BudDigest

DES MOINES, Iowa (Gray Television Iowa Capitol Bureau) – More medical marijuana dispensaries could soon be coming to Iowa. Tuesday, a House subcommittee unanimously approved a bill that would double the number of dispensary licenses to 10.

Democratic State Rep. John Forbes of Polk County says that right now, medical marijuana isn’t accessible for most Iowans. “Patient access to medical cannabis here in the state of Iowa is a concern, especially in certain areas of the state. People have to drive two hours plus. Most people won’t do that,” Forbes said.

But – the bill would also cap the number of dispensaries a license holder could have. Tim Coonan, a lobbyist representing the Green Leaf Cannabis Company said, “It’s a highly regulated, highly speculative. Right now, it’s in its infancy and so I think in line with that, the idea of facilitating the opportunity for more market players, there may be more value in that.”

The Green Leaf Cannabis Company doesn’t have a license but wants in. “Our thought was that to open it up to more market players, it would be wise to limit the number of licenses being held by one entity to three, since that’s the max being held right

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A bill advancing through the Iowa Legislature would allow for more dispensaries to sell medical marijuana in Iowa.

House Study Bill 684 would increase the maximum number of dispensaries in the Iowa Medical Cannabidiol program to 10, changing the portion of Iowa Code that currently caps that total number at five.

License holders would only be able to hold three medical cannabidiol dispensary licenses under this legislation, a move advocates called an arbitrary condition that could limit businesses from expanding in the state’s marketplace.

A House subcommittee advanced the bill by unanimous vote, 3-0, for consideration by a full committee on Tuesday.

Ethan Kedar Astaphan and Weijia Peng were found guilty of first-degree murder in the killing of Juan Hernandez, pictured. (Photos from the family’s Help Me Find Juan website)

The owner and manager of an unlicensed California marijuana dispensary were convicted of murdering their college student co-worker with a ketamine injection and dumping his body in the desert because they thought he stole money and pot.

Ethan Kedar Astaphan, 30, and Weijia “James” Peng, 34, were found guilty in a Los Angeles courtroom of first-degree murder in the killing of Juan Carlos Hernandez, whose body was discovered in a shallow grave near Barstow, California, in 2020.

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“I’m sad my son is not coming back,” Hernandez said outside after court, the Los Angeles Daily News reported. “I’m glad they got caught, and they’ll be paying for what they did. Now we’re just figuring out what’s next and how to heal.”

Astaphan’s attorney, Larson Hahm, argued for a second-degree murder conviction, saying the killing wasn’t preplanned, the Los Angeles Daily News reported.

Astaphan, the manager at the unlicensed and now dismantled VIP Collective, and Peng, the owner, killed Hernandez on Sept. 22, 2020, taking

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The Annapolis City Council is currently deliberating on a significant proposal introduced by Alderwoman Elly Tierney, aiming to pause new non-medical cannabis dispensary applications for nine months. This strategic moratorium is designed to provide the council with the necessary time to craft comprehensive zoning regulations for these establishments. This move comes in the wake of Maryland’s legalization of recreational cannabis last year, a development that the city has yet to address through formal legislation.

AdvertismentProactive Steps Towards Regulation

In July 2022, the Annapolis City Council made a pivotal decision to allow medical cannabis dispensaries within commercial zoning districts. This decision, however, was made before the state legalized recreational cannabis use. The proposed moratorium reflects a desire to approach the regulation of cannabis dispensaries in a proactive manner. Drawing lessons from the city’s experiences with short-term rental property regulations, the council aims to develop standards that ensure the safety, health, and welfare of the public. The pause would also allow the city to consider how dispensaries could impact local communities and business districts.

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As Maryland navigates the challenges and opportunities presented by the legalization of recreational cannabis, local governments are faced with the task of integrating dispensaries

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“Integrity has no need of rules.” Albert Camus, French philosopher (1913-1960)

Today, unfortunately, it seems that we have more rules and less integrity. At least this seems to be the case for one section of the California cannabis industry. Recently, a video went viral of dispensary owners in a meeting talking about how much money they saved by not paying their “mom-and-pop” vendors.

“You know what’s so cool,” one owner asked. “How much money we’ve saved by not paying the vendors that have gone out of business…I’m talking about these mom-and-pop brands that come and go.”

There surely must be other cases. To learn more about what’s going on in the California cannabis space, Benzinga reached out to the founders of Stone Road, which has a farm in Northern California and operations across five states. Stone Road has been stiffed for tens of thousands of dollars.

“The reason that all these mom-and-pop shops went out of business was because you had retailers like this holding invoices for 100+ days thus forcing small businesses into bankruptcy,” said Lex Corwin, Stone Road’s CEO and co-founder.

