Justice
Kentucky Governor Urges Trump to Honor Campaign Promise on Cannabis Rescheduling
FRANKFORT – Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear (D) has stepped into the national spotlight, urging President Donald Trump to oppose congressional efforts that would halt the federal rescheduling of cannabis from Schedule I to Schedule III under the Controlled Substances Act (CSA). In a letter sent to Trump, Beshear invoked the president’s own campaign pledge to ...
The DEA’s Time‑Warp Appointment: Terrance Cole and the Revival of “Reefer Madness”
WASHINGTON, D.C. –Terrance Cole, the newly confirmed Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Administrator, brings a worldview rooted in 1980s-era drug hysteria—one that dismisses decades of research, economic gains from cannabis legalization, and evolving public opinion. His alarmist rhetoric, linking cannabis to autism, stunted brain growth, and youth suicide, threatens to stall the long-awaited, evidence-based rescheduling ...
Cannabis Rescheduling Hits Pause as DEA Shifts Gears
WASHINGTON, D.C. – The federal cannabis rescheduling saga, already a slow-burning drama, took a sharp turn this week as Chief Administrative Law Judge John J. Mulrooney announced his retirement, effective August 1, 2025. The exit, coming just one day after the Senate confirmed Terrance Cole as the new Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) administrator, has left ...
Texas Hemp Ban Showdown or Reefer Madness 2.0?
AUSTIN – The Texas Senate Committee on State Affairs ignited a fiery debate on Tuesday, July 22, 2025, during the first hearing of a special legislative session called by Governor Greg Abbott to address the regulation of hemp-derived products. The committee unanimously advanced Senate Bill 5 (S.B. 5), a near replica of the Senate Bill ...
Rep. Salud Carbajal Responds to DHS Claims After ICE Raid at Cannabis Farm
LOS ANGELES- U.S. Representative Salud Carbajal (D‑CA‑24) is facing criticism following a July 10 ICE raid at two Glass House Farms cannabis cultivation sites in Carpinteria and Camarillo, California. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) alleges Carbajal “doxxed” an ICE public affairs officer by publicly displaying the agent’s business card to protesters, leading to injuries ...
Pennsylvania Senators Introduce Bipartisan Bill to Legalize Recreational Cannabis
LOS ANGELES- Pennsylvania lawmakers today announced the introduction of two parallel bipartisan bills aimed at legalizing adult-use recreational cannabis. The effort builds on mounting momentum amid state budget pressures and growing public support. In the Senate, Republican Sen. Dan Laughlin (R‑49) and Democratic Sen. Sharif Street (D‑3) unveiled Senate Bill 120 on July 10. The legislation would permit adults ...
California Farmworker Dies Following Greenhouse Fall During Chaotic ICE Raid
LOS ANGELES- A 57‑year‑old farmworker, identified as Jaime Alanis Garcia, has died from injuries sustained after falling approximately 30 feet from a greenhouse roof during a July 10 ICE-led raid at a Glass House Farms cannabis facility in Camarillo, California — the first fatality linked to the Trump administration’s recent immigration enforcement efforts. The raid targeted two ...
Americans Overwhelmingly Oppose Federal Cannabis Prohibition
LOS ANGELES- A recent survey by the Pew Research Center reveals that just 12 percent of U.S. adults support a federal prohibition on cannabis, with the remaining 88 percent favoring legalization in some form—either solely for medical use or both medical and recreational purposes. The January–February 2025 poll, involving more than 5,000 American adults, found ...
Republican Lawmakers Move to Block Cannabis Rescheduling, Undermining Federal Reform Efforts
WASHINGTON, D.C.. Just as the Biden administration’s long-awaited cannabis rescheduling effort appeared to be gaining traction, Republicans in the House Appropriations Committee have moved to shut it down—using their control of a key budget bill to insert language that would block the Department of Justice from changing cannabis’s federal classification. Tucked into the draft of ...
McConnell Seeks to Close 2018 Hemp “Loophole” in Senate Funding Bill
LOS ANGELES- Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell is advancing a provision in the FY 2026 agriculture appropriations bill aimed at revising the federal hemp definition to bar products containing any “quantifiable” amount of THC. The action responds to what McConnell described as an unintended loophole from the 2018 Farm Bill, passed with his support, which legalized ...
Challenges Emerge Over Kentucky’s Medical Cannabis License Lottery
LOS ANGELES- A coalition of Kentucky-based businesses has filed legal proceedings challenging the fairness and constitutionality of the state’s April 2024 medical cannabis license lottery. The lawsuit, lodged in Jefferson Circuit Court on June 27, argues that the Kentucky General Assembly improperly delegated authority to the Cabinet for Health and Family Services and its Office ...
New Lawsuit Challenges Lottery Process for Kentucky Medical Cannabis Licenses
LOS ANGELES- A group of Kentucky-based applicants has filed a lawsuit arguing that the state’s lottery system for awarding medical cannabis licenses is unconstitutional and unfairly structured. The suit, filed on June 27 in Jefferson Circuit Court, names the Commonwealth of Kentucky and Sam Flynn, former executive director of the state’s Office of Medical Cannabis ...
