Congressional lawmakers didn’t include marijuana provisions in a must-pass defense bill that was released on Tuesday, but a joint explanatory statement attached to the bill does contain a number of drug policy reform components, including a directive for the military to examine the potential of “plant-based therapies” like cannabis... Read more

The governor of Connecticut announced on Tuesday that the state will be automatically clearing records of low-level marijuana records for thousands of people at the beginning of the new year. Gov. Ned Lamont (D) said that the state has identified about 44,000 eligible possession cases that will be processed... Read more

A large-scale defense bill that advocates had hoped would serve as a vehicle to enact marijuana banking and expungements reform does not include any cannabis language following bipartisan and bicameral negotiations. At the same time, details about the so-called SAFE Plus package that lawmakers have been negotiating are emerging,... Read more

The Justice Department is asking a federal court for more time to respond in a lawsuit surrounding the legality of safe drug consumption sites where people could use currently illicit substances in a medically supervised environment. And while the would-be operators of the overdose prevention center at the center... Read more

Oregon Gov. Kate Brown (D) says her recent move to grant marijuana pardons is “very much a racial justice issue.” The governor spoke about her mass pardon of more than 45,000 people for state-level cannabis possession offenses at a forum hosted by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and... Read more

A New Jersey Assembly committee has approved a bill to provide state-level protections for banks and insurers that work with licensed marijuana businesses. The Assembly Financial Institutions and Insurance Committee passed the bill from Assemblymember Verlina Reynolds-Jackson (D) with nearly unanimous support on Monday. The bill would not immunize... Read more

The newly elected House Democratic leader says marijuana reform is one policy area where he believes there can be further bipartisan progress in the next Congress, even with Republicans in the majority. Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) discussed his vision for the 118th Congress during an appearance on ABC News’s... Read more