Tagged With: Senate
Veterans Medical Marijuana Access Legislation Introduced In House and Senate
Today, Senator Brian Schatz (D-HI) and Representative Barbara Lee (D-CA) introduced legislation, The Veterans Medical Marijuana Safe Harbor Act, to expand and facilitate medical cannabis access to military veterans suffering from chronic pain, PTSD, and other serious medical conditions. Under existing regulations, VA doctors are not permitted to fill out the mandatory paperwork necessary to … Continue reading
Virginia Medical Cannabis Bills Clear Senate Committee
Three medical cannabis bills cleared the Senate Committee on Education and Health this morning and are headed to the Senate floor. Senator Siobhan Dunnavant’s SB1557 would clarify last year’s landmark Let Doctors Decide medical cannabis legislation. It seeks to redefine allowed dosage limitations and formulations, and expand patient access and reduce patient cost by adding nurse practitioners and physician … Continue reading
Michigan Bill to Ban Home Cultivation Fails in Senate
An effort to undermine Michigan’s Proposition 1, a voter approved initiative that legalized adult-use marijuana failed to gain support in the Senate. In a last-ditch effort to deny Michigan residents the legal right to grow marijuana in their home, Senate Majority Leader Meekhof introduced SB 1243 that would have stripped the Michigan Regulation and Taxation … Continue reading
US Senate: Leading Marijuana Prohibitionist Out As Senate Judiciary Chair
One of the US Senate’s leading marijuana prohibitionists, Iowa Republican Charles Grassley, will no longer be heading the Senate Judiciary Committee in the 116th Congress. Representative Grassley announced today that he is stepping down as Chair of the Committee. As Chair, Grassley refused to hold any hearings or votes on marijuana-related legislation, including bipartisan legislative … Continue reading
Senate Majority Leader Guarantees End To Federal Hemp Ban
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) publicly reaffirmed today that provisions lifting the federal prohibition of hemp will be included in the finalized language of H.R. 2: The Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018 (aka the 2018 Farm Bill). The must-pass legislation is currently being debated by leadership in conference committee. “If there’s a Farm Bill, … Continue reading
First Ever Veterans-Focused Medical Bill Introduced In Senate
Washington, DC: Senators Bill Nelson (D-FL) and Brian Schatz (D-HI) today introduced legislation, The Veterans Medical Marijuana Safe Harbor Act, to expand and facilitate medical cannabis access to military veterans suffering from chronic pain, PTSD, and other serious medical conditions. Under existing regulations, VA doctors are not permitted to fill out the mandatory paperwork necessary to … Continue reading
Delaware Senator Cosponsors Federal Reform, Ten Percent of Senate Now Support Descheduling Bill
Just a few weeks after Delaware NORML made the trek down to Washington DC, Senator Tom Carper (D-DE) cosponsored The Marijuana Freedom and Opportunity Act (S. 3174), far-reaching legislation that would end the federal prohibition of marijuana and provide resources to expunge the criminal records of those who suffer the collateral consequences of a possession charge. … Continue reading
Senate Democratic Leader Introduces Far-Reaching Marijuana Descheduling Bill
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, along with Senators Bernie Sanders, Tim Kaine, and Tammy Duckworth, just introduced legislation, the Marijuana Freedom and Opportunity Act, to remove marijuana from the Controlled Substances Act and to provide funding for the expungement of criminal records for those with past marijuana convictions. Passage of descheduling legislation is necessary to resolve … Continue reading
Senate Majority Leader Announces Progress On Hemp Reform Legislation
United States Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) today announced that he has secured provisions in the 2018 Farm Bill to further expand and facilitate state-regulated hemp production. In a press release, McConnell acknowledged that provisions in S. 2667: The Hemp Farming Act of 2018 have now been incorporated into the Senate’s version of The … Continue reading
Canadian Senate Signs Off On Historic Cannabis Regulation Measure
Members of the Canadian Senate yesterday voted 56-30 in favor of Bill C-45 sweeping legislation amending the federal Controlled Drugs and Substances Act so that those over the age of 18 may legally possess, purchase, and grow personal use quantities of cannabis. Members of the Canadian House of Commons had overwhelmingly voted in November in … Continue reading