Some of the usual suspects line up against the Ohio marijuana legalization initiative, California's governor vetoes a "what about the kids?" marijuana labeling bill, and more.

Cocaine, meth, and MDMA will be effectively decriminalized in Australia's New South Wales. (Pixabay)

California Governor Vetoes Marijuana Labeling Bill Opposed by Industry. Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) has vetoed a labeling bill opposed by the industry as too onerous, Assembly Bill 1207, the Cannabis Candy Child Safety Act. The bill would have banned the sale, distribution or manufacturing of cannabis products with packaging and labeling deemed "attractive to children." That would have included promotional material displaying fictional humans, animals, fruits and vegetables.

The industry lobbied for the veto and instead supported Senate Bill 540, which also passed the legislature and which Newsom has now signed into law. That bill instructs the state Department of Cannabis Control to revisit packaging and labeling restrictions "in line with evolving science" and to create "a brochure encouraging responsible cannabis use."

"We're enormously grateful for the governor's thoughtful and nuanced approach to cannabis advertising," said Tiffany Devitt, who manages government affairs for CannaCraft, a Santa Rosa producer. "By vetoing AB 1207 and signing SB 540, he's taken a science-based approach to safeguarding consumers while preserving the ability of California cannabis companies to compete in the national market."

Ohio Business Groups Oppose Marijuana Legalization Initiative. Several influential state business organizations have come out against Issue 2, the marijuana legalization initiative that will appear on the ballot next month.

Citing concerns over workplace safety and company's ability to find workers who can pass drug tests, the Ohio Chamber of Commerce, the Ohio Business Roundtable and the Ohio Manufacturer’s Association are opposing the measure.

Legalization presents "No upside for businesses that I can see," said Steve Stivers, CEO of the Chamber of Commerce.

Tom Haren, a spokesperson for Ohio’s pro-legalization sponsor, the Campaign to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol, dismissed the business groups’ worries as "Reefer Madness type scare tactics."

Drug Policy

Oregon Supreme Court Rules Mere Possession of Large Quantities of Drugs Not Sufficient to Prove Intent to Sell. The state Supreme Court ruled last Thursday that mere possession of a large amount of drugs is not enough to justify charges of possession with intent to distribute drugs. The high court said more evidence was required to show "possession with intent to sell."

The ruling comes in the midst of growing debate over state drug policy, with a joint legislative committee reviewing drug treatment and enforcement efforts and two different initiative campaigns seeking to roll back or otherwise modify Measure 110, the 2020 initiative that decriminalized drug possession in the state.

One of initiatives proposed to change the 2020 law contains language to restore the "possession with intent to sell" standard established through a 1988 decision by the Court of Appeals. That standard had been sufficient to prove "attempt transfer" until the Supreme Court's ruling.

"It is sufficient for us to say what an ‘attempted transfer’ is not: It is not established by evidence that a person possessed a large quantity of a controlled substance and had a general intent to transfer it at an undetermined future time," the court held. "Some additional evidence that the person made an effort to engage in the act of transferring is required. The question of what sort of additional evidence might be sufficient is one that we decline to address in the abstract, as we expect that courts will face it in a great variety of fact patterns.

"In this case, the record is legally insufficient to prove that defendant made an effort to transfer fentanyl. The record shows that defendant possessed a nonuser amount of fentanyl and that some of the fentanyl was packaged in a manner consistent with an intent to deliver it. What the record lacks is evidence that defendant had taken additional steps to engage in conduct that would cause the fentanyl to change hands."

The Supreme Court did not dismiss the case but sent it back to Washington County Circuit Court, where prosecutors could present additional evidence.

International

Australia's New South Wales Joins Rest of Country in Relaxing Drug Laws. State government officials have announced that as of New Year's Day, people caught with small amounts of drugs will have the option of paying a fine or getting counselling rather than be arrested and subjected to court proceedings. That will bring the state in line with the rest of the country's states and territories.

