As reported in the Denver Post yesterday, Colorado is now the first state in the United States to have a legal hemp operation. Farmer Ryan Loflin is currently overseeing the first hemp crop in the US in 60 years, which of course comes just a few months after Amendment 64... Read More »
Gaining support With House Bill 1318 and Senate Concurrent Resolution 3 Colorado lawmakers sought to blackmail voters into approving exorbitant taxes on cannabis. The Colorado legislature recently approved House Bill 1318 and it will go to Colorado voters in November. The bill passed the Senate without much of a battle given its... Read More »
Celebrations ensued in November when Colorado and Washington passed bills to legalize marijuana for recreational users aged 21 and above. But the battle is far from over. With the way the regulatory framework is shaping up in both states, the actualization of relaxed, recreational cannabis laws is far from certain.... Read More »
The Colorado state legislature passed the first bills in history Wednesday to establish a regulated marijuana market for adults. Representatives of the Amendment 64 campaign will discuss the landmark achievement and next steps at a news conference Thursday at 10 a.m. in the Creswell Mansion Office Building (1244 Read More »
Despite the fact that a 5 nanogram THC limit has been shown to be a faulty method to show impairment, Colorado lawmakers have still passed HB 1325, a marijuana DUI bill. The bill is still awaiting Governor Hickenlooper’s signature, but a spokesperson said he will sign the bill, which passed the senate with a 23-12 vote.
Since the passage of Colorado’s Amendment 64, several non-profit cannabis collectives have emerged to provide marijuana to members. The non-profits are allowed to share their marijuana under Amendment 64 for a price that covers costs. It is possible that these collectives could attract the federal hammer, but it is also possible that they will serve to discourage extremely high tax rates for retail stores.
The Aurora city council has scheduled a meeting for May 20 to discuss regulating marijuana in the city. One of the ideas that the Denver suburb is contemplating is banning all private recreational marijuana businesses and instead setting up 15 city-run “physical facilities.” Each facility would grow all its own marijuana, and presumably produce its own extracts and edibles.
In the wake of the marijuana legalization victories in Colorado and Washington last November, and buoyed by a series of national public opinion polls showing support for pot legalization going over the tipping point, marijuana reform legislation is being introduced at state houses across the land at levels never... Read More »
After a long debate, Colorado legislators have approved the high marijuana tax rates of 15% excise tax and 10% sales tax, this is down only slightly from the original proposed rates of 15% for each. While this is quite a high tax rate, businesses should still be able to provide marijuana cheap enough to avoid much of a black market in my opinion. However, hobby growers may (illegally) undercut those prices, more to unload their surplus and cover costs than to make a profit.
US Drug Czar Gil Kerlikowske says marijuana legalization in Colorado and Washington will not change his office’s mission, which is to fight addiction with treatment programs. His strategy for the next year is to divert non-violent drug offenders to treatment rather than prison. Maybe it’s just my perception, but this seems like a change to me.
