Hi all,

Last June’s LATimes/WeedWeek investigation into pesticide contamination in the licensed California market received awards from the California News Publishers Association and Sacramento Press Club. I’m proud to share these honors with Paige St. John and her colleagues at the Times.

Almost a year since the story was published, the Department of Cannabis Control has said it’s confident the majority of products on California shelves meet state standards for pesticides. It has not provided any evidence to support the claim.

In the newsletter:

• Texas poised to ban hemp products
• Forty Colorado brands threaten to ditch LeafLink

Read up,

Alex

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Texas is poised to wipe out its $4B+ hemp industry after the House passed a ban that has already cleared the Senate. Some observers anticipated the House would moderate the Senate’s proposed ban, supported by Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick (R) who has made the ban a priority. 
Politico

• The state hemp industry currently has more than 8,000 licensed hemp shops and employs tens of thousands.

Politico reports: “The main reason for the seeming about-face is Patrick, who “held school funding hostage in exchange for votes on passing a ban,” said Cynthia Cabrera, chief strategy officer of Austin-based hemp company Hometown Hero. “Children were used as leverage to get what he wanted.

Rep. Brian Harrison, the only Republican to vote against the bill, said, “[It] exceeds the proper role of government and may ban many products that President Trump legalized in 2018.”

The bill now awaits Gov. Greg Abbott’s signature. The industry is pushing for a veto and is all but certain to sue if it doesn’t get one.

Read more

Reggie and Dro is giving away free weed to fight the ban. Read WeedWeek‘s interview with owner Jesse Niesen who set up shop in San Antonio to be “unfuckwithable.“
GreenState

Forty Colorado brands say they may ditch wholesale marketplace LeafLink over a price hike. “The brands say the changes could result in price increases of 300-700%, as the new model layers on per-transaction fees on top of the general $599-$999 monthly subscription fee.”
Cultivated

Operating in 30 states, LeafLink is the dominant wholesale marketplace. However, it has recently attracted a few new competitors.

The company, which began in Colorado, said that “one-third of customers won’t see a price increase, and those who do should expect “5-15x” return on investment through increased sales and greater efficiency.”

Read more

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Meanwhile, former LeafLink CEO Ryan G. Smith has a new, non-cannabis, enterprise AI company.

Federal:

• The New York Times looks into why rescheduling has stalled. It notes that an MSO-backed group called American Rights and Reform PAC has put out ads appealing to MAGA movement sensibilities.

Business:

• Boris Johnson, CEO Curaleaf, wants to take the leading MSO’s hemp store concept “far and wide.”
• CBN gummies remain popular, but do they actually help with sleep? Here’s WeedWeek‘s report from a few years ago.
  SFGate
• Craft brewers are interested in hemp-derived beverages.
• Farmers markets want to sell weed, but they can’t.
  MJBiz
• Cartoonist Brian “Box” Brown runs through some common red flags for state markets.

State and local:

• After 11 years is it time for a thaw between the cannabiz and Nevada’s casino industry?
  Nevada Independent
• Rhode Island has a new regulation agency.
• Delaware’s new top regulators takes the reins as the state prepares to open its REC market.
  Delaware Online
• The Nebraska legislature failed to pass a bill on regulating MED, likely pushing back licensing to October at the earliest.
  KNNE
• A federal judge in Oregon blocked enforcement of a ballot initiative that made it easier for industry workers to join unions.
  Canna Law Blog

International:

• California-based consultant Hirsh Jain with Verdant Strategies argues the German market is “revolutionary” because legal product costs less than illegal.
  Cannabis Business Times
• On a recent trip, LA license holder Whitney Beatty checked out the Canna Collective pot shop in Johannesburg, South Africa.
  @thehighmommylife
• Former minor-league NBA-er Jarred Shaw faces the death penalty in Indonesia for allegedly possessing edibles.
  SFGate

Fun and interesting:

• Montana operator and craft advocate Trent Hancock asked AI to rewrite DMX song The Industry for the cannabiz.
• A new “Vape-o-gotchi style” digital pet dies if you stop vaping.
  @techexplorerszone

State:

• An industry lobbying day in Sacramento focused on stopping the July 1 excise tax hike.
• MED shipping bill AB 1332 passed an Assembly committee without a no vote.
• The judging process for the California Cannabis Awards, given out at the state fair this summer, kicked off this week. Budist CEO Jocelyn Sheltraw shared the 100-point judging system.
• 420-friendly veterinarians are not happy with the Department of Cannabis Control’s (DCC) draft rules for pet products.
  SFGate
• Pot tax dollars are supporting $52M in funding for community reinvestment.
  Marijuana Moment

Business:

• A contemplated deal would further align Cookies and Blum Holdings.

Local:

• Ten years in the making, Sonoma Co. released its 800+ page Draft Environmental Impact Report for the industry. Attorney Omar Figueroa posted a few insights.
• Furious LA retailers continue to make their case.
  WeedWeek, @blaccunity
• The Woods, the West Hollywood shop and lounge owned by Bill Maher and Woody Harrelson was vandalized and robbed.
  WeHo Times
• A Humboldt Co. case over the constitutionality of cannabis fines is appealing to the U.S. Supreme Court.
  KRCR
• The California Smoke Shops Association has sued the city of Fresno over a new rule that would shutter dozens of stores.
  The Business Journal
• Cal Poly Humboldt’s Cannabis Studies program graduated its first student.
  KymKemp
• Attendees at the Monterey Co. Cali. Roots Festival want the best stuff to smoke.
  Monterey County Now
• Mendocino has been shaken up by back to back homicides on illegal grows.
  SFGate

Crime:

• State officials nabbed $123M in unlicensed plants and products in a Central Valley bust. They say it’s the largest bust in state history.
  KTXL
• A woman arrested at SFO was allegedly trying to smuggle 151 pounds onto a flight to Germany.
  FOX