Griner's trial resumes this week, as diplomats work behind the scenes to reach a deal to set her free.
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Monday, August 1, 2022
New Report Recommends Tips for Successful Cannabis-Impaired Driving Campaigns
The Governors Highway Safety Association (GHSA) commissioned a report about educational campaigns on cannabis and driving on July 26. The GHSA partnered with National Alliance to Stop Impaired Driving to create a playbook written specifically for State Highway Safety Offices (SHSO).
Governors Highway Safety Association’s Executive Director, Jonathan Adkins, explained the need for a playbook that is up to date regarding cannabis legalization, overall acceptance of cannabis by consumers, and more. “As legal cannabis use becomes more widespread in the U.S., motorists need to know the dangers of driving under the influence,” said Adkins. “But that message won’t be heard if it’s outdated, irrelevant or insulting to cannabis consumers. This new report offers a playbook to help states develop messaging that resonates with cannabis users and prompts them to refrain from driving for their own safety and the safety of everyone else on the road.”
The report, called “Cannabis Consumers and Safe Driving: Responsible Use Messaging,” is based on a variety of surveys and interviews, and expands upon an unpublished 2021 Cannabis Regulators Association white paper with “additional strategies and recommendations about promising practices that can enhance safety partnerships and increase the effectiveness of outreach and education on cannabis use and driving.”
The report states that prior to the pandemic, approximately 21% of drivers involved in fatal vehicle crashes had THC in their systems. During the pandemic, this percentage rose to 33% (and for comparison, the percentage of people with alcohol in their systems was only 29%). In a survey conducted by AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety Culture Index, drivers view impairment of alcohol and cannabis differently. When asked about driving while under the influence of alcohol, 95% of people believed it was “very or extremely dangerous.” When asked the same question about cannabis, only 69% responded with the same answer.
The GHSA report writes that further education is key to promoting safe driving and enforcement. It reviewed educational campaigns that have been implemented in Colorado and Washington, which were the first states to legalize cannabis. It also addressed current education efforts that learn from those earlier campaigns, such as the “simple, non-judgmental” messages in Connecticut that have been promoted on social media channels, radio, TV, billboards, bus panels, and printed materials. While cannabis became legal in Connecticut on July 1, 2021, retail sales won’t begin until later this year. However, the report also examines an educational campaign in Wyoming, where cannabis is currently still illegal.
After reviewing the content, the report addresses “promising practices” that the authors view as useful for developing education campaigns, such as partnering with cannabis industry groups, receiving dedicated funding, and using specific wording in campaign messages.
In more detail, the report’s five main recommendations explore campaign success based on the presented examples.
First, it recommends that funding be derived from cannabis sales tax revenue, in partnership with local state legislators. Second, it highly recommends partnering with a variety of cannabis groups with the shared goal of consumer safety. “Working together, collaborative education campaigns can reflect the desires of all partners to help keep cannabis consumers safe,” the report explained.
Third, the report also explained the importance of the campaign messengers. Government leaders and institutions are “generally not good choices,” so it’s essential to choose respected individuals who are a part of the cannabis community to get the point across. The specific words chosen for a campaign can also lend to its success and maintain credibility, such as avoiding archaic terms such as pot or weed, or using “consumer” instead of “user.”
Finally, the report states that a campaign message should be chosen with care and respect. “Insulting or judging the target audience rarely improves message reception and turns people off, resulting in the message getting lost. Not driving after using cannabis should be the primary focus of informational campaigns, not the use of cannabis itself,” the report explains. “Messaging that appeals to the risks versus rewards of driving after consuming cannabis can be effective with the target audience, which tends to be young and male. Because it is not clear what responsible use of cannabis really is or looks like, appeals to moral sensitivity—normative choices that are considered ‘good’ or ‘right’—may have a greater effect on changing behavior than the usual ‘just don’t do it’ messaging.”
