Wednesday, December 11, 2019

Federal Marijuana Legalization Is A Lock – But How, When?

By Mike Adams
Source: forbes.com

Federal marijuana legalization is pretty close.
If you listen carefully, you will hear the sound of a crooked foundation known as marijuana prohibition starting to crumble in the United States. It has been more than eight decades since the federal government outlawed the cannabis plant nationwide, and yet, here we are finally standing on its lawn with torches in hand waiting for a day of reckoning.
Because no matter how much the suits on the Hill have schemed to enslave a population through backasswards drug laws, the nation has risen up in true knock-down-drag-out fashion and fought for its freedom back. Admittedly, this battle for legal bud took a lot longer than it should have, but considering that everyone in the trenches was stoned beyond belief, the marijuana movement seems to be arriving right on time. 
Although pro-pot groups insist that 2019 has been the best year ever in the realm of cannabis reform, the reality is not much progress has transpired. It is only revered as the “best year” because even less occurred in the years that came before it. But no matter how you size it up, nothing plus bupkis still equals squat. In spite of everything, marijuana remains illegal across most of the United States.
At the state level, many advocates predicted that New York and New Jersey would be the next to legalize weed. Well, that didn’t happen. In fact, Illinois swooped in and legalized first, making both states look like dorks. But aside from that, no other significant pot laws were passed at the state level in 2019. We also learned that police are still out there arresting more than 600,000 pot offenders nationwide every year — mostly small timers, too.
In addition, some states, like California, are having trouble curbing the black market, and tainted pot products, most of which were initially believed to be counterfeits, are finding their way into legal dispensaries. To make matters worse, the cannabis industry, as a whole, is struggling to keep it together long enough to see profitability. Layoffs are prevalent and some of the nation’s most popular cannabis magazines are at risk of going under.
There’s just no possible way that 2019 should be considered a banner year for cannabis. 
Federally speaking, parts of Congress dilly-dallied around with the notion of forging some kind of change in the realm of national cannabis reform, but the powers against it are still too strong to penetrate. Rumor has it that the cannabis trade’s legislative pride and joy known as the SAFE Act is presently being gnawed on by rats in the basement of the Senate chamber. Its last words were reportedly, “Y’all know I’m not really a marijuana bill, right?” And the MORE Act, the proposal that got everyone to stop giving two-flying squirts about SAFE, well, that sucker has already been buried out behind the Capitol building alongside last year’s great green hope, the STATES Act. Remember that one? No? Don’t feel bad, no one does. No one cares. The point is that cannabis hopefuls have spent all year yapping about legislation that doesn’t have what it takes to go the distance.
But the stakes are about to change in 2020, which could set the nation up for legal weed the following year. There’s only one catch. Americans – 66 percent of which are on board with legalizing the leaf the same as beer and tobacco – have to vote in the next election. And for the right people.
The first thing all cannabis hopefuls need to come to grips with is that the SAFE Act and the MORE Act are dead. No, that’s not official or anything. There hasn’t been a press release issued saying that Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and his Republican-dominated Senate are refusing to entertain these bills before year’s end. But trust me on this one – SAFE and MORE are finished.
They could, however, be resurrected in 2020. But for either of them to get any further attention, the legislative process would have to start from the very beginning. And unless the Republicans in the Senate have a change of heart in the next few months, the prospect of getting these bills or any others aimed at legalizing weed nationwide isn’t going much further next year than they did in 2019. Remember, as of January, Congress is still playing with the same losing team.
It is the November election when all the magic could happen. It’s a time when the stoner stars could align and contribute to getting America high again. But that all depends on the nation’s political loyalty when it comes time to vote. There are several Senate seats up for grabs. It is conceivable that the Democrats could win these seats and take control over the Senate. If that happens, McConnell, the man presently standing in the way of cannabis reform in the U.S, would be dethroned as Senate Majority Leader. That’s when the cannabis debate could really find its footing in both chambers. Because there would no longer be anyone on the Hill that cares enough to try to stop it. And anyone who did oppose would surely be out voiced by Democratic rule. 
Furthermore, a Democratic president (except for Joe Biden ) would undoubtedly support most cannabis legislation, and there is even a solid chance that President Trump would sign off on it if he wins a second term. Unless, of course, Trump decides to make a statement by stamping it with a veto just to prevent the Democrats (the same ones trying to have him impeached) from making any progress. Grudges tend to have an extremely long shelf life when it comes to politics.
But here’s the deal.
If both Trump and the Democrats find success in the next election, the best-case scenario for getting marijuana legalization done at the federal level in 2021 is for Trump to make it his idea and let the Democrats follow suit. Because Trump’s grudge over all of this impeachment business could be enough to keep it from happening. However, if the U.S. experiences an election year where the Democrats take over — nabbing both the Senate and the Presidency – federal marijuana legalization could be as good as done.
Will it all shake out accordingly? Meh, who knows? It just depends on whether the majority of the population remembers that they like marijuana when they head to the polls next year.

