The state of Utah may not rank high on the list of states likely to legalize cannabis anytime in the near future, but state legislators have at least been talking about it. Currently, medical marijuana is legal only to treat cases of severe epilepsy.

Republican Party leaders in the solidly red state said last Friday that the legislature will not move forward this session with legislation to set rules and eligibility requirements for medical marijuana use. The legislators did say they would proceed with bills that allow for research and that would create a structure for the eventual production and distribution of medical marijuana.

The irony, of course, is that under federal law marijuana remains a Schedule I drug and, therefore, medical studies of cannabis are nearly impossible to undertake. A group of marijuana proponents called “Together for Responsible Use and Cannabis Education” (TRUST) has been formed to push an initiative for the 2018 ballot. TRUST founder Christine Stenquist said:

The Legislature only wants to do a regulatory framework and taxpayer-funded research that is unnecessary and duplicative. This path forward continues the victimization of patients in Utah.

The state legislature would be on the hook for providing funding for additional research, and one legislator said that would be a “tough sell in this tight budget year.”

 

Marijuana Survey Finds Medical Users More Likely to Consume Edibles and Vaporize
People who use marijuana for medical purposes are much more likely to vaporize or consume edible forms of the drug than recreational users, according to a new RAND Corporation study.

The study, which surveyed people from four western states that have legalized medical marijuana, also found that those who use marijuana for medicinal purposes are more likely to report daily or near-daily use and consume more as measured by grams per day.

In addition, those who only use marijuana for medicinal purposes do not report use of marijuana concurrently with alcohol, while those who report using recreationally consume marijuana with alcohol on nearly one in five occasions.

Findings regarding the simultaneous use of alcohol and marijuana is important because past research shows such activity is more likely to result in health harm, including accidents.

The study, found that 41% of people reported having used marijuana recreationally at least once in their lifetime, while only about 7% of those surveyed reported using marijuana for medical purposes.

Read more at Knowridge Science Report.

OR Rec Cannabis Sales Keep Falling Amid Supply, Regulatory Issues
Oregon’s embattled recreational marijuana industry posted its second straight monthly sales drop in December, hit by a supply shortage and problems related to product testing.

Despite strong consumer demand, data from the Oregon Department of Revenue showed tax collections totaled $5.6 million last month, down 13% from November and a 28% dip from a high of $7.8 million in October, according to the Statesman Journal.

For all of 2016, however, tax collections totaled $60 million – well above the $43 million that state officials anticipated, the Statesman Journal reported.

Read more at Marijuana Business Daily.

Marijuana and Labor Shortages Are Giving the Wine Industry a Headache
The U.S. wine industry is poised for another banner year in 2017. Sales are projected to rise by as much as 6% and the total harvest in California—by far the largest wine-producing state—should climb 7% to nearly 4 million tons crushed. The coveted millennial generation is increasingly paying more attention to wines.

Those trends all imply that the wine industry is crushing it. Higher sales, mostly fueled by “premium” priced wines at $9 or higher, bode well for big producers like E&J Gallo Winery, The Wine Group and Constellation Brands.

But wine producers are increasingly focused on two lingering concerns that they worry can be problematic headwinds: Labor shortages during the harvest season and the threat of legalized marijuana as an alternative to wines. “Farm labor supply and costs will be the dominant concerns in the wine business in 2017,” says Rob McMillan, who authored Silicon Valley Bank’s annual “State of the Wine Industry” report.

Read more at Fortune.

Marijuana to Be Legal in Maine on Monday
As of Monday, Maine will become the eighth state (plus Washington, D.C.) where it is legal for adults over the age of 21 to possess and consume marijuana for recreational purposes. It is not yet legal to purchase cannabis in the Pine Tree State, and it is unknown as to when this system will be in place.

In lieu of purchasing, a person will be permitted to grow up to six plants. It will not be legal to smoke in public nor will it be legal to drive under the influence of marijuana.

Read more at Townhall.

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