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Bipartisan Bill Would Clear Federal Marijuana Misdemeanor Records
American lives have been uprooted because of simple misdemeanor marijuana offenses—punishments for an activity that is now legal for various purposes in 38 states. But new legislation would provide the needed mechanism to help Americans clear low-level marijuana offenses at the federal level.
Congressmen Troy A. Carter, Sr. (D-LA) and Rodney Davis (R-IL) introduced The Marijuana Misdemeanor Expungement Act—bipartisan legislation that would create an expungement pathway for low-level violations of federal marijuana offenses.
It would provide “an expedited, orderly process that clears the deck of non-felony marijuana offenses” in the federal system, according to a July 29 press release.
Weldon Angelos, president of The Weldon Project, testified on behalf of decriminalizing cannabis at the federal level, and defended Americans suffering from the burden of past offenses on July 26 at a Senate Judiciary Committee meeting. His whole testimony can be read here. He also supported and helped to introduce the Marijuana Misdemeanor Expungement Act.
Angelos explained how federal misdemeanor charges can have the same end result as a felony when it comes to the way records impact individuals.
“One thing about the federal system is that there’s absolutely no way to expunge a record, so basically a misdemeanor in the federal system functions like a felony because it stays on your record forever—unlike most of the 50 states which have some kind of mechanism to expunge a low-level possession cannabis offenes,” Angelos tells High Times. “The federal system has nothing. So it stays on your record for life.”
Other similar bills have been introduced, but Angelos explained how the bills could potentially work together. Last December, Congressman Dave Joyce (OH-14), co-chair of the House Cannabis Caucus, and Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (NY-14) introduced the Harnessing Opportunities by Pursuing Expungement (HOPE) Act. This bipartisan bill aims to help states with expunging cannabis offenses by reducing the financial and administrative burden of such efforts through federal grants.
“Me and Professor [Erik] Luna came up with the idea because Congress right now can’t pass something comprehensive,” Angelos says. “So we tried to find something that Republicans would be okay with, and that would still be some kind of progress, and something that also the Democrats could couple with—something like the HOPE Act or the SAFE Banking Act. It’s so that we can get something done this year, and that’s really the idea.”
“I want to thank the cosponsors for introducing this important legislation, which offers an approach to marijuana expungement that is coherent, efficient, and just—all without threatening public safety,” said Professor Erik Luna, who founded the Academy for Justice at the Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law at Arizona State University.
Angelos explained that federal misdemeanor offenses impact him personally.
“I know three people—personally—who have been charged with federal marijuana misdemeanor charges. And this is from 2003 or so, and it still shows up when they do background checks.”
“Today it still impacts them.”
Congressmen Carter and Davis applauded the bill as co-sponsors. “I’m proud to introduce The Marijuana Misdemeanor Expungement Act, bipartisan legislation that will restore justice to millions of Americans who have suffered inordinate collateral consequences associated with marijuana-related misdemeanors,” said Congressman Carter. “These misdemeanors—even without a conviction—can result in restrictions to peoples’ ability to access educational aid, housing assistance, occupational licensing and even foster parenting. Delivering justice for our citizens who have been impacted by marijuana-related misdemeanors is a key component of comprehensive cannabis reform.”
“Given the number of states, like Illinois, where marijuana has long been legalized for adult-use, we must ensure that our criminal justice system keeps pace so that individuals with low-level misdemeanor violations related to its use does not preclude them from getting jobs and participating in society,” said Congressman Davis.
In addition, broad bills to decriminalize cannabis at the federal level are making their way through the legislative process. Last April, the House passed the MORE Act, which was introduced by Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.), but the bill faces an uncertain future in the Senate. The House also passed the SAFE Banking Act recently to allow legal cannabis businesses to use banking services.
