Washington, D.C. — On Friday, the SAFE Banking Act passed the U.S. House of Representatives as part of the America COMPETES Act. 

In response, Toi Hutchinson, president and CEO at the Marijuana Policy Project, the nation’s leading cannabis policy reform organization, released the following statement:

“I am pleased that the U.S. House of Representatives saw fit to include and pass the provisions of the SAFE Banking Act in the America COMPETES Act. Today’s vote was a positive step in the right direction. A lack of access to banking is a constant obstacle for state-legal cannabis businesses across the country and hinders social equity efforts. The reality is that states are going to continue to move forward with legalizing cannabis. We at the Marijuana Policy Project are delighted that Congress is beginning to recognize that they can no longer ignore this issue.”

Read more

Gov. Tate Reeves signs SB 2095 into law, making Mississippi the 37th state to legalize medical cannabis

Jackson, MS — On Wednesday, Gov. Tate Reeves (R) signed legislation to legalize medical cannabis into law. Mississippi is now the 37th state in the country to adopt an effective medical cannabis law.

“With this victory, tens of thousands of Mississippians with debilitating health conditions will finally be able to safely and legally access something that can alleviate their pain and improve their quality of life. Mississippi now serves as the latest example that medical cannabis legalization is possible in any state in the country. We are hopeful that this move will add to the growing momentum towards cannabis policy reform in the South,” said Toi Hutchinson, president and CEO of the Marijuana Policy Project.

The Mississippi Medical Cannabis Act will allow registered patients with qualifying conditions to safely access and use medical cannabis with a doctor’s recommendation. You can find a summary of the new law here.

“Despite tremendous support, Mississipians faced an uphill battle for a medical cannabis program. With this new law, justice has finally prevailed. Patients in Mississippi who are seriously ill will no longer be subject to arrest and criminal penalties for using medical cannabis and instead will be met with compassion. We applaud the legislature for working to restore the will of the voters in one of the most conservative states in the nation and Gov. Reeves for signing it into law,” said Kevin Caldwell, Southeast legislative manager at the Marijuana Policy Project. 

On November 3, 2020, 69% of Mississippi voters cast their ballots in favor of enacting a medical cannabis program. On that same ballot, 74% voted for a broad program — Initiative 65 — while rejecting a far more restrictive alternative lawmakers had placed on the ballot, Initiative 65A. Subsequently, the state Supreme Court found that the state’s signature requirements for ballot measures could not be complied with and threw out not only Initiative 65, but also the entire state’s ballot initiative process.

With the addition of Mississippi, 37 states — including Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, and Louisiana — have laws providing the framework for patients with debilitating medical conditions to have access to regulated cannabis products under a doctor’s care. 

Several other states, including Nebraska and North Carolina, are expected to seriously consider enacting medical cannabis laws this year. Meanwhile, debate on a medical cannabis law is currently underway in the South Carolina Senate for the first time.

Read more

Mississippi poised to become 37th state to legalize medical cannabis

Jackson, MS — Today, both chambers of Mississippi’s legislature approved legislation that would legalize medical cannabis in the state. The Mississippi Medical Cannabis Act (SB 2095), sponsored by Sen. Kevin Blackwell (R), now heads to the governor’s desk.

SB 2095 passed the House of Representatives with a vote of 103-13 and the Senate with a vote of 46-4 (with one abstention) on Wednesday after both chambers finalized details of the legislation during a bicameral conference committee. Gov. Tate Reeves (R) will have five days (excluding Sundays) to act on the bill. If he does nothing, it will become law without his signature. Both the House and Senate margins in votes would be sufficient to override a veto. 

“With the passage of SB 2095, today is an historic day for the patients of Mississippi,” said Kevin Caldwell, MPP’s Southeast legislative manager. “We would like to thank Sen. Kevin Blackwell and Rep. Lee Yancy for their leadership on this issue that is so important to so many patients and we call on Gov. Tate Reeves to sign this legislation into law when presented to him. When this bill becomes law, only 13 states will remain without a medical cannabis law. We look forward to seeing that number continue to dwindle and patients across the nation having access to this medicine. We will continue to fight for access in the remaining states without medical programs.”

On November 3, 2020, 69% of Mississippi voters cast their ballots in favor of enacting a medical cannabis program. On that same ballot, 74% voted for a broad program — Initiative 65 — while rejecting a far more restrictive alternative lawmakers had placed on the ballot, Initiative 65A. Subsequently, the state Supreme Court found that the state’s signature requirements for ballot measures could not be complied with and threw out not only Initiative 65, but also the entire state’s ballot initiative process.

