Duane Morris partner Michael Schwamm has been named to Green Market Report’s 2023 list of Notable Leaders in Cannabis, which recognizes industry professionals who have demonstrated a willingness to effect meaningful change in a dynamic industry.
Webinar: Distressed Cannabis M&A
Duane Morris, in partnership with FTI Consulting, will hold its next Cannabis Webinar, Distressed Cannabis M&A, on Thursday, October 5, 2023, from 1:30 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. Eastern.
Learn more and register on the Duane Morris website.
Changes to the Controlled Substances Act for Cannabis to make it a Schedule III Drug – The Winds May Be Blowing this Way
Earlier today, on August 30, 2023, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) officially recommended that cannabis be moved from Schedule I to Schedule III under the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) – a landmark recommendation from HHS which indicates that HHS no longer considers cannabis to be a drug with high abuse potential and no medical value.
After completing a scientific review into cannabis per a requested review from the Biden Administration, HHS advised the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) that it believes marijuana should be placed in Schedule III of the Controlled Substances Act.
Note, HHS’s recommendation is NOT binding on the DEA but given the report’s findings and growing public sentiment is likely that the DEA agrees with the recommendation and shifts its policy.
Historically, cannabis has been federally prohibited as a Schedule I controlled substance. As noted by many pundits, the rescheduling to Schedule III would have major implications for researchers who have long criticized the Schedule I classification that creates significant barriers to access for studies.
For researchers, this change would likely mean that they would no longer need to go through the onerous registration process with the DEA in order to access cannabis for studies as a Schedule III drug. The shift to Schedule III would also enable various federal tax deductions to become applicable to the cannabis industry and unlock value for them that is currently stuck in an onerous tax structure under the Internal Revenue Code. Schedule III drugs are not subject to the same onerous structure under federal rules.
The cannabis ball is now firmly in the DEA’s court as the DEA has the final authority to schedule a drug as Schedule III rather than Schedule I under the CSA (or transfer a controlled substance between schedules or remove such a drug from scheduling altogether).
Parting Hits – With Congress due to reconvene after Labor Day, and the Biden Administration looking for a win on moving this issue along, look for pressure to continue to mount for some type of Congressional action in the Banking arena under a SAFE legislation bill and for the DEA to move through their rule making process in a swift and firm manner.
Duane Morris has a full service cannabis group that helps clients and investors in a wide array of cannabis-related issues including, but not limited to, licensing, fundraising, intellectual property protection and real estate. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact Brad Molotsky or the attorney with whom you regularly communicate at Duane Morris.
NJ Cannabis – 3Q 2022 Adult Use Sales Numbers Continue to Blaze
According to recent reporting from the NJ Cannabis Regulatory Commission (“NJCRC”), sales of legalized, recreational adult use cannabis in NJ exceeded $116.5 Million from July to September of 2022. This Q3 revenue figure represents a 46% increase from sales receipts in Q2 of 2022 of $80 Million generated from April to June 2022, when 13 state dispensaries expanded to adult cannabis sales for the first time.
By way of background, New Jersey legalized the sale of recreational marijuana for those 21 and over in April 2021. Sales were initially confined to 12 licensed dispensaries, which had approximately $24 Million in sales through May 2021, or an average of $5 Million per week in a state with 9.3 Million residents. By comparison, adult recreational cannabis generated approximately $80 Million in total sales between April and June 30 per the Cannabis Authority or $6.7M per week. Continue reading “NJ Cannabis – 3Q 2022 Adult Use Sales Numbers Continue to Blaze”
Duane Morris Attorneys Named to Top 200 Cannabis Lawyers List
Duane Morris partners Paul P. Josephson, Michael D. Schwamm, Tracy Gallegos and Seth A. Goldberg have been named to Cannabis Law Report‘s Top 200 Cannabis Lawyers for 2022/23.
Cannabis Law Report compiled the list from the publication’s annual survey of clients and lawyers in the cannabis legal services sector “as well as our personal editorial decisions based on our reporting of the industry on a daily basis for the past six years.”
For more information, please visit the Top 200 Cannabis Lawyers website.
Meet Michael Schwamm, a Legal Wiz Specializing In All Things Cannabis
NY State Department of Taxation Creates New Webpage with Information on the Adult-use Cannabis Excise Tax.
New York State Department of Taxation and Finance has created a new webpage with information on the Adult-use cannabis products excise tax.
This cannabis excise tax will apply to both:
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- Distributors of adult-use cannabis products on sales of retailers, and
- Adult-use retailers on sales to retail customers.
If you plan to sell adult use cannabis you must register with the Department of Taxation (which is in the process of developing an online registration process and other guidance. More information is available on the NYS Department of Taxation website (https://www.tax.ny.gov/bus/auc/)
NY Adult
Key Cannabis Industry Projections and Trends from the New Frontier Data’s Recently Released 2022 U.S. Cannabis Report
Key Cannabis Industry Projections and Trends from the New Frontier Data’s Recently Released 2022 U.S. Cannabis Report
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- With a combined 148 million Americans living across those 19 adult-use states, and 248 million living across the 39 medical-use states, 44% of American adults now have access to legal adult use cannabis, and nearly three-quarters (74%) of the country now have access to legal medical cannabis in some form. Conversely, 89 million Americans (26% of the U.S. population) live in states where possession and use of cannabis remain illegal.
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- The US legal marijuana industry could surpass $72 billion by 2030 (assuming that an additional 18 states will legalize adult-use marijuana or comprehensive medical marijuana programs by then (with the current legal states reaching $57 billion by 2030), up from $32 billion this year.
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- Self-reported usage rates have risen sharply since 2012, and if this is sustained, the number of U.S. consumers will grow from 47 million in 2020 to 71 million by 2030.
- U.S. medical markets continue to expand, with the number of registered patients forecast to increase to 5.7 million in 2030 (1.6% of the adult population).
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- Assuming legalization in all 18 potential markets by 2030, 47% of total demand would be met by the legal cannabis purchases, up from 27% in 2021, indicating continued disruption of illicit markets.
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- Despite strong state-level momentum, the near-term prospects for federal reform are dim, but a limited measure, like cannabis banking reform, is possible following the 2022 mid-term elections.
New York Conditional Cultivation License – Advanced Preparation (What You Can Do Now To Be Ready)
As we noted is our blog post earlier this week, New York recently adopted legislation to allow licensed hemp farmers to grow and process cannabis for the adult use market with the aim to have product available once retail sales are permitted.
While the New York Office of Cannabis Management has yet to release the form of application (and any implementing regulations), that doesn’t mean that potential applicants should sit idly by and wait. In reviewing the legislation, its clear that there is plenty of work that can be done now. Continue reading “New York Conditional Cultivation License – Advanced Preparation (What You Can Do Now To Be Ready)”
NY Gov. Hochul signs conditional cannabis cultivation bill to speed-up recreational cultivation
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul signed new legislation on Tuesday that will allow hemp farmers in the state to apply for a conditional license to grow cannabis.
With this legislation, New York is creating a new Conditional Adult-use Cannabis Cultivator license, allowing hemp farmers to grow cannabis in the 2022 growing season to “position New York’s farmers to be the first to grow cannabis and jumpstart the safe, equitable and inclusive new industry we are building”. Conditionally licensed cannabis farmers must hit certain requirements under this law. Continue reading “NY Gov. Hochul signs conditional cannabis cultivation bill to speed-up recreational cultivation”