With the start of a new year and a January 7 decision of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit addressing the interplay between federal and state hemp regulation, it seemed timely to provide an update on the status of hemp-derived cannabinoids in Michigan. This is the first of two posts on this topic.Continue Reading Update Concerning Hemp-Derived Cannabinoids in Michigan, Part 1
Michigan’s Cannabis Regulatory Agency (CRA) is discontinuing its scheduled semi-annual inspections of all licensed marijuana businesses, opting instead for unannounced visits by regulation officers. According to the CRA, this shift is intended to provide more scheduling flexibility and improve efficiency. It is also expected to enhance employees’ knowledge of rules and regulations.Continue Reading A Shift in Oversight: Michigan’s Cannabis Regulatory Agency Moves To Unannounced Inspections
The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) announced this week it will hold a hearing regarding the attorney general’s proposal to ease restrictions on marijuana. The hearing is scheduled for the morning of December 2 at the DEA’s headquarters in Arlington, Virginia, effectively delaying any further action on federal cannabis policy until after the upcoming election.Continue Reading Cannabis Rescheduling Timeframe Ends Speculation of Immediate 280E Tax Relief
Much has been written over the last week about the recommendation by Attorney General Merrick Garland to loosen restrictions on cannabis. That recommendation would, among other things, reclassify marijuana from its current status as a Schedule I substance, similar to heroin and LSD, to a Schedule III substance, similar to prescription drugs such as anabolic steroids, ketamine, and testosterone. Given that Schedule II substances include fentanyl, hydromorphone, meperidine, methadone, morphine, oxycodone, dextroamphetamine, methylphenidate, methamphetamine, pentobarbital, and secobarbital, it has long been questioned why marijuana would be subject to significantly greater regulatory scrutiny than these Schedule II substances that have been directly responsible for so many deaths, hospitalizations, addictions, and broken families in the U.S. and around the world over the last two decades.Continue Reading Even When Section 280E No Longer Applies to Cannabis Businesses, Another Tax Problem Will Remain
The federal Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”) is the law that, among other things, requires covered employees to be paid time-and-a-half for hours worked over 40 hours in a given week. As we have repeatedly said to anyone who will listen, the fact that cannabis remains federally illegal does not mean that cannabis employers can ignore federal employment (or any other) law. The case of Waxler v All Green Transport LLC, et al., currently pending in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Michigan with case number 23-cv-00897, is a perfect example of that.Continue Reading Michigan Secure Cannabis Transporter Does Not Get Quick Dismissal From FLSA Case