Arkansas Court Battle Over Adult-Use Cannabis Legalization Continues
An anti-legalization group in Arkansas filed a motion with the state Supreme Court to stop a recreational cannabis initiative from getting on the ballot. The prohibitionist group, known as Safe and Secure Communities, says the initiative is illegal under state law. The group also called the adult-use legalization measure “fraudulent and misleading”. This is just the latest in the battle between Responsible Growth Arkansas – the activists that campaigned to get their measure on the ballot – and anti-legalization groups in the state that do not want to see adult-use cannabis laws pass.
FBI Says Its Employees and Contractors Can’t Use CBD
In a Q&A on Twitter last week, a spokesperson for an FBI field office in Denver said marijuana use is an “automatic disqualifier” from employment with the agency. This policy includes cannabinoids in any form, including CBD. The legality of CBD use has been the source of confusion for some time, even though hemp and hemp derivatives were federally legalized as part of the 2018 Farm Bill. But according to the FBI spokesperson, an individual must wait one full year from their last use of any form of cannabis or CBD to apply for employment with the bureau. This rule is a more lenient stance than the federal agency used to have on cannabis use, as they loosened their policy regarding cannabis consumption and employment last year. The original policy required that potential applicants wait at least three years from their last use of marijuana products before applying to the FBI.
Illinois Cannabis Businesses Look to Change Rules Regarding Ownership
Approximately 200 cannabis business operators in Illinois signed a petition regarding the state’s current rules on ownership. The petition asks state officials to change a current regulation that prevents recreational cannabis store owners with conditional licenses from selling any equity in their business until they are eligible to begin selling retail products to consumers. The business owners claim that this policy is a barrier to raising needed capital for their stores as they are unable to sell shares to investors. The Chicago chapter of NORML started the petition. The policy was originally created to prevent minority-owned businesses from selling their licenses to larger companies that were not minority-owned.