Sunday, December 8, 2019

3 Scenarios for U.S. Marijuana Legalization by 2021

By Keith Speights
Source: fool.com

Don't totally write off the chances that the MORE Act or similar legislation could become law in the not-too-distant future.


Arguably the biggest legislative milestone to date related to the legalization of marijuana in the U.S. was achieved two weeks ago. The U.S. House of Representatives Judiciary Committee voted 24 to 10 to pass the Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement (MORE) Act, a bill that would legalize marijuana at the federal level.
Marijuana stocks soared after the historic vote. But the initial euphoria faded as investors realized the challenges that lie ahead. Will marijuana actually become legal in the U.S., and by when? Here are three scenarios where the U.S. could legalize pot by 2021 and perhaps even sooner.
Image of cannabis leaf on a green traffic light
IMAGE SOURCE: GETTY IMAGES.

1. McConnell allows the Senate to vote on the MORE Act

Passage of the MORE Act by the full House of Representatives seems assured. It's a much different story in the U.S. Senate, though. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R.-Ky.) has been adamantly opposed to the legalization of marijuana in the past. If he doesn't want a bill to come before the Senate, it won't.
Could McConnell change his mind? Probably not, but there's at least a remote possibility that he could. His No. 1 priority is ensuring that the GOP retains control of the Senate in the 2020 elections. If he thinks that allowing the MORE Act to advance through the Senate will significantly improve the odds of Republicans holding onto the Senate, look for the legislation to go to the Senate Judiciary Committee and ultimately be voted on (and probably passed) by the full Senate.
At this point, it looks like the GOP will lose three Senate seats but still end up controlling at least 50 seats after next year's elections. However, if the political winds shift in a way that makes the toss-up seat in Colorado (which claims one of the largest recreational marijuana markets) crucial to retaining a Senate majority, McConnell could decide that allowing a vote on the MORE Act is necessary.
 

2. Democrats gain control of both congressional chambers next year

Another scenario that's favorable to marijuana legalization in the U.S. is one in which the Democrats win both the House and the Senate in the 2020 elections. Based on current projections, retaining control of the House seems likely. Picking off enough votes for Democrats to gain a majority in the Senate is a much tougher challenge.
Still, anything can happen in an election year. Although the prospects that the GOP will lose control of the Senate don't seem great right now, there's a long way until election day. The U.S. economy could tank. Momentum for impeaching the president could pick up and swing some Senate seats to the Democrat column. 
Of course, the MORE Act (or something similar) would have to start from scratch in a new congress. But if Democrats control both congressional chambers in 2021, look for swift movement to legalize marijuana at the federal level. Would the president -- whoever he or she might be -- sign a marijuana legalization bill into law? With strong public support of legalization among Americans, it seems unlikely that any of the current Democrat presidential candidates or President Trump would veto the legislation.
The bigger challenge would be in the timing. It could be a stretch for both the House and Senate to pass a bill and the president sign the bill into law quickly enough for legalization to go into effect before the end of 2021. It's not impossible, though: The 2018 Farm Bill passed in December 2018 legalized hemp throughout the U.S. immediately. 
 

