Oklahoma activists on Thursday filed a pair of 2022 ballot initiatives to legalize adult-use marijuana and remodel the state’s existing medical cannabis program.

The measures were formally turned in to the secretary of state’s office, a key step that sets the stage for signature gathering to qualify the proposed constitutional amendments.

Oklahomans for Responsible Cannabis Action (ORCA) announced late last month that it was close to finalizing the language of the initiatives after soliciting feedback from a wide range of advocates and stakeholders.

Jed Green, director of ORCA, said in a press release that the initiatives are meant to fix issues that have emerged in the state’s medical cannabis program while also providing a new industry opportunity with adult-use legalization. He said they will “offer Oklahomans the opportunity to keep the success and clean up the mess.â€?

Under the recreational legalization proposal, adults 21 and older would be able to possess up to eight ounces of marijuana that they purchase from retailers, as well as whatever cannabis they yield from growing up to 12 plants for personal use.

Marijuana sales would be subject to a 15 percent excise tax, and the initiative outlines a number of programs that would receive partial revenue from those taxes. The money would first cover implementation costs and then would be divided to support water-related infrastructure, people with disabilities, substance misuse treatment, law enforcement training, cannabis research and more.

The measure also lays out pathways for resentencing and expungements for those with marijuana convictions.

Oklahoma voters approved medical cannabis legalization at the ballot in 2018. Unlike many state medical marijuana programs, it does not require patients have any specific qualifying conditions; doctors can recommend cannabis for any condition they see fit.

But while the new initiatives would appear separately on the ballot if they qualify, activists view them as complementary.

The second new measure would establish the Oklahoma State Cannabis Commission (OSCC) to oversee all areas of the medical marijuana system. It temporarily maintain a seven percent excise tax on medical cannabis sales, with revenue supporting marijuana research, rural impact and urban waste remediation, agriculture development, mental health response programs, substance misuse treatment and more.

At the same time, the adult-use initiative calls for a gradual decrease of medical marijuana tax, which would reach zero percent within one year of its enactment. Also, within 60 days of enactment, the state’s existing medical cannabis dispensaries would be permitted to sell to the recreational market.

Oklahoma activists had previously attempted to qualify a legalization measure for the 2020 ballot. They filed a petition to legalize cannabis for adult use in December 2019, but signature gathering fell short due in part to procedural delays and the coronavirus pandemic.

Both of the newly finalized initiatives would be constitutional amendments, meaning activists will need to collect at least 177,958 valid signatures from registered voters on each to qualify them for the ballot.

Oklahoma is one of a growing number of states where activists are working to place drug policy reform before voters next year.

Nebraska marijuana activists have begun petitioning for a pair of complementary initiatives to legalize medical cannabis that they hope to place on the state’s 2022 ballot.

Ohio activists have cleared a final hurdle to begin collecting signatures for a 2022 ballot initiative to legalize marijuana in the state.

Florida activists recently filed a ballot measure to legalize marijuana for adult use.

South Dakota marijuana activists are now ramping up for a signature gathering effort to put marijuana legalization on the 2022 ballot as the state Supreme Court continues to consider a case on the fate of the legal cannabis measure that voters approved last year.

New Hampshire lawmakers are pursuing a new strategy to legalize marijuana in the state that involves putting a proposed constitutional amendment on the ballot for voters to decide on in 2022.

Lawmakers in Maryland are also crafting legislation to place a marijuana legalization referendum on the 2022 ballot after the House speaker called for the move.

Missouri voters may see a multiple marijuana initiatives on the state’s ballot next year, with a new group filing an adult-use legalization proposal that could compete with separate reform measures that are already in the works.

Arkansas advocates are collecting signatures to place adult-use marijuana legalization on the ballot.