The new policy will apply to the possession of up to a quarter-gram of MDMA and a gram of cocaine or methamphetamine. The state already applies the policy for up to 30 grams of marijuana.

Police still maintain the discretion to make an arrest, a move that activists denounced about data showed that the diversion scheme was applied less often for indigenous people.

Legislation to effect the change will be introduced in parliament this week.

MPP and NORML are in preliminary merger talks, Georgia will become the first state in the country to offer medical marijuana products in pharmacies, and more. 

San Francisco. Safe injection sites are on mayoral candidates' minds. (Creative Commons)

Top Marijuana Advocacy Groups Ponder Merger Amid Fundraising Challenges, Leadership Transitions. With its executive director having recently resigned and its ability to undertake expensive ballot initiative campaigns curtailed by funding challenges in an era where most people now live in legal marijuana states, the Marijuana Policy Project (MPP) is considering a possible merger with the nation's largest marijuana consumer advocacy group, the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML).

MPP was formed as a breakaway from NORML back in 1996, when then-NORML staffers Rob Kampia and Chuck Thomas left the group and to create the new organization. Since then, MPP has had access to millions of dollars in philanthropic donations, but those have largely evaporated as legalization spread and wealthy donors said the industry should step up and fund reforms. The industry has not been so good at doing that, and now MPP says it will have to give up on expensive ballot initiatives and concentrate on Congress and state legislatures.

"I do believe that we were victims of our own success," acting executive director Matthew Schweich said. "We’re highly effective. We passed so many laws through so many states and so many ballot initiatives. And people just got used to our success." MPP is still in "a strong position long-term to maintain its current operations," and the rationale behind the restructuring "is to ensure that we can operate effectively for years to come," he added. "So that’s important to know—but if people want there to be a stronger MPP like we saw in the past, we’re going to need philanthropic donors to return to the fold," he said. "It is just not sustainable to maintain the type of scale that we should have without philanthropic donors returning to help our costs."

"It’s really a shame that we’re no longer able to play a leading role in initiatives," said Karen O’Keefe, MPP's director of state polices who focuses on state legislatures. "There are states where cannabis consumers will have to suffer under prohibition for a decade or more longer probably because there’s just not the funding there to get voters there, per se. By not having the funding to put this issue on the ballot, it delays progress in those states considerably," she said. "And it also doesn’t have that message [to state legislatures]—especially in this high turnout election year, when we would presumably see a lot better results that can help spur quicker action in all of their neighboring states and in Congress."

Now, MPP and NORML are talking about a possible merger, although those conversations have largely happened at the board level and MPP says those talks are "preliminary."

"We are having very early discussions with NORML about various ways that we might partner with them to achieve our mutual cannabis reform goals," said MPP board Chairman Sal Pace. "We’re considering many options for potential collaboration, but there’s nothing new to share right now."

Medical Marijuana

Georgia to Become First State to Offer Medical Marijuana Products in Pharmacies. The state is set to become the first in the nation to offer medical marijuana products at independent pharmacies after the state Board of Pharmacy began accepting applications this week.

Nearly 120 pharmacies have agreed to offer medical marijuana products from Botanical Sciences, one of two licensed production companies in the state. It is likely to take a few weeks before product is available at the pharmacies.

The only medical marijuana product available to state residents is low-THC cannabis oil, with less than 5 percent THC. Patients will be able to buy the product at pharmacies if they show a medical marijuana registry card and identification.

The move will make the product much more widely available for state residents. Currently, there are only seven dispensaries where it can be bought.

Harm Reduction

San Francisco Mayoral Candidates Split on Safe Injection Sites. We are still more than a year away from the next mayoral election, but candidates are already attacking each other over pressing issues in the city, including drugs and homelessness. Now, support for a potential safe injection site is one issue dividing candidates.

The race to become San Francisco’s next mayor is still in its early stages, but that hasn’t stopped candidates from trading barbs over their plans to solve the city’s most pressing issues.  

