Vineyards Lose Fight Against Weed Farms
Two grape growers in Oregon filed a lawsuit in 2017 arguing in court that their crops would be marred by odors from nearby marijuana operations. Yamhill County Circuit Court Judge Cynthia Easterday did not agree.
On Oct 22 she ruled that Smera Vineyard and Maysara Winery had not met their burden of proof in order to justify preventing the Wagner family from growing and processing marijuana nearby. Easterday made her decision after deliberating for almost eight months, relistening to expert testimony several times. “This was a very difficult and close decision”, she stated, “there is insufficient proof at this time by a preponderance of the evidence that it will damage plaintiffs’ current or future agricultural products.”
Maine Regulatory Agency Ignores Residency Reqs.
Maine law requires owners of marijuana operations to live in Maine and to have filed state income taxes for four years. However the Maine Office of Marijuana Policy chose to ignore these requirements when Attorney General Aaron Frey advised that the requirements would be unlikely to hold up in court.
James Monteleone, attorney for the two Maine-based pot shops who are plaintiffs in the lawsuit, stated it is “not an option” for the state to choose not enforce its own laws. “We’re just looking for a fair shake. The Legislature adopted a law that says Maine companies are going to be the ones that are eligible for licenses.”
Raise your hand if you like advising regulatory agencies to ignore residency requirements.
An earlier lawsuit in March claimed the same thing, when the Office of Marijuana Policy failed to recognize the residency requirement again at the AG’s suggestion. Maine’s largest marijuana dispensary chain Wellness Connection is 49% owned by a Delaware investor who had argued that the requirement restricted them from raising enough money to enter the market.
Businesses named in the lawsuit include three operating under Theory Wellness, part owned by a Massachusetts company, and four others operating under New Hampshire ownership.
Pennsylvania Approves DUI Protection for Patients
An amendment has passed the Pennsylvania house that states that “marijuana used lawfully in accordance with” Pennsylvania medical cannabis laws will be exempt from DUI statutes.
“I think that you can ask any veteran or anybody that’s using medical cannabis right now, if they took the prescription on Monday, Wednesday, the’re not high,” stated Rep. Ed Gainey in a floor speech prior to the vote.
Pennsylvania sees this amendment pass as calls for broader legalization come at all levels of government.
Gov. Tom Wolf has stated that marijuana reform could potentially generate the revenue to support economic recovery from the pandemic, and the ending criminalization is necessary for social justice.Lt. Gov. John Fetterman also shares in that sentiment, and has voiced his frustration with the state of Pennsylvania for not already having legalized for adult-use like neighboring states.
Metrc Adds West Virginia to List of Clientele
Metrc, the Florida based cannabis tracking company, now includes West Virginia in it’s list of clients.
Fifteen states, Alaska, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Missouri, Montana, Nevada, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, and the District of Columbia all have contracts to use Metrc systems for the tracking of seed to sale marijuana.
West Virginia will begin the process of issuing medical marijuana patient cards in the spring of 2021.
Delivery Lawsuit in L.A. Tests Social Equity Laws
A lawsuit filed in L.A. looks to overturn a recent requirement that only qualifying social equity applicants can be awarded delivery licenses.
Plaintiffs say they have no desire to end social equity licenses. They argue in favor of the original plan from 2017 of a 2 to 1 ratio of social equity to non-social equity licenses. At current some non-social equity businesses will not be eligible for delivery until the year 2025.
Virgil Grant fights for both social equity and legacy operators in California.
Virgil Grant, the African-American co-founder of the Southern California Coalition and the California Minority Alliance has no problem with the lawsuit and believes non-social equity legacy operators should be given access to licensing. “The legacy operators should have their path to licensure in this program a lot quicker. Because they’ve been around, they’ve been operating,” according to Grant, “It’s only fair.”