Activists in Idaho are working to advance separate measures to legalize possession of recreational marijuana and to create a system of legal medical cannabis sales. State officials recently cleared activists to begin collecting signatures for a revised initiative to legalize possession of marijuana that they hope to place before voters on the 2022 ballot. Meanwhile, a separate campaign to legalize medical cannabis in the state is also underway, with advocates actively collecting signatures to qualify that measure for next year’s ballot.

After a House-passed bill to legalize marijuana in North Dakota was rejected by the Senate in March, some senators hatched a plan to advance the issue by referring it to voters on the 2022 ballot. While their resolution advanced through a key committee, the full Senate blocked it. However, activists with the group North Dakota Cannabis Caucus are collecting signatures to qualify a constitutional amendment to legalize cannabis for the 2022 ballot.

Wyoming’s attorney general recently issued ballot summaries for proposed initiatives to legalize medical marijuana and decriminalize cannabis possession, freeing up activists to collect signatures to qualify for the 2022 ballot.

And it’s not just marijuana measures that reform activists are seeking to qualify for state ballots next year. A California campaign was recently cleared to begin collecting signatures for an initiative to legalize psilocybin. And advocates in Washington State have announced plans to put a proposal to decriminalize all drug before voters.

Meanwhile, voters in more than a dozen Ohio municipalities will decide on ballot measures to decriminalize marijuana next month.

California Governor Signs Bill Legalizing Smokable Hemp And Sale Of CBD-Infused Foods And Drinks

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California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) on Wednesday signed a bill that stands to dramatically expand the state’s hemp industry by legalizing retail sales of a wide range of consumable products derived from the plant.

Until now, the lack of explicit regulations has inhibited the hemp market, stakeholders say. The governor’s signing of AB 45 means that non-intoxicating cannabinoids, including CBD, can be sold as dietary supplements and as ingredients in food and beverages.

The bill lays the groundwork for the sale of smokable hemp in California, but lawmakers must first pass a measure to establish a tax scheme for those products before they can be marketed. Stakeholders say they will be working closely with the legislature to advance a tax measure during next year’s session. In the meantime, hemp producers can immediately begin growing and manufacturing smokable products to be sold in other states.

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The now-signed legislation contains various requirements for testing and labeling of hemp products. It additionally lays out rules for selling items with hemp-derived cannabinoids in California that are produced in other states.

The California Department of Public Health will now get to work crafting rules to implement the legislation, which also allows cannabinoid-infused cosmetics and pet foods to be sold.

Assemblywoman Cecilia Aguiar-Curry (D), sponsor of the bill, told the U.S. Hemp Roundtable in a recent interview that she was motivated to bring about the reform proposal after seeing hemp products being sold across the state and realizing that there was a lack of regulations to ensure consumer safety.

“I knew that there was a need, and I knew that we needed to make sure that [hemp products were] safe and have been tested and had good labeling,” she said. The lawmaker stressed that there’s more work to be done to further refine the law, but this is a critical step in the right direction.

Lindsay Robinson, executive director of the California Cannabis Industry Association, cheered the bill’s enactment.

“We cannot thank the author enough for her tireless and unparalleled work to get comprehensive hemp regulations passed,” she said in a press release. “Assemblymember Aguiar-Curry has been steadfast in her approach to create a level playing field between cannabis and hemp while protecting the health and safety of all Californians.â€?

Members of the group “look forward to working with the author on future legislation to establish a pathway for the incorporation of hemp into the cannabis supply chain,” Robinson added.

Newsom’s signing comes weeks after he approved separate legislation to require hospitals to permit medical marijuana use by certain patients in their facilities.

Separately, a California bill that passed the Senate and several Assembly committees to legalize possession of a wide range of psychedelics such as psilocybin and ayahuasca has stalled following a decision by the sponsor that more time is needed to build the case for the reform and solidify its chances of being enacted.

That said, California activists have recently been cleared to begin collecting signatures for a 2022 ballot initiative to legalize psilocybin mushrooms in the state.