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Oklahoma Puts Moratorium On Issuing New Medical Cannabis Licenses
State officials in Oklahoma have put a moratorium on issuing new licenses for medical marijuana businesses in a bid to allow the state’s cannabis regulators to catch up with oversight of a burgeoning medicinal cannabis industry. Under the moratorium, which was passed by state lawmakers earlier this year, no new licenses for medical growers, processors or dispensaries will be issued by the Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Authority (OMMA) for a period of at least two years.
Oklahoma voters legalized the use and sale of medical pot with the approval of State Question 788 in 2018, a ballot measure that created the least tightly regulated legal cannabis market in the nation. Corbin Wyatt, owner of Likewise Dispensary, said that the state’s medical marijuana law included few barriers to entry for entrepreneurs seeking opportunities in cannabis.
“It was easy,” Wyatt told local media. “You pay $2,500 and you can open your business pretty much anywhere.”
In May, Oklahoma lawmakers passed House Bill 3208, which puts a two-year pause on issuing new licenses for medical cannabis businesses. The new restrictions under the measure were originally scheduled to become effective on August 1, but bills must go into effect at least 90 days after passage unless they gain a two-thirds majority vote in the legislature. The bill was signed by Governor Kevin Stitt on May 26, making it effective on August 26 under state law.
Applications for new medical cannabis businesses submitted before the moratorium goes into effect will be processed by the OMMA. But applications that are denied or received after the deadline will not be considered until 2024 at the earliest.
Mark Woodward, public information officer for the Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics (OBN), said the state already has over 2,200 medical dispensaries, making oversight of the businesses by state regulators a logistical challenge.
“That’s a tremendous amount of dispensaries,” Woodward told a Tulsa television news crew. “It’s more than California, Oregon, Alaska, Washington, Nevada and New Mexico combined.”
Unlicensed Businesses Are Operating Outside the Law
Woodward said that many of the businesses that have been operating in the state, even some that have been licensed by the OMMA, have been producing cannabis for shipment out of Oklahoma illegally. He added that some of the state’s 8,500 medical weed cultivators have ties to organized crime organizations from the United States, Mexico, and China that have moved into the state, many during the COVID-19 pandemic, to take advantage of Oklahoma’s inexpensive licensing fees and relatively lax cannabis regulations.
“We’ve talked to our law enforcement partners from New York to Florida, and they say we are the number one supplier of black market marijuana on the East Coast,” he said.
Woodward said that some of the state’s licensed medical dispensaries are selling cannabis that has been produced by illicit growers and processors. He added that the pause in new businesses will give regulators and the OBN an opportunity to regulate the state’s medical marijuana supply chain more closely.
“This moratorium will allow us to focus on those we already have in place and make sure they’re either following the law or going after those bad actors,” he explained.
Matt Boyd, the owner of the Green Cross Meds cannabis dispensary in Tulsa, said that the state’s saturated market has caused profits from his business to drop by two-thirds.
“In the last year, I’m not the only dispensary owner that has felt a decline in business, and it’s not because of anything we’ve done different,” he explained. “It’s just because there’s been so many dispensaries that have opened up. Just the limit of ‘no more new dispensaries’ coming into business is gonna help all of us existing dispensary owners now.”
Boyd said that the two-year moratorium on new retailer licenses will slow the impact on existing retailers.
“It’s time to allow a market that’s brand new, a brand-new grassroots industry in our state, to kinda have some balance, y’know?” Boyd said. “And that’s just what it’s gonna take.”
Oklahoma lawmakers recently passed a total of 12 bills to tighten regulations on the state’s medical cannabis industry, including a requirement that new dispensaries and cultivation operations be located at least 1,000 ft. from schools. The moratorium on the issuance of new licenses is scheduled to be in effect until August 1, 2024, or until the medical marijuana authority catches up on the backlog of pending applications. But some business owners believe that may never happen.
“Until the OMMA either feels that they are able to control everything and it’s an opportune time to issue new licenses, but most people are saying that won’t ever come,” Wyatt said.
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New York Gov. Signs Smoking Ban in State-Owned Beaches, Parks
New Yorkers hoping to enjoy a smoke or a toke in one of the state’s beaches or parks might want to think twice.
