Amidst all the Trump-Harris hoopla, it is easy to forget that the presidential race is not the only thing on the ballot.
The country's first experiment with state-level decriminalization of drug possession is over, but what will change -- other than more drug arrests?
The Chronicle was on vacation last week, but prohibition-related law enforcement corruption took no holiday.
North Dakota lawmakers have come up with a revenue and expense estimate if a marijuana legalization initiative passes, a Swedish labor court has ruled for employers in a drug testing case, and more.
The California Senate has passed a pair of bills aimed at opening up markets for small marijuana growers and "cannabis cafes," the drug czar asks Congress to reauthorize his office, and more.
Arkansas campaigners for an initiative to expand the state's medical marijuana program handed in a second batch of signatures in a bid to make the November ballot, and more.
The Kamala Harris campaign slams Trump for "brazen flip-flopping" on marijuana after he says he'll vote for Florida initiative, a paired set of Nebraska medical marijuana initiatives has qualified for the ballot, and more.
Wisconsin tribes are mobilizing for medical marijuana, the Tennessee Supreme Court rules that even though drug dogs can't distinguish hemp from weed, a sniff can still be probable cause for a search, and more.
From its coca-growing fiefdom in the country's southwest, Colombia's second-largest dissident FARC faction says peace talks with the government are stalled, and more.
Amidst all the Trump-Harris hoopla, it is easy to forget that the presidential race is not the only thing on the ballot.
[Editor's Note: So sorry, Cornhuskers! We forgot the Nebraska medical marijuana initiatives, which qualified for the ballot Friday afternoon. We've updated our story accordingly, and we also have an Arkansas update.]
This year's historically strange presidential election, with a convicted felon ex-president running on one ticket and a current vice-president and woman of color who replaced ag aging sitting president without entering a single primary contest heading the other, is sucking all the air out of the room when it comes to down-ballot contests and issues. And drug policy has not been much of an issue in the presidential campaign with both parties agreeing that fentanyl is bad, Kamala Harris supporting marijuana legalization, and Donald Trump appearing indifferent.
But drug reforms of various stripes are on the ballot in several states, including marijuana legalization in three states, a marijuana union initiative in one state, a medical marijuana expansion initiative in another (with an asterisk, see below) and a paired set of initiatives in another, and a psychedelic decriminalization initiative in yet another. And in one state, we will see an effort to roll back criminal justice and drug policy reforms approved by voters a decade ago.
Let's take a look at what the various initiatives would do, how the campaigns are shaking out, and what their prospects are less than 10 weeks from now:
Marijuana Legalization
Florida
Organized by Smart & Safe Florida and largely financed to the tune of tens of millions of dollars by current multi-state medical marijuana operators Trulieve, Amendment 3 would legalize marijuana via a constitutional amendment. Under Florida law, that means the initiative needs 60 percent of the vote to win on Election Day.
According to the latest report from the Florida Division of Elections, the pro-legalization forces have amassed nearly $72 million as of mid-month. Meanwhile, two political action committees aligned with Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R), Keep Florida Clean and the Florida Freedom Fund, have raised only $14.5 million.
TruLieve, which itself is poised to benefit hugely from a legalization plan that positions it to move into the adult-use market immediately is responsible for $65 million of the nearly $72 million raised by the campaign. That makes the Florida campaign the most well-funded marijuana ballot measure in US history.
The initiative would legalize the possession of up to three ounces of pot by people 21 and over, as well as up to five grams of concentrates. There is no provision for home cultivation. Existing medical marijuana operations, e.g. Trulieve, could sell to adults for personal use. It would be up to the legislature to allow anyone other than existing medical marijuana dispensaries to get licensed for adult sales.
Two recent polls on the prospects for the initiative are split on the outcome. A poll from Florida Atlantic University has Amendment 3 at 56 percent -- a majority but not enough of one to pass. The silver lining in this poll is that 15 percent of voters remain undecided, and the amendment only needs to about one out of three of those undecided to reach the 60 percent threshold.
A poll from USA Today/Suffolk University has better news for the Amendment 3 campaign, showing 63 percent support, with only about 3.2 percent of voters undecided. That suggests that the initiative would have to lose nearly every single currently undecided voter to fall short of 60 percent.
Most earlier polls have shown Amendment 3 winning in November, and the initiative campaign has far exceeded any organized opposition in terms of funding. Still, this is going to be a nail-biter.
North Dakota
A marijuana legalization initiative known officially as Question 5 qualified for the November ballot earlier this month. It would legalize the possession of up to an ounce of marijuana by people 21 and over. The measure also legalizes the possession of up to four grams of concentrate and 1500 milligrams of "cannabinoid products," and allows for the home cultivation of up to three plants.
It contains no provision for a legal marijuana marketplace, the creation of which would be up to the state legislature if it so chooses. Nor does it contain any social equity provisions common in other legal marijuana states.
Voters in the state have twice defeated previous legalization efforts, in 2018 and 2022. The Republican-led House passed a legalization bill in 2021, but that was killed in the Senate.
The possession of up to a half ounce of marijuana is already decriminalized, but the state still had more than 4,400 marijuana possession arrests last year.
The only recent poll had some bad news for initiative sponsors New Economic Frontier. That survey, from a political action committee called the Brighter Future Alliance, had the measure losing 57 percent to 43 percent. But that was at the end of June, and this is the first legalization initiative to occur in a presidential election year, which could goose turnout and boost the measure's prospects.
South Dakota
South Dakotans for Better Marijuana Laws hopes the third time is the charm for its Measure 29 marijuana legalization initiative. Activists saw a 2020 legalization initiative win at the polls, only to be thrown out by the state Supreme Court acting at the best of MAGA Gov. Kristi Noem (R). They tried again in 2022 but lost in that off-year election.
The initiative would legalize the possession of up to two ounces of marijuana and the home cultivation of up to six plants but, in a bid to avoid the kind of constitutional complications that undid the 2020 initiative, does not address legal marijuana commerce. That would be up to the legislature.
It also contains protections for employers, allowing them to discriminate against legal marijuana users, and for property owners, allowing them to forbid marijuana use or possession on their premises. The bare-bones initiative contains no social equity provisions.
