A newly proposed piece of Florida legislation, HB 1053, aims to triple the required “buffer” distance between schools and medical marijuana treatment centers that cultivate, process, or dispense medical cannabis....more
2/8/2024
/ Agribusiness ,
Commercial Real Estate Contracts ,
Dispensaries ,
Educational Institutions ,
Florida ,
Healthcare ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Marijuana ,
Marijuana Related Businesses ,
Medical Marijuana ,
Patient Access ,
Property Owners ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Retailers ,
State and Local Government ,
Zoning Maps
The long-awaited expansion of Florida’s medical cannabis industry appears to finally be in the works, with a potential major expansion of licenses on the horizon. Florida health regulators announced that the state is...more
The government’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in federal assistance to numerous industries and individual taxpayers, but notably has left the state legalized marijuana industry out in the cold....more
5/31/2020
/ Agribusiness ,
Assignment of Benefits (AOB) ,
Bankruptcy Plans ,
Cannabis-Related Businesses (CRBs) ,
Chapter 7 ,
Commercial Bankruptcy ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Financial Distress ,
Hemp Related Businesses ,
Marijuana Related Businesses ,
Receivership
On April 24, President Trump signed into law the Paycheck Protection Program and Health Care Enhancement Act (the “Act”). The Act allocates an additional $484 billion to replenish the Paycheck Protection Program (“PPP”) and...more
As noted in our prior publication, on April 16, 2020, the Small Business Administration (“SBA”) announced that it would no longer be accepting new applications for the Emergency Injury Disaster Loan Program (“EIDLP”) or the...more
4/22/2020
/ Agribusiness ,
Cannabis-Related Businesses (CRBs) ,
CARES Act ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Dispensaries ,
Federal Loans ,
Financial Stimulus ,
Hemp Related Businesses ,
Marijuana Related Businesses ,
Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) ,
Relief Measures ,
SBA ,
SBA Lending Programs ,
Small Business
Since the effective date of the 2018 Farm Bill, banking and the inability to acquire financing have been major impediments for the hemp industry. While demand for hemp continues to grow, banking regulations have still been...more
12/5/2019
/ Agribusiness ,
Banks ,
Cannabis Products ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Controlled Substances ,
Controlled Substances Act ,
Debit and Credit Card Transactions ,
Decriminalization of Marijuana ,
Deregulation ,
Farm Bill ,
Financial Regulatory Reform ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Hemp ,
Interstate Commerce ,
Marijuana ,
Marijuana Cultivation ,
Marijuana Related Businesses ,
New Guidance ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Small Business Loans ,
Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs)
On June 25, 2019, Gov. Ron DeSantis signed Senate Bill 1020 (“SB 1020”) which creates an industrial hemp program in Florida and regulates the statewide cultivation and sale of hemp products. Since the 2018 Farm Bill’s removal...more
The battle over whether medical marijuana can be smoked by qualified patients came to an end on March 18th, 2019, when Governor DeSantis signed SB 182 into law. ...more
It may be hard to believe, but it’s been 22 years since California became the first state to permit the legal use of medical marijuana. In the years since, it has been impossible to ignore the changing tide of public opinion...more
The recent Tax Court decision, Alterman v. Commissioner, struck yet another tax blow against the growing medical marijuana industry.
...more
6/18/2018
/ Business Expenses ,
Business Taxes ,
Dispensaries ,
IRS ,
Marijuana ,
Marijuana Related Businesses ,
Medical Marijuana ,
Tax Court ,
Tax Deductions ,
Tax Liability ,
Tax Penalties ,
Tax Planning
On January 4, 2018, U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions issued a memorandum (the “Sessions Memo”) on marijuana enforcement which rescinded the existing Obama-era Cole Memorandum....more
1/9/2018
/ Cole Memorandum ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Decriminalization of Marijuana ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Dispensaries ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Marijuana ,
Marijuana Related Businesses ,
Medical Marijuana ,
State and Local Government ,
Trump Administration
Though over 71% of Florida voters in 2016 approved Amendment 2 to allow medical marijuana, the numbers were higher in Orange County. Over 73% of Orange County voters said yes to Amendment 2, and that support was reflected in...more
The Department of Health (“DOH”) has issued only seven medical marijuana dispensing organization licenses, and based on draft rules proposed this week, that number may not change. ...more
By an overwhelming 71% of voters saying “yes” to Amendment 2 on Election Day, Floridians successfully made Florida the first Southern state to legalize medical marijuana....more