Tag: North Carolina

North Dakota voters could see a “consumer-friendly, yet highly regulated” recreational cannabis legalization proposal on their November ballots. Only limited business opportunities would be available if the ballot initiative campaign that submitted initial paperwork to the secretary of state on Tuesday is successful, according to the North Dakota Monitor. If the petition is approved for circulation, organizers would need to collect 16,000 valid signatures by July 8 to qualify for the ballot. State voters rejected adult-use legalization in 2022 by a margin… Read more.

A potential showdown between law enforcement and a Native American tribe is brewing in North Carolina, where a district attorney has vowed “to enforce state law” once the state’s first cannabis dispensary opens later this month. The grand opening of the Great Smoky Cannabis Co., operated by the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians (ECBI) on their 57,000-acre Qualla Boundary west of Asheville, is scheduled for April 20. It will be the first and only dispensary in North Carolina, where neither… Read more.

North Carolina – one of the few remaining states in the U.S. that has yet to legalize medical or recreational marijuana – is about to get an operational weed store anyway, courtesy of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians. The Native American tribe plans to launch recreational cannabis sales on its reservation, near the Great Smoky Mountains National Park and the Harrah’s Cherokee Casino Resort, on the cannabis holiday of April 20, The Charlotte Observer reported. “Across the country, it’s the… Read more.

House lawmakers in North Carolina last week unanimously passed a bill to regulate hemp-derived consumables and kratom. The measure would require businesses to get licenses to sell the products, includes testing provisions, and prohibits sales to anyone under 18 years old. Eric Stahl, of The Burnt Pot Cannabis Café and Modern Apothecia, told WNCN that the law “is a perfect example” of the Legislature “trying to work on behalf of small business to create a platform” that allows current hemp industry operators to continue… Read more.

Citizens of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians (EBCI) on Thursday voted to legalize cannabis, WSOC-TV reports. The vote was 2,464-1,057, according to the unofficial poll results.   EBCI is the only territory in North Carolina where cannabis is legal. In July, North Carolina House Speaker Tim Moore (R) said that the medical cannabis legalization bill being considered by lawmakers was likely dead for the session and the proposal has not gotten any additional movement in the legislature.  Workers near Cherokee told WSOC-TV that they have been… Read more.

A Republican North Carolina senator is making it clear that he intends to see his medical marijuana legalization bill pass this session despite some obstinance among GOP leadership in the House—and he’s even gone so far as to include medical cannabis regulatory appointments for the yet-to-be-enacted program in a new measure that passed the Senate last week. But Sen. Bill Rabon’s (R) recent acts of defiance—including attaching an amendment to an unrelated House bill that makes its effective date contingent on his… Read more.

A bill proposed in North Carolina would legalize cannabis for adult use and expunge prior cannabis-related convictions, WSOC-TV reports. The measure includes a 20% excise tax on cannabis sales and allows municipalities to enact an additional 3% tax.  Funds derived from cannabis sales would be split into new and existing programs, including: 25% to a Community Reinvestment and Repair Fund created by the bill; 10% to a Social Equity Fund created by the bill; 3% to a Cannabis Education and Technical Assistance Fund created… Read more.

Oklahoma voters rejected a ballot initiative to legalize cannabis for adult use during a special election this month by a margin of 62 percent, surprising many advocates who saw the popularity of the state’s medical market as a promising sign for adult-use expansion. Ultimately, the state’s medical program proved to be good enough for a majority of voters outside Oklahoma City and Tulsa. But the push to expand domestic cannabis legalization in 2023 is far from over. “For 2024, we’ve calculated Virginia,… Read more.

This past week saw the first procedural vote in favor of a bill to legalize medical marijuana in North Carolina, which means it is now one step away from being sent to the House. This comes after a top lawmaker in that chamber stated that his chamber is well-positioned to pass the reform this session despite opposing a similar bill last year. A week or so after easily passing through three committees, the proposal from Sen. Bill Rabon (R) was approved on… Read more.

The North Carolina Senate on Tuesday passed a medical cannabis legalization bill, WRAL reports. It marks the second year in a row the chamber has approved a medical cannabis bill; however, the measure died in the House in 2022. The bill received bipartisan support, passing by a 36-10 margin. The legislation is largely the same as the measure that passed the Senate by a 36-7 vote last year. Republican state Sen. Bill Rabon, the bill’s lead sponsor, told WRAL that he believes… Read more.