BudDigest

Maine lawmakers are considering a proposal to legalize cannabis social clubs and other forms of on-site consumption, according to a Spectrum News report.

Sponsored by state Rep. David Boyer (R-Poland), the proposal would establish a cannabis-based hospitality industry in Maine by giving tourists a place to legally consume. If approved, the bill would establish a “cannabis hospitality establishment license” that would need to be acquired before businesses could allow on-site consumption.

LD 1952 appeared recently before the Legislature’s Veterans and Legal Affairs Committee.

“It would provide a controlled and regulated environment for adults similar to a brew pub that allows you try different beers and then take some home. This would help ensure public safety and reduce the likelihood of public cannabis consumption in inappropriate places.” — Boyer, in a statement to the state Veterans and Legal Affairs Committee, via Spectrum News

The proposal is notably opposed by John Hudak, Director of the Maine Office of Cannabis Policy, whose concerns range from poor air quality in cannabis clubs to the potential for increased impaired driving. “This bill simply does not address the serious public health and safety issues raised by permitting the public consumption of a substance that impairs critical

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About one-third (32%) of cannabis consumers say that if a rescheduling action were to restrict the industry by requiring retail sales to be prescription-based via pharmacies, they would risk criminal penalties by reverting to the illicit market, according to a survey reported on by Marijuana Moment. A slight majority (55%) of respondents said that if their only legal option was through pharmacies, they would do so.

The survey — which was conducted by the cannabis telemedicine firm NuggMD — polled 795 respondents via the company’s opt-in email list about multiple topics including their current ability to access consumer cannabis products and potential effects of the Biden Administration’s proposed Schedule III rescheduling action.

NuggMD’s head of legal and policy research Deb Tharp said the results show that consumers are at risk under the proposed rescheduling plan unless lawmakers pass legislation “to preserve existing state markets.”

“According to government estimates, more than 35 million Americans use cannabis on a monthly basis. Pushing more than 10 million people into the unregulated market for cannabis strikes me as a very bad outcome because black market cannabis is not safe. I don’t think the severity of this situation is entirely clear to policymakers.” — Tharp,

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EAST PEORIA, Ill., January 25, 2024–(BUSINESS WIRE)–NOXX Cannabis is thrilled to announce the grand opening celebration of its East Peoria dispensary on Saturday, January 27, at 9 am. Conveniently located at 300 S Main Street, across Main Street from Kroger, the recreational cannabis dispensary is within walking distance of the Levee District just south of Costco and Chick-Fil-A – accessible off of West Washington St. through Columbia St. Ample parking is available onsite.

The first 100 customers will receive an 8th for just $1.00. Additionally, all customers will receive a free t-shirt and other giveaways. The celebration will include amazing deals and representatives from some of the top Illinois cannabis brands.

NOXX Cannabis offers an unmatched shopping experience, including a large selection of cannabis products, out of this world cannabis deals, and unparalleled customer service. The dispensary offers cannabis products in a variety of forms, including packaged flower, pre-roll singles and multipacks, infused pre-rolls, all in one vapes, chocolate and gummy edibles, and concentrates. Customers will also enjoy NOXX’s warm and welcoming atmosphere. The NOXX development is a major improvement to the area, beautifying a vital part of Main Street. Its interior achieves a modern appearance, featuring vaulted ceilings and a large

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Based in Queens, Rachel is currently the director of content and social at Gotham, a recreational cannabis dispensary. Before venturing into marketing, she wrote four books of fiction and poetry and toured internationally, reading her work at over 100 different venues.

We spent two minutes with Rachel to learn more about her background, her creative inspirations and recent work she’s admired.

Rachel, tell us …

Where you grew up, and where you live now.

I grew up in Indianapolis. I now live in Queens, NYC.

How you first got interested in cannabis.

There was nothing to do in suburban Indiana but get high. I was a rebellious preacher’s daughter going to punk shows. It was exciting and against the rules. And when I was a teen, “exciting” and “against the rules” were synonymous.

One of your favorite projects you’ve ever worked on.

When I first accepted a job that required me to use Photoshop, I was really bad at it. So I started designing a T-shirt every day. I figured I could teach myself by doing it. Funny enough, it’s become a pretty valuable side-hustle for me now. Plus, it’s creatively rewarding. I no longer do it daily, though.

A recent project you’re

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More than half a dozen New York medical cannabis companies can now sell recreational marijuana in the state.

Sixwere granted a “registered organization dispensing” (ROD) license in December, with two more approved during a special meeting of the Cannabis Control Board earlier this month, including the Chicago-based Green Thumb Industries (GTI).

Green Thumb entered New York’s cannabis market when they acquired Fiorello Pharmaceuticals in 2019. Today, the Chicago-based company operates four medical dispensaries under Fiorello’s medical license and 91 recreational operations across 15 states.

Dominic O’Brien is Senior Vice President of Revenue for GTI, whose Henrietta location, RISE, south of Rochester, is the only one of the company’s New York dispensaries to have opened to recreational customers.

“We’ve been serving our medical patients, going on five years now. That continues, and always will be a priority for us.” O’Brien said. “That’s how GTI got started, not just in New York but in most of our markets. Most markets are medical markets first, before they become adult-use markets.”