Mayor London Breed campaigned for the position in 2018 in part by supporting safe injection sites, but has since backed away from spending city funds for their operation. This year, Breed's campaign said she would allow a nonprofit to fund and operate a safe injection site, but is awaiting federal guidance before allowing the city to fund it.

Supervisor Ahsha Safai says he support safe injection sites, but wants them to work in conjunction with sober living facilities and other treatment options.

But Levi-Strauss heir Daniel Lurie is opposed. He says he would not support opening such sites and that they would generate "drug tourism" to the city. Instead, he said he would focus on "shutting down open air drug markets and getting everyone sheltered." 

International

British Columbia Bill Would Make Drug Use Illegal in Almost All Public Places. A bill filed Thursday would make it illegal to use drugs in almost all public spaces, a move reform advocates say would effectively kill the province's drug decriminalization policy less than a year into the three-year pilot project.

The law would ban within 15 meters of a playground, splash pool, skate park, sports field, beach or park and within six meters of the doorways of businesses, residences, recreation centers or any public space.

"Decriminalization was never about the ability to use hard drugs wherever you wanted, and this law makes that very clear," Premier David Eby of the New Democratic Party said as he announced the bill. He said people would instead be directed to safe injection sites.

The provincial coroner called the move "tremendously disappointing" and said the government is advancing a bill "that attempts to push people into back alleys and back corners."

"People are being set up to fail and die," said Vince Tao of the Vancouver Area Network of Drug Users, who added that advocates were shocked by the "all-encompassing" list of restricted areas. "This is a huge step back," Tao said. "I think we can altogether admit that decriminalization is dead."

A House committee has again blocked an amendment to stop pre-employment marijuana testing for federal job applicants, a Michigan ban on pre-employment marijuana testing of most state workers has gone into effect, and more. 

There are a lot fewer opium poppies in Afghanistan these days. (UNODC)

House Rules Committee Again Blocks Amendments to End Marijuana Testing for Federal Job Applicants. Rep. Robert Garcia's ongoing attempt to end the practice of drug testing for marijuana for federal job applicants has again been blocked, this time by the GOP-led House Rules Committee, which declined to allow a floor vote on his amendments to the spending bills for the Departments of Energy and Water Development and Related Agencies, as well as for the legislative branch.

Garcia has tried repeatedly and to no avail to attach his amendment to various spending bills, including the departments of Homeland Security, Agriculture-Rural Development-FDA, State and Foreign Operations, and Veterans Affairs.

The amendments say that, with certain exceptions, the agencies and departments in question cannot use their funding "for testing applicants for marijuana."

Michigan Ban on Pre-Employment Drug Testing for State Workers Now in Effect. A new rule barring pre-employment drug testing for all state workers except those subject to random drug testing went into effect October 1.

Some safety-sensitive and other state positions are still subject to pre-employment testing and all state employees are still subject to drug testing based on impairment suspicion, random selection and post-accident, according to the commission.

Safety-sensitive positions include those operating certain vehicles, equipment and machinery. The ban also doesn’t apply to law enforcement positions, health care workers and prison employees.

Workers can still be disciplined or fired if they have impaired levels of drugs or alcohol, including marijuana, while at work. 

Harm Reduction

Sen. Markey, Rep. Lee Urge Biden Administration to Enact Comprehensive Fentanyl Harm Reduction Strategy, Including Safe Injection Sites. Senator Edward J. Markey (D-Mass) and Congresswoman Barbara Lee (CA-12) today led 18 of their colleagues in urging the Biden-Harris administration to develop and publicly announce a national fentanyl harm reduction strategy specifically focused on enhancing public health infrastructure and addressing the collateral consequences that stem from drug arrests and convictions.

The lawmakers emphasized that this strategy should support increased availability of local overdose prevention centers (OPCs) and expanded access to vital medical interventions, including naloxone, drug testing strips, sterile syringes and pipes, methadone, and buprenorphine.

