Drug Overdose Deaths Hit Another Record High, DE Legal Pot Bill Goes to Governor, More... (5/16/22)

Gavin Newsom attempts to lend a hand to California's embattled legal marijuana growers, Ohioans will have to wait another year to vote on marijuana legalization, the first British drug checking service is set to open, and more.

More than 107,000 people died of drug overdoses last year, the CDC reports. (Creative Commons)

California Governor's Budget Would Give Growers a Break by Eliminating Cultivation Tax. With wholesale marijuana prices cratering and growers screaming for help, Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) has included the elimination of the marijuana cultivation tax in his proposed FY 2022-2023 budget released Friday. That would eliminate one of the four taxes on marijuana—the cultivation tax of $10 an ounce for dry-weight flowers paid by growers, a state excise tax paid by retailers, a local excise tax paid by retailers, and the state sales tax. Despite cutting the cultivation tax, Newsom's budget still includes $670 million in annual funding for services currently funded by marijuana tax revenues. Newsom's proposal must be approved by the legislature and would go into effect July 1 if it is.

Delaware Legislature Approves Marijuana Legalization Bill. With a final vote by the Senate last Thursday, the legislature has approved a marijuana legalization bill, House Bill 371. The bill would legalize the possession of up to an ounce of weed by people 21 and over. But the fate of the bill is uncertain given Gov. John Carney's (D) staunch opposition to legalization, which he has called a "bad idea." If, however, Carney does veto the bill, it would need a three-fifths majority vote in both chambers, which is achievable. But the last time the legislature overrode a gubernatorial veto was 45 years ago.

Ohio Marijuana Legalization Vote Delayed Until 2023. The Coalition to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol announced last Friday that it will forego attempting to get a vote on its marijuana legalization initiative this year after state officials agreed to allow the campaign to keep more than 140,000 signatures it had gathered this year and use them to get on the ballot next year. The move came after House Republicans said the group handed in signatures too late to qualify for this year. The group is undertaking an initiated statute campaign under which it gathers enough signatures to place the issue before the legislature and if the legislature does not enact legalization, it would go before voters. But now, it will go before voters next year—provided the campaign comes up with a second round of signatures—not this year.

Overdoses

Drug Overdoses in 2021 at Highest Level on Record According to CDC, Driven by Opioids. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) published data last Wednesday showing that drug overdoses had hit 107,622 in 2021, an all-time high. The figure is 15 percent higher than the previous year and represents a 49 percent increase in overdose deaths since 2019. Synthetic opioids such as fentanyl were implicated in two-thirds of overdose deaths.

International

United Kingdom's First Drug Checking Service to Open This Month. The British Home Office has approved the nation's first drug checking service, where illicit drugs can be tested for purity, strength, and contaminants. The move is aimed at reducing the harms associated with high-risk drug taking and at providing a fuller picture of the illicit drug market. The drug checking will be undertaken by a harm reduction organization called The Loop, working with the Bristol Drugs Project and the People's Republic of Stokes Croft, a community organization. The service is set to begin May 28 and will run once a month, with additional operating hours to be scheduled around significant local events, such as concerts and festivals.