To date, 36 states — including Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, and Louisiana — have laws providing the framework for patients with debilitating medical conditions to have access to regulated cannabis products under a doctor’s care. 

Several other states, including Nebraska, South Carolina, and Tennessee, are expected to seriously consider enacting a medical cannabis law in the coming year.

Read more

A new report from the Marijuana Policy Project shows that legalization states reported a combined total of $10.4 billion in tax revenue since sales began in 2014 

Read the Marijuana Policy Project’s full report here

Washington, D.C. — The Marijuana Policy Project has released a new report on tax revenue generated from state-legal, adult-use cannabis since 2014 when sales began in Colorado and Washington state. As of December 2021, states reported a combined total of $10.4 billion in tax revenue from legal, adult-use cannabis sales, with more than $3 billion reported in 2021 so far (states have not yet reported revenue totals for the last one to three months of the year). 

The report includes the tax structure for each state, total revenue generated each year, and additional information about how the revenue is being distributed to public services and programs. The full report is available here: mpp.org/cannabis-tax-revenue.

“States that have legalized cannabis for adults are reaping significant economic benefits. The legal adult-use cannabis industry has now generated over $10 billion in new tax revenue, and in many instances that revenue is being distributed to much needed public services and programs, including reinvesting in communities that were devastated by the war on drugs. This is in stark contrast to prohibition, which costs taxpayers billions of dollars each year to enforce,” said Karen O’Keefe, director of state policies at the Marijuana Policy Project.

Eighteen states have laws that legalize, tax, and regulate cannabis for adults 21 and older (the 2020 voter-approved adult-use legalization law in South Dakota was overturned by the state’s Supreme Court in November 2021). Eight of the laws were approved in 2020 or 2021, and in seven of those states, sales and tax collections have either not yet begun (or began within the last week).

In states with legal, adult-use cannabis sales, tax revenues can be allocated for social services and programs. This includes funding education, school construction, early literacy, public libraries, bullying prevention, behavioral health, alcohol and drug treatment, veterans’ services, conservation, job training, conviction expungement expenses, and reinvestment in communities that have been disproportionately affected by the war on cannabis, among many others. 

Highlights include:

Alaska: Half of all adult-use cannabis tax revenue is invested in the Recidivism Reduction Fund and supports reentry programs for currently and formerly incarcerated individuals.

California: More than $100 million has been distributed to community groups and local nonprofit programs that benefit people adversely impacted by punitive drug laws.

Colorado: $471.9 million of the total revenue generated from cannabis taxes has been dedicated to improving Colorado’s public school system.

Illinois: In addition to investing 20% of adult-use cannabis tax revenue into mental health services, the state directs 25% of the funds to the Recover, Reinvest, and Renew Program, which supports local organizations in developing programs that benefit disadvantaged communities.

Michigan: For adult-use cannabis taxes collected in Fiscal Year 2020, the Michigan Department of Treasury reported in March 2021 that around $11.6 million will be sent to the School Aid Fund for K-12 education.

Washington: For every $1 billion in revenue collected from the cannabis sales tax, nearly $600 million is funneled into public health initiatives, including a fund that provides health insurance for low-income families.

Read more

Toi Hutchinson, Former Illinois Senior Advisor for Cannabis and Former Illinois State Senator, Will Take the Helm in January

Washington, D.C. — Today, the Marijuana Policy Project announced that Toi Hutchinson will join the organization as its new president and CEO. Hutchinson, a former Illinois state senator, most recently served as senior advisor to Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker on cannabis legalization implementation. 

For the past year, MPP Executive Director Steven Hawkins has led both MPP and the United States Cannabis Council (USCC). Hawkins will now exclusively focus his efforts on federal cannabis reform at USCC. MPP will remain a member of USCC and continue to share staff, board members, and resources. 

“Toi’s unique resume is perfectly suited to lead MPP as we finish our reform work state-by-state across the country,” said MPP Board Chairman Sal Pace. “Toi worked alongside MPP as one of the initial authors of the Illinois adult-use cannabis legislation to ensure that the law contained a strong social justice framework that included decriminalization in addition to legalization. MPP has always been focused not only on legalization but also on doing it right and ending the war on drugs.”

