Texas Senate votes to ban THC, again 🤔

“Cannabis has been around for thousands of years,” Texas Sen. José Menéndez (D) said. “It’ll just relocate, go underground, much like alcohol did during Prohibition… I think this bill is going to push some people back to opioids… We can’t legislate common sense. We can’t legislate morality.”

The Texas Senate once again voted last week to ban intoxicating hemp products.

Thus far, the bill appears close to identical to the ban that the legislature passed earlier this year, only for Gov. Greg Abbott to veto it.

Now the ball is in the state House’s court.

Read more about the debate.

Gov. Hochul says she wants the state to ‘grandfather’ noncompliant dispensaries 🗽

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul said in an interview on Friday she wants the legislature to grandfather in New York dispensaries whose locations are no longer compliant under the previous interpretation of the proximity rules. Listen to it here. 

McConnell and Paul continue hemp tit-for-tat 😡

Kentucky Sen. Mitch McConnell, who originally championed the 2018 Farm Bill which enabled the hemp industry to flourish, took to the Senate floor on Friday to complain about his fellow Kentucky Senator, Rand Paul for blocking his attempt to ban intoxicating hemp in an agricultural appropriations bill. “This language would have remained in the appropriations package had one senator not derailed the process," he said. Marijuana Moment has more.  

Minnesota's cannabis market launch is still a little rocky 🫸

It seems like Minnesota's first license dispensary is going to have to wait to open for business. The Albert Lee City Council denied the applicant's proposal to open in the town. The denial was based on concerns over the applicant's past criminal history involving illegally harboring a minor that he was allegedly romantically involved with. 

ScottsMiracle-Gro CEO says he’s spoken with Trump about rescheduling 👀

ScottsMiracle-Gro CEO Jim Hagedorn said he’s spoken with President Trump multiple times about rescheduling cannabis in an interview with Fox Business. “This was a promise he made during the campaign,” he said. ScottsMiracle-Gro has invested in the cannabis industry and supports legalization.

Rapid Dose Therapeutics launches sublingual cannabis strips💡

Rapid Dose Therapeutics launched a sublingual cannabis strip to ingest cannabis. Sublingual refers to placement under the tongue, and the product was launched primarily to address the opioid problem in indigenous communities. The goal of the strips is to reduce opioid withdrawal symptoms, and highlights another positive use of cannabis in supporting public health.

Her Dispensary Was Set to Open. Then New York Got in the Way | New York Times