Kathy Hochul, the state’s Democratic governor, signed a bill into law last month that will prohibit “smoking in all state-owned beaches, boardwalks, marinas, playgrounds, recreation centers, and group camps.”
Those caught smoking in such areas could face a fine of $50.
“Smoking is a dangerous habit that affects not only the smoker but everyone around them, including families and children enjoying our state’s great public places,” Hochul said in a statement following the bill signing last month. “I’m proud to sign this legislation that will protect New Yorkers’ health and help reduce litter in public parks and beaches across the state.”
The new law applies to both tobacco and cannabis.
Recreational pot use has been legal in the Empire State since last year, when former Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed legislation.
The law permitted cannabis use wherever tobacco use is also permitted.
The bill signed into law last month “exempts the Adirondacks and Catskills from the [smoking] ban as well as parking lots, sidewalks adjoining parks, and areas not used for park purposes,” according to the governor’s office.
“Many municipalities and local governments already have restrictions or bans on smoking in public spaces. This additional penalty will enforce a statewide prohibition and includes a fine that will be collected by localities,” Hochul’s office explained in the press release issued last month. “In addition to the health risks posed by secondhand smoke, cigarette butts are a major environmental hazard due to the non-biodegradable filters that are discarded. They are the leading item found during cleanup projects. Through this prohibition, parks and beaches will be kept cleaner and safer as will our local ecosystems.”
The law was celebrated by several New York lawmakers.
“New York’s public parks are family friendly venues. No one, especially children, should be subjected to secondhand smoke while playing on a playground or enjoying the day at a public beach or camp site,” said Democratic state Sen. Toby Ann Stavisky. “Our parks also shouldn’t be tainted by non-biodegradable cigarette butts scattered throughout their grounds. I am proud to sponsor this legislation to protect and improve our beautiful network of parks and I thank Governor Hochul for helping New Yorkers enjoy the beauty of our parks by signing it into law.”
Fellow Democrat Jeffrey Dinowitz, a member of the New York State Assembly, said the law honors the spirit of public greenspace.
“New Yorkers head to our parks for fresh air and to foster a healthy lifestyle. Smoking is the opposite of that. I am very pleased the Governor Hochul has signed into law this important statewide ban on smoking in parks, and thank you to my colleagues for their vital support on this bill over the years,” Dinowitz said last month.
While New Yorkers aged 21 and older have been able to legally possess and use cannabis since last year, the state’s regulated weed market isn’t expected to launch until later this year.
Hochul took over as governor last summer after Cuomo resigned amid allegations of sexual misconduct, and she has taken a proactive role in shaping the state’s nascent legal cannabis industry ever since.
Last month, Hochul announced a $5 million grant in support of cannabis industry job training at New York community colleges.
“New York’s new cannabis industry is creating exciting opportunities, and we will ensure that New Yorkers who want careers in this growing sector have the quality training they need to be successful,” Hochul said in the announcement of the funding. “Diversity and inclusion are what makes New York’s workforce a competitive, powerful asset, and we will continue to take concrete steps to help ensure everyone has the opportunity to participate in the cannabis industry.”
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Massachusetts Lawmakers Pass Compromise Bill on Cannabis Industry Reform
Lawmakers in Massachusetts passed a bill late Sunday night that will bring a host of different reforms to the state’s recreational cannabis industry.
The legislation “aims to promote greater diversity in the legal marijuana industry, ratchet up oversight on the host community agreements that marijuana businesses are required to enter into with municipalities, and to lay the groundwork for cities and towns to green light on-site cannabis consumption establishments within their borders,” NBC Boston reported.
The compromise bill “emerged just before midnight Sunday after nearly a month of negotiations and quickly passed through both the House and Senate,” according to the station.
It will now head to the desk of Republican Gov. Charlie Baker, who expressed hope this month that lawmakers would get something passed.
