As of this week, Vermont became the first state legislature to pass a bill to legalize recreational marijuana. That may be surprising to you, since eight other states currently have legal recreational weed. The difference? Those states passed public ballot initiatives. So, if signed by Republican Governor Phil Scott, Vermont will remove penalties for possessing one ounce of marijuana or less and allow adults to keep two mature plants. Ahhh, so nice to see a legislature opening its eyes to reasonable drug policy. Alas, in the same week of continued progress at the state level, “Debbie Downer”... Read More

Photo Credit: History.com   Today in Mexico, communities host military parades to honor an improbable Mexican Army victory, under General Ignacio Zaragoza’s command, against French forces at the Battle of Puebla, May 5, 1862. While in America, Cinco de Mayo has assimilated into a party-focused holiday, celebrating (in some cases, appropriating) our country’s Mexican-American culture. However, a totally different Mexican congregation has those within the cannabis community celebrating with extra incentive this year. Just last week, with only 11 votes against and 371 votes in favor,... Read More

Before I get too far with this blog entry, I want to clarify at the outset that I’m only discussing the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Multiple states have additional laws in place to provide more encompassing employee protections. I am also not talking about people showing up to work stoned. With those caveats, let’s learn a little weed law. The ADA prohibits employers from discriminating against employees due to a disability. A disability is a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities.  Employers are required to provide reasonable accommodations... Read More

Forgive me weedfather, for I got really baked this week. It has been seven days since my last cannabis confession and since then I have smoked an ounce of weed, dabbed more than a few times, and have been sampling edibles like a tourist for the first time. I have been looking to rid myself of the my post-420 hangover. I realize it has been almost two weeks since April 20th but the annual holiday put a hurting on me and I have been out of it ever since. It is like I am stuck in a hazy fog and I cannot shake it off. I feel like so much time and energy was spent building up to that specific day that... Read More

As 2017’s NFL Draft closes this evening, let’s take a look at the league’s policy regarding players’ cannabis consumption. Yesterday, Commissioner Goodell – welcomed by steady boos throughout the draft, every year (sparked, perhaps, by resentment toward his ~$35 Million salary, and his catering billionaire owners over player welfare and safety) – made a public statement on marijuana use, consistent with his previous rhetoric on the issue. Goodell basically maintains that the league will remain consistent with current medical research, and continue exploring potential... Read More

The countdown is on. Funding for the federal government runs out at midnight tonight. Will our broken Congress be able to agree on a new spending bill in time? Or, is Attorney General Jeff Sessions about to be green-lighted to get out his shotgun “Granny-style” on the doorsteps of medical marijuana shops? I see the confusion brewing. Let me explain why this spending bill has anything to do with legalized medical marijuana. In a nutshell, when the government’s funding ends, all non-essential government operations and agencies are suspended until a new budget is approved. By “non-essential”... Read More

Most cannabis consumers and cultivators do not require additional encouragement to celebrate their favorite cash crop. Still, the community has seen 4/20 grow from codeword, to an active movement on college campuses, and into a fully international cultural phenomenon. True to the Old English etymology, April 20 has become a holy day – where masses gather to collectively light-up, while dispensaries unroll their best deals and newest products – for those involved with cannabis culture. While many ‘outsiders’ still approach the date with irreverence (even annoyance), my personal experience... Read More

To all our readers, happy 4/20! According to today’s CBS poll, 61% of America wants marijuana legalized. Happy 4/20, indeed. I’m excited to get back into another installment of Weed Law 101. As indicated in prior blogs, U.S. officials have been informed time and time again through scientific and objective studies that marijuana is not a “gateway drug”, does not cause violence, and does not induce addiction. Yet, federal policy has fluctuated greatly between being very strict to quite relaxed on cannabis. Why such inconsistency? The answer to that is not due to new revelations about the... Read More

Well, it is that time of year again. It has been on everyone’s minds for the last few weeks. Nobody is sure what to expect but they all know it will be good. Ski season has ended, summer is on the horizon, and our annual April event is about to kick off. Vin Diesel and his buddies are back at it with another installment in the Fast and the Furious film franchise. Hahaha just kidding. Happy 420 everyone! I must say though, the correlation between the rise in April 20th celebrations and the comeback of Vin Diesel is an interesting connection that should not go unnoticed. If you work in the weed... Read More

BREAKING: This just in. The city of Dallas, Texas – yes, Texas – voted yesterday to relax penalties for marijuana possession. This “cite and release” ordinance provides that anyone caught with possession of less than four ounces of pot will receive a ticket but will not be arrested. Baby steps in the land of some seriously whack-a-doo right wingers. Big congrats to my home town! Now back to our regularly scheduled program: Weed Law 101, Part 2: Congressional Whiplash. As we learned in Part 1, the federal government used racial fear and prejudice to first criminalize marijuana in 1937.... Read More