Tag: the war on (some) drugs

Montana Lawmakers Pass Marijuana Bill To Set Zero-Tolerance THC Limit For Drivers Under 21

Advocates are warning that a bill passed by Montana’s legislature aimed at reducing marijuana-impaired driving by people under 21 would put younger medical cannabis patients at risk and criminalize minors who may have used the drug days earlier but are otherwise entirely sober.

The state House of Representatives voted on Friday to pass the measure—SB 508, from Sen. Willis Curdy (D)—which the Senate approved in early March. It next proceeds to the desk of Gov. Greg Gianforte (R).

Reform advocates are asking their supporters to urge a veto from the governor, noting that the proposal includes mandatory jail time for offenders and claiming that young drivers could be tested and charged after an accident that wasn’t their fault even if they weren’t impaired.

The Marijuana Policy Project (MPP) said in an email about the bill that it would create an “extreme standard for drivers under 21, making it a DUI offense to have any detectable THC or certain metabolites in their system.”

“It would criminalize sober young drivers who are state-legal medical cannabis patients, people who tested positive after using legal CBD products, and people who were exposed to cannabis second-hand,” the group said. “Since THC can remain in the bloodstream and urine days after its effects have worn off, this approach would criminalize and incarcerate young Montanans who are completely unimpaired.”

Karen O’Keefe, director of state policies for MPP, said the House passed the bill after lawmakers made misleading statements about marijuana legality among people younger than 21 as well as circumstances under which minors would be tested.

In floor debate, Rep. Steven Kelly (R) said that marijuana use is already illegal for people under 21 and that minors would need to exhibit signs of impairment—such as bloodshot eyes or inhibited speech—in order to be tested.

But MPP points out that Illinois’s medical marijuana program allows patient use by people 21 and under with a doctor’s recommendation, and minors can also legally use hemp-based CBD products that in some cases can cause positive THC tests, especially when screening for trace amounts.

The group also noted that nothing in the bill appears to actually require evidence of impairment, meaning drivers could be tested even if there’s no sign they’re actually under the influence of the drug.

“There is no need for this unjust, overbroad law,” MPP said in its email, adding that “Montana already criminalizes impaired driving,” including with a per se THC blood limit of 5 nanograms per milliliter.”

MPP also put out a call to action asking supporters to urge Gianforte to veto SB 508.

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North Carolina Lawmakers Are Considering At Least Nine Bills To Regulate Intoxicating Hemp-Derived Products

North Carolina lawmakers have proposed at least nine bills this year that seek more regulation on the sale and purchase of gummies, drinks and vaping products containing compounds from hemp.

Most of the bills seek to make it illegal for youth to buy snacks, drinks and vape products containing hemp-derived cannabinoids or to keep them off school property. Legislators and sheriffs talked about one of the bills, House Bill 680, The Protect Children from Cannabis Act, at a Wednesday news conference.

The bill would make it illegal for shops to sell consumables containing hemp compounds without a permit, and would make it illegal for people under 21 to buy them. The Alcohol Beverage Control Commission and Alcohol Law Enforcement (ALE) would have investigative and enforcement powers.

“Currently, there’s no age restriction on purchasing these intoxicating cannabinoids, and children do use these and buy these every day,” said Rep. Timothy Reeder (R-Pitt), one of the bill’s primary sponsors.

Onslow County Sheriff Chris Thomas said vape shops have opened near schools in his county to take advantage of the young customer base.

It appears sellers are focusing on young customers, he said, “because the young clientele is a customer for a long time.”

An effort to regulate snacks containing hemp cannabinoids and banning the products from schools faltered last year when the state Senate attached medical marijuana legalization to a House bill. The House and Senate have been at an impasse over medical marijuana for several years.

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As Kratom Consumers Face Global Market Disruption, It’s Time For FDA To Put Safety Over Stigma

For over a decade, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has quietly crippled the kratom supply chain. Now, Indonesia’s new export regulations—meant to raise kratom quality standards and appeal to U.S. regulators—may have just squeezed the most responsible products out of the market.

At the end of 2024, the Indonesian government enacted sweeping new trade regulations aimed at tightening the export market for kratom, a tree native to Southeast Asia with leaves containing psychoactive alkaloids that have long been used as an herbal remedy.

One provision of the policy strengthens quality control for kratom exports, which was notably absent in the past. Moving forward, all kratom shipments must be sterilized before leaving Indonesia, and only batches that meet minimum thresholds for the concentration of the primary active compound, mitragynine, will qualify for export. These steps are designed to limit contamination and prevent exporters from bulking up shipments with non-kratom plant material.

