Hi all,

Wild week. Let’s get to it.

Alex

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Assuming it goes through, this week’s news that the Biden administration plans to move marijuana to Schedule III is the biggest pot policy news since President Nixon launched the war on drugs in the early 1970s, and made marijuana Schedule I. Just over 10 years since the first state REC market opened in Colorado, the federal government is recognizing that the plant has medical value. Beyond the symbolism, however…

Read the story…

Federal:

• In a leaked recording, New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham (D) criticized the U.S. Department of Homeland Security for recent seizures of licensed product.
  Politico
• The U.S. Supreme Court will hear a case involving a truck driver who lost his job after consuming a CBD product that claimed to be THC free.
  AP

Business:

• MSO Schwazze settled a wage-theft lawsuit for $525,000 with budtenders in New Mexico. A similar case is pending in its home state of Colorado.
  Green Market Report

State and local:

• Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis(R) said he would get involved in efforts to defeat Florida’s November REC ballot initiative.
  Marijuana Moment
• Legal delivery is gaining traction in New York City.
  NY Cannabis Insider
• Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp signed a hemp bill.
  Capitol Beat (GA)
• GreenState found the best-selling brands in Arizona.

Health and science:

• Another study found that legalization doesn’t increase teen cannabis use.
  Journal of the American Medical Association

State:

• Gov. Gavin Newsom asked the Department of Public Health and the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control to issue notices to ensure youth can’t access intoxicating hemp products.

Business:

• Greenlife Business Group put out word that High Times is in receivership and assets for sale include a portfolio of seven California dispensaries.

Local:

• In Stanislaus Co. (Modesto) observers suspect unlicensed product is reaching dispensary shelves.
  Modesto Bee
• Following a state audit, Santa Barbara Co. announced plans to make its licensing system fairer.
  Noozhawk
• Meghan Markle denied a report that she shot a scene for her tv show at a Santa Barbara Co. farm.
  Page Six
• The mayor of San Diego proposed cutting the city’s nascent equity program.
  NBC
• Monterrey Co. is putting consumption lounges on the back burner.
  Monterey Herald

Company milestones:

• Punch Edibles and Extracts said it would acquire savory edibles brand Tempo Crackers.
  Benzinga
• A group called The Cannabis Trail formed partnerships with tourism offices in Oakland and Mendocino and Humboldt counties.

Job moves:

• “Cannabev fanatic” Paulo Lacerda Sobral joined the co-pack center at Sierra Nevada Brewing as a business development manager.
• Consultant Michael Bostarr joined retailer Catalyst full-time as VP strategy and implementation.

Reflection:

• HappyDay Farms’ Casey O’Neill writes that a farm is like a jigsaw puzzle.