The limited polling available suggests the initiative campaign is in for an uphill fight, with a fall 2023 poll finding 45 percent in favor, 42 percent opposed, and 13 percent undecided. But with the state Republican Party this year loudly opposing the initiative, a June poll showed only 42 percent support, with 52 percent opposed. Organizers hope a turnout boost from the presidential election and an abortion rights initiative also on the state ballot will get them over the top.
Marijuana and Unions
Oregon
United Food & Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 555 spent $2 million to ensure that its Measure 119 initiative making it easier for marijuana industry workers to organize got on the ballot.
Similar to "labor peace" laws for the marijuana industry in California, Connecticut, New Jersey, New York, and Virginia, Measure 119 would require pot shops and processors to sign labor peace agreements with labor unions representing or attempting to organize their workers. Such agreements mean that the business agrees to remain neutral concerning the labor organization's representatives communicating with the employees of the applicant or the licensee about the employees' rights.
If marijuana business applicants or licensees fail to submit a signed labor peace agreement, the Oregon Liquor and Cannabis Commission can deny the application for licensing. Similarly, if a labor peace agreement is ended, licensees would have to submit a new agreement within 30 days or face a license suspension and/or fine.
There is no known polling for this measure, but there is also known organized opposition.
Medical Marijuana
Arkansas*
*This initiative has not yet qualified for the ballot. It needed 90,704 valid voter signatures to qualify but only came up with 77,000 by the end-of-July deadline. It did, however, qualify for an additional 30 days of signature gathering, which will end on Friday. State officials will announce whether or not the measure made the ballot shortly after that.
[Update: The campaign handed in nearly 38,000 additional raw signatures on Friday. Only about one out of three has to be a valid voter signature for the initiative to qualify.]
The Arkansas Medical Cannabis Amendment would enlarge a 2016 medical marijuana initiative approved by the voters. It would expand the range of healthcare professionals who could recommend medical marijuana, expand the definition of qualifying conditions, make medical marijuana ID cards good for three years, allow reciprocity for out-of-state cardholders, and allow patients to grow their own medicine -- up to 14 plants, seven of which could be mature.
Sponsored by Arkansans for Patient Access, the campaign has fundraised $1.65 million (and spent more than $1.3 million), mainly from medical marijuana operators, while Stronger Arkansas PAC, which opposes the measure, has raised $325,000. There is no known polling on the measure's prospects.
Nebraska
It isn't quite official yet, but Secretary of State Bob Evnen’s (R) office announced Friday that a paired set of medical marijuana initiatives have enough signatures to appear on the November election ballot. However, the initiatives are not officially certified until county officials statewide complete the signature verification and certification process.
The group behind the effort, Nebraskans for Medical Marijuana, went for the bifurcated approach in a bid to avoid constitutional challenges at the state Supreme Court that derailed earlier initiative efforts.
The first measure, the Nebraska Medical Cannabis Patient Protection initiative, would create a doctor-patient system for medical marijuana to protect patients from arrest. It would allow patients to possess up to five ounces of medicine.
The second measure, the Nebraska Medical Cannabis Regulation initiative, would create a framework for a regulated medical marijuana industry in the state. The plan envisions a commission to create rules and regulations for a commercial marketplace, with licensed businesses before October 1, 2025.
Psychedelics
Massachusetts
After a two-part signature-gathering drive, with the legislature given (and refusing) a chance to act in the interim, a psychedelic legalization initiative, the Natural Psychedelic Substances Act, has qualified for the November ballot. It will appear on the ballot as Question 4.
While the measure envisions the therapeutic administration of psychedelics, as has been approved by voters in Colorado and Oregon, it also allows for the home cultivation and use of psychedelics. According to the state attorney general's summary of the measure:
"This proposed law would allow persons aged 21 and older to grow, possess, and use certain natural psychedelic substances in certain circumstances. The psychedelic substances allowed would be two substances found in mushrooms (psilocybin and psilocyn) and three substances found in plants (dimethyltryptamine, mescaline, and ibogaine). These substances could be purchased at an approved location for use under the supervision of a licensed facilitator. This proposed law would otherwise prohibit any retail sale of natural psychedelic substances. This proposed law would also provide for the regulation and taxation of these psychedelic substances."
"This proposed law would license and regulate facilities offering supervised use of these psychedelic substances and provide for the taxation of proceeds from those facilities' sales of psychedelic substances. It would also allow persons aged 21 and older to grow these psychedelic substances in a 12-foot by 12-foot area at their home and use these psychedelic substances at their home. This proposed law would authorize persons aged 21 or older to possess up to one gram of psilocybin, one gram of psilocyn, one gram of dimethyltryptamine, 18 grams of mescaline, and 30 grams of ibogaine ("personal use amount"), in addition to whatever they might grow at their home, and to give away up to the personal use amount to a person aged 21 or over."
Massachusetts for Mental Health Options, the campaign committee behind the initiative, has raised nearly $4 million, with contributions from Dr. Bronner's Magic Soaps and the New Approach Advocacy Fund, and spent most of it on getting on the ballot. There is no polling, nor is there any organized opposition.
Criminal Justice
California
A decade ago, state voters approved Proposition 47, which reduced penalties for some drug and other criminal offenses. Now, the Republican-backed Homelessness, Drug Addiction, and Retail Theft initiative -- on the ballot as Proposition 36, will try to roll that by making some drug possession and theft charges felonies.
Prop 47 reduced most drug possession charges to misdemeanors and raised the threshold for property crimes to $950 for them to be charged as felonies. With a new category of crime, "treatment-mandated felony," Prop 36 would mandate drug treatment or prison for people with repeated drug possession convictions for certain drugs, including fentanyl and methamphetamine, and make third-offense theft a felony regardless of the amount. If those people who opt for treatment instead of prison fail to finish treatment, they could face up to three years in prison.
In the decade since Prop 47, prosecutors, police, and big box retailers have blamed Prop 47 for increased property crimes and homelessness (which is much more convenient than blaming housing shortages and high rental prices). Supporters say that drug dependence pushes people to the street, and increasing the penalties for drug possession is the only way to force people into treatment.
Those supporters include Walmart, Target, Home Depot, the California District Attorneys Association, the California Correctional Peace Officers Association, and the California Republican Party. They have raised more than $11 million for the campaign.