The second component of the regulations is a prohibition on the export of raw kratom leaf with a particle size over 0.6 millimeters, which includes crushed-leaf kratom. In the United States, crushed leaf is most often used to make extracts. By imposing particle size restrictions, Indonesia aims to ensure that the economic value of processing raw kratom into finished extract products stays within its own borders, rather than being captured by foreign companies.

These new standards represent a step forward for kratom quality control and international industry fairness. The intentions are worth celebrating and supporting.

However, the new regulations have also inadvertently disrupted the supply chain of safer, more traditional kratom products while failing to address the root cause of regulatory tension between the U.S. and Indonesia.

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National Guard Deployed to Albuquerque, New Mexico as Crime Crisis Skyrockets

Albuquerque, New Mexico, is turning to the National Guard for support as crime continues to surge in the state’s largest city. The move comes after local law enforcement requested help dealing with what officials describe as an unrelenting public safety crisis — including violent crime, rampant drug use and a growing homeless population.

Democratic Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham approved the deployment of between 60 and 70 National Guard troops in response to an emergency request from Albuquerque Police Chief Harold Medina. Troops will begin arriving in May and are expected to remain in the city for six months to a year, depending on conditions on the ground.

Albuquerque, home to over a quarter of New Mexico’s population, has been overwhelmed by crime in recent years. Central Avenue — a stretch of the historic Route 66 — has become a hotspot for illegal activity, open-air drug markets and homeless encampments, the Daily Mail reports. 

Locals have dubbed the area “The War Zone,” a label that has gained national attention following a visit from YouTuber Nick Johnson, who described the neighborhood as “the most frightful in America” to his 1.1 million followers.

Although the National Guard will assist local authorities, guardsmen will not be performing active police duties, nor will they be armed or in uniform. According to reports, including from the Albuquerque Journal, the troops will wear plain polo shirts and be assigned to tasks such as courthouse and airport security. 

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Kansas Governor Says It’s Time For Lawmakers To ‘Finally Legalize Medical Marijuana’

Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly (D) says it’s time for lawmakers in the state to finally legalize medical marijuana.

The governor called for the reform on Wednesday, as she allowed a separate right-to-try bill to become law without her signature. That measure is intended to give people with debilitating or life-threatening conditions broader access to experimental medications.

“This bill gives Kansans with debilitating disease the option to make choices about their medical care,” Kelly said in a statement about the bill, SB 250. “Now I think it’s time for the Legislature to finally legalize medical Marijuana, giving the Kansans suffering from chronic pain or Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, and children suffering with Dravet’s Syndrome (epilepsy) the choice of the treatment they and their doctors determine best suits their needs.”

Notably, lawmakers earlier this year considered but ultimately rejected an amendment that would have added cannabis to the right-to-try bill. The lawmaker behind that effort, Sen. Cindy Holscher (D), said her intention was not to create a public medical marijuana system, however.

Sen. Mike Thompson (R) disparaged the idea at the time. “The term medical cannabis is nothing but a marketing ploy,” he said.

Polling from late last year shows that nearly three quarters (73 percent) of Kansans support legalizing medical marijuana. About six in 10 (61 percent) respondents also said they supported legalizing cannabis for broader adult use.

Legislators have nevertheless repeatedly shot down reform efforts.

The House of Representatives passed a medical cannabis bill in 2021, for example, but it stalled out in the Senate. And after numerous hearings on the issue, the Senate Federal and State Affairs Committee voted last March to table a limited medical marijuana pilot program bill.

A later effort to revive the medical cannabis bill on the Senate floor ultimately fell short.

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Alcohol Retailers Say Only They Should Be Able To Legally Sell Marijuana Products

A new policy memo from an American alcohol retail industry group argues that marijuana should be regulated more like booze—including by requiring that intoxicating cannabis products be sold only by businesses licensed to sell alcohol.

“States should restrict the sale of intoxicating THC products to businesses licensed to sell beverage alcohol and that are regularly inspected for compliance with laws aimed at preventing sales to individuals under 21,” says the memo, published this month by the American Beverage Licensees (ABL) trade association.

The group contends that alcohol retailers, “with many decades of proven compliance, are best positioned to sell these products.”

Regulators should also treat cannabis similar to alcohol, the two-page policy memo says, such as by establishing licensing requirements, clear labeling standards and restrictions on advertising. “It may also include limits on potency per serving,” the alcohol trade group asserted.