3. McConnell is replaced as Senate majority leader

There's one other scenario that could pave the way for U.S. legalization of marijuana: the replacement of McConnell as Senate majority leader with someone more supportive of legalizing pot. Of course, this would happen by default if the Democrats win control of the Senate after the 2020 elections. But there are also other ways it could happen.
McConnell will be 78 in February. Should he have serious health problems, he could opt to step down from his position as majority leader. To be clear, though, this would be a highly unlikely event. McConnell has had some health problems in the past, including a fractured shoulder resulting from a fall earlier this year, but nothing that would cause him to either resign from the Senate or from his position as majority leader.
Barring a serious health problem, it would probably take a major political crisis to cause McConnell to either voluntarily relinquish his top spot in the Senate or be pushed out of the role. But if the GOP retains control of the Senate, don't expect Republicans to be eager to replace the person who helped guide the party to victory.

Wednesday, December 4, 2019

Moorpark council to consider interim hemp ban amid complaints; meeting moved to Dec. 18

By Mike Harris
Source: vcstar.com

Moorpark officials say dozens of residents have complained to the city about strong odors from industrial hemp farms in the neighboring Tierra Rejada Valley in unincorporated Ventura County.
In response, the Moorpark City Council on Dec. 18 will consider an interim, 45-day moratorium banning the cultivation, manufacturing, testing, storing and certain sales of industrial hemp in the city.
If adopted, the ban would go into effect immediately, and the council would be able to extend it for another 10 months and 15 days at a future meeting.
The proposed moratorium was initially scheduled to be considered at Wednesday night's council meeting, but because only three council members will be in attendance, it was postponed until the Dec. 18 meeting. That's because such an interim ordinance requires four votes to be adopted.

Residents complain about hemp odors

In a report to the council, City Manager Troy Brown, City Attorney Kevin Ennis and Assistant City Attorney Nicholas Ghirelli wrote that many residents of Moorpark's southern neighborhoods have called the city and county over the last several months to complain of "offensive odors from relatively new and large-scale outdoor industrial hemp farms located in the Tierra Rejada Valley located immediately south of the city."
The valley is in unincorporated Ventura County, where hemp crops are allowed. Congress legalized the crop last year.
"Aside from having to experience offensive odors, many of these residents also have complained of headaches, nausea, sore throats and other physical side effects from breathing and smelling the distinctive odor generated by industrial hemp grown to produce CBD oil," Brown and the others wrote.
 
Adoption of the proposed interim ordinance is necessary to prohibit industrial hemp activities in the city because they may conflict with zoning and municipal code regulations the city may want to adopt over the next several months, the officials wrote.
The moratorium would not ban the sale in Moorpark of Epidiolex, a CBD drug prescribed to treat two rare, severe forms of epilepsy, they wrote.

Another hemp proposal on agenda

Also on Dec. 18, the council will consider authorizing a letter from Mayor Janice Parvin to be sent to the Ventura County Board of Supervisors and county Agricultural Commissioner Ed Williams, urging them to ban the cultivation of hemp in unincorporated areas, or at least consider a temporary moratorium.
"In addition to health impacts identified by residents, the city has concerns with property values and crime associated with hemp cultivation," the letter states.
The supervisors held a Nov. 19 meeting in the Moorpark City Council's chambers where they heard complaints from angry residents about the strong odors from the Tierra Rejada Valley hemp farms.
The grievances led the supervisors to direct legal counsel to look into whether Williams' office could temporarily stop issuing permits for hemp production without running afoul of state and federal laws.
The Moorpark City Council's Dec. 18 meeting begins at 6:30 p.m. in the council's City Hall chambers, 799 Moorpark Ave.
The meeting's agenda, including the report on the proposed hemp ban, can be found on the city's website, moorparkca.gov.
Mike Harris covers the East County cities of Moorpark, Simi Valley and Thousand Oaks, as well as transportation countywide. You can contact him at mike.harris@vcstar.com or 805-437-0323.

Sunday, December 1, 2019

Hemp: Our Solution To The Climate Change?

