New federal bills aim to remove state-legal marijuana and industrial hemp from the purview of the Controlled Substances Act, Jeff Sessions' drug war is slow getting off the ground, an Indian minister comes out for medical marijuana, and more.

What's in your Ecstasy? British festivalgoers could find out. (erowid.org)

Federal Bill to Make CSA Inapplicable to Marijuana in Legal Marijuana States Filed. US Rep. Suzan DelBene (D-WA) filed House Resolution 3534 on Friday. The bill would "make the Controlled Substances Act inapplicable with respect to marijuana in states that have legalized marijuana and have in effect a statewide regulatory regime to protect certain Federal interests."

Industrial Hemp

Federal Bill to Exempt Hemp from CSA Filed. Rep. James Comer (R-KY) filed House Resolution 3530 on Friday. The bill would "amend the Controlled Substances Act to exclude industrial hemp from the definition of marihuana."

Drug Policy

Attorney General Sessions' Drug War Hasn't Taken Hold -- Yet. The attorney general has vowed to crack down on drugs, but data released last week show it isn't happening yet. Federal drug prosecutions are at historic lows, with experts pointing to a federal hiring freeze instituted by the Trump administration and the Senate's slow pace on appointing new US attorneys as potential causes. Without having key people in key positions, the Sessions Justice Department must rely on local investigators and prosecutors who may still be operating under Obama-era reforms.

International

Indian Minister Calls for Medical Marijuana Legalization. Indian Minister for Women and Child Development Maneka Gandhi has come out in favor of legalizing medical marijuana. "Marijuana should be legalized for medical purposes, especially as it serves a purpose in [treating] cancer," she said during a ministerial discussion on India's National Drug Demand Reduction. Although cannabis has been part of Indian culture for more than 3,000 years, the country banned it in 1985 under US pressure.

British Festival Allowed Pill Testing. Attendees at the Kendal Calling music festival in Cumbria this past weekend were able to get their pills and powders tested for potency and adulteration without fear of arrest thanks to an on-site lab operated by an NGO. Testers reported finding malaria medication, insecticide and concrete in some of the substances tested. "We accept that some people will get drugs on site and some people will be planning to take them so what we're doing is trying to address any potential health problems," said Professor Fiona Measham, director of the NGO The Loop. "This is a focus on public health rather than on criminal justice."

AlphaBay is history, Nevada moves to ease its legal pot shortage, the White House opioid commission misses a deadline -- again -- and more.

Nevada Regulators Approve Emergency Measures to Ease Pot Shortage. The state Tax Commission voted Thursday to let the Department of Taxation to again determine whether limiting marijuana transport licenses to licensed alcohol distributors would result in a shortage of legal marijuana distributors. If the department does make that determination, it could then award transport licenses to previous medical marijuana distributors. "When businesses operate we get the tax revenue and that's what the state wants," testified Deonne Contine, director of the Department of Taxation. "We need to do everything we can to get more distributors licensed so these businesses can continue operating."

Industrial Hemp

Utah Regulators Give Initial Approval for Hemp Research Grows. The state Agricultural Advisory Board on Thursday gave initial approval to a new rule that would allow limited marijuana cultivation for research purposes. The rule would allow anyone with a permit to grow industrial hemp. State universities are already able to cultivate hemp for research purposes under the 2014 federal Farm Bill, but this rule now expands who can grow the plant. The rule is open for public review through the summer and if finalized, would allow the state to begin issuing permits next January.

Heroin and Prescription Opioids

White House Opioid Commission Again Misses Deadline. The president's Commission on Combating Drug Addiction and the Opioid Crisis, led by New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R), will miss a second deadline for filing an interim report. Under a Trump executive order establishing the commission, the panel had until June 27 to file its interim report, but failed to do so and said it would on July 17. Now, in a notice printed in the Federal Register Friday, the commission said it would reschedule its July 17 call until July 31, again missing its deadline. The commission has until October 1 to issue a final report.

Law Enforcement

Dark Web Giant AlphaBay Busted, Owner Hangs Himself in Thai Jail. AlphaBay, one of the largest drug sales websites on the Dark Web, has gone dark. It wasn't, as some suspected, a scam and rip-off by the owners, but the result of a joint law enforcement operation by police in Canada, the US, and Thailand. Canadian citizen Alexandre Cazes, identified as AlphaBay's owner, was arrested July 5 in Thailand, where he owned three luxurious homes. He was found hanged in a Thai jail cell Wednesday.

Vermont Gov. Phil Scott says he will act on marijuana legalization tomorrow, the Trump budget reverses earlier plans to radically defund the drug czar's office, a new Michigan poll has good news for activists, and more.

Will Vermont's governor sign or veto the marijuana legalization bill? Check back tomorrow to find out. (Wikimedia.org)

Michigan Poll Has Strong Majority for Legalization. A new poll from the Marketing Resource Group has support for marijuana legalization at 58%, if it is taxed and regulated like alcohol. The strongest support came from Democrats and people under 40. The poll comes as the Michigan Coalition to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol is beginning a signature gathering campaign to put its legalization initiative on the November 2018 ballot. "While attitudes toward marijuana may be mellowing, most Republican voters and those 65 and older still are not ready to legalize it," said Tom Shields, president of MRG. "Support for legalizing recreational use of marijuana has grown from 41 percent in 2013 to 58 percent in just the last four years. I would not be surprised to see a successful ballot proposal within the next few years."