The opposition includes Gov. Gavin Newsom (D), the state Democratic Party, the Alliance for Safety and Justice, and the ACLU of Northern California. The opposition has raised $1.3 million. Newsom and the Democrats briefly toyed with running an opposing initiative and are currently working on action in the legislature in a bid to blunt Prop 36's prospects.
They say that no studies on criminal justice or homelessness support the idea that harsher punishment -- or the threat of harsher punishment -- prevents crime or gets people off the street. They also argue that it will cost hundreds of millions of dollars in court and prison costs without measurably reducing crime or poverty. In the meantime, schools, health care, and other essential services will go wanting.
Newsom and the rest of the opposition have their work cut out for them: A Los Angeles Times poll this month had support for Prop 36 at 56 percent.
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The country's first experiment with state-level decriminalization of drug possession is over, but what will change -- other than more drug arrests?
A new day dawns in Oregon, but it's a return to the drug policies that have failed for the past century. (Creative Commons)
The nation's first experiment with state-level decriminalization of drug possession is now over. As of Sunday, drug possession is now again a criminal offense, a misdemeanor, thanks to a measure passed by the Democratic-led legislature this past spring, House Bill 4002.
That bill undid the decriminalization aspect of Measure 110, which voters passed in 2020. Measure 110 also funneled hundreds of millions of dollars in legal marijuana tax revenues into drug treatment and harm reduction services. Still, the state was slow to gear up its treatment capacity, the lowest in the nation when the initiative took effect.
The state's inability to deliver treatment services, along with rising homelessness, increasing public drug use, the disruptions of the pandemic, and a sharp rise in overdose deaths as fentanyl belatedly entered the Pacific Northwest market all contributed to rising dissatisfaction with decriminalization. An effort earlier this year by some deep-pocketed Portland business interests and political entrepreneurs to put a recriminalization initiative on the ballot this year prompted the legislature to act preemptively.
Before the 2024 session, the state legislature created the Joint Committee on Addiction and Community Safety Response specifically to consider bills relating to the increase in opioid addiction and overdoses in Oregon, especially relating to fentanyl. Ultimately, the committee proposed and legislators passed HB 4002, which includes provisions relating to misdemeanors, drug treatment programs, prescriptions, behavioral health workers, and more. Legislators also passed HB 5204, which appropriates over $200 million to fund various parts of HB 4002, plus several other bills related to opioids or addiction.
More than 7,000 people were cited for drug possession under decriminalization, which means there are 7,000 people not arrested on drug charges. But only a tiny number -- less than a hundred -- completed drug treatment and the vast majority of those receiving citations never paid their fines.
Supporters of ending decriminalization pronounced themselves pleased.
"This legislation will save lives and make our communities safer," said House Majority Leader Ben Bowman. "But the work is not over. This crisis was created over decades, and it won't be solved overnight. We need to remain laser-focused on getting people the treatment they need -- and we need to make sure public spaces are safe and accessible for everyone to enjoy."
"Today marks a return to a justice system that holds people accountable for possessing or using hard drugs like heroin, cocaine, and fentanyl," said Rep. Kevin Mannix (R), a key bill supporter. "We must now focus on increasing treatment options to address addiction effectively," he said.
Supporters of Measure 110, including the Drug Policy Alliance (DPA), which had invested more than $4 million to get it passed, were saddened. "It's easier for the legislature to blame and stigmatize and disappear people into jails than to fix the problem they had a hand in creating," said DPA's Emily Kaltenbach.
Under HB 4002, cities and counties can engage in "deflection," with police officers having the discretion to point people caught with drugs toward treatment instead of arresting them. But not all localities have embraced such programs, and some, such as Jackson and Josephine counties in southern Oregon, will not begin deflection programs for weeks or months -- even as drug arrests commence.
Front-line addiction recovery providers are calling on leaders to create the real health-centered deflection programs they promised, and to look toward existing, successful deflection programs as models that can be built out across the state.
"In downtown Portland, addiction recovery providers and the Portland Police Central Bike Squad have been partnering since December of 2023 to connect more than 150 people living outside to vital services," said Janie Gullickson, Executive Director of the Mental Health & Addiction Association of Oregon. "This is a true example of deflection wherein street outreach is happening proactively to community members, along with outreach workers taking calls from law enforcement to connect with people who need help. In just over a dozen individual shifts the program has successfully connected more than 150 people struggling with addiction and living outside with vital services, from medical detox and basic needs referrals, to addiction treatment, mental health and medical care, and even long term housing."
"With less than one year of operations at Recovery Works' Measure 110-funded medical detox center in SE Portland, our team has provided over 900 treatments, the majority to individuals struggling with deadly fentanyl addictions," said Joe Bazeghi of Recovery Works NW. "This single facility expanded medical detox capacity in the Portland Metro Area by nearly 20 percent and would not have been possible without support from Measure 110. The Police-Provider Connection Project has proven a successful means of deflecting individuals in need of such services out of our overburdened courts and jails and into services where sustained recovery is more possible. We need to continue to support evidence-based interventions to reduce drug-related deaths in our community. In the age of illicit fentanyl, with unintentional drug overdose killing more young Americans than any other cause, this is no time to go backward."
Deflection is only vaguely defined in HB 4002, giving each separate county the ability to interpret the term however they want, or to go back to failed policies of arresting people with a health care issue. This has already created confusion among stakeholders and will be hard to track results.
"Lawmakers promised that people using drugs would be immediately connected to care and avoid the criminal justice system. That’s not what is being implemented on the ground," said Tera Hurst, Executive Director of the Health Justice Recovery Alliance. "We can't arrest our way out of the overdose crisis. We all agree that addiction is a healthcare issue, and therefore should be treated as one. People having to wait for a court date to get care is only going to result in more tragic and senseless deaths. Our communities deserve serious solutions… not a slush fund for more prosecutors."
The Oregon Criminal Justice Commission's
"The Police-Provider Joint Connection Project is working to connect people to care. Yet our elected leaders chose to solve the public health problem with a political solution that has already been tried and didn’t work," said Fernando Peña, Executive Director of Northwest Instituto Latino. "HB 4002 made a promise to our communities to create more pathways to care, not to fund endless onramps into the system. Many of the new programs claim to be deflection, but they’re only recreating the same system that causes irreparable harm to Black, Latinx, and other communities of color. The system as it currently sits will have extremely inequitable outcomes, depending on the time of day you’re caught with drugs, and what County you happen to be in. This is no way to treat Oregonians in crisis."
