Ready or not, election season has begun. Last month, 20 presidential candidates from the Democratic ticket held two separate debates (10 candidates for each debate), with the field having now grown to roughly two dozen hopefuls.
But this isn't the only battle brewing. There's another topic that's garnering a lot of buzz throughout America, and it's going to get its share of the limelight in 2020. I'm talking about the green rush, marijuana.
Marijuana policy experts predicted that this year would be a "real game-changer" in terms of cannabis reform at both the state and federal level. But halfway through 2019, the movement has had less progress than hoped.
"The reality is that public policy change rarely works that way. Slow and steady tends to be how change like this happens," John Hudak, deputy director at the Brookings Center for Effective Public Management, told Newsweek.
Advocates of legalizing marijuana for recreational purposes scored their most significant legislative victory of the year Friday when the Illinois state House gave final approval to a measure allowing residents over the age of 21 to purchase and use cannabis products.
But their win in Springfield comes at the end of a string of defeats in what was supposed to be a banner year for legalization. Even supporters of recreational use acknowledge their legislative agenda has run into more roadblocks than they expected.
The truth is New Jersey should have legalized recreational marijuana a long time ago. Gov. Phil Murphy said during his campaign that he was going to make legalization one of his top priorities during his first 100 days in office. It was a move that Senate President Stephen Sweeney believed could be squared up by April of last year, allowing recreational sales to begin in 2019.
But lawmakers were never able to come to terms.
This was supposed to be the big year for marijuana legalization. But in many state capitols across the country, efforts have stalled or collapsed as Democrats clash over everything from race and criminal justice to how to divvy up a gold mine of pot-tax revenue.
Legalization of recreational marijuana seemed all but inevitable in at least a half-dozen states when the year began — including New York, New Jersey and Illinois, which all have Democratic legislatures.
The 11th state to legalize recreational weed will be...
So, which state looks to have an inside track on becoming the 11th to legalize adult-use marijuana? Had you asked a few months ago, it looked to be a neck-and-neck battle between New Jersey and New York. Unfortunately, efforts to legalize marijuana in both states fell apart, and neither looks to be in a position to pass legislation anytime soon. Instead, the Land of Lincoln appears to be in the pole position to become the 11th recreationally legalized state.
Down a quiet country road in Warwick, N.Y., just north of the Jersey border, past homes on large lots, an elementary school and open fields that create a patchwork quilt of greens and browns, is a farm where marijuana's close relative — hemp — is grown and cultivated.
Although both belong to the cannabis family, hemp may be grown legally in New York and New Jersey, but marijuana — not yet.
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
- Etain has paid $400,000 to lobbyists since 2013
- Columbia Care, of Monroe County, also spent about $400,000 on lobbying since 2013, documents show
- About $300,000 of Vireo Health's lobbying went to getting a license and regulatory decisions
- Citiva spent about $160,000 lobbying marijuana in New York between 2013 and 2018
Outside of this specific example, conflicts between advocates and industry interests are heating up. Legislatures across the country are seeing calls to go beyond simply legalizing a commercial cannabis market and also take steps to ensure that small businesses, people of color, women and others from communities disproportionately impacted by prohibition are not left in the dust as large companies take over the industry.
Acreage Holdings has licenses in 17 states, of which 12 are operational, while the company has licenses to process in 12 states, seven of which are now in operation. The company has licenses to operate 68 retail dispensaries in 12 states, of which 21 are currently operational in 10 states. The Botanist is its retail concept designed to appeal to both adult use and medicinal consumers.