Cannabis Regulatory Update: Delaware Bill Allowing Medical Marijuana Patients To Own Guns Heads To Senate, Scott Wiener's Bill To Stop Cities From Banning Cannabis Gets Green Light & More

Delaware Bill To Allow Medical Marijuana Patients To Own Guns Heads To Senate Floor

Delaware lawmakers are poised to weigh in on a bill that would allow patients registered in the state’s medical marijuana program to possess the firearm, reported Milford LIVE.

House Bill 276, sponsored by Rep. Jeff Spiegelman, R-Clayton, was approved by the House members on June 14. On Wednesday, the Senate Health and Social Services Committee passed it in a 6-0 vote. The measure is now heading to the Senate floor.

“If you legally own a firearm and you go and pick up your medication, as soon as you are in possession of your medication … it is deemed illegal possession of a firearm,” Spiegelman said. “If I were to go on medical marijuana, my wife would have to change the codes on all of our safes, or she is guilty of providing access to me and my firearms, as a prohibited person.”

Scott Wiener's Bill To Stop Cities From Banning Medical Marijuana Advances Through California Legislature

Lawmakers from a California Assembly committee approved a bill that restores voter-created access to medicinal cannabis by requiring cities to provide patients access to purchase medicinal cannabis via delivery.

State Sen. Scott Wiener’s (D-San Francisco) Senate Bill 1186, passed by the Assembly Business and Professions Committee in a vote of 13-2, is now before the Assembly Judiciary Committee.

“Cannabis is a critically important and even life-saving medicine,” Wiener said in a press release. “SB 1186 restores medical cannabis access across the state to help people get the medicine they need.”

Sponsored by the California Cannabis Industry Association and supported by California NORML, the bill restores access to medical cannabis for those who have cancer, HIV/AIDS, chronic pain, arthritis, neurodegenerative disorders and numerous other illnesses.

The bill does not in any way change cities’ ability to limit or ban sales of adult use of cannabis. It only prevents jurisdictions from prohibiting medicinal cannabis delivery.

Cannabis Advocates ‘Beg’ Nebraskans To Sign Petition To Legalize Medical Marijuana

A campaign to put a medical cannabis proposal on the Nebraska ballot later this year has been desperate for funding for months now as a summer deadline to submit a petition to the state approaches. 

State Sen. Anna Wishart of Lincoln, a co-chair of the initiative, said at a press conference the petition drive has collected about 60,000 signatures for each of its two initiatives, out of about 87,000 valid signatures needed, reported the Nebraska Examiner.

With a July 7 deadline just around the corner, the marijuana advocates are now imploring Nebraskans to submit signatures to qualify for the ballot.

“Do it for the suffering people in this state who are pleading with you,” Crista Eggers, the organizer behind the petition drive for Nebraskans for Medical Marijuana, said. “This will fail if you don’t step up. We are begging you.”

Kentucky Medical Cannabis Advisory Committee Holds First Meeting

The legislative session ended in Kentucky leaving the state among the 13 where marijuana remains completely illegal. Yet Gov. Andy Beshear’s (D) recent moves signal the sentiment around marijuana legalization in the Bluegrass State might be changing.

On Monday, the Team Kentucky Medical Cannabis Advisory Committee held its first meeting to talk over its responsibilities, and two town hall meetings are scheduled for July 6, in Pikeville and July 19 at the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet in Frankfort, reported Spectrum News.

Beshear issued an executive order last week to appoint 17 experts to the panel that would examine public opinion statewide on the issue of medical cannabis legislation.

“Townhall meetings will be open to the public for discussion and feedback from residents, local leaders, health care providers, and advocacy groups,” said the notice.

The committee is directed to advise the governor on providing access to medical cannabis for Kentuckians who deal with a myriad of medical conditions.

"This is not about partisan politics," Kerry Harvey, secretary of the Justice and Public Safety Cabinet, said. "This again, quite simply put, is about finding information that will assist our governor in making decisions that might lead to the alleviation of a lot of pain and suffering on the part of our fellow citizens."

Pennsylvania Cannabis Banking Bill Clears House Committee

Pennsylvania lawmakers green-lighted a Senate-passed bill to protect banks and insurers against being penalized by state regulators for working with state-legal medical cannabis businesses on Wednesday, reported Marijuana Moment.

The House Commerce Committee passed the measure from Sens. John DiSanto (R) and Sharif Street (D), with two amendments, in a 22-1 vote.

The amendments, both filed by chairman Brad Roae (R), would ensure that banking protections only apply to state-legal medical marijuana businesses and replace a specific mention of the federal Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) with a broader reference to a “federal financial regulatory agency.”

Minority Chairman John Galloway (D) said that some additional amendments may be on the horizon.

“But we’ve got to move this bill along,” he said. “We’re running out of time, and it’s a good bill. So I’m going to support it and look forward to working this bill over the finish line.”

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