Now, O’Brien is excited and optimistic about being able to bring even more products to RISE, like “our Dog Walkers, Incredibles, EVO, all these wonderful products that we sell across 14 different states.”

Registered organizations – another name for medical

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Photos: Union Square Travel Agency

Dispensaries could interpret a “travel” theme in a number of different ways. A psychedelic celebration of trippiness could be fun. A jumble of hot air balloons and electric railroad tracks seems literal enough. But these ideas don’t convey the glorious potential of new places, nor that delicious spark of a new adventure. Travel isn’t exactly tourism. At its best, travel is a journey; an experience.

New York City’s Union Square Travel Agency (USQTA) interprets the anticipation with a sweep of softened edges, indirect lighting, and a white-on-white palette that encourages exploration. The design evokes the majesty of flying in an age before security measures leeched airports of their magic. Bits of humor pop up in unexpected places.

Advertisement This flip-letter sign near the cashier’s lane is modeled on the TWA flight update board. Frequent connections include “NYC — LOL” and “NYC — NBD.”

Information hubs modeled after airport self-check-in kiosks are clustered in the middle of the space, and vitrines filled with products, resembling the windows of an airplane, line one wall. The small terpene room feels like an airline lounge, and slow washes of color behind the cashier counter suggest a changing sky. That

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Members of the Warm Springs tribe will vote in April on . It comes after after tribal councilors passed a referendum, 4-2.

“In doing so, also legalize the possession and use because it would have the store on the reservation,” said Jim Souers, CEO of Warm Springs Economic Development.

In 2015, the Tribal Council passed a referendum to produce and process on the reservation and sell off the reservation to the dispensaries in Oregon, Souers said.

Now, they are ready to sell their product at home.

“We would also like to be able to sell the product through our own store on the reservation and that would provide us with a more vertically integrated business, makes the business more profitable. Therefore, we can give more dividends to the tribe and create some more employment for the community,” said Souers.

RELATED: Nearly 30 Oregon breweries, taprooms, cider makers closed in 2023

RELATED: Jefferson Co. Schools: Make-up days not a sure thing despite 5 days of closures

The community approved the production measure in 2015 by the largest margin in recent memory. The hope is the new referendum will pass with the same enthusiasm.

“I see it works on the outside and

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The City of Surrey may soon lose its status as one of a small handful of B.C. communities without legal cannabis stores.

The city is considering allowing up to 12 retail shops, with a maximum of two in each of its six communities, and is asking the public to weigh in on a proposed draft framework to guide location and selection criteria.

Surrey Coun. Doug Elford said the city has been closely monitoring the experiences other municipalities have had with legal pot shops, and hasn’t observed any major problems.

2:06 Report asks for cannabis shops in Surrey

“It’s not the devil’s lettuce as it used to be known,” he said.

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“The fact of the matter is many people still go to the black or the grey market, when they should be able to go to a regulated store with regulated cannabis where it is (quality controlled) and  you know you are getting product that’s not harmful.”

Elford said if the policy is approved, would-be retailers will be closely vetted, and will need to go through stringent provincial licensing protocols.

Get the latest

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Suspects smash and grab weed out of Detroit dispensaries

“There’s two dispensaries down there where you can buy. They’ll give it to you,” one unnamed witness told FOX 2.

DETROIT (FOX 2) – Detroit Police are searching for the people responsible for a series of smash-and-grabs at dispensaries in the city that have left many businesses with massive holes and marijuana plants visible.

The first marijuana smash-and-grab happened on Monday at Wyoming and Puritan where a black pickup truck backed into a building. A witness tells us that several people wearing masks got out and started removing barrels of marijuana.

That same day, Detroit Police say a truck drove into the back of a business on Schaefer near Eaton. They called it a case of breaking and entering – and also confirmed a hole in the front of a building on Hayes.

“There’s two dispensaries down there where you can buy. They’ll give it to you,” one unnamed witness told us.

Then on Wednesday morning, FOX 2 was at two different scenes – one on Joy near Whitcomb where there were huge holes in the walls and plants everywhere.

Ammar Awada lives nearby and

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A Senate panel chaired by a member of the state’s Medical Marijuana Oversight Committee shot down a bill Wednesday with far-reaching implications for cannabis patients.

Among nine bills that would adjust South Dakota’s medical cannabis laws this legislative session in Pierre, seven remain alive, including bills to hike the price of a dispensary license, allow police to search dispensaries and force prescribers to notify a patient’s primary care provider about their receipt of a card.

The now-scuttled Senate Bill 82 was the most concerning for cannabis advocates, according to Jeremiah Murphy, a lobbyist for the Cannabis Industry Association of South Dakota. 

It would have required citizens to get medical marijuana cards from their primary care provider, or through a referral from that provider, and defined what constitutes a primary care provider. Opponents argued it cleared a simpler path to criminal charges for doctors who prescribe marijuana.

Lobbyist Jeremiah Murphy testifies on a bill during a hearing Jan. 18, 2023, at the Capitol in Pierre. (Joshua Haiar/South Dakota Searchlight)

“Senate Bill 82 was absolutely the most critical threat out of what’s out there,” Murphy told South Dakota Searchlight after the bill’s 5-2 defeat in the Senate Health and

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