Cannabis Regulatory Update: Rhode Island, Minnesota, Colorado, Washington & Thailand

Rhode Island Senate & House Committees Send Cannabis Legalization Bill To Full Chambers

Rhode Island lawmakers gave the green light to a bill to decriminalize, regulate and tax adult recreational cannabis use, sending it to the full Senate and House for consideration. Both chambers scheduled a vote for Tuesday, reported WPRI.

The Senate Judiciary and House Finance committees advanced the measure that was revised to include the automatic expungement of past cannabis crimes.

The legislation, sponsored by Sen. Josh Miller and Rep. Scott Slater, also included a provision that delays the launch of adult-use cannabis sales until December.

"The amended bill is a collaborative effort to address concerns about protecting medical use, ensuring fair governance, and recognizing that we can't make this transition without taking action to make whole the communities and individuals who have been punished for decades under prohibition," Miller said.

GOP-Led Minnesota Senate Votes Against Motion To Take Up Marijuana Legalization Measure

Minnesotians will have to wait a bit longer to see marijuana legalized since lawmakers refused to bring the bill to the Senate floor for consideration.

The measure, authored by Senate Minority Leader Melisa López Franzen, DFL-Edina, was killed in a 31-33 procedural vote on Wednesday by the GOP-led chamber. It failed to move forward by ten votes, reported Duluth News Tribune.

A bill to legalize adult-use recreational marijuana was first approved in the state's House of Representatives with a 72-61 vote last year.

"Minnesotans want to have this conversation about legalization of cannabis and they want to see us move ahead," López Franzen said. "We all know that legalizing cannabis will have economic benefits, but just as importantly, we need to address the disparities in the criminal justice system around cannabis."

Colorado's New Task Force To Study Cannabis Delta-8 THC Products

A bill that authorizes the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) to curb sales of delta-8 THC products was approved by lawmakers in the Centennial State, reported Forbes.

The Senate bill (SB-205) also requires the Department of Revenue to set up a task force to study intoxicating hemp products and make legislative and rule recommendations.

The task force is expected to submit a report to the general assembly by January 1, 2023.

The group of 20 members would include representatives of several state agencies as well as stakeholders in industrial hemp and medical and retail marijuana.

The legislation was introduced in the Colorado legislature in April and is poised to ban any intoxicating cannabis product that isn't manufactured by a state-licensed cannabis business or sold at a licensed retail location.

Washington's Lawmakers Approve Creation Of Cannabis Safety Taskforce

The local Washington lawmakers intend to create a Cannabis Safety Taskforce to help prevent crime targeting marijuana businesses.

King County Council passed the legislation sponsored by King County Councilmembers Reagan Dunn and Jeanne Kohl-Welles on Tuesday, according to the King County's official website.

"A dedicated cannabis safety taskforce will be able to focus on keeping our local communities safe from the pattern of armed robberies targeting cannabis stores and manufacturers across the region," Dunn said in a statement. "This legislation sends a strong message that King County plans to hold those committing these crimes responsible for their actions."

The move comes on the heels of armed robberies at cannabis shops in both King and Pierce Counties.

Around 70 robberies have been recorded at marijuana retailers in Washington state year-to-date, as per the Washington Cannabusiness Association.

Move Forward Party Expresses Reservations About Cannabis Bill

The Move Forward Party (MFP), a social-democratic, progressive political party in Thailand, is worried that a cannabis and hemp bill pushed by the Bhumjaithai Party could prevent small farmers and households from making profits from the plants, reported Bangkok Post.

Taopiphop Limjittrakorn, a Move Forward MP for Bangkok, revealed during a forum discussion that the party supported people's right to cultivate cannabis at home.

"The Cannabis and Hemp Act should be a law for all people," Limjittrakorn said. "If civil society has another bill on the issue, we will table the proposal at a parliamentary meeting in the hope of delivering greater benefits for all sectors."

Organized at Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya Rajabhat University, the forum was hosted by Future of Thai Cannabis Network, a civic group.

In the meantime, Thailand's Ministry of Public Health announced last week that three types of cannabis oil had been deemed essential medicine.

The addition of cannabis oil to the country's National List of Essential Medicines, or NLEM, allows doctors from 893 government hospitals to prescribe cannabis extract oil to patients in selected circumstances.

Thailand became the first Southeast Asian country to legalize medical cannabis in 2018. This January, it became the first in Asia to allow marijuana.

Photo: Courtesy of Diyahna Lewis on Unsplash