“I am proud of what we have accomplished at MPP and look forward to working alongside Toi in the fight to end cannabis prohibition,” said Steven Hawkins, president and CEO of USCC. “MPP played a pivotal role in incubating USCC, and we are now taking that work to the next level. Toi is an incredible leader, and I know that our organizations will work tirelessly to advance our shared goals.”

“The MPP Board is thrilled with the work Steve accomplished during his four-year tenure. These past four years have been the most productive years yet for marijuana reform. MPP will continue to work with Steve as a member organization of USCC, including continuing to share some staff between the two organizations,” said Sal Pace, MPP Board Chair.

“I’m pleased to be joining the team at MPP, where I will continue my years-long effort to develop and support cannabis legalization legislation that centers on equity and repairing the harms of the past,” said Toi Hutchinson. “We are incredibly proud of the hard work and lessons learned in Illinois, standing up programs to invest in equity entrepreneurs, reinvesting in communities, and clearing hundreds of thousands of arrests and criminal records. 

“Steve Hawkins’ work at MPP was stellar, and I look forward to working with him in his new capacity along with legislators and partners across the country to advance the goals and mission of MPP by harnessing our collective power to advocate for changes to federal cannabis policies.”

In addition to her position as senior advisor for cannabis to Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker, Toi also served as an Illinois state senator. She earned a bachelor’s degree in Liberal Arts and Sciences (English) from the University of Illinois and a Juris Doctor from Northern Illinois University College of Law. 

Toi is a member of the Chicago Federation of Women, the Illinois Women’s Institute for Leadership, Links, International, and Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc.     

Since MPP was founded in 1995, it has spearheaded most of the major state-level reforms that have occurred over the past two decades. 

MPP played a leading role in 10 of the 18 adult-use legalization laws, starting with the historic 2012 Amendment 64 initiative in Colorado, which was the first state to legalize cannabis for adults. MPP also led the coalitions that passed initiatives to legalize and regulate cannabis in Alaska, Maine, Massachusetts, Nevada, Michigan, and Montana between 2014 and 2021. 

In addition to managing ballot initiative campaigns, MPP has also enacted numerous policies by passing laws through state legislatures. MPP spearheaded the advocacy campaigns that made Vermont and Illinois the first two states to legalize cannabis for adults through the legislative process and played a critical role in enacting the most recent legalization law to pass via state legislature—in Connecticut earlier this year.

Read more

Washington, D.C. — On Tuesday, it was announced that language that would allow banks to legally work with state-licensed cannabis businesses was eliminated from a must-pass piece of legislation currently under consideration — the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). 

In response to this news, Matthew Schweich, deputy director at the Marijuana Policy Project, the nation’s leading cannabis policy reform organization, released the following statement:

“We are disappointed in the elimination of the SAFE Banking provisions from the NDAA. It is unacceptable that so many state-licensed cannabis businesses are operating entirely in cash simply because the Biden administration and Congress, in spite of overwhelming public support, refuse to support even modest reforms to our country’s failed federal cannabis laws.

“While the SAFE Banking provisions would not have addressed criminal justice reform, this was a valuable opportunity for incremental progress, a principle that has served the cannabis reform movement well for many years.

“Furthermore, Congress has missed an opportunity to assist hundreds of small and minority-owned businesses in medical and adult-use cannabis states across the country.

“Without SAFE Banking, employees of cannabis businesses will continue to face public safety risks. Cannabis businesses are experiencing burglaries, armed robberies, and thefts at disturbing rates. It is abundantly clear that leaving cannabis businesses unbanked is dangerous for both workers and the surrounding community.”

Read more

Kevin Caldwell Joins MPP as Efforts to End Cannabis Prohibition in the Deep South Ramp Up

Baton Rouge, LA — The Marijuana Policy Project (MPP), the nation’s leading cannabis policy reform organization, announced Monday that it has hired Kevin Caldwell to serve as the organization’s Southeast Legislative Manager.

As founder of the cannabis reform organization CommonSenseNOLA, Caldwell spent nearly the last decade advocating for both municipal and state-level cannabis reforms. He played a leading role in local decriminalization measures in New Orleans, and East Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and he helped set the stage for statewide decriminalization, which passed earlier this year.  

