Oh Daddy! It’s not “Rumours” or one of your “Dreams” – although it may be “Second Hand News” to our most knowledgeable readers: A federal court in Washington recently upheld the state’s cannabis residency requirement for...more
As we turn the calendar to another year, and because we run a cannabis law blog, it seems fitting to write about year one of Mississippi’s medical cannabis program and to preview what 2023 may have in store as the program...more
In the gift-giving spirit of the season, the Mississippi Department of Health has dropped proposed additions and revisions to the agency’s regulations for medical cannabis cultivators, processors, testing facilities,...more
12/21/2022
/ Cannabis Products ,
Dispensaries ,
Marijuana ,
Marijuana Cultivation ,
Marijuana Related Businesses ,
Medical Marijuana ,
Proposed Regulation ,
Public Comment ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
State and Local Government
For decades, the federal government only allowed scientists to research marijuana grown on the campus of the University of Mississippi. While Mississippi-grown cannabis will continue to be the subject of federally sanctioned...more
“Progress, far from consisting in change, depends on retentiveness… Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.”
– George Santayana, The Life of Reason -
We originally aimed to quote Santana rather...more
Welcome to the third installment of the Editors’ Roundtable, in which our editors – Whitt Steineker, Jay Wright, Hunter Robinson, and Slates Veazey – discuss cannabis issues in the news and take a stab at where the cannabis...more
Yesterday, President Joe Biden made two historic announcements which he described as steps to “end” the federal government’s “failed approach” to marijuana. First, he is issuing mass pardons for federal convictions of simple...more
10/7/2022
/ Biden Administration ,
Cannabis Products ,
Decriminalization of Marijuana ,
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) ,
Deregulation ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Marijuana ,
Presidential Pardons ,
Presidential Proclamations ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Wrongful Conviction
Welcome to the second installment of the Editors’ Roundtable, in which our editors – Whitt Steineker, Jay Wright, Hunter Robinson, and Slates Veazey – discuss cannabis issues in the news and take a stab at where the cannabis...more
10/5/2022
/ Cannabis Products ,
Cannabis-Related Businesses (CRBs) ,
Dispensaries ,
Hemp Cultivation ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Marijuana ,
Marijuana Cultivation ,
Marijuana Related Businesses ,
Medical Marijuana ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
State and Local Government
The changes in the cannabis industry in Southeastern United States represent some of the most surprising and remarkable changes in the history of the industry...
Originally published by Bloomberg Law....more
9/15/2022
/ Alabama ,
Arkansas ,
Cannabis Products ,
Cannabis-Related Businesses (CRBs) ,
Decriminalization of Marijuana ,
Florida ,
Georgia ,
Louisiana ,
Marijuana ,
Marijuana Related Businesses ,
Medical Marijuana ,
North Carolina ,
Proposed Legislation ,
State and Local Government ,
State Legislatures ,
Tennessee
As we predicted back in April, disputes between medical cannabis businesses and counties or municipalities over local zoning ordinances and permits are starting to arise. Participants in Mississippi’s medical cannabis program...more
In late 2018, my esteemed partner, Whitt Steineker, recruited me to join the firm’s newly formed Cannabis Industry team. Around that time, groups in Mississippi were actively seeking signatures to get a ballot initiative in...more
May 4th celebrates Star Wars, and May 5th is Cinco de Mayo. While not as popular, May 3rd still likely means a lot of different things to a lot of different people. But, in Mississippi, in 2022, May 3rd was a date circled on...more
5/6/2022
/ Cannabis Products ,
Cannabis-Related Businesses (CRBs) ,
Deadlines ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Licenses ,
Local Ordinance ,
Marijuana ,
Marijuana Related Businesses ,
Medical Marijuana ,
Municipalities ,
Opt-Outs ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
State and Local Government ,
Zoning Laws
