Cannabis Regulatory Update: Colorado, Rhode Island, Pennsylvania, Delaware, South Dakota

Colorado Governor Signs New Law With Stricter Rules For Doctors Recommending Medical Cannabis 

Gov. Jared Polis has apparently decided to complicate things a bit for physicians who recommend medical cannabis to their patients. On Thursday, the governor signed HB 1317 into law, which imposes stricter rules and limitations regarding medical cannabis treatments.

One new requirement demands physicians provide specific cannabis dosing regimens for their patients, which, according to some legal experts, may put doctors in discord with federal law, writes NORML. No other states with medical cannabis programs have these requirements.

The new law also requires physicians to assess the “mental health history” of their patients. New patients, aged 18-20 seeking a first-time MMJ recommendation, must obtain a diagnosis from two physicians, each from a different medical practice.

HB 1317 also limits the amount of medical cannabis concentrates a patient can legally buy in one day. The limit is 8 grams for those 21 and older.

• Rhode Island Cannabis Workers Strike After Union Organizer Was Unjustly Fired 

United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 328, which represents 11,000 Rhode Island and Massachusetts workers, called a one-day strike on June 26 in support of unionized cannabis workers at the Greenleaf Compassionate Care Center. 

Workers were protesting the “illegal retaliatory firing" by CEO Seth Bock of an employee. The fired individual, a member of the workers' committee, was discussing the first union contract for employees, reported Cannabis Culture. 

Based on the report, Bock fired the employee without due process and without just cause, after which the workers at Greenleaf unanimously decided to strike. 

• Pennsylvania Senate Rejects Medical Cannabis Home Growing Amendment

Pennsylvania Senate on Friday rejected an amendment to a House-approved medical cannabis measure that would have enabled legal cannabis home cultivation for personal use by registered patients, reports Marijuana Moment. The members blocked the amendment in a 29-21 vote. 

Sen. Sharif Street came up with the proposal suggesting patients 21 and older should be allowed to cultivate up to five plants. Street told Marijuana Moment that he was “disappointed that Republican leadership voted to table my home cultivation amendment.”

Now, without the home-grow amendment, the measure heads of to the desk of Governor Tom Wolf as it was approved by the House later that evening. 

In spite of this disappointing event, Pennsylvania cannabis enthusiasts are still hopeful about the wider recreational-use proposals, writes the outlet. 

Currently, a bipartisan Senate duo is involved in writing the legislation to legalize cannabis across the state. Street and Sen. Dan Laughlin revealed some details, although the bill has not yet officially been presented. It should be introduced before the end of this session. 

• Delaware Cannabis Legalization Must Wait Until Next Year 

Cannabis legalization efforts in Delaware won’t see the fruits of their labor this year. The House bill's sponsor Rep. Edward Osienski said that he didn’t know his bill’s inclusion of a new social equity fund would need 75% of legislators in the chamber for its approval, reports Marijuana Moment.

Osienski tried to correct the issue with an amendment, but it was rejected by members of the Black Caucus. The measure was then expected to be placed on the calendar after lawmakers incorporated several changes, but that didn’t happen. With the session ending Wednesday, Olenski realized this was not the year to undertake this type of reform in Delaware, though he noted that 2022 would see a much better version of the bill. 

Olivia Naugle, the legislative analyst for Marijuana Policy Project, said the “momentum for legalization is stronger than ever, both nationwide and in the mid-Atlantic region,” but it’s “unfortunate that Delaware will get left behind this year.”

SD Supreme Court Won’t Decide If Recreational Cannabis Use Law Is Unconstitutional Until After July 1 

South Dakota's voters approved both recreational and medical cannabis legalization in the November 2020 elections. Several months later, Republican Gov. Kristi Noem’s office began litigation to invalidate the law as unconstitutional on a technicality. Circuit judge Christina Klinger ruled in favor of the Gov's litigation. 

Legalization sponsors, meanwhile, continue their fight. They turned to the South Dakota Supreme, which revealed it will not decide on the case until after July 1 – the date the law was meant to go into effect, writes NORML. 

NORML’s Deputy Director Paul Armentano criticized the circuit court’s ruling at that time, stating: “Legalization opponents cannot succeed in the court of public opinion or at the ballot box. Thus, they are now seeking to overturn election results after the fact. Whether or not one supports marijuana legalization, Americans should be outraged at these overtly undemocratic tactics.”

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