Democratic state Sen. Sonia Chang-Díaz, who co-sponsored the measure, called it a “great bill.”
“It will rebalance the playing field, where so far wealthy corporations have been able to buy their way through the licensing process and too many local, small business owners and Black and brown entrepreneurs have been locked out,” Chang-Díaz said in a statement, as quoted by The Boston Globe.
The bill will usher in changes to the state’s nearly six-year-old legal weed industry. According to NBC Boston, it will “direct 15 percent of the money in the Marijuana Regulation Fund, which is where revenue brought in by the state’s marijuana excise tax, application and licensing fees, and industry penalties is deposited, into a new Social Equity Trust Fund,” while also giving “the Cannabis Control Commission the authority to review and approve host community agreements before a business obtains its final license, and clarifies that a community impact fee in an HCA cannot exceed 3 percent of gross sales and must be ‘reasonably related to the costs imposed upon the municipality by the operation of the marijuana establishment.’”
Voters in Massachusetts approved a ballot initiative in 2016 that legalized recreational pot use for adults. Lawmakers in the state subsequently rewrote the law the following year, and it has been the subject of legislative dispute ever since.
As The Boston Globe reported, some legislators have “spent years lobbying for a rewrite, arguing a few straightforward fixes would address glaring problems,” most notably an “onerous municipal approval process that has been implicated in two federal corruption investigations, and a lack of institutional financing that has allowed larger corporations backed by wealthy private investors to dominate at the expense of smaller, locally owned businesses with more diverse ownership.”
Proponents celebrated the bill’s passage on Sunday night.
“Legislators tonight made history with this vital — and overdue — grant and loan fund,” said Shanel Lindsay, a cannabis attorney and the cofounder of advocacy group Equitable Opportunities Now, as quoted by The Boston Globe. “This bill is an important step forward in undoing the harms of prohibition and over-policing and will provide an important path for families of color to create jobs in their community and generate generational wealth.”
Despite the problems with the law, the cannabis industry is booming in Massachusetts.
Earlier this year, Massachusetts officials reported that the state collected more in taxes from pot sales than it did with alcohol sales, a first since the cannabis industry went live in the state.
The growth of the legal weed market has been accompanied by some concerns. Late last year, Baker introduced legislation aimed at curtailing stoned driving.
“This bill will provide law enforcement officers with more rigorous drug detection training and will strengthen the legal process by authorizing the courts to acknowledge that the active ingredient in marijuana can and does impair motorists. The bill draws on thoughtful recommendations from a broad cross-section of stakeholders, and we look forward to working with our legislative colleagues to pass this bill and make our roads safer,” Baker said at the time.
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NACAT Webinar: The Complex Universe of Cannabis with Hilary Bricken
Register HERE!
Join Harris Bricken attorney Hilary Bricken for a live discussion on strategies to build a scalable cannabis business, hosted by the National Association of Cannabis Accounting & Tax Professionals.
Effectively serving cannabis companies as an accountant involves much more than just counting cash and paying the quarterly tax bills.
There are countless state and federal rules and regulations that must be followed just to keep your clients legally operational, let alone profitable. This is not an easy task, especially with the influx of investor capital and constant legislative changes making the business side of the industry difficult to navigate.
Accountants need to be present and proactive with their clients in defining and following the goals of company executives, whether that is opening new dispensaries in other locales, mergers and acquisitions of other cannabis businesses, or even a grand exit.
Join the National Association of Cannabis Accounting & Tax Professionals in welcoming attorney Hilary Bricken as she discusses strategies and roadblocks to effectively scaling cannabis businesses in the current legislative climate. Hilary will cover:
- Cannabis corporate structures
For more information, click here.
Date: Tuesday, August 16th, 2022
Time: 10:00am PT
Register HERE!
The post NACAT Webinar: The Complex Universe of Cannabis with Hilary Bricken appeared first on Harris Bricken Sliwoski LLP.
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