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The Chronicle was on vacation last week, but prohibition-related law enforcement corruption took no holiday. Let's get to it:
In El Paso, an El Paso County Jail detention lieutenant was arrested on July 30 after he got caught smuggling synthetic cannabinoids into the jail. Lance Brown, a 35-year of the department, went down after the sheriff's office received information that an inmate had illegal drugs and was distributing them. The investigation pointed to Brown, who is now charged with engaging in organized criminal activity.
In Clearwater, Florida, a Clearwater Police narcotics detective was arrested on August 5 for allegedly tipping off two suspected drug traffickers to an ongoing investigation. Detective Frederick Lise is a nine-year veteran of the department and head of the Clearwater police officers' union. He went down after 13 people were arrested in July by Pinellas County sheriff's deputies in the bust of a dog-fighting ring and drug operation. Deputies then told Lise about the investigation into two of the men arrested.
Lise is accused of turning around and using confidential law enforcement databases to provide information to the two men. He also sent text messages to them. Once the two men were told they were under investigation, they concocted a scheme with Lise to set up other drug sellers and take credit for being informants. Lise is charged with felony misuse of public office for the unlawful disclosure of criminal investigative information and unlawful use of two-way communication devices, among eight felony counts in total. He was being held at the Pinellas County Jail on a $200,000 bond.
In Snow Hill, North Carolina, a Greene County jail guard was arrested on August 8 after being caught with the synthetic cannabinoid K2 at work. Corrections Officer Destiny Griggs, 24, went down after being searched upon arrival at the jail when other jail guards found the contraband. She is charged with possession of a controlled substance on prison premises and was given a $5,000 secured bond.
In Jackson, Michigan, a state Department of Corrections officer was arraigned on August 8 after being caught in July with 151 strips of buprenorphine, suboxone, and a Schedule 3 substance while in the visiting room of the prison. Guard Joshua Evans, 46, is charged with one count of delivery/manufacture of Schedule 1, 2, and 3 controlled substances except marijuana, methamphetamine, ecstasy, and cocaine and one count of bringing contraband into prisons.
In Clovis, New Mexico, a now former Clovis police officer was arrested on August 9 after turning himself in to face drug and other charges. Frank Careri is charged with trafficking controlled substances (methamphetamine), accessory to a residential burglary, and harboring a felon. He was released after booking. No further details are available.
In Houston, a former investigator with the Waller County District Attorney's (DA) Office was sentenced on August 9 to 10 years in federal prison after being convicted of attempted possession with intent to distribute heroin and money laundering. Mohammed "Alex" Ahmed Kassam went down in a sting where he believed he was transporting real drugs from Louisiana to Houston and from Houston to San Antonio in his police vehicle. He took $31,000 in bribes from undercover agents. During the trial, Kassam claimed he had authority from the Waller County DA to conduct undercover operations, but his former employer refuted that testimony. He is in custody pending transfer to a federal prison.
In New York City, a federal Bureau of Prisons guard was sentenced July 30 to 2 ½ years in prison for taking more than $20,000 in bribes to smuggle drugs into the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn. Quandelle Joseph pleaded guilty in January 2024 to the charge of accepting bribes as a public official. He admitted to taking bribes from inmates in exchange for smuggling narcotics, cigarettes, and cell phones into the detention center. He also admitted to warning one drug-dealing inmate about forthcoming contraband searches.
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North Dakota lawmakers have come up with a revenue and expense estimate if a marijuana legalization initiative passes, a Swedish labor court has ruled for employers in a drug testing case, and more.
Colombian President Gustavo Petro is pushing again for marijuana legalization. This will be the ninth try in the Congress. (Creative Commons)
DEA Sets Marijuana Rescheduling Hearing Date After the Election. The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) has scheduled a hearing on the Biden administration’s plan to reclassify marijuana, effectively delaying any decision on the move until after the November election.
President Joe Biden ordered a review of US marijuana policy in October 2022. In January 2024, the Department of Health and Human Services (DHS) examined the available evidence and determined that marijuana could be placed in a less restrictive schedule within the Controlled Substances Act. Three months later, the DEA indicated it would approve the rescheduling move, and now it has set a date for the hearing.
"This is a positive step forward for federal cannabis policy, however it is a rather modest step given the strong support among American voters for comprehensive cannabis reform," said Matthew Schweich, executive director of the cannabis policy reform group Marijuana Policy Project. "It is important to acknowledge that this rescheduling would not affect the criminalization of medical cannabis patients and cannabis consumers under state laws -- so we must continue the work of enacting sensible and fair cannabis legalization and medical cannabis laws through state legislatures and ballot initiatives."
North Dakota Lawmakers Approve Fiscal Note for Marijuana Legalization Initiative. A panel of the state legislature, North Dakota Legislative Management, met last Friday and, amid divisions, eventually estimated that the state would gain $10.3 million in revenue if the Question 5 marijuana legalization initiative passes in November.
The measure would legalize the possession of up to an ounce of marijuana by people 21 and over. The measure also legalizes the possession of up to four grams of concentrate and 1500 milligrams of "cannabinoid products," and allows for the home cultivation of up to three plants. It contains no provision for a legal marijuana marketplace.
The legislative revenue estimate assumes that the legislature will enact regulations to allow legal marijuana commerce, which would be taxed at 5 percent.
The panel also estimated there would be $8.3 million in expenses, including $4 million for saliva-testing equipment—which is not required by the language of the initiative. The panel also said there would be an "undetermined amount" of additional costs attributed to "behavioral health and social impacts."
International
Colombia's Marijuana Exports Expand as President Petro Presses Congress To Legalize Recreational Marijuana. President Gustavo Petro is once again calling on lawmakers to legalize marijuana. This would be the ninth attempt in the Congress; eight earlier efforts were blunted.
Petro's call comes as Colombia moves to enhance its position as a global leader in marijuana exports, now expanding its market reach to include 12 countries, including most recently, North Macedonia.
"We have now exported cannabis to 12 countries," Petro noted, before making a direct plea to lawmakers. "Congress can now take the step to legalization to take advantage of the global market and substantially improve the trade balance."
Petro also noted that legalization could lead to an improved security situation in parts of the country, such as Cauca, where illegal marijuana cultivation has sparked violence and territorial conflicts.