Vermont Governor to Act on Legalization Bill Tomorrow. Gov. Phil Scott (R) said Tuesday he would either sign or veto Senate Bill 22 on Wednesday, the last possible day for him to act. Under state law, the bill could become law if Scott fails to act, but Scott said he would not let that happen and would either veto or sign the bill. If he signs it, Vermont becomes the first state to legalize marijuana through the legislative process.

Hemp

Arizona Governor Vetoes Hemp Bill. Gov. Doug Ducey vetoed an industrial hemp bill on Monday. Ducey said he vetoed Senate Bill 1337 because it did not provide funding for the state Agriculture Department to administer the program.

Drug Policy

Trump Backs Away From De-Funding the Drug Czar's Office. President Trump has reversed a proposal to cut 95% of the funding for the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP -- the drug czar's office). In his budget proposal released Tuesday, ONDCP funding is still reduced, but only by 3%, in line with other non-defense-related spending cuts.

Harm Reduction

San Francisco Supervised Injection Site Task Force Launched. A 15-member task force charged with developing a report to the Board of Supervisors on the feasibility and potential costs and benefits of a supervised drug consumption site got to work on Monday. The task force will meet three times over the next three months before issuing its report. The city has bout 22,000 injection drug users and a hundred overdose deaths a year, mostly from heroin and opioids.

A Justice Department review of marijuana policy is underway, congressional overseers subpoena the DEA over its snitch program, California's governor moves to reconicle the state's legal and medical marijuana programs, and more.

The DEA is in the hot seat with congressional investigators over its confidential informant program.

DOJ Task Force is Reviewing Marijuana Policy. Attorney General Sessions issued a memo Wednesday saying that a task force on crime and public safety is reviewing federal marijuana policy and is charged with making initial recommendations by July 27. The task is reviewing ways to reduce violent crime and illegal immigration and is reviewing marijuana policy under that rubric.

California Governor Proposes Means of Melding Legal and Medical Marijuana Systems. Gov. Jerry Brown (D) on Tuesday released proposed legislation aimed at uniting the state's legal and medical marijuana regulatory systems. The draft language generally favors the less restrictive language of Prop 64, the state's successful marijuana legalization initiative. The Drug Policy Alliance, the California Cannabis Industry Association, the UFCW Western States Council, and the California Cannabis Manufacturers Association are all backing the draft language.

Alaska Regulators Punt (Again) on Onsite Consumption. The Marijuana Control Board was supposed to take up the thorny issue of permitting onsite consumption of marijuana Wednesday, but instead the board spent its meeting going through a backlog of license applications for production facilities and pot shops. "They really wanted to focus on approved applications at this meeting so people could get started with their businesses as we move into summer," said Erika McConnell, director of the Alcohol and Marijuana Control Board. "On site consumption was kind of the big time consuming issue that they pushed until the end and then we ran out of time." Onsite consumption decisions will now be pushed back until at least the May 15 meeting, she said.

Connecticut Legalization Bill Dead -- At Least for Now. A bill that would legalize marijuana, Senate Bill 11, appears dead in the water after it failed to make the agenda for a Friday meeting of the Senate Judiciary Committee. Reports are the bill, sponsored by Senate President Martin Looney (D-New Haven), was pulled because it didn't have enough votes to pass the committee. Legalization is not quite dead yet, though: The Looney bill or one of several other legalization proposals could still be attached as an amendment to another bill.

Virginia Commission to Study Decriminalization. The State Crime Commission decided on Wednesday that it will study marijuana decriminalization. The decision was made by the commission's executive committee.

Medical Marijuana

North Carolina Medical Marijuana Bill Filed. State Sens. Teresa Van Duyn (D) and Valerie Jean Fousher (D) filed Senate Bill 648 on Tuesday. Under the bill, patients could possess up to 24 ounces of marijuana and grow up to 250 square feet of their own medicine. The bill would also establish a system of licensed cultivation centers and dispensaries. It has been referred to the Committee on Rules and Operations.

Hemp

West Virginia Legislature Approves Industrial Hemp Bill. The Senate voted unanimously Wednesday to approve House Bill 2453, which would allow for the licensing of qualified producers and state institutions to grow hemp for industrial purposes. The bill passed the House last month and now heads to the desk of Gov. Jim Justice (D).

Asset Forfeiture

Arizona Asset Forfeiture Reform Bill Awaits Governor's Signature. Gov. Doug Ducey (R) is in a tight spot, caught between the wishes of legislators, who approved the asset forfeiture reform measure House Bill 2477, and county prosecutors, who are urging him to veto it. The measure would change Arizona's civil asset forfeiture laws to require prosecutors to prove property was involved in a crime by "clear and convicting" evidence, a step above the current standard. Gov. Ducey has said he thinks this is an area of law that needs reform, but hasn't said whether he would sign the bill into law.

Law Enforcement

DEA Gets Hit With Congressional Subpoenas Over Its Informant Program. Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-UT), head of the House Oversight Committee, has subpoenaed the DEA for documents related to its confidential informant program. Congress members have been seeking copies of the guidelines since last year, when a Justice Department report detailed how DEA spent more than $200 million on informants with little oversight, but DEA has only allowed members to view the guidelines on-site. "Congress has a right to have this material," Chaffetz said, during an Oversight Committee hearing that he chaired on Tuesday morning. "It is unbelievable to me that you think we shouldn't have a copy of it," he told Deputy DEA Administrator Robert Patterson. Chaffetz then went next door to the House Judiciary Committee, where DEA Administrator Chuck Rosenberg was testifying, and issued a subpoena. "We are issuing a subpoena, and so I see no choice," he then told DEA chief Rosenberg. "The Department of Justice just doesn't get to hide things from the United States Congress," Chaffetz said, adding that there is evidence of "massive problems" in the program.