The lawmakers urged the administration to:

• Deploy federal resources to enable agencies to better identify and repeal collateral consequences that result from drug possession arrests and convictions, such as the drug felony ban on federal food security programs;
• Improve equitable access to effective harm reduction services — which involves an examination of barriers that community-based syringe services programs may face in applying for federal funds, such as reporting requirements that incorporate personally identifiable information — and adopt policies that minimize those barriers; and,
• Close research gaps and undertake a comprehensive evidence review on the role of distribution of safer smoking supplies in harm reduction measures, including engagement and retention, risks for overdose and infectious diseases, referral and linkage to other services, and health equity.

"Furthermore, strong evidence indicates that OPCs reduce the transmission of HIV and hepatitis, prevent overdose deaths, reduce public injections and the volume of shared or discarded syringes, and increase the number of drug users who enter treatment programs. The Biden-Harris administration should set forth federal policy to support the availability and expansion of OPCs as effective harm reduction tools," the lawmakers wrote.

"Further criminalizing fentanyl and doubling down on punitive drug policies only complicates our efforts to address the overdose crisis; people are deterred from seeking needed medical help, and illicit drug manufacturers and sellers are incentivized to create new and increasingly deadly drugs that aren’t covered by existing criminal laws," they continued. "With the Biden-Harris administration’s recent announcement of a plan to address the growing threat of fentanyl, we urge you to take every opportunity to prevent fentanyl-related overdoses from claiming scores of American lives daily."

International

Afghan Opium Poppy Cultivation Drops 85 Percent, New Analysis Finds. A satellite analysis of the Afghan opium crop by the geographic information services company Alcis estimates that opium cultivation has declined by 85 percent since the Taliban re-took power and decreed a ban on it.

Poppy cultivation was nearly half a million acres in 2022 but dropped below 75,000 acres this year, leading experts to describe the ban "as the most successful counter-narcotics effort in human history."

The key opium-producing province of Helmand saw a whopping 99 percent reduction in cultivation, while Farah saw a 95 percent reduction, and Nimroz say a 91 percent reduction.

Wisconsin Democrats roll out a marijuana legalization bill, a Pennsylvania medical marijuana expansion bill passes the Senate, and more.

Members of the Sinaloa Cartel parading through San Gregorio Chemic in Chiapas state, near the Guatemalan border. (YouTube)

House Democrats Reintroduce Comprehensive Marijuana Reform Legislation. House Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Jerrold Nadler (D-NY), along with Representatives Earl Blumenauer (D-OR), Barbara Lee (D-CA), Sheila Jackson Lee (D-TX) and Nydia Velázquez (D-NY) have reintroduced the Marijuana Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement (MORE) Act (HR 5601), one of the most comprehensive marijuana reform bills ever introduced in the U.S. Congress.

Following efforts led by states across the nation, the MORE Act decriminalizes marijuana at the federal level. The bill also aims to correct the historical injustices of failed drug policies that have disproportionately impacted communities of color and low-income communities by requiring resentencing and expungement of prior convictions. This will create new opportunities for individuals as they work to advance their careers, education, and overall quality of life. The MORE Act also ensures that all benefits in the law are available to juvenile offenders.

The bill:

• Decriminalizes marijuana at the federal level by removing the substance from the Controlled Substances Act. This applies retroactively to prior and pending convictions, and enables states to set their own policy.
• Requires federal courts to expunge prior convictions, allows prior offenders to request expungement, and requires courts, on motion, to conduct re-sentencing hearings for those still under supervision.
• Authorizes the assessment of a 5% sales tax on marijuana and marijuana products to create an Opportunity Trust Fund, which includes three grant programs:
  • The Community Reinvestment Grant Program: Provides services to the individuals most adversely impacted by the War on Drugs, including job training, re-entry services, legal aid, literacy programs, The Cannabis Opportunity Grant Program: youth recreation, mentoring, and substance use treatment.  
  • Provides funds for loans to assist small businesses in the marijuana industry that are owned and controlled by socially and economically disadvantaged individuals
  • The Equitable Licensing Grant Program: Provides funds for programs that minimize barriers to marijuana licensing and employment for the individuals most adversely impacted by the War on Drugs.
• Opens up Small Business Administration funding for legitimate cannabis-related businesses and service providers.
• Provides non-discrimination protections for marijuana use or possession, and for prior convictions for a marijuana offense:
  • Prohibits the denial of any federal public benefit (including housing) based on the use or possession of marijuana, or prior conviction for a marijuana offense.
  • Provides that the use or possession of marijuana, or prior conviction for a marijuana offense, will have no adverse impact under the immigration laws.
• Requires the Bureau of Labor Statistics to collect data on the demographics of the industry to ensure people of color and those who are economically disadvantaged are participating in the industry.