Swedish Labor Court Rules Against Worker Who Failed Drug Test. The Swedish Labor Court has ruled that a company that prevented a worker in a safety-sensitive position from working after he failed a drug test was justified, and that, thus, that worker is not eligible to be paid.
The court held that private sector workers must at least be available to perform work for the employer to retain a salary and that while available drug testing did not measure actual impairment, it was the best available measure of possible impairment. Employers can use the positive drug test result to forbid a worker from performing the job.
The court held that private employers can require random drug tests from workers when the work being performed by the employees is such that drug use may pose a risk to health and safety; when the employer’s business is particularly safety-sensitive; or when the employer must be able to show that its employees are drug-free due to the specific nature of the business.
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The California Senate has passed a pair of bills aimed at opening up markets for small marijuana growers and "cannabis cafes," the drug czar asks Congress to reauthorize his office, and more.
Dr. Rahul Gupta, head of the Office of National Drug Control Policy. He wants Congress to hurry up and reauthorize his office. (March of Dimes)
Marijuana Policy
California Senate Approves Bills to Allow Cannabis Cafes, Weed Sales at Farmers' Markets. The Senate on Tuesday approved a pair of bills, Assembly Bill 1775 and Assembly Bill 1111 that would allow marijuana farmers to sell at farmers' markets and to allow cannabis cafes, respectively.
The farmers' markets bill from Assemblymember Gail Pellerin (D) would allow licensed small marijuana cultivators to sell their wares at farmers' markets but only if there is state and local regulatory approval to do so. The Department of Cannabis Control (DCC) would be authorized to issue "a state temporary event license to a licensee authorizing onsite cannabis sales to, and consumption by, persons 21 years of age or older at certain venues expressly approved by a local jurisdiction, as specified," the bill says.
"As a farmer's daughter, knowing the importance of having that direct relationship with the consumer, this allows cannabis farmers to be able to sell at authorized events -- cannabis directly to the sellers -- bringing the stock right to the person," Sen. Susan Talamantes Eggman (D) said on the floor.
The cannabis café bill from Assemblyman Matt Haney (D) would allow consumers to use marijuana at licensed businesses that could also offer food and non-alcoholic drinks and host live events if they have permission from local government.
Both bills have been amended in the Senate, so they will have to go back to the Assembly for concurrence votes. Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) vetoed an earlier version of the cannabis café bill, citing concerns about worker safety in a smoky environment; legislators have worked to address those concerns in this year's bill.
Home Depot to Stop Testing Workers for Marijuana. Home Depot, the nation's sixth-largest employer, has announced it will quit screening workers for marijuana use next month and stop most pre-employment drug testing for new workers.
The company said that in the future, Home Depot will only conduct pre-employment drug testing "for external candidates with contingent offers in Asset Protection and Corporate Security."
Home Depot is following in the footsteps of Amazon, the nation's second-largest employer, which ended drug testing for marijuana in 2021 and announced it would begin lobbying for marijuana legalization. Home Depot has made no such commitment.
Psychedelics
DEA Judge Schedules Hearing on Proposed Ban on Two Psychedelics After Pushback from Researchers. DEA Administrative Law Judge Paul Soeffing has set a 10-day hearing on the agency's proposal to ban two psychedelic compounds. The hearing comes after a public comment period that saw strong pushback from scientists and researchers and is set for November 12-22, with a final session on November 25.
This is the latest effort by the DEA to ban the two substances, 2,5-dimethoxy-4-iodoamphetamine (DOI) and 2,5-dimethoxy-4-chloroamphetamine (DOC) in Schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act (CSA). The agency had moved earlier to ban them but pulled back in the face of clamor from the scientific community.
Students for Sensible Drug Policy (SSDP) and its Science Policy Committee have led the charge against making the research psychedelics Schedule I controlled substances, arguing they are very useful in studying depression, learning, memory, and mood.
"DOI has been amongst the most widely used compounds to study the role of the serotonin 2 receptor of the last several decades," Elijah Ullman, chair of SSDP’s Science Policy Committee, said in a press release. "The serotonin 2 receptor is widely accepted as the primary target of psychedelic drugs -- which have seen incredible press coverage as possible treatments for depression -- but are also critically involved in learning and memory, and mood."
"The DEA's proposed rulemaking to place DOI in Schedule I of the Controlled Substance Act defies scientific study and will make it more difficult for researchers to work on the serotonin 2 receptor," he said.
Researchers also argue that DEA has not shown that the psychedelic compounds have high abuse potential, a statutory requirement for placing them in Schedule I.
"The DEA, for too long, has had a rubber stamp in their decision-making processes. They have not had to defend their actions," attorney Robert Rush, who is representing independent researchers for the hearing, said. "I am looking forward to having the DEA defend its decision to criminalize an important research tool that it admits is not being diverted for illicit use."
"I look forward to the DEA being called to explain themselves in blocking critical research that so many Americans struggling with serious issues may benefit from," he said. "It is time they answered to the American public."
Drug Policy
Drug Czar Calls on Congress to Reauthorize His Office. Dr. Rahul Gupta, the head of the White House Office on National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP -- the drug czar's office), has called on Congress to reauthorize ONDCP before the end of the year. He says reauthorization is his top legislative priority for the rest of this year.
"Our reauthorization is really critically important to continue to send a message to communities all across the country that they will continue to get the support of funding from members of Congress for their communities," Gupta said Tuesday.
He added that while reauthorization is his top priority, it is only part of a long list of actions the administration seeks to undertake as it works to reduce the number of drug overdose deaths. Overdose deaths are now hovering at around 100,000 a year after rising dramatically for the first two decades of this century.
Gupta noted that the 12-month period ending in March had seen a 7.5 percent decrease in overdose deaths from record highs in the immediately preceding years and said that the administration increased federal funding for drug policy by 40 percent compared to the Trump administration.
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Arkansas campaigners for an initiative to expand the state's medical marijuana program handed in a second batch of signatures in a bid to make the November ballot, and more.
Marijuana Policy
Federal Appeals Court Sides with Pot Smoker in Gun Charge Appeal. The US 5th Circuit Court of Appeals has held that a Texas woman charged with violating federal firearms laws because she admitted to having used marijuana should not face those charges.
