Tag: ohio

Ohio GOP Lawmakers File Bills To Restrict And Regulate Intoxicating Hemp Products, Including Delta-8 THC

As Ohioans wait to legally purchase recreational-use marijuana, Republican lawmakers in both chambers of the General Assembly are trying to regulate adult-use hemp products.

State Rep. Sara Carruthers (R-Hamilton) introduced House Bill 642 on Thursday which would require the Ohio Director of Agriculture to issue recommendations for adult-use hemp products.

If the bill were to pass, the Director of Agriculture (who is currently Brian Baldridge) would conduct and issue a report to the General Assembly about the “sale and use of hemp products that could be used for intoxicating purposes.” The report would be in consultation with the Ohio Department of Public Safety.

The report could include:

  • A definition of adult-use hemp products that could include restrictions on the amount of THC allowed in adult-use hemp products based on serving size.
  • Where adult-use hemp products may be sold and how those products are stored.
  • Minimum age requirements to purchase adult-use hemp.
  • Penalties for selling adult-use hemp products to someone who is underage.
  • Testing standards and requirements for adult-use hemp products.
  • Advertising restrictions and labeling requirements for adult-use hemp products.
  • How to enforce these recommendations, which could be giving inspection authority to the Ohio Investigative Unit in the Department of Public Safety.

If the recommendations are adopted, they would be in effect for one year.

Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine (R) called on lawmakers earlier this year to ban or regulate delta-8, which he called “intoxicating hemp.”

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Ohio Town Flooded With African Migrants After Social Media Apps Teach How To Illegally Enter USA

Hundreds of illegal aliens from the West African country of Mauritania have recently descended upon Cincinnati, Ohio, thanks to social media apps TikTok and WhatsApp providing them with instructions.

According to Fox 19 Cincinnati, around one thousand Mauritanians have settled in the city in recent weeks.

U.S. Border Patrol data shows over 8,500 Mauritanians entered the U.S. between March and June.

John Keuffer, the CEO of a Cincinnati non-profit called Valley Interfaith Community Resource Center, told Fox 19, “We don’t know where they’re from, we don’t know how to communicate with them, and it created quite an issue for us.”

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Vaccine-Injured Pharmacist Breaks Down Into Tears Testifying Before Ohio State Senate

This is absolutely heartbreaking.

“I was a father, a husband, a pharmacist, and a healthy person prior to being coerced into receiving the COVID vaccine … I would never have taken the vaccine voluntarily.”

Mike Yoha suffered from Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS), a severe neurological disease associated with paralysis, after being coerced into taking the COVID shot.

He says, “My liberty was violated when vaccine status discrimination forced me into taking a medical intervention that almost cost me my life. If we do not have the right to decline a known risk of death without facing discrimination or loss of employment, then we are no longer free. I implore the committee to vote yes on HB 319.”

Ohio House Bill 319, also known as the “Conscientious Right to Refuse Act,” aims to end “no jab, no job” policies for good.

The legislation states that businesses, employers, health care providers, and other institutions CANNOT deny or terminate employment, deny services, or otherwise treat individuals differently based on their refusal of any biologic, vaccine, pharmaceutical, or gene-editing technology for reasons of conscience.

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Ohio Officials Will Begin Accepting Recreational Marijuana Sales Applications This Week, But The Market Won’t Launch Immediately

Ohio’s top marijuana regulator says that while the state will open up applications for medical cannabis dispensaries to start selling to adult-use consumers by Friday, the exact timing for when they’ll be able to launch depends on whether they’ve satisfied a list of conditions.

Ohio Division of Cannabis Control (DCC) Superintendent James Canepa has previously suggested that businesses with dual licenses approved could begin selling to patients and recreational consumers as early as this month. That’s still a possibility, but he declined to commit to any specific timeline in a new interview with Cleveland.com/The Plain Dealer.

He said it’s likely there will be a “trickle in the beginning,” with a limited number of hybrid shops that are able to meet requirements to open their doors, such as enhanced security and updated point-of-sale systems to differentiate between medical and adult-use purchases.

Most dual dispensaries are expected to launch later, he said, “not that they’re not ready but that they’re a little more thoughtful about the scale for a new customer base.”