The MORE Act has the support of a broad coalition of civil rights, criminal justice, drug policy, and immigration groups, including: the Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, Drug Policy Alliance, NORML, Better Organizing to Win Legalization, and Minorities for Medical Marijuana, the Center for American Progress, and Students for Sensible Drug Policy.

Wisconsin Democrats File Marijuana Legalization Bill. State Sen. Melissa Agard and state Rep. Darrin B. Madison have introduced a marijuana legalization bill. This bill would allow Wisconsin to join thirty-eight states and the District of Columbia that have passed laws broadly legalizing cannabis in some form. Republican majorities in the legislature have blocked any progress on such bills in the past.

"I’ve said this time and time again – we know that the most dangerous thing about cannabis in Wisconsin is that it remains illegal," said Sen. Agard. "For the past decade, I have worked to undo Wisconsin’s antiquated and deeply unjust marijuana policies and put our state on a prosperous path forward.  

"Legalizing cannabis is a matter of public safety and racial justice here in Wisconsin," said Rep. Madison. "People in Wisconsin indulge in cannabis use and deserve the ability to buy safe cannabis and use it responsibly without being criminalized. According to the ACLU, Black people were 4.24 times more likely to be arrested than white people in Wisconsin during 2018. Similar disparities exist in convictions, leading to immeasurable harm to black communities in Wisconsin. The bill we’ve introduced today lays a solid foundation for those that have been harshly convicted for non-violent possession charges and the ramifications of those convictions." 

Under the proposal, adults in Wisconsin aged 21 and older could legally have marijuana in their possession. The measure would also lay the groundwork for a regulated cannabis market to launch in the state.

Medical Marijuana

Pennsylvania Senate Passes Bill to Expand Medical Marijuana Program. The Senate has approved a bill that would expand the state’s medical marijuana program by allowing growers to sell directly to patients despite ongoing federal cannabis prohibition. The bill was approved last Wednesday on a 44-3 vote.

Sen. Chris Gebhard and a bipartisan coalition of senators introduced Senate Bill 773  earlier this year. The current state medical law authorizes licenses for 25 businesses growing and processing medical marijuana, but only five of those licensees can sell directly to patients through vertically integrated dispensaries. SB773 would allow all medical marijuana growers and processes to sell directly to patients.

The bill now goes to the House, where it may become a vehicle for broader reforms, from allowing for patient home cultivation to converting the bill into a full-on legalization bill. But changes too profound could endanger an amended bill's prospects back in the Senate, which would have to address any changes.

"There will certainly be vigorous discussions there on what shape this bill will come back to the Senate in said Sen. Dan Laughlin (R). "If this becomes a vehicle for adult use, I doubt that it would pass this chamber. However, I think if they do add home-grown to this bill, it would strengthen the bill and I believe that we would be able to get it through this chamber as well."

Drug Policy

San Francisco Mayor Proposes Mandatory Drug Treatment for Cash Assistance Programs. Trying a new tack in the city's ongoing effort to get a grip on open air drug use and an overdose crisis, Mayor London Breed is now proposing that city residents with addiction issues who receive cash assistance be required to undergo drug treatment in order to keep receiving payments. The proposal would have to be approved by the Board of Supervisors.

Under the proposal, people who apply for County Adult Assistance Programs would have to undergo screening for substance use disorder and participate in a treatment program if they're found to have an addiction. People who refuse or who "do not successfully engage in treatment" would not be eligible for cash assistance.