The decision does not broadly invalidate gun restrictions on marijuana users, but the court had to decide the case under recent Supreme Court precedent, which requires that cases be adjudicated on the basis of whether the law "is consistent with our history and tradition of firearms regulation."
The appeals court found that history and tradition may support "some limits on a presently intoxicated person's right to carry a weapon," but not "disarming a sober person based solely on past substance usage." The court thus upheld the woman's right to possess a firearm, but did not invalidate the Texas law under which she was charged. The court accepted her "as applied" challenge, but not her "facial" challenge, which would have invalidated the law.
"Just as there is no historical justification for disarming citizens of sound mind, there is no historical justification for disarming a sober citizen not presently under an impairing influence," Judge Kurt Engelhardt wrote for the panel. The Trump appointee was joined by Judges Jerry Smith and Irma Carrillo Ramirez, who are Reagan and Biden appointees, respectively.
Medical Marijuana
Arkansas Medical Marijuana Campaigners Hand in Signatures in Last-Ditch Bid to Qualify for November Ballot. Arkansans for Patient Access has handed in nearly 38,000 raw signatures in a last-ditch bid to come up with some 13,000 valid voter signatures to qualify the Arkansas Medical Cannabis Amendment for the November ballot. The group had handed in 108,000 raw signatures a month ago and needed 90,704 valid voter signatures to qualify but came up short. However, the group reached a signature threshold allowing it 30 additional days to come up with signatures, and now it hopes it has done so.
The initiative would enlarge a 2016 medical marijuana initiative approved by the voters. It would expand the range of healthcare professionals who could recommend medical marijuana, expand the definition of qualifying conditions, make medical marijuana ID cards good for three years, allow reciprocity for out-of-state cardholders, and allow patients to grow their own medicine -- up to 14 plants, seven of which could be mature.
"We are excited to move one step closer to having the amendment certified," committee member Bill Paschall said in the news release. "People across the state have enthusiastically signed petitions and told us they are excited to vote for an amendment that will expand patient access and lower the cost of obtaining and keeping a patient card."
International
Ukraine Will Not Allow Medical Marijuana for PTSD. The Ukrainian Commission on Narcotic Drugs, the entity responsible for determining what conditions qualify for medical marijuana under the country's new law, has rejected including Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), saying there is not enough conclusive evidence to justify its inclusion.
The commission is now being criticized for being overly cautious about PTSD with the country now in the third year of a defensive war against Russia, with one observer saying it "reflects a disconnect between regulatory caution and the urgent realities of mental health in a war-torn country."
"Excluding PTSD from Ukraine's medical cannabis program not only denies patients access to a potentially effective treatment but also fails to address the urgent mental health needs created by the ongoing conflict. The decision to omit PTSD appears to be more about regulatory caution than about responding to the real-world needs of Ukrainian citizens," wrote Paul North.
Incorporating PTSD into the list of qualifying conditions for medical cannabis in "Ukraine is not just about following international trends -- it's about recognizing the specific needs of a population that has been deeply affected by war. The government's current stance does not adequately reflect the realities on the ground, where many are struggling with the mental health consequences of prolonged conflict."
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The Kamala Harris campaign slams Trump for "brazen flip-flopping" on marijuana after he says he'll vote for Florida initiative, a paired set of Nebraska medical marijuana initiatives has qualified for the ballot, and more.
Oregon State Capitol
Marijuana Policy
Trump Supports Florida Marijuana Legalization Initiative. In a Truth Social post on Saturday, former president and GOP presidential contender Donald Trump supported the Florida marijuana legalization initiative, Amendment 3. Because it is a constitutional amendment, it needs 60 percent of the vote to pass, and recent polling has it hovering on the cusp of victory.
"In Florida, like so many other States that have already given their approval, personal amounts of marijuana will be legalized for adults with Amendment 3. Whether people like it or not, this will happen through the approval of the Voters, so it should be done correctly," Trump wrote. He added that its use needed to be banned in public spaces "so that we don't smell marijuana everywhere we go."
In that desire to be free of pot smoke, Trump echoed Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R), who has complained repeatedly about that prospect. But on the initiative, Trump has broken with DeSantis, who has led the opposition to it.
Trump's position on the Florida initiative also breaks with what is generally a bellicosse line on drug policy, with calls for the death penalty for dealers, military attacks on Mexican drug labs, and other aggressive responses. But he has also recently spoken out against jailing people for marijuana.
Harris Campaign Slams Donald Trump Over Marijuana Shift: Calls It 'Brazen Flip-Flop'. The Kamala Harris campaign has come out swinging in response to Donald Trump's embrace of Florida's Amendment 3 marijuana legalization initiative. After being accused of "flip-flopping" on various issues by the Trump campaign, the Harris campaign is slinging that accusation right back at Trump.
Trump has a record of "brazen flip-flops" and "just making things up," said a memo from Harris communications aide Ian Sams. "As of this morning, Trump now suggests he is for legalizing marijuana -- but as President, his own Justice Department cracked down on marijuana offenses," Sams continued.
"As soon as Trump starts catching heat for his unpopular agenda and record," said Sams, referencing Project 2025 per ABC, "he rushes out to claim he would actually do the opposite. It's a desperate play from a candidate whose back is up against the wall running against Vice President Harris. But it demands scrutiny," Sams argued. "He was president for four years, and how he exercised his power on these issues is the best metric for how he will do so again if he gets the chance. What he says now is just desperate pandering from a scared man who is worried he will lose."
Medical Marijuana
Nebraska Medical Marijuana Initiatives Qualify for November Ballot. It isn't quite official yet, but Secretary of State Bob Evnen's (R) office announced Friday that a paired set of medical marijuana initiatives have enough signatures to appear on the November election ballot. However, the initiatives are not officially certified until county officials statewide complete the signature verification and certification process.
The group behind the effort, Nebraskans for Medical Marijuana, went for the bifurcated approach in a bid to avoid constitutional challenges at the state Supreme Court that derailed earlier initiative efforts.
The first measure, the Nebraska Medical Cannabis Patient Protection initiative, would create a doctor-patient system for medical marijuana to protect patients from arrest. It would allow patients to possess up to five ounces of medicine.
The second measure, the Nebraska Medical Cannabis Regulation initiative, would create a framework for a regulated medical marijuana industry in the state. The plan envisions a commission to create rules and regulations for a commercial marketplace, with licensed businesses before October 1, 2025.
