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In France, parliament members enter next phase of “fact-finding mission” on cannabis.
For the past year, dozens of members of parliament in France’s National Assembly have been on what they call a “fact-finding mission” about cannabis. Until recently, that mission has been focused on medical cannabis, but, now, the group has turned its attention to “recreational cannabis.”
The group released a questionnaire this week in an effort “to better understand the perception of cannabis” among the population and “their vision of the future of public policies in this area.” The questionnaire will be open until the end of February.
California regulators push toward “greater access to financial services” for the cannabis industry.
In September, as Cannabis Wire reported, several cannabis bills were signed by California Governor Gavin Newsom. Among them was Assembly Bill 1525, which, as Newsom wrote at the time, “affirmatively protects certain entities providing financial services to the legal cannabis industry … This bill has the potential to increase the provision of financial services to the legal cannabis industry, and for that reason, I support it.”
This week, regulations to implement this bill have been published (read them here). And, as the regulations come with a proposal for “emergency action,” they are likely to quickly go into effect.
In an email sent to stakeholders, the California Department of Food and Agriculture wrote:
“The proposed regulations create a pathway for licensees to authorize sharing of non-public information with selected financial institutions and provide a mechanism for financial institutions to more readily conduct the federally required reviews of the cannabis business. By reducing the burden of providing financial services to cannabis businesses, more financial institutions may be willing to provide services, thereby reducing the need to keep cash on hand and improving public safety.”
New Mexico governor says cannabis is a priority.
Just as she did in January 2020, New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham included cannabis in her “priorities for the session” ahead of the legislature’s first day on January 19.
As Cannabis Wire reported last January, Grisham called for cannabis legalization during her State of the State address. But even before COVID-19 hit, lawmaker opposition halted the effort.
Now, cannabis is on Grisham’s agenda again. On cannabis, her list of priorities reads:
“Establish an essential new revenue source for the state and employment source for tens of thousands of New Mexicans: Legalizing adult-use recreational cannabis through legislation that protects the state’s medical cannabis program, provides for workplace safety and roadway protections and enforcement and clear labeling of products.”
Colorado: while sales fell after mid-year, a record has been set.
Cannabis sales in the state between January and November exceeded $2 billion. Even though December data has yet to be released, the record for highest annual cannabis sales in the state was $1.75 million in 2019.
While cannabis sales steadily fell in the second half of the year, they hit an unprecedented high in the summer.