By NHA Volunteer Mell Green
Source: nationalhempassociation.org



There’s been so much buzz surrounding the topic of climate change lately, and recent protests across the globe have really brought the subject to the forefront. The signs of climate change are vast and include symptoms such as increased temperatures across the globe, warming oceans, decreased size of ice sheets, rise in sea level, and extreme natural disasters, among many others.
People have long been encouraged to minimize their carbon footprint by doing things such as recycle, reduce the use of non-disposable products, and even trade in their emissions-fueled vehicles for electric models. But perhaps one of the most basic ways to slow down climate change and even reverse its effects is by simply planting more trees. It’s a well-known fact that trees are instrumental in removing carbon dioxide (CO2) from the air and infusing it with oxygen, but perhaps their role may be even bigger when it comes to climate change. According to studies, the growth of trees allows them to absorb and house all the carbon dioxide emissions released into the atmosphere every day, which is the driver behind global warming. By planting more trees, we can effectively reduce the emitting of carbon dioxide into the air and even eliminate as much as two-thirds of all emissions that currently exist as a result of human activity.
Forests provide plants and animals with shelter and play an instrumental role in removing pollution by absorbing pollutants through the leaves. Given the potential that trees have to help improve air quality, reduce pollution, and potentially minimize the effects of climate change, it would make sense to fill the planet with more trees to fight the effects of global warming. According to research, there are approximately 4.2 billion acres of treeless land where trees could be potentially planted without invading urban centers or farmland. On that land, approximately 1.2 trillion trees could be planted and grown. But perhaps there’s one type of plant that we should be focusing on that could play a major role in the alleviation of climate change: hemp.

Hemp Cultivation Could Be the Cheapest, Most Effective Way to Target Climate Change

The biggest issues that may stand in the way of the planting of trees on available land across the world are cost and time. But there may be a different type of crop that can still have a similar effect that trees have on the environment that may be faster and more cost-effective: hemp crops. The widespread cultivation of hemp may be able to pay a big role in tackling the issue of climate change in much the same way that growing more trees would. Unfortunately, for decades, growing hemp has been illegal in the US.
But decades before hemp was illegal, it was actually encouraged by the government to be grown and used for industrial and commercial purposes. Hemp in the US was a legal crop in the 18th and 19th centuries, but by the 20th century, it became a banned substance because of its association with the psychoactive marijuana plant. Thankfully, hemp has once again been legalized thanks to the 2018 Farm Bill signed late last year by the Trump administration, and such legalization has made the US the third-largest producer of hemp across the globe, behind China and Canada. Hemp farmers are now legally permitted to cultivate hemp crops that can not only improve local economies and provide consumers with a number of products, but may also be able to quash climate change.
From hemp comes a myriad of products, including textiles, rope, food, oil, cell phone, and even dynamite, and many others. In fact, hemp can actually be used to create 25,000 products, and new uses continue to be discovered. Cannabidiol, also known as CBD which is mainly found in the hemp plant has not only contains a plethora of therapeutic properties for addressing a number of ailments, but the non-psychoactive cannabinoid has the potential to preserve our planet.
Hemp plants can grow as tall as 13 feet in 100 days, a rate of growth that is tough to match, giving it a great deal of potential when it comes to quickly growing greenery specifically to tackle CO2 emissions. In fact, it’s already been shown that hemp plants can absorb more carbon dioxide per hectare than any commercial or forest crop and can even be grown on poor-quality soils with very little water.

Hemp’s Climate-Assisting Uses Are Far-Reaching

In addition to hemp’s ability to reverse the effects of carbon dioxide emissions in the air is its ability to be used as an alternative to petrochemical-based plastic. Not only can hemp be used to create products like rope and cloth, but hemp products can also be used to create plastic. All those water bottles that are dumped into the ocean wreak havoc on sea life and destroy the health of the ocean. Plastic made from hemp, on the other hand, is non-toxic and biodegradable, allowing it to be broken down to avoid the toxins being absorbed in the ocean water and eventually make it along the food chain. Bio-products made from hemp has the potential to produce eco-friendly products that can be easily and quickly recycled or broken down, which can be a huge relief not just for the oceans where many of the world’s plastic products wind up, but also for landfills.
The world desperately needs an alternative to fossil fuels, and even though there are already a few possibilities, hemp appears to be one of the most environmentally-friendly and cost-effective options. In fact, hemp may be a much cleaner energy source that can cut out the smog created by more traditional fuel sources. It may also help to eliminate radioactive water from the soil that ends up on the food chain, and has also been shown to be a nutritious food source for both humans and animals.