Drug Policy
Oregon Drug Recriminalization Has Now Gone into Effect. The nation's first experiment with state-level decriminalization of drug possession is now over. As of Sunday, drug possession is now again a criminal offense, a misdemeanor, thanks to a measure passed by the Democratic-led legislature this past spring, House Bill 4002.
That bill undid the decriminalization aspect of Measure 110, which voters passed in 2020. Measure 110 also funneled hundreds of millions of dollars in legal marijuana tax revenues into drug treatment and harm reduction services. Still, the state was slow to gear up its treatment capacity, the lowest in the nation when the initiative took effect.
The state's inability to deliver treatment services, along with rising homelessness, increasing public drug use, the disruptions of the pandemic, and a sharp rise in overdose deaths as fentanyl belatedly entered the Pacific Northwest market all contributed to rising dissatisfaction with decriminalization. An effort earlier this year by some deep-pocketed Portlanders to put a recriminalization initiative on the ballot this year prompted the legislature to act.
More than 7,000 people were cited for drug possession under the law, which means there are 7,000 people not arrested on drug charges. But only a tiny number -- less than a hundred -- completed drug treatment and the vast majority of those receiving citations never paid their fines.
Supporters of Measure 110, including the Drug Policy Alliance (DPA), which had invested more than $4 million to get it passed, were saddened. "It's easier for the legislature to blame and stigmatize and disappear people into jails than to fix the problem they had a hand in creating," said DPA's Emily Kaltenbach.
(This article was prepared by StoptheDrugWar.org's 501(c)(4) lobbying nonprofit, the Drug Reform Coordination Network, which also pays the cost of maintaining this website. DRCNet Foundation takes no positions on candidates for public office, in compliance with section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code and does not pay for reporting that could be interpreted or misinterpreted as doing so.)
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Wisconsin tribes are mobilizing for medical marijuana, the Tennessee Supreme Court rules that even though drug dogs can't distinguish hemp from weed, a sniff can still be probable cause for a search, and more.
The Tennessee Supreme Court upholds a search based on a drug dog's hit on a backpack, even though the dog can't tell weed from hemp. (Creative Commons)
Marijuana Policy
Tennessee Supreme Court Clarifies Probable Cause for Search in Case with Drug Detecting Dog and Legal Hemp. The state Supreme Court has clarified that an alert from a trained drug-sniffing dog can be part of law enforcement's probable cause for a search even though the dog cannot tell the difference between illegal marijuana and legal hemp.
The case derived from a 2020 traffic stop where a drug dog alerted on a backpack in a car that was found to contain marijuana and a pistol, among other items. The defendant was charged with marijuana possession and unlawful possession of a firearm. Before his trial, he filed a motion to suppress, that is, he asked the trial judge to bar prosecutors from using evidence at his trial from the search of the backpack, arguing that the trained drug-detecting dog could not tell the difference between illegal marijuana and hemp.
The trial court granted the motion to suppress the evidence, but the State appealed and the Court of Criminal Appeals reversed. The intermediate appellate court held that an alert from a trained drug-detection dog, by itself, is sufficient to provide probable cause, which does not require absolute certainty, and the Tennessee Supreme Court agreed.
Medical Marijuana
Wisconsin Tribes Announce Push for Medical Marijuana. On Tuesday The Indigenous Cannabis Industry Association (ICIA) and the Wisconsin Tribal Task Force on Cannabis announced a Wisconsin Wellness campaign to legalize medical marijuana in the state.
"Right now, there's no bill for legalizing cannabis in our state," Wisconsin Tribal Task Force on Cannabis founder Michael Decorah said during a press conference Tuesday. "Our citizens are having to make a choice of whether to really commit a crime to go get their medicine and bring it back to the state."
"I have a personal story of my own grandfather, who was a prisoner of war in the Korean War and also did two tours in the Vietnam War, and I feel that this would have been maybe his lifesaver for not only his relationships and his family but in his own state of mind and wellness," said Rep. Kristin White Eagle (D), who represents the Ho-Chunk Nation, which decriminalized marijuana on tribal lands in April.
"There's businesses out there that are really doing the due diligence to create good, viable medicine, and we want to make sure that those businesses are protected as well," ICIA founder Rob Pero said. "Whatever sort of legislation does roll out, we are not for criminalization, we are for regulation."
Psychedelics
FDA Approves Early-Stage Clinical Trial for Obscure Psychedelic Compound. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved an early-stage clinical trial for the psychedelic compound 5-MeO-MiPT, an entheogen known among psychonauts as "moxy." It is related to the more popular compound 5-MEO-DiPT, which is nicknamed "foxy methoxy." Both compounds are tryptamines discovered by legendary researcher Alexander Shulgin.
The biotech firm Mindstate Design Labs is set to announce Thursday that it will conduct the study. It will look at whether the substance can treat depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder and other mental health conditions.
The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) tried two years ago to designate moxy and four similar compounds as Schedule I controlled substances but backed down in the face of severe backlash from researchers. Instead, it asked the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to do a scientific review of typtamines.
Mindstate CEO Dillan DiNardo called moxy "the tofu of psychedelics" because in clinical doses, it has a more muted effect on users than mind-benders such as LSD.
Recreational users normally pair moxy with other substances. DiNardo said the company is researching how moxy affects the brain when combined with mainstream drugs that target brain function. Researchers will test those combinations on people in clinical trials, he said.
"Moxy is not the entire medicine," DiNardo said. "Moxy is the first part of a number of different medicines that we’ll be making."
Drug Policy
Oregon Republicans Keep Blaming Decriminalization for Overdose Deaths Even as New Research Shows It Was Not Responsible. State House Republican leader Jeff Helfrich continues to demagogue against decriminalization even as scientific research shows that it was not the cause of the state's overdose surge early in this decade. Under pressure from business leaders and the public, the Democratic-controlled legislature reversed the voters' 2020 decision to decriminalize drug possession. Recriminalization went into effect this week.
"You saw overdose deaths, you saw drug usage on the street, crime, homelessness all soared after Democrats put this policy in place. And they could have stopped it, but they didn't," Helfrich said Tuesday. "Unfortunately, because we decriminalized it for those few years, we've lost a generation, I believe, of people because of these drugs. And you don't get to have those times anymore," Helfrich said. "People can't even go into public and take their kids to the park because they're dealing with the death, they're dealing with drug use, dealing with all those bad things that are happening. And this is just horrible policies."
