Week Of Cannabis Review 4/16/2022

This is a week of cannabis review from Texas Cannabis Collective. Don’t have the time to read it all? Check out the included audio player and listen to it on the go. Also you can check out the podcast for other Week of Cannabis Review articles.

The Coast Guard seized 140 pounds of marijuana near South Padre Island, Texas, Thursday. Coast Guard Station South Padre Island received notification and launched an intercept vessel towards the Brownsville Ship Channel. The boat crew detained three individuals and seized three bales of marijuana found on the vessel. The Coast Guard crew then transferred the individuals and marijuana to Customs and Border Patrol personnel in Port Isabel, Texas.

New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy announced that adults 21 and older will be able to buy marijuana from select dispensaries starting on April 21, just one day after the cannabis holiday 4 20. As well, a notice from the state attorney general’s office stated that police can use the substance as well, as long as they’re off duty. The memo highlights a notable component of cannabis-related workplace protections including in the Garden State’s marijuana laws—and one that also raises questions about potential federal ramifications related to firearm laws. The memo also included that there should be zero tolerance for cannabis use, possession, or intoxication while performing the duties of a law enforcement officer.

A long-anticipated Senate bill to federally legalize marijuana will not be introduced this month by Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer. The timeline is being extended as they continue to work out various provisions “with the assistance of nearly a dozen Senate committees and input from numerous federal agencies.” The idea behind this is that by taking time to finalize the measure, it will help  senators overcome difficult odds in a chamber where 60 votes are needed and not all Democrats are on board to legalize.  The Cannabis Administration & Opportunity Act (CAOA) was first unveiled in 2021. Advocates and stakeholders have been hoping for a swift push to get the bill on the floor before election time this fall. The senate leader is now saying that the “official introduction” will take place sometime “before the August recess.”

A new congressional bill has been filed so that the punishment for military members caught using or possessing marijuana will not face penalties exceeding those in place for being drunk or incapacitated on duty. Rep. Anthony Brown (D-MD) filed the Restoring Equity For Offenses Related to Marijuana (REFORM) Act in the House. The bill will amend the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ) to align cannabis with alcohol- related penalties if passed. Currently the punishment for possession of up to 30 grams of cannabis carries a maximum penalty of “dishonorable discharge, forfeiture of all pay and allowances, and confinement for two years.” Possession of more than 30 grams can raise the maximum confinement to five years. If a member’s use of alcohol renders them incapacitated for duty, they can face three months of confinement, along with forfeiture of two-thirds of their pay every month for three months, a reduction in rank and extra duties. Being intoxicated on duty carries a maximum penalty of a bad conduct discharge, forfeiture of allowances and pay and confinement of up to nine months. A bad conduct discharge is considered less serious than a dishonorable discharge under UCMJ. The reason why is that the latter is considered to be the equivalent of a felony conviction under military code.

The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) claimed in a recent report that illicit cannabis trafficking from Mexico is being undermined by domestic production in the US. The report stated that “Mexican marijuana has largely been supplanted by domestic-produced marijuana,” even though Mexico “remains the most significant foreign source for marijuana.” The report does not clarify that the reduction is from American purchasing the products created by legal markets in the US. The budget report put out by the DEA states that increased domestic production is by means of cultivation facilities that the agency itself is authorizing to manufacture marijuana for study purposes. Up until recently the University of Mississippi was the sole place to grow cannabis for federal research. But it is noted in the new report that the “number of authorized growers in the United States has increased from one to four, with two additional approvals expected by year’s end.”

That does it for this Week of Cannabis Review