New Democratic Leaders for Congressional Cannabis Caucus, San Francisco Implements Drug Screening Requirement for Cash Benefits, More... (1/3/25)

A Florida court has ruled in favor of a worker who uses medical marijuana, Hawaii's governor issues an executive order to protect medical marijuana caregivers, and more. 

San Francisco's mean streets just got a little meaner. (Creative Commons)

Marijuana Policy 

Congressional Cannabis Caucus Gets New Leadership. Veteran pro-legalization lawmakers and Congressional Cannabis Caucus co-chairs Reps. Earl Blumenauer (D-OR) and Barbara Lee (D-CA) are retiring at the end of the week and will be replaced by two more pro-legalization Democrats. The new Democratic co-chairs are Reps. Dina Titus (D-NV) and Ilhan Omar (D-MN). 

While Blumenauer and Lee will be missed, their replacements also have strong records of advocacy for marijuana reform.

"Reps. Titus and Omar have been stalwart proponents of cannabis policy reform at home and in Congress, and would be welcome additions to the Cannabis Caucus from my perspective," said Morgan Fox, political director of NORML. "I encourage like-minded lawmakers from either side of the aisle, especially those who are new to Congress, to join their colleagues in prioritizing this issue in an official capacity by joining the Caucus as well."

On the Republican side, Reps. Dave Joyce (R-OH) and Brian Mast (R-FL) will continue to serve in their current co-chair roles.

But the prospects for marijuana legalization, which Democrats did not deliver during the last four years, remain cloudy in a Congress where Republicans will be in control in both chambers. 

Medical Marijuana

Florida Court Protects Worker's Ability to Use Medical Marijuana Off the Job. A state district court judge ruled last month that Hillsborough County (Tampa) violated the state's Civil Rights Act by suspending an employee for using medical marijuana off the job. The case is Giambrone v. Hillsborough County, and the decision raises questions about workplace drug testing policies in the state. 

Giambrone was an EMT working for the county. He tested positive for marijuana during a random drug screening but demonstrated that it was lawfully prescribed to treat anxiety and insomnia. He was not accused of being high at work or possessing marijuana at work, nor had there been any problems with his job performance. Still, the county suspended him. 

He sued under the state's Civil Rights Act, arguing that the county had failed to accommodate his disabilities. The county argued in responses that his suspension was justified because marijuana remains federally illegal and because he failed a drug test by testing positive for marijuana. 

But the district court rejected those arguments. The court conceded that marijuana is indeed illegal under federal law and agreed that employers could forbid marijuana in the workplace, but held that by suspending him for off-site use, the county violated his rights. 

Hillsborough County has not said whether it will appeal the ruling. The decision is not binding, but it could suggest how other judges would handle similar cases involving medical marijuana use outside the workplace. 

Hawaii Governor Issues Executive Order to Protect Medical Marijuana Caregivers. With the existing medical marijuana caregiver program having expired at the end of 2024, Gov. Josh Green (D) has issued an executive order as a bridge to protect caregivers until a new one is created. 

Under the program, patients must specify which caregiver they are working with, but as the legislature failed to act to renew the program, some patients removed their caregivers' names from state records and some caregivers stopped supplying patients, worrying that the practice was about to become illegal. Thus, Green's actions.

"We have medical cannabis statutes to provide patients the relief each desperately needs as they navigate very serious health issues," Green, a physician, said in a statement. "We must protect the patients and their caregivers when the caregivers cultivate cannabis for a patient in a manner that fits squarely within the spirit of the medical-cannabis law."

The executive order specifies that "a primary caregiver acting in accordance with the law in effect prior to January 1, 2025, is not committing a significant violation."

Green also called on lawmakers to work "to ensure that primary caregivers can continue to provide services to those patients in the greatest need."

The state has more than 2,600 registered caregivers and more than 30,000 registered medical marijuana patients. 

Drug Policy

San Francisco Now Requires Drug Use Screening for People Receiving Cash Benefits. With the new year, the city has begun implementing its voter-approved Treatment Pathway Initiative, which requires people receiving cash benefits to be screened for drug use and those identified as having substance use issues to undergo some form of drug treatment to continue receiving the benefits. 

City Human Services Agency Executive Director Trent Rhorer said during a press conference Thursday the program aims to support "individuals who have substance-use disorders, and really beginning … their path towards recovery."

He said the main aims of the program are to get people on the path to recovery, to prevent the use of cash benefits to buy drugs and to reduce the number of people coming to the city to take advantage of the cash benefit. 

The County Adult Assistance Program provides $714 a month to housed people and $109 for the homeless. About 5,600 people are enrolled. 

Aid recipients will undergo a 10-question drug screening assessment. Rhorer said the questionnaire "is an evidence-based tool that tries to ferret out whether someone has a substance use disorder."

Critics of the program call it coercive, punitive, and "performative."