"It is an honor to join the team at the Marijuana Policy Project, an organization that has provided so much support to reform efforts in Louisiana over the past 10 years that I have been involved in advocacy,” said Kevin Caldwell, Southeast legislative manager at the Marijuana Policy Project. “I look forward to working with allies across the South to move reform efforts forward. The South will be the next region of the country where we will see a monumental shift in the way states deal with archaic cannabis laws. I am excited to join a team that will be at the forefront of those changes."

Caldwell joins MPP at a pivotal moment, with Southern states being ripe for reform. His extensive background in lobbying, grassroots organizing, and previous cannabis advocacy will help bolster MPP’s ongoing efforts as we increase our involvement in the South. He is prepared to work closely with state legislators and allies to pass decriminalization and medical cannabis laws in states that don’t yet have them and to pass adult-use legalization in Louisiana.

"Not long ago, cannabis possession sentences in Louisiana routinely shocked the conscience. Kevin played a leading role in local decriminalization efforts in Louisiana, paving the way for statewide reform," said Karen O’Keefe, director of state policies at the Marijuana Policy Project. “We are delighted to have him join the team at MPP to continue the progress in Louisiana and to work alongside allies to craft humane, sensible cannabis policies throughout the South."
 
Cannabis policy reform in the South has seen unprecedented progress in recent years. Earlier this year, Virginia became the first state in the South to legalize cannabis for adults. Meanwhile, a legalization bill in Louisiana was voted out of committee, the legislature enacted a decriminalization law, and an interim group was established to consider the impact of legalizing the possession and use of cannabis. Since 2015, medical cannabis laws have passed in Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Louisiana, and Virginia. Additionally, voters in Mississippi overwhelmingly approved a medical cannabis measure in 2020, which the legislature is expected to replace due to a Supreme Court decision overturning it. 

Read more

Washington, D.C. — The Marijuana Policy Project (MPP), the nation’s leading cannabis policy reform organization, announced that it has hired Denise Tolliver to serve as the organization’s director of communications. 

“We are thrilled to announce the onboarding of Denise Tolliver, who joins MPP at a pivotal moment,” said Steve Hawkins, executive director at the Marijuana Policy Project. “Cannabis policy reform is gaining momentum across the country and at the federal level at an increasingly rapid rate. Denise’s extensive background as a highly experienced media professional will bolster MPP’s efforts as we continue working towards ending cannabis prohibition across the nation.”

Before joining MPP, Tolliver worked as a reporter and anchor for television and radio and served as Communications Director and Chief of Staff on Capitol Hill and for the D.C. City Council. While employed on the Hill, she was sought after by Judy Smith of “Scandal” fame to assist with the Mayoral crisis in Detroit. Upon finishing the crisis position with the Mayor, she then stayed in Detroit to perform crisis assistance with the new Detroit City Council President. After her last crisis assignment was completed, she returned to the Hill where she worked for Rep. John Lewis and Rep. Marcia Fudge, who now serves as the Housing and Urban Development Secretary. 

“It is an honor to become a part of an organization dedicated not only to the legalization of cannabis but the decriminalization of it as well,” said Denise Tolliver, communications director at the Marijuana Policy Project. “Joining MPP provides me with an exciting opportunity to assist in implementing positive change in revising cannabis laws across the country. Additionally, I am grateful for the chance to work with a team of professionals who have made this work their life’s mission.”

Since the organization was founded in 1995, MPP has been a leading advocate for federal cannabis policy reform on Capitol Hill while also spearheading most the cannabis reform laws that have been passed at the state level.

MPP played a leading role in 11 of the 19 adult-use legalization laws, starting with the historic 2012 Amendment 64 initiative in Colorado — which was the the first state to legalize cannabis for adults and regulate it like alcohol. MPP also led the coalitions that passed initiatives to legalize and regulate cannabis in Alaska, Maine, Massachusetts, Nevada, Michigan, Montana, and South Dakota between 2014 and 2021. 

In addition to managing ballot initiative campaigns, MPP has also enacted numerous policies by passing laws through state legislatures. MPP spearheaded the advocacy campaigns that made Vermont and Illinois the first two states to legalize cannabis for adults through the legislative process. MPP played a critical role in enacting the most recent legalization law to pass a state legislature, in Connecticut earlier this year. MPP and the campaign committees it supported also played a leading role in successful efforts to pass 14 recent state medical cannabis laws (in Arizona, Delaware, Illinois, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, New Hampshire, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Utah, and Vermont) and seven decriminalization laws (in Delaware, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont).