Corwin recently opened up on social media about the struggles his company had. He suggested that the black market actually operates with more

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Loading…Loading…

“Integrity has no need of rules.” Albert Camus, French philosopher (1913-1960)

Today, unfortunately, it seems that we have more rules and less integrity. At least this seems to be the case for one section of the California cannabis industry. Recently, a video went viral of dispensary owners in a meeting talking about how much money they saved by not paying their “mom-and-pop” vendors.

“You know what’s so cool,” one owner asked. “How much money we’ve saved by not paying the vendors that have gone out of business…I’m talking about these mom-and-pop brands that come and go.”

There surely must be other cases. To learn more about what’s going on in the California cannabis space, Benzinga reached out to the founders of Stone Road, which has a farm in Northern California and operations across five states. Stone Road has been stiffed for tens of thousands of dollars.

“The reason that all these mom-and-pop shops went out of business was because you had retailers like this holding invoices for 100+ days thus forcing small businesses into bankruptcy,” said Lex Corwin, Stone Road’s CEO and co-founder.

Corwin recently opened up on social media about the struggles his company had. He suggested that the black market actually operates with more

Read More Here...

The Annapolis City Council is considering placing a moratorium on new applications for non-medical cannabis dispensaries.

The moratorium, proposed in a resolution by Alderwoman Elly Tierney, a Democrat from Ward 1, was introduced at Monday night’s meeting. If passed, it would pause new applications for nine months to allow the council time to pass legislation establishing zoning standards around dispensaries.

The moratorium would allow the council to study and establish regulations that “enact reasonable, thoughtful, and lawful zoning requirements and other regulations … to protect the public health, safety, and welfare,” according to the resolution.

Tierney said the moratorium is meant to avoid “reactive legislation,” pointing to the example of short-term rental legislation that was passed four years ago in response to a rise in unregulated Airbnbs throughout the city.

“Due to lessons learned from [short-term rental licenses], we do not want reactive legislation,” she said. “We need to get ahead of it and ensure we are following state guidelines.”

The council may extend the moratorium beyond nine months if needed, according to the resolution.

Since the Maryland General Assembly passed legislation legalizing the recreational use of cannabis last year, the city has not considered any legislation that addresses the subject,

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Lighthouse Dispensary have announced tentative plans for a grand opening in April.

Chief Executive Officer Zachary Addey purchased the property earlier this month and hired a manager for the business, Paul “Wag” Crouch II, a Bridgeport native.

“I am happy that Lawrenceville will have a cannabis dispensary,” Crouch said.  “The cannabis industry is bringing a lot of revenue into the communities that have embraced the industry.” 

Communities with dispensaries have benefitted from local tax revenue and they tend to bring more people into the community.

“Counties like Lawrence County that border a state like Indiana where cannabis has been decriminalized but remains an illegal substance tend to see an increased number of visitors from Indiana who want to purchase cannabis openly and with the safety of knowing the product is of marketable quality,” he said.

Crouch said the Lighthouse Dispensary Herb Social will be a new and unique experience even for customers who have frequented other dispensaries.

“Our goal is to set ourselves apart from other dispensaries by offering each customer a personal experience and education on products that are available based on the consumer’s wants and needs and ensuring we stock the best cannabis products that are currently available

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Much of the discourse when it comes to the recreational legalization of cannabis in Minnesota has been simply confusing.

A concrete set of rules about the regulation, sale, and distribution of cannabis hasn’t yet been released by the Office of Cannabis Management, despite full legalization taking place on Aug. 1, 2023.

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JOHNSTOWN — Fulton County’s commercial hub could soon be zoned for cannabis.

Johnstown lawmakers in March are poised to vote on guidelines intended to contain future pot shops along a stretch of state Highway 30A. So far, no dispensaries have been established within city limits.

“You’re not adding traffic to any neighborhoods,” said City Engineer Christopher Vose. “Realistically, your infrastructure to handle traffic is already down there and it just seemed to be a good spot for us to be.”

Sitting in one of the city’s highest-trafficked hubs, the commercial zone averages about 10,132 car trips per day, according to state data from 2019. It’s been something of an economic center in the Land Of The 44 Lakes since the 1950s.

“We don’t know how heavy the interest is going to be,” Vose said. “But because it’s becoming an allowable business in New York State, we have to adopt it that way.”

The corner of East State Street and South Comrie Avenue Wednesday, Feb. 21, 2024.

Tyler A. McNeil

What sets the zone apart from other districts, Vose said, is the area’s dearth of housing. The

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