Dallas Halts Enforcement of Voter‑Approved Cannabis Depenalization Charter
LOS ANGELES- Dallas city officials have suspended the enforcement of a charter amendment approved by 67 percent of voters in November, which decriminalized possession of up to four ounces of cannabis and prohibited arrests based solely on its odor. The pause follows a recent ruling by the 15th Court of Appeals in Austin that temporarily blocked ...
Cannabis Reform Stalls, Former Republican Calls for Action
LOS ANGELES - Former Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-OR), renowned for his decades-long advocacy for cannabis reform, is sounding the alarm over the Trump administration’s failure to advance federal cannabis policy. The retired congressman, who co-founded the Congressional Cannabis Caucus, expressed deep frustration at the stalled progress since leaving Congress last session. “I’m more than a ...
SAFER Banking Act Frozen as Lawmakers Tackle War and Budget Issues
LOS ANGELES – The Secure and Fair Enforcement Regulation (SAFER) Banking Act, a bipartisan effort to grant state-legal cannabis businesses access to traditional banking services, remains mired in political gridlock, overshadowed by competing legislative priorities. Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-OR), a lead sponsor of the bill, recently acknowledged that despite his efforts to push the legislation ...
Delaware Announced the Launch Date for Legal Cannabis Sales
LOS ANGELES – The First State is about to make history as recreational marijuana sales launch on August 1, 2025, transforming the state’s cannabis scene and sparking excitement from Wilmington to Rehoboth Beach. Starting this summer, adults 21 and older can walk into one of 13 licensed dispensaries, flash a valid ID, and legally purchase ...
California’s Cannabis Industry Faces Meltdown as New Tax Hike Begins
LOS ANGELES – California’s legal cannabis industry is sounding the alarm as a significant excise tax increase, which took effect on July 1, 2025, threatens to cripple an already struggling market. The excise tax on legal cannabis has risen from 15% to 19%, a move that industry leaders, including growers, dispensary owners, and advocates, warn ...
Texas Broadens Medical Cannabis Access Amid THC Policy Shift
LOS ANGELES- Texas has enacted House Bill 46, expanding its Compassionate Use Program for medical cannabis. The law, effective September 1, adds qualifying conditions such as chronic pain, Crohn’s disease and traumatic brain injury. It raises the per‑dose THC limit from 1 percent by weight to 10 mg (max 1 g per package), allows prescribed inhalers and vaporizers, and increases the ...
Mike Tyson Urges Trump to Act on Cannabis Reform
LOS ANGELES- Boxing legend Mike Tyson, alongside athletes including Kevin Durant and Dez Bryant, has urged former President Donald Trump to pursue federal cannabis reform after accusing President Joe Biden of failing to deliver on earlier promises. Tyson described cannabis as a "medicine" essential to his well‑being and criticized its Schedule I classification as “just ...
California Lawmakers Omit Cannabis Tax Relief from 2025 Budget
LOS ANGELES- California legislators did not include a freeze on the planned cannabis excise tax increase in the state’s 2025–26 budget, declining last-minute proposals to maintain the current 15% rate. The absence of this relief ensures the scheduled rise to 19% will take effect on July 1, 2025. This decision follows negotiations in which Governor Gavin Newsom ...
Colorado Governor Jared Polis Issues Pardons for Psilocybin and Psilocin Convictions
LOS ANGELES-- the Psychedelic Science 2025 conference in Denver, Governor Jared Polis signed an executive order granting full, unconditional pardons to individuals convicted under state law for possession of psilocybin and psilocin—substances that became legal for adults aged 21 and over following Colorado’s Natural Medicine Health Act vote in 2022 and enabling legislation SB 25‑297 passed earlier ...
Maryland Governor Expands Cannabis Pardons
LOS ANGELES- Maryland Governor Wes Moore has announced an additional round of approximately 6,938 pardons for individuals previously convicted of simple cannabis possession, following a 2024 executive order that granted clemency to over 175,000 convictions for similar offenses. Signed during a Juneteenth event at Bethel AME Church in Cambridge, the new pardons correct technical omissions ...
Legal Cannabis Shows Economic Gains and Stable Teen Use Trends
LOS ANGELES— A recent analysis from the Marijuana Policy Project (MPP) indicates that legal adult‑use cannabis sales have generated approximately $24.7 billion in state tax revenue since legalization began in 2014, with $4.4 billion collected in 2024 alone . At the same time, data from multiple sources show that teen cannabis use has declined in most states ...
Texas Governor Expands Medical Cannabis Program, Vetoes THC Ban
LOS ANGELES— Texas Governor Greg Abbott has signed House Bill 46 into law, significantly expanding the state’s limited medical cannabis program, while vetoing Senate Bill 3, which aimed to ban hemp‑derived THC products—including delta‑8 gummies, vapes and edibles. Under the new legislation, known as HB 46, the Compassionate Use Program (TCUP) will broaden eligibility by adding ...
North Carolina Governor Proposes Cannabis Legalization to Curb Unregulated Hemp Market
LOS ANGELES- North Carolina Governor Josh Stein (D) has urged legalization and regulation of adult-use cannabis to address growing public health concerns surrounding the state’s unregulated hemp-derived THC market. In a video posted on X, Stein noted that “unregulated THC products that are intoxicating” are widely available in vape shops, with no age restrictions or ...