“Everybody keeps trying to get me to circle a day, and it’s impossible because like with liquor, you have to process the applicants as they are,” Canepa, who previously served as the state’s top alcohol regulator, said in the new interview. “You have to take them as they come to you. And there’s a whole checklist that they have to meet.”

In addition to the security and sales system updates, the superintendent also noted that businesses will need to ensure that their employees are properly badged. Their medical cannabis licenses must also be up-to-date in order to apply for a dual license.

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Ohio Lawmakers Approve Rules Allowing Adult-Use Marijuana Sales To Start Next Month

An Ohio legislative panel has approved a regulatory framework for the state’s marijuana market that pushes up the implementation timeline, creating a licensing scheme that could allow adult-use sales to launch next month in current medical cannabis dispensaries.

The legislature’s Joint Committee On Agency Rule Review (JCARR) gave final approval to the proposed cannabis regulations on Monday.

While regulators have until September to start issuing cannabis business licenses under the ballot initiative that voters approved last November, the Division of Cannabis Control (DCC) devised a plan to start granting dual licenses to existing medical marijuana operators to begin serving adult consumers early this summer.

That plan, as well as other rules setting up the basic infrastructure for legalization, was accepted by the committee. Applications for prospective dual licensees will be opened up no later than June 7, and they could start selling cannabis to patients and adults alike once they’re approved.

Rep. Jamie Callender (R), vice chair of JCARR, thanked the head of DCC for “the work you’ve put in on this—for doing this timely and to help move forward the will of the voters, and we look forward to watching these rules go into effect in a couple of weeks.”

He said regulators have assured him that they will have applications online prior to the new rules’ June 7 deadline, and he’s optimistic that means sales could begin by mid-June.

The expedited application launch should be welcome news for Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine (R). While he doesn’t personally support legalization, he’s repeatedly criticized the delay in access to regulated products since voters made that choice and possession became legal in December.

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Cannabis Can Help Treat Female Orgasmic Disorder, Study Finds As Ohio Officials Consider Adding It As Qualifying Condition

Ahead of a decision by Ohio officials on whether to add female orgasmic disorder (FOD) as a qualifying condition for the state’s medical marijuana program, a new study highlights the benefits that researchers say cannabis could offer people with the condition—including increased orgasm ease and satisfaction.

The 10-page study, published in the journal Sexual Medicine, draws on a 2022 survey of “sexually active women who used cannabis.” Among those who experienced challenges in achieving orgasm, more than 7 in 10 said cannabis use increased orgasm ease (71 percent) and frequency (72.9 percent), and two-thirds (67 percent) said it improved orgasm satisfaction.

“The results corroborate 50 years of anecdotal and learned speculation about cannabis helping women with FOD,” the paper says. “The research found that cannabis use increased orgasm frequency, eased orgasm difficulty, and improved orgasm satisfaction. At the same time, the results opened new areas of discussion.”

For example, results of the survey found that women with one or more mental health diagnoses who used cannabis before partnered sex had “a more positive orgasm response regardless of whether they have FOD,” which authors noted was “consistent with research finding that women with FOD experience high rates of mental health diagnoses, prescription drug use, or PTSD.”

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Top Ohio GOP Lawmakers Struggle To Reach Consensus On Bill To Amend Marijuana Legalization Law

Top Ohio Republican lawmakers say plans are still in the works to amend the state’s marijuana legalization law, with the Senate president setting a June target as regulators work to develop rules and launch an adult-use market.

It remains unclear what that future cannabis legislation will look like, but leadership has discussed addressing issues such as tax revenue distribution, scaling back home cultivation rules and restricting public smoking.

“I am—I would not say optimistic—but I am reasonably hopeful, if you need words, that we can get something done by June,” Senate President Matt Huffman (R), whose chamber has already passed legislation to amend the voter-approved legalization policy, told WCMH-TV.

“With greater access to marijuana, there will be more visits to poison control centers,” he said, adding that it’s “really important” that lawmakers allocate tax dollars to those centers as part of any amendment package.

The senator additionally said he thinks “what’s most pressing is people smoking marijuana when they’re walking down the street.”

Gov. Mike DeWine (R) has previously pressed the legislature to enact changes to expedite recreational marijuana sales, despite his personal opposition to the ballot initiative that voters passed in November. But he’s indicated that his more immediate concern is regulating the sale of intoxicating hemp-derived cannabinoids such as delta-8 THC.