"We fund a wide range of services, and we want to help people get the care they need but under current state law, local government lack tools to compel people into treatment," Breed said. "This initiative aims to create more accountability and help get people to accept the treatment and services they need."   

Some, but not all, supervisors are on board. Board President Aaron Peskin demurred, saying that Breed should focus on stopping dealers and open-air drug markets rather than "drug testing people on welfare."

"If she can't find the way to prevent several hundred brazen criminals from selling deadly drugs -- how does she think she will find the resources to drug test thousands of welfare recipients?" Peskin said

Drug Testing

Washington Department of Corrections Sued Over Faulty Drug Tests, Harsh Punishments. Columbia Legal Services (CLS) filed a class action complaint against the Washington State Department of Corrections (DOC), challenging the widespread practice of imposing harsh discipline on people in DOC facilities based on unreliable drug testing. People have faced months in solitary confinement, delays in release from prison, loss of visitation, and other cruel punishments after colorimetric tests have returned "presumptive" positive results on incoming mail and other possessions.

Clifton Bell, et al. v. Washington State Department of Corrections, filed in Thurston County Superior Court last Friday, alleges that DOC’s actions violate plaintiffs' rights under Washington State law and the Washington State Constitution.Plaintiff Gregory Hyde was placed in administrative segregation (another term for solitary confinement) for almost five months after a presumptive positive test result. The item that tested positive for drugs was a packet of crossword, word search, and Sudoku puzzle books sent by Mr. Hyde’s father and stepmother.

After facing months of irreversible disciplinary actions, DOC returned the books in question to Mr. Hyde with no explanation or expungement of the infraction. His father’s name remains on DOC’s records as having mailed drugs to the prison.

"I think DOC is using its power to punish people who can’t fight back," said Mr. Hyde."My elderly father just wanted to send me some puzzle books. Now they’re saying he’s a drug dealer. Now my father is too far away to see because I got transferred to a different facility. My father is impoverished and on a fixed income. I think it’s an abuse of power. I don’t think DOC should be doing this."

Manufactured by companies like DetectaChem and MMC International, the colorimetric tests (also called roadside tests or field tests) are designed to be initial screening testsand the manufacturers are clear that they require confirmatory testing to be valid. Similar test technologies have been found unlawful in many settings, including in other state prison systems. In 2021, a Massachusetts court forced that state’s DOC to stop using similar colorimetric tests from another manufacturer, with the court describing them as "only marginally better than a coin flip"at identifying drugs. The tests in that case were found to deliver false positives nearly 40 percent of the time.

International

Mexico's Sinaloa Cartel Lauded by Chiapas Townspeople for Rescuing Them from Jalisco New Generation Cartel. Townspeople in San Gregorio Chemic, Chiapas, near the Guatemalan border, cheered a 20-vehicle convoy of Sinaloa Cartel fighters as they paraded through the city after having driven out the rival Jalisco New Generation Cartel (JNGC).

JNGC fighters had seized the town and blocked the only highway access to it for nearly two weeks, killing and extorting local residents along the way. President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador announced over the weekend that he was sending 800 National Guard troops to the area. He also implored local youth not to be seduced by the Sinaloa Cartel.

'It turns out that on the border with Guatemala, in Comalapa, towards Motozintla, there are organized crime groups that are fighting for the territory (Jalisco Nueva Generación Cartel and Sinaloa Cartel) to have spaces, to store drugs that enter from Central America, to have control of that territory and they will confront each other, fortunately there have not been many murders,' López Obrador said during his daily presser with the media.

A local Catholic priest said that local residents may have been intimidated into cheering on the Sinaloa Cartel. "Others will say that they have already allied themselves with drug traffickers. They line them up," he said. "It's not that they want to. There will be people who do it on their own, but people are being forced and that is not worth it. People are being forced to defend one cartel, to fight for another and they are being used as cannon fodder."