CCMA Greenbrief August 8: LA Moves Forward With Marijuana Licenses… Harborside Has Partnered With Ca nPay to Offer Debit Payments Solution to Its Customers… Fed Bill Would Legalize Cannabis Nationally …

​Political greenBrief
Tuesday, August 8, 2017

www.cannabismanufacturers.org

​Adrian Sedlin, A Graduate Of Harvard Business School And The Founder And CEO Of Canndescent

“Call us the courvoisier of cannabis or hermès of cannabis. We're going after that high-end adult use.”
Adrian Sedlin, Founder And CEO Of Canndescent

“If they come out with a more progressive, liberal policy, the attorney general is just going to reject it, they need to convince the attorney general that the recommendations are the best they can do without embarrassing the entire department by implementing a policy that fails.”
John Huck, A Brookings Institute Senior Fellow Who Studies Cannabis Policy And Was Interviewed By The Task Force

Weed Scene Elated As City Appears To Embrace Pot Shop Permits (CA – Cannabis Permits)
LA Weekly (August 7, 2017) In a proposal that was widely panned by pot shops and legalization advocates, the city in June revealed possible regulations for Los Angeles cannabis businesses that would have continued the problematic policy of treating even the most legit enterprises with “limited legal immunity.”
http://www.laweekly.com/news/los-angeles-moves-forward-with-marijuana-licenses-8501865

Largest Marijuana Dispensary Group In The Us Now Takes Debit Payments (CA – Cannabis Dispensary)
Benzinga (August 7, 2017) Steve, a cancer patient in California, hits up his dispensary and asks for half an ounce of high-THC marijuana to calm his pain and stimulate his appetite, recently gone thanks to chemotherapy. He rarely leaves his house now; his sickness is still debilitating.
https://www.benzinga.com/fintech/17/08/9885504/largest-marijuana-dispensary-group-in-the-us-now-takes-debit-payments

California City Moving Fast On Green Rush (CA – Cannabis Industry)
Bakersfield (August 6, 2017) I went back out to California City recently to catch up on what it is doing that no other city in Kern County dares to do. Chiefly, legalize the cultivation, manufacturing, distribution and testing of medical marijuana for commercial purposes through a permitting process.
http://www.bakersfield.com/columnists/jose-gaspar/jose-gaspar-california-city-moving-fast-on-green-rush/article_6777415e-796f-11e7-9240-7385de80b870.html

Microlife: Growing Cannabis Organically (CA – Cannabis Industry)
Cannabis Now (August 7, 2017) The pear tree in Meg Fender’s backyard is her pride and joy. She said, in many ways, it’s one of the key elements of her garden’s health. “That tree has been producing major amounts of fruit for over a decade,” Fender said. “So much that I sometimes can’t even keep up with it during the picking season. A lot of it ends up on the ground.”
https://cannabisnow.com/microlife-growing-cannabis-organically/

Cannabis Science Issues Second Quarter Update Looking Forward To More Quarterly Growth And Progress Reports With More New And Exciting Revenue Developments Coming Soon (CA – Cannabis Industry)
Benzinga (August 7, 2017) Cannabis Science, Inc., a U.S. company specializing in the development of cannabinoid-based medicines, is pleased to update its shareholders on the Company's second quarter growth and progress. Cannabis Science has made considerable gains in its endeavors to become a seed-to-sale company.
https://www.benzinga.com/pressreleases/17/08/m9888883/cannabis-science-issues-second-quarter-update-looking-forward-to-more-q

California Inc.: The State Mulls Creation Of A Pot-Industry Bank (CA – Cannabis Finances)
Los Angeles Times (August 7, 2017) Welcome to California Inc., the weekly newsletter of the L.A. Times Business Section. I'm Business columnist David Lazarus, and here's a rundown of upcoming stories this week and the highlights of last week. The trend continues: Steady if unspectacular economic growth. On Friday, the Labor Department reported that U.S. employers added 209,000 net new jobs in July.
http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-lazarus-newsletter-california-inc-20170807-story.html

Getting Rid Of California’s Cannabis Catch 22: Federal Bill Would Legalize Marijuana Nationally (CA – Cannabis Legalization)
City Watch (August 7, 2017) Driving through West Hollywood, it’s hard not to notice the billboard for Zen Dispensary with its trendy Buddha icon. Medical marijuana dispensaries are no longer solely the provenance of dicey strip malls. And last November California voters supported Prop 64 which legalized recreational marijuana and establishes certain sales and cultivation taxes, passed by 56 percent. The sale and taxation of legalized marijuana will go into effect on January 1, 2018.
http://www.citywatchla.com/index.php/los-angeles/13752-getting-rid-of-california-s-cannabis-catch-22-federal-bill-would-legalize-marijuana-nationally

This Harvard MBA Grad Is Building A Luxury Weed Business — ‘The Hermès Of Cannabis' — That He Expects To Bring In $50 Million A Year (CA – Cannabis Industry)
CNBC (August 7, 2017) Canndescent's Instagram page looks like that of a luxury lifestyle company. It features chic people doing yoga, painting, working out, surfing, partying and reading in the bathtub. Canndescent is a cannabis company. It grows and sells weed. Adrian Sedlin, a graduate of Harvard Business School and the founder and CEO of Canndescent, wants to make pot sophisticated.
https://www.cnbc.com/2017/08/07/this-harvard-mba-grad-is-building-a-luxury-weed-business.html

DOJ Task Force Recommends No Changes To Federal Cannabis Policy (DC – Cannabis Policy)
Ganjapreneur (August 7, 2017) In its report to Attorney General Jeff Sessions, the Task Force on Crime Reduction and Public Safety offered no new policy recommendations related to state-approved cannabis programs, according to an Associated Press report. The task force, comprised of federal law enforcement officials and prosecutors, largely backed the current Justice Department policies outlined by the Obama-era Cole Memo.
https://www.ganjapreneur.com/federal-task-force-supports-federal-status-quo-on-legal-cannabis-industry/

Las Vegas Tribe Opening Largest Free-Standing Retail Cannabis Store In Nation (NV – Cannabis Store)
Ganjapreneur (August 7, 2017) The Las Vegas Paiute Tribe is preparing to open what is believed to be the largest free-standing retail cannabis store in the country – a 15,000-square foot facility located less than a mile from downtown Las Vegas, KSNV reports. The shop, which is expected to open next month, will be called the Nu Wu Cannabis Marketplace.
https://www.ganjapreneur.com/las-vegas-tribe-opening-largest-free-standing-retail-cannabis-store-in-nation/

Maine Public Safety Committee Doesn’t Recommend Blood-Level Limits To Test Cannabis Impairment (NV – Cannabis Regulations)
Ganjapreneur (August 7, 2017) A committee assembled by the Maine Department of Public Safety has determined that the state does not need to create blood-level limits to determine cannabis impairment. Rather, law enforcement officers should receive additional training to recognize impairment and the dangers of driving while under the influence of cannabis, according to a Bangor Daily News report.
https://www.ganjapreneur.com/maine-public-safety-committee-doesnt-recommend-blood-level-limits-to-test-cannabis-impairment/