Read more

Washington, D.C. — Today, the U.S. House Judiciary Committee voted to advance the Marijuana Opportunity, Reinvestment, and Expungement (MORE) Act, a bill that would federally legalize cannabis.

Sponsored by House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerry Nadler (D-NY), the MORE Act is a comprehensive federal cannabis reform bill that contains strong social equity provisions with an emphasis on restorative justice for communities most impacted by cannabis prohibition.

Statement from Matthew Schweich, deputy director of the Marijuana Policy Project:

“We’re encouraged to see that the MORE Act is once again advancing in the U.S. House of Representatives. We cannot achieve meaningful and lasting criminal justice reform in our country without ending the war on cannabis. Lawmakers on both sides of the aisle have the opportunity and responsibility to come together and pass legislation to finally put an end to the decades-long failure that is federal cannabis prohibition. 

“States across the country have taken the lead on cannabis legalization, and now it is time for Congress to pass federal reform, a policy that is supported by a strong majority of Americans.” 

About the MORE Act:

If enacted into law, the MORE Act would: remove cannabis from the Controlled Substances Act; require federal courts to expunge prior cannabis-related convictions and provide for resentencing; provide grants and funding to communities most harmed by the war on cannabis; lift barriers to licensing and employment in the cannabis industry; protect immigrants from being denied citizenship over cannabis; and allow VA physicians to recommend medical cannabis to veterans. In 2020, the MORE Act was passed by the House, but it did not advance in the Senate. 

Earlier this year, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), Sen. Ron Wyden (R-OR), and Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ) introduced a draft version of an alternative cannabis legalization bill, the Cannabis Administration and Opportunity Act. The final text of the bill has yet to be formally introduced.

According to the latest Gallup poll, 68% of Americans support marijuana legalization. To date, 19 states have legalized marijuana for adults 21 and over, and 36 states have legalized medical marijuana. 

Read more

Washington, D.C. — On Wednesday, the Marijuana Policy Project submitted comments to Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), Senator Cory Booker (D-NJ), and Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR) regarding a preliminary draft of the Cannabis Administration and Opportunity Act, a new bill that would end federal cannabis prohibition.

Statement below from Karen O’Keefe, state policies director at the Marijuana Policy Project, the nation’s leading cannabis policy reform organization:

“We are grateful for the leadership of Sens. Booker, Schumer, and Wyden to end an eight-decades long policy failure and appreciate the opportunity to provide feedback as the sponsoring offices refine the bill. Federal prohibition urgently needs to end. It has wasted billions of dollars while upending tens of thousands of lives — disproportionately those of Black and Brown Americans — over a plant that is safer than alcohol.
 
“We are enthusiastic about the goals of the CAO Act Discussion Draft. We applaud the draft for legalizing cannabis under federal law; directing a substantial percent of the federal tax proceeds to benefit individuals and communities that have been adversely impacted by the war on drugs; providing that cannabis use and cannabis convictions do not adversely affect immigration, federal public benefits, and eligibility for a security clearance; making legalization retroactive, including expungement and re-sentencing and incentivizing state expungement; authorizing the Department of Veterans Affairs and Indian Health Service providers to recommend medical cannabis in accordance with state programs; and promoting social equity in licensing and collecting demographic data on cannabis business owners and employees.
 
“While the CAO Act Discussion Draft includes numerous praiseworthy provisions, we believe the regulatory aspects need significant clarification and revision to avoid unintended consequences that would derail the hard work states have done for decades. Our two major areas of concern are: the possible upending of state licensing and regulatory systems — driving sales underground — and the impact on medical cannabis access, including for those under the age of 21. 

“Additionally, the CAO Act includes several provisions that reduce the harms the federal government inflicts on cannabis consumers. But it retains others, which disproportionately harm people of color. We strongly urge the sponsoring offices to more comprehensively do away with the harm inflicted on cannabis consumers, and individuals with past convictions, including by expanding expungement and re-sentencing provisions, ensuring parole and probation are not revoked for cannabis, and ending federal drug testing for cannabis.

“The vast majority of Americans support legalizing cannabis for adults. Congress must work to swiftly end federal cannabis prohibition through an approach that starts with a framework of deference to states and includes a slow transition, avoids burdens that will drive the market for cannabis products back underground, and stops destroying lives — disproportionately those of Black and Brown Americans — over a plant that is safer than alcohol.

“We look forward to continuing our work with the sponsoring offices on the complex issue of federal legalization and equitable regulation.” 

Read more