THC products should also be lab tested for safety, purity and potency, the paper says. “Testing should verify the absence of harmful contaminants including but not limited to heavy metals, pesticides, mold and residual solvents, and confirm THC potency to prevent unintentional harmful effects.”

ABL, which represents on-premise sellers of beer, wine and spirits such as bars, taverns, restaurants and casinos, as well as off-premise retailers like package stores, is further calling for a “fair and transparent” tax structure for THC products, with production and retail tax rates “similar to those for beverage alcohol in the state.”

To ensure a working system, the memo also urges enforcement of laws and regulations. “This includes penalties for selling to underage individuals, failure to comply with testing and labeling requirements, and operating without a license,” the document says.

It also advises that states “should work with financial institutions, insurance providers, and regulatory authorities” to ensure that marijuana retailers have access to insurance and financial services.

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Top GOP Senator In Indiana Says It’d Be A ‘Smart Move’ To Decriminalize Marijuana

Indiana’s top Senate leader says that decriminalizing small amounts of marijuana would be a “smart move” in his view, though he remains “unconvinced” that broader legalization of cannabis is in the state’s best interest.

In a wide-ranging interview published by The Indiana Lawyer this week, Senate Pro Tempore Rodric Bray (R) said he knows marijuana reform is “becoming more and more popular, of course, across the state of Indiana, and also in this building.”

“We can’t exist in a vacuum,” acknowledged the lawmaker, who has historically opposed both medical and adult-use legalization. “More than 30 states have legalized marijuana in some capacity, including those states around us.”

While Bray said he was speaking personally—”just Rod Bray talk, and not our caucus”—he described marijuana decriminalization as a better path forward, taking a more moderate approach to reform.

“I think that it would be a smart move, based on where we are in that space right now, that we decriminalize small amounts of marijuana. I don’t think that needs to be criminal at this point,” he said. “Maybe it’s an infraction or something like that, because people are obviously buying it legally in other parts of the country [and] can’t possess it when you come back here. But should that be a jailable offense at this point? Maybe not.”

Decriminalization is “something I would consider,” he added. “But we have to do that as a body.”

Lawmakers in Illinois have been eyeing various cannabis reforms recently, including both medical and adult-use cannabis legalization. In January, Gov. Mike Braun (R) said he’s “amenable” to legalizing medical marijuana but noted that he wasn’t sure whether Republican lawmakers would even take up the matter.

“When it comes to medical marijuana, I’m clear on record that I’m going to be amenable to hearing a case for it,” Braun said at the time.

Other lawmakers have been studying nearby Michigan and Illinois as guides for how to eventually legalize marijuana more broadly.

Bray, for his part, said at a December event that he doesn’t support any form of marijuana legalization.

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Florida Senate Passes Bill To Restrict Hemp Products Like Delta-8 THC

For the second year in a row, the Florida Senate has approved new regulations on hemp-derived THC products in Florida, although this time the proposal includes limitations on the industry’s hottest new product, THC-infused beverages.

Polk County Republican Sen. Colleen Burton has led the charge in attempting to place some restrictions on these intoxicating products, which have emerged since the state legalized hemp in 2019. Since then, some states have banned all such products, while others have heavily regulated them.

Burton said that people have asked her why is she trying to regulate an industry that has been established in Florida for years. She said hemp-derived THC products are “causing harm to Floridians.”

“We have retailers in the state of Florida that are selling products that are intoxicating,” she said. “They are selling products that are putting adults and children in the hospital. And, sadly, they are selling products that are causing the deaths of Floridians.”

She alluded to a Jacksonville television station’s website, which reported this week on a Georgia woman who  believes her 25-year-old son’s death from heart disease was caused by ingesting Delta-8 gummies. “That young man did not know that what he was ingesting was going to hurt him,” Burton said.

The bill (SB 438) bans all Delta-8 products and limits the amount of Delta-9 hemp-derived products to no more than five milligrams per serving or 50 milligrams per container. It limits the amount of THC in hemp-infused drinks to five milligrams per container. Such drinks could only be sold through a retailer holding a liquor license.

It requires that each final batch of hemp extract must be tested in a certified marijuana testing laboratory before it may be sold in the state, with results verified and signed by two laboratory employees. The lab would determine whether the product meets the definition of hemp and hemp extract.

During a combined Florida House workgroup formed to study the hemp industry earlier in the session, the owner of a Lakeland testing lab that contracted with the Florida Department of Agriculture to test cannabis and hemp products appeared. He testified that his lab tested 50 out of 53 flower hemp samples from different smoke/hemp shops across the state that were over the legal 0.3 percent Delta 9 THC limit, and found contaminants in these products.

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