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Maryland Senate Approves Bill To Protect Medical Marijuana Patients’ Gun Rights

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The Maryland Senate has passed a bill that’s meant to protect gun rights for medical marijuana patients under state law, sending it to the House of Delegates.

In a 43-2 vote on Tuesday, the Senate approved the legislation from Sen. Mike McKay (R), without discussion. This comes about one week after it cleared the Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee.

If enacted, the measure would protect the rights of registered medical cannabis patients to buy, own and carry firearms under Maryland law, even though they are still restricted from doing so under federal statute.

The Maryland legislature also took up the issue around this time last year, with the House Judiciary Committee holding a hearing on a separate but related measure to ensure medical marijuana patients’ gun rights are protected.

The issue has been raised in multiple state legislatures and federal courts in recent years, as marijuana and gun rights advocates challenge the constitutionality of the federal ban that currently prevents cannabis consumers from owning firearms.

Last month in neighboring Pennsylvania, for example, a district attorney filed suit against the Justice Department over the ban that he says violates the Second Amendment rights of medical cannabis patients such as himself.

A Republican senator in

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Florida Marijuana Legalization Ballot Initiative Has Enough Support To Pass, New Poll Finds As Trump Backs Reform

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A new poll signals that a Florida marijuana legalization initiative that’ll be on the November ballot has enough support to pass, exceeding the steep 60 percent threshold to enact a constitutional amendment under state law.

The Emerson College Polling/The Hill survey found that 63.6 percent of likely voters in Florida back the cannabis measure, while 27.2 percent are opposed and 9.2 percent remain undecided.

That includes 81 percent of Democrats, 62 percent of independents and 51 percent of Republicans—the latest signal that cannabis legalization enjoys bipartisan support in the Sunshine State.

That’s positive news for the Smart & Safe Florida campaign behind Amendment 3. While polling has consistently shown majority support for the initiative, several recent surveys have shown it falling short of the 60 percent requirement.

This latest poll involved interviews with 815 likely voters in Florida from September 3-5, with a +/-3.4 percentage point margin of error.

It comes on the heels of former President Donald Trump, the 2024 Republican nominee and a Florida resident, voicing support for the measure, as well as federal rescheduling and cannabis industry banking access.

“As I have previously stated, I believe it is time to end needless arrests and incarcerations of adults

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Trump Supports Florida Marijuana Legalization Ballot Measure, But Wants Lawmakers To Ban Public Smoking

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Former President Donald Trump said on Saturday that he believes voters in his home state of Florida will approve a marijuana legalization initiative on the November ballot, arguing that “someone should not be a criminal in Florida, when this is legal in so many other States.”

Trump added that current policy ruins lives, wastes taxpayer dollars and puts people at risk of dying from cannabis tainted with fentanyl.

The former president wants lawmakers to follow up on legalization if voters approve it, however, by passing a law to ban public cannabis consumption.

“In Florida, like so many other States that have already given their approval, personal amounts of marijuana will be legalized for adults with Amendment 3,” Trump said in a post on his social media site Truth Social. “Whether people like it or not, this will happen through the approval of the Voters, so it should be done correctly.”

“We need the State Legislature to responsibly create laws that prohibit the use of it in public spaces, so we do not smell marijuana everywhere we go, like we do in many of the Democrat run Cities,” he added. “At the same time, someone should not be a criminal in

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California Hemp Retailers Tell Lawmakers That Governor-Backed Restrictions Bill Would Close Businesses And Shrink State Revenue

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California hemp product retailers told a legislative committee on Monday that a governor-backed plan to restrict hemp-derived cannabinoids and hemp flower would shutter businesses across the state, lead to a loss of jobs and decrease revenue for state and local governments.

The pushback comes as various groups—including marijuana growers and medical patients who say they rely on hemp-derived CBD—raise concerns about the bill, AB 2223, and a package of amendments from Gov. Gavin Newsom’s (D) office. Critics say the plan would fundamentally reshape the state’s cannabis industry and could cause chaos by attempting to fold hemp products into the state’s marijuana supply chain.

Monday’s hearing of the Senate Appropriations Committee centered on the fiscal implications of the legislation, not whether or not it’s good policy—something Chairwoman Anna Caballero (D) reminded speakers of on a handful of occasions during the morning.

“I don’t need to hear the ‘good bill’ stuff, because we’re not here on policy,” she said at one point. “We’re here on the money.”

That comment came after representatives of the U.S. Hemp Roundtable and the hemp retailer Sunmed—who both testified in opposition—said that the underlying proposal to more tightly regulate hemp-derived cannabinoids is acceptable to them, but certain

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