Attorney General Merrick Garland has reiterated that the Department of Justice will not prioritize prosecuting marijuana use, a position that Garland expressed during his confirmation hearings. In remarks in front of a Senate...more
5/3/2022
/ Attorney General ,
Cannabis-Related Businesses (CRBs) ,
Cole Memorandum ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Decriminalization of Marijuana ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Legalization ,
Marijuana ,
Marijuana Related Businesses ,
Medical Marijuana ,
SAFE Act ,
State and Local Government
What promises to be the first of a litany of legal interpretations of the new Mississippi Medical Cannabis Act (MMCA), Attorney General Lynn Fitch released an official attorney general’s opinion on April 15, 2022, regarding...more
4/25/2022
/ Amended Regulation ,
Business Operations ,
Cannabis Act ,
Cannabis-Related Businesses (CRBs) ,
Dispensaries ,
Marijuana ,
Marijuana Related Businesses ,
Medical Marijuana ,
Mixed-Use Zoning ,
Municipalities ,
Property Owners ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
State Attorneys General
On April 8, the Mississippi Department of Health (MSDH) used a Friday news dump to release good news on the Mississippi medical cannabis front. We now have a clearer and fuller picture of how the state will regulate testing...more
4/14/2022
/ Advertising ,
Applications ,
Cannabis Products ,
Cannabis-Related Businesses (CRBs) ,
Comment Period ,
Decriminalization of Marijuana ,
Dispensaries ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Marijuana ,
Marijuana Related Businesses ,
Marketing ,
Medical Marijuana ,
Proposed Regulation ,
State and Local Government ,
Testing Requirements ,
Work Permits
As the world turns in the new and exciting world of legal medical cannabis in Mississippi, momentum and progress coexist alongside impediments.
The Good -
Yesterday, the Mississippi Department of Health made two...more
4/7/2022
/ Cannabis Products ,
Cannabis-Related Businesses (CRBs) ,
Governor Reeves ,
Legalization ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Marijuana ,
Marijuana Related Businesses ,
Medical Marijuana ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
State and Local Government ,
State Legislatures
When you do what we do, you get a lot of calls and a lot of questions. Many of the calls and questions are not fruitful. Quite honestly, some of the calls are from folks whose interest in and experience with cannabis is, we...more
Gov. Tate Reeves signed the Mississippi Medical Cannabis Act into law yesterday, making Mississippi the 37th state to adopt a medical marijuana program. The 445-page law is dense, and we previously summarized its...more
Despite leadership of both chambers of the Mississippi legislature agreeing on the text of a bill for a Mississippi medical marijuana program a few months back, Governor Tate Reeves did not call a special session before the...more
Earlier this week, leadership from both chambers of the Mississippi Legislature agreed to a draft bill for a Mississippi medical marijuana program. Lawmakers have asked Gov. Tate Reeves to call them into special session on...more
10/1/2021
/ Cannabis Act ,
Cannabis-Related Businesses (CRBs) ,
Governor Reeves ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Marijuana ,
Marijuana Related Businesses ,
Medical Marijuana ,
New Legislation ,
Proposed Legislation ,
State and Local Government ,
State Legislatures
The Mississippi Medical Marijuana program will not go forward – at least not at this time. On Friday, the Mississippi Supreme Court handed down its decision in the City of Madison’s challenge to Initiative 65, Mary Hawkins...more
Earlier this week, the Mississippi Department of Health (MSDH) published a second set of proposed rules and regulations, which include Subpart 3 (Advertising and Marketing) and Subpart 4 (Tracking and Labeling). The MSDH...more
Yesterday, the Mississippi Supreme Court held oral argument in the City of Madison’s challenge to Initiative 65, Mary Hawkins Butler v. Michael Watson, 2020-IA-01199-SCT. Madison Mayor Mary Hawkins Butler asked the court to...more
Over the last month, the Mississippi Department of Health (MSDH) has been working to meet the July 1, 2021, deadline that Initiative 65 imposed on the MSDH to publish its final rules and regulations governing Mississippi’s...more