“This is time for the legislature to move,” the governor, who also raised the issue during his State of the State address earlier this month, said. “We can’t do it ourselves.”

He also said he’s “not going to get into that” when asked about disagreements within Republican leadership with respect to revising the state’s marijuana law.

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Ohio Pastor Criminally Charged for Letting People Sleep In Church. Again.

An Ohio pastor is once again being brought up on criminal charges for sheltering people in his church.

On Friday, the city of Bryan, Ohio refiled charges against Chris Avell, the pastor of Dad’s Place, for fire and zoning code violations related to his operation of a 24-hour “Rest and Refresh” ministry at the church’s downtown building.

The city argues the church’s 24-hour ministry is in fact just a residential homeless shelter, which is not allowed at the commercially zoned property. The fire code violations make it not only unauthorized but also unsafe. Each violation, if not corrected, is punishable by a $1,000 daily fine.

“We appreciate that Dad’s Place has tried to help people in need,” said Bryan Mayor Carrie Schlade in a statement. “But putting these people’s lives at risk in the case of a fire or other dangers is not helping them.”

“Here we are with the pastor facing new criminal charges for caring for people inside his church,” First Liberty Institute attorney Jeremy Dys, who is representing Dad’s Place, told Reason in an interview on Friday.

Reason covered Avell’s case back in January when he was first charged with 18 criminal counts for similar zoning and fire code violations.

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SHOCK: Yet Another BLM Activist Found Guilty of Fraud, Stole $450,000 From Hapless Donors

Yet another Black Lives Matter activist has been convicted of defrauding donors out of hundreds of thousands of dollars.

In a press release on Thursday, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Ohio confirmed that Sir Maejor Page, 35, of Toledo, was convicted wire fraud and three counts of money laundering following a six-day trial.

The release stated:

According to court documents and testimony, in 2016, Page created a Facebook page for “Black Lives Matter of Greater Atlanta” (“BLMGA”) and registered this organization as a domestic non-profit with the Georgia Secretary of State Corporation’s Division. In 2017, the IRS approved Page’s request granting BLMGA tax-exempt status under Section 503(c)(3) of the tax code, but dissolved this status in 2019.

Page nonetheless accepted donations after falsely portraying BLMGA to the public as a legitimate charity engaged in social justice work, when in fact, it was not. Instead, Page used the money that individual donors gave to BLMGA not for social justice causes, but rather to buy items for his own personal use, such as a house and furniture. Page also committed money-laundering crimes when he bought these items with the donations that he fraudulently obtained.

United States Attorney Rebecca C. Lutzko, for the Northern District of Ohio also weighed in on the verdict: 

The United States Attorney’s Office prioritizes the prosecution of white-collar criminal conduct, particularly conduct involving deceptive schemes that selfishly exploit a charitable donor’s goodwill for personal gain.

The donors to BLMGA thought they were giving their hard-earned money to a cause they believed in. But instead of using it to support that cause, Page used it for himself. The jury’s verdict is a warning to every fraudster that when you misrepresent how donations or other money given to you in trust will be used, you will be prosecuted and punished.

According to The New York Times, Page stole around $450,000.

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Ohio Recreational Marijuana Sales Could Launch In June Under Regulators’ Expedited Plan, Lawmaker Says

Ohio marijuana sales could launch as soon as June under a regulatory plan that a legislative rulemaking committee is set to approve as lawmakers’ plans to revise the voter-approved legalization law continue to stall out.

Regulators have until September to start issuing cannabis business licenses under the ballot initiative that was approved last November, but the Division of Cannabis Control (DCC) has devised a plan to start granting dual licenses to existing medical marijuana operators to begin serving adult consumers early this summer.

Rep. Jamie Callender (R), a proponent of cannabis reform in the legislature, told News 5 Cleveland that members of the Joint Committee On Agency Rule Review (JCARR), which he chairs, are positioned to accept the proposed regulations at a meeting on May 13.

“We could have retailers—recreational licensed retailers—in Ohio by mid-June,” he said. “We should begin to see legal recreational sales of marijuana in Ohio certainly before July 4th weekend.”

“The distribution of retail sites—they are already in existence for medical—will be able to get a dual license,” he said. “The application will be available, absent a problem in JCARR, which I don’t anticipate, prior to June 7.”

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