Federal Financial Regulator Urges Congress To Act On Marijuana Banking Ahead Of Inevitable Legalization (Op-Ed)

Photo by Kimzy Nanney.

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“Most experts agree the ultimate legalization of marijuana at the federal level is a foregone conclusion—at this point it’s a matter of when, not if. Taking action to clarify banking rules for the legal cannabis industry now, rather than standing by while states construct an ad hoc system of conflicting banking rules, will go a long way toward easing that transition.”

By Rodney E. Hood, National Credit Union Administration

The evolution of a legal marijuana industry over the last decade is among the most striking social and cultural changes in recent memory. After decades of prohibition, today 36 states have legalized marijuana use for medical purposes, with 18 states permitting recreational use for adults. BDSA, a leading industry research firm, reports that in 2020 legal cannabis sales in the United States topped $17.5 billion, a 46 percent increase over the previous year.

Yet at the same time, many marijuana-related businesses (MRB) and their employees lack access to financial services, owing to the fact that the federal government has not acted to update banking laws to accommodate this burgeoning industry. As a result, many MRBs are unable to secure commercial loans on reasonable terms or access electronic payment systems, which forces them to conduct transactions on a cash basis. This untenable situation is creating confusion and uncertainty while stymieing the industry’s growth.

Many people are surprised to learn that credit union and bank financial services providers can do business with the marijuana industry, so long as they observe anti-money laundering laws under the Bank Secrecy Act, practice due diligence and meet other basic requirements. Furthermore, the Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FINCEN) published guidance on marijuana businesses to help guide financial institutions that seek to conduct business with state licensed MRBs.

Unfortunately, that guidance tends to be vague and fragmentary, as well as outdated (the FINCEN guidance was issued in 2014). As a result, financial institutions, wary of potential risks, have been hesitant to step into the breach and start working with MRBs. As of December 2020, only 515 U.S. banks and 169 credit unions were providing banking services to MRBs, according to FINCEN.

To put that into clearer context: the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA), where I serve as a Board Member, provides regulatory oversight of more than 5,000 federally insured credit unions. The fact that only 169 of those—less than 3 percent—are comfortable working with legal cannabis enterprises suggests a serious market failure.

The fault does not lie with the financial services providers. Many industry leaders tell me they would like to work with MRBs, but they’re hesitant owing to the uncertainty and stigma surrounding the industry in the absence of federal action.

Until Congressional action happens, we can take some regulatory steps to help things along at the federal level. As a member of the NCUA Board, I have formally requested the establishment of a working group under the auspices of the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council (FFIEC), the interagency body that develops uniform principles and standards for federal financial institution examinations. This will create an accountable governmental entity that can focus on developing a preliminary regulatory framework we can share with other regulators and members of Congress who share our concern about addressing these problems.

Meanwhile, I encourage financial industry leaders who care about this issue to make their voices heard.

Regularizing and harmonizing federal law and regulations to expand access to the banking system for MRBs is a necessary step. To be sure, there are other regulatory issues that will need to be resolved at the federal level related to consumer protection, environmental implications and other areas. Those issues will require additional work from lawmakers and regulators in those areas.

In fact, compared to some of these issues, addressing the financial side should be relatively straightforward. At the most fundamental level, if we can create the legal and regulatory structure that gives MRBs the ability to make deposits; access options for commercial lending at competitive market rates (as other legitimate businesses enjoy); and secure access to electronic payment processing so they can reduce reliance on cash transactions, we’ll have addressed several of the most pressing problems.

Most experts agree the ultimate legalization of marijuana at the federal level is a foregone conclusion—at this point it’s a matter of when, not if. Taking action to clarify banking rules for the legal cannabis industry now, rather than standing by while states construct an ad hoc system of conflicting banking rules, will go a long way toward easing that transition.

Rodney E. Hood serves on the Board of the National Credit Union Administration, and is the agency’s former chairman.

NBA Won’t Randomly Drug Test Players For Marijuana For Another Season, League Announces

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