But an article published Wednesday in the Journal of the American Medical Association Network, Drug Decriminalization, Fentanyl, and Fatal Overdoses in Oregon undercuts Helfrich's argument.
In it researchers found that "In this cohort study of fatal overdose and fentanyl spread through Oregon's unregulated drug market, decriminalization of drug possession was not associated with an increase in fatal drug overdose rates in Oregon in the 2 years after its enactment." Instead, the researchers point the finger at fentanyl, which belatedly arrived in the Pacific Northwest at about the same time decriminalization went into effect: "The findings of this study suggest that when evaluating the association of public policies with overdose mortality, it is critical to account for the role of fentanyl as the principal driver of the overdose mortality epidemic in the US."
In conclusion, the researchers found that "In this analysis, rapid spread of fentanyl in Oregon's unregulated drug supply occurred in the first half of 2021, contemporaneous with enactment of M110. A positive crude association was found between drug decriminalization and fatal overdose rate per 100,000 per half year. After adjusting for the spread of fentanyl as a confounder, the effect size changed signs and there was no longer an association between decriminalization and overdose mortality in Oregon."
Making laws based on evidence instead of demagoguery would be a pleasant change.
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From its coca-growing fiefdom in the country's southwest, Colombia's second-largest dissident FARC faction says peace talks with the government are stalled, and more.
Leftist Colombian President Gustavo Petro's peace talks with a FARC dissident rebel front have hit an obstacle. (Creative Commons)
Idaho Activists Plan Pared-Down Marijuana Legalization Initiative After Falling Short with Medical Marijuana Efforts. The activist group Kind Idaho, which just came up short on a signature drive to get a medical marijuana initiative on this year's ballot, repeating a similar failed effort in 2022, is now planning a slimmed-down noncommercial legalization initiative for the 2026 ballot.
The group was only able to come up with about 20,000 raw signatures when it needed about 70,000 valid voter signatures.
"We basically found that we didn't have the resources necessary to continue to push it in the way that we needed to, and we weren't getting the response and the support we needed from the community," Joe Evans, the campaign's treasurer, said.
So now, following a suggestion from the Marijuana Policy Project, Kind Idaho will draft an initiative that simply legalizes the consumption, possession, and cultivation of small amounts of marijuana for personal use.
"We don't have to go through the issue of creating a medical program," Evans explained. "We don't have to put a burden upon the medical field here in the state of Idaho by making them supervise quantities and qualities and dosages and all of that. We don't invite the industry -- whether medical or recreational marijuana -- into the state, because we're not actually legalizing resale. We're just saying you can grow your own and you can be in possession of it, as long as you're not planning on reselling it."
Kind Idaho plans to formally submit its new proposal to the secretary of state's office on September 17, triggering a roughly monthlong review period. Barring any major procedural hiccups, the campaign says it should be able to begin gathering signatures on November 1. Organizers will then have about 18 months to gather the roughly 70,000 valid voter signatures to put the measure on the 2026 ballot.
Medical Marijuana
Kentucky Medical Marijuana Program Sees Thousands of Applicants. The state has 74 licenses available for medical marijuana businesses, and while some industry stakeholders thought there was little interest among prospective businesses in obtaining a medical marijuana license in the state, that assumption has turned out to be incorrect.
The state's Office of Cannabis Management announced this week that the state has received 4,498 applications during the two-month application period that ended August 31. Nearly 90 percent of them came in during the last four days of August.
"This is significantly more than any initial projection," Gov. Andy Beshear (D) said Wednesday of the 4,998 applications. "The vast majority of these are for dispensaries, and the vast majority of those applications came in really in the last 24, if not 48, hours before the deadline."
There are 16 cultivation licenses up for grabs, 10 for small growers (up to 2,500 square feet), four for medium growers (up to 10,000 square feet), and two for large growers (up to 25,000 square feet). Nearly 600 potential businesses applied for those licenses.
There are 10 licenses for processors, for which 333 businesses applied, and five businesses applied for testing licenses, for which there is no cap. Some 4,000 businesses applied for the 48 dispensary licenses that will be allocated.
Medical marijuana will be legal in the state as of January 1, 2025, and the Office of Cannabis Management is now struggling to process all those late entries.
"However, 88% of the 4,998 applications were received in the last four days of the licensing period, meaning our attempts to review them as they come in, and thus to decrease the volume at the end that puts us up against deadlines, we wanted to be lower," Beshear said. "Turns out it's going to be higher than anticipated. Despite the last-minute influx of applications, the Office of Medical Cannabis is currently reviewing these applications. We remain on track to issue licenses in 2024. We are increasing our staff, almost doubling them, for reviewing the applications."
International
Colombia Peace Talks Blocked by Warrants for Rebel Leaders, Rebel Groups Say. Dissident leftist rebel factions who broke with the FARC after it signed a peace agreement with the government in 2016 have remained in a state of war with the government, operating from coca-producing areas of the country where they tax the trade as part of their fund-raising operations. Now, leaders of the second-largest FARC dissident group, the Frente Segunda Marquetalia, say peace talks are "blocked" because the government has failed to cancel arrest warrants for their leaders.
Segunda Marquetalia had entered into peace talks with the administration of leftist President Gustavo Petro in June, but a scheduled July meeting never happened, and the process has been stalled since then.
"The process is blocked, it's not moving forward," Walter Mendoza, chief negotiator for Segunda Marquetalia, told Agence France-Press in a rare interview.
"They deceived us," Mendoza, the rebels' second-in-command, said in a rare interview, adding that Segunda Marquetalia's members still had "the will to fight."
Segunda Marquetalia is the second-largest FARC dissident group still in the field behind its rival, the Central General Staff (EMC). Both groups and other dissident factions continue to control territory in the country's south and southwest. There they continue to fight Colombian security forces, rightwing paramilitaries, and apolitical criminal drug trafficking organizations in a conflict that has gone on for six decades despite the 2016 peace deal that was supposed to end it.
Mendoza said the group was still "fully committed" to the peace process, but the "main problem" was those arrest warrants. "Our repeated requests have gone unanswered," he complained. "We are not drug traffickers. We are a political and military organization," he added. "We don't tax the coca farmers."
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