NO RATIONAL BASIS
US Court of Appeals says descheduling cannabis is up to Congress
In the case ‘United States of America v. Green’, the defendants argued that cannabis’s scheduling in the US Controlled Substances Act “has no rational basis because cannabis does not meet the statutory criteria for inclusion on Schedule I”, reports Benzinga.
The judges however ruled that the argument is insufficient to compel the Court to determine that cannabis’ Schedule I status is unconstitutional.
“Because there are other plausible considerations that could have motivated Congress’s scheduling of marijuana, we conclude that its classification does not violate the [plaintiffs’] due process or equal protection rights.”
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FIRST DRAFT
Washington State have approved draft social equity licensing rules
The Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board approved draft social equity licensing rules for cannabis licensees on August 3 that would add section “570 Social Equity in Cannabis Program” to Washington Annotated Code (“WAC”) Title 314-55. , via Lexology.
The rule is aimed at granting retail cannabis licensing opportunities to people who have been disproportionately affected by the War on Drugs, and could go into effect as early as September 28.
Harris Bricken at Lexology’s Canna Law Blog discusses his concern that, if unchanged, parts of the rule are likely to harm the very people it is intended to benefit.
NOT THE FULL PICTURE
Did wholesale cannabis disruptions impact Canada’s cannabis market?
Service disruptions at two of Canada’s biggest government-run cannabis wholesalers in August do not appear to have meaningfully impacted the broader market, interim data for the month suggests, per MJBiz Daily.
However, some say the evident top-line growth doesn’t paint a full picture of potential sales had there been no disruptions.
Nor does it account for consumers who returned – some permanently – to the illicit market or stores that could close for good in the coming months because of unreliable wholesalers.