of “a high-CBD medical marijuana strain,” but “Under Texas’ restrictive CBD law, only patients with intractable epilepsy qualify to purchase and use the cannabis-derived CBD oil that the three licensed companies will produce.”

Flash: smoking and drinking are bad for teens // Newsweek

“Researchers at the University of Connecticut studied 1,165 people over the course of their teenage years into early adulthood. Specifically, they wanted to know how heavy drug and alcohol use might impact key adult milestones like working full time, getting married and completing their education.” 

Spoiler alert: the results are no surprise.

EVENTS

First public meeting of Bureau of Cannabis Control Advisory Committee next week // BCC

The Bureau of Cannabis Control ... will host the first public Cannabis Advisory Committee meeting on Thursday, November 16 in Sacramento. The Meeting Notice and Agenda can be found here: http://bcc.ca.gov/about_us/committee. Meeting materials will also be posted on the Bureau website as they become available.”

Food centered cannabis event in Oakland Saturday // flipcause

“An afternoon of discussion centered around food & cannabis policy” is scheduled tomorrow afternoon (11/11) at EVB Gallery in Oakland.

Online “Understanding Marijuana” health series // CA4Health

Marijuana has been used for both medicinal and recreational purposes for a long time. Nevertheless, a full understanding of the effects of this plant on our health, and how to address the long-term residual consequences of its criminalization in our communities can remain elusive. As preparations and discussions unfold across California and other states around legalized adult use, increasing an understanding of marijuana can assist with achieving desirable and equitable outcomes.”

The first session is next Tuesday. Click on the headline for specifics.

OPINION

Supervisors’ proposals could hinder San Francisco’s adult use sales // SF Chronicle

“This equity program is well-intended, recognizing that the drug war disproportionately harmed African Americans and other minorities in this and other cities. But with less than two months left until recreational marijuana becomes legal statewide on Jan. 1, this complex and quixotic project could have the ironic effect of leaving San Francisco, a leader in the fight to end criminalization, lagging as legalization proceeds.”

[Have a question? Send it here: cannabis@kalw.org ]

[New content is posted on Fridays.]

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