On the Road to Greenness

Our wasteful, single-use society has seemingly been a huge contributor to the changes we’ve been seeing in the environment — which have been well-documented. But perhaps the planet can help itself – with human intervention – in the form of growing more greenery to help make a big dent in climate change, and perhaps hemp crops may be able to play a big role in this endeavor. With the recent US legalization of hemp, perhaps we may be able to be a prime contributor to fighting climate change and the dire effects it can have on the planet.

Friday, November 22, 2019

Ventura County to investigate hold on hemp permits, remedial actions for smell in light of protests

By Kathleen Wilson
Source: vcstar.com

Angry Moorpark residents asked for controls on hemp cultivation at a special meeting of the Ventura County Board of Supervisors on Nov. 19.
Angry Moorpark residents asked for controls on hemp cultivation at a special meeting of the Ventura County Board of Supervisors on Nov. 19. (Photo: KATHLEEN WILSON/THE STAR)


Ventura County supervisors moved this week toward passing land-use protections to address the skunk-like smell from hemp fields after hearing complaints from a stream of angry homeowners in Moorpark.
"We cannot live with it," said Rose Ayoub, one of roughly 200 people who crowded into the Moorpark Community Center Tuesday evening, some spilling into the lobby and outside the doors. 
No action was proposed or could be taken under the state's open meetings law other than to receive a report on hemp production from Agricultural Commissioner Ed Williams. But supervisors could and did give direction to staff on next steps. 
They directed legal counsel to investigate whether Williams' office could stop issuing permits for hemp production temporarily without running afoul of state and federal laws.
Supervisors also asked staff to return with recommendations on how the conflicts between neighborhoods and hemp production can be lessened, including setting up buffers of land where the crop cannot be planted. Supervisors were interested in developing protections for schools, nursing homes and day-care centers as well as residential areas.
"I think we should jump on it," said Supervisor Bob Huber, who represents Simi Valley and Moorpark. 
The report on the issuance of permits is expected to come back to the board in December and the report on mitigations by the next planting season in April. 
It appears that the board has considerable discretion. Supervisors can regulate hemp cultivation up to and including banning it, Chief Assistant County Counsel Michael Walker told the crowd.
About 50 people spoke to the Board of Supervisors, most complaining about the skunk-like odor and health issues, including headaches and allergic reactions they tied to hemp. 
Some residents also expressed fears that their property values would fall and objected that they did not receive advance warning that the newly legalized crop would be planted next to their homes. 
"We are not guinea pigs," Ayoub said. "It is a nuisance."
A minority of the speakers were hemp farmers who defended cultivation of the crop as a way to keep agriculture viable in the high-cost county.
"Being a farmer is very difficult," said Chris Massa, who farms 4 acres of hemp in Oxnard.

He pointed to health-related uses of the CBD oil made from hemp, but acknowledged the residents' concerns.
"I apologize, and I hope we can work together," he said. 
Although industrial hemp belongs to the same plant species as marijuana, it must by definition have negligible intoxicant properties.
The plants look the same, but industrial hemp cannot have any appreciable level of THC, the primary intoxicant in marijuana and hashish. The THC level must be tested at less than three-tenths of a percent for the crop to be harvested. Otherwise, it must be destroyed, Williams said.
Of 96 hemp sites in the county that have been sampled and tested so far, all but two passed, he said.
Numerous thefts have been reported from hemp fields, causing problems for growers trying to secure the crops and police investigating the crimes. 
Williams said at least a third of the people stealing hemp don't know the difference between the crop and marijuana. 
Individuals with serious criminal records from outside the county are implicated in the thefts, said Moorpark Police Chief Victor Fazio. He said that answering hemp-related calls is taking away from time officers can spend patrolling the streets.
City officials from Ojai and Camarillo urged the board to stop issuing permits for cultivation pending additional study.
Moorpark Mayor Janice Parvin said she had heard from more than 50 residents, many reporting health problems such as sore throats, headaches and asthma. 
But she hoped common ground could be found as the board weighs the interests of residents and growers. 
"There has to be a balance," she said.