Amid heightened rumors that the Trump administration will be moving forward on marijuana rescheduling, multiple top congressional Democrats are making the case that the reform would not go far enough—including one senator who said the move is only an attempt by the president to “gaslight” voters into thinking he legalized cannabis to boost his “pathetic” approval ratings.

It remains to be seen whether President Donald Trump will fulfill his campaign promise to move cannabis from Schedule I to Schedule III of the Controlled Substances Act (CSA), which would not legalize the plant but would let marijuana businesses take federal tax deductions while removing certain research barriers. There was speculation that it’d happen late last week, and CNBC reported a decision would be made as early as Monday, while Axios said it’d occur early next year.

In the interim, Democratic lawmakers are making clear they feel that simply rescheduling cannabis would do little to address the harms of the drug war while problematically maintaining prohibition. Without Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval, marijuana sold in dispensaries across the state would remain illicit in the eye’s of the federal government.

Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR), who has cosponsored cannabis legalization bills, posted an

The post Trump Is Trying To Boost ‘Pathetic’ Approval Ratings With Marijuana Rescheduling Move, Senator Says As Democrats Push Full Legalization appeared first on GrowCola.com.

“Although our study is still preliminary, it lays an important foundation for future research into the potential applications of CBD and THC in ovarian cancer treatment.”

By Angharad Brewer Gillham, Frontiers

Ovarian cancer is dangerous and difficult to treat, partly because it’s hard to diagnose early, and partly because it’s often resistant to existing drugs. Now scientists looking for new treatments have identified two promising compounds in cannabis.

Both THC (delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol) and CBD (cannabidiol) can stop ovarian cancer cells reproducing, and a combination of both compounds kills existing cancer cells. More research is needed to see if these compounds work as well outside the lab, but if these findings are confirmed they could become a source of new treatments for patients, less toxic and more effective than current options.

In the future, scientists could use drugs made from cannabis to fight ovarian cancer. A team of scientists testing the effects of two chemical compounds sourced from cannabis on ovarian cancer cells have found that both show promising anti-cancer effects. While more research will be required to turn these results into drugs which can be delivered to patients, these findings are an important opportunity to develop effective new therapies for a

The post Marijuana Components ‘Effectively Inhibited Ovarian Cancer Cell Growth,’ Study Shows appeared first on GrowCola.com.

The U.S. Supreme Court is declining to take up a case challenging the constitutionality of federal marijuana prohibition—an issue that even one of the bench’s more conservative members, Justice Clarance Thomas, had previously argued must be resolved amid the state legalization movement.

The case, Canna Provisions v. Bondi, was on the agenda for a closed-door meeting of the justices on Friday. On Monday, the court posted an order list showing that the matter failed to receive the needed votes from four justices to grant certiorari.

Massachusetts-based marijuana businesses had asked the court to take their case because they argued that federal law unconstitutionally prohibits intrastate cannabis activity, contravening the Commerce Clause.

That issue was raised in amicus briefs filed by supporters of the suit over recent weeks. That includes a public interest law firm representing a man who says federal law infringed on his property rights, libertarian think tank the Cato Institute and the Koch-founded Americans for Prosperity Foundation.

The powerhouse law firm Boies Schiller Flexner LLP submitted their petition for writ of certiorari from the court on behalf of their cannabis industry clients in October, and the Justice Department subsequently declined the opportunity to file a brief for or against the

The post U.S. Supreme Court Rejects Marijuana Companies’ Case Challenging Federal Prohibition appeared first on GrowCola.com.

A former top state marijuana regulator and current executive at a cannabis consulting firm will participate in a Senate committee hearing on banking issues this week.

While attention within the cannabis community is largely focused on a potentially imminent marijuana rescheduling decision by President Donald Trump, the Senate Banking Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Consumer Protection will likely be discussing an adjacent issue for the marijuana industry: The lack of banking access for cannabis companies under federal prohibition.

Tyler Klimas—who served as executive director of the Nevada Cannabis Compliance Board (CCB) and was a founding member of the Cannabis Regulators Association (CANNRA) before becoming the founder of Leaf Street Strategies—will testify before the panel as the Democratic minority’s witness.

The hearing, which is scheduled for Tuesday, is titled “Ensuring Fair Access to Banking: Policy Levers and Legislative Solutions.” The description of the meeting doesn’t specifically mention marijuana, but Klimas’s participation signals that, at least on the Democratic side, there’s interest in addressing the industry’s banking issues.

The hearing is set to take place about two weeks after a GOP member of the House Financial Services Committee, Rep. Warren Davidson (R-OH), raised the cannabis banking issue with Comptroller Jonathan Gould at

The post Former Top State Marijuana Regulator To Testify At U.S. Senate Banking Hearing This Week appeared first on GrowCola.com.

A major drug testing industry organization is “sounding the alarm” amid reports that President Donald Trump may soon finalize a proposal to reschedule marijuana, arguing that the reform would “have catastrophic consequences for the safety of the United States workforce and transportation sectors.”

Ahead of a scheduled “National Conversation on the Rescheduling of Marijuana” webinar this week, National Drug & Alcohol Screening Association (NDASA) board member Emilee Avery said in a press release that rescheduling “will dismantle critical safety measures that have protected our roads, airways, and communities for decades.”

“The guardrails implemented under President Reagan’s administration 30 years ago have been instrumental in ensuring that safety-sensitive positions, such as truck drivers, school bus drivers, and airline pilots, remain drug-free,” she said. “This decision threatens to undo all of that progress.”

A final decision hasn’t been made at this point, but multiple sources have claimed that there’s an executive order that could be issued imminently, possibly directing the attorney general to complete the process of moving marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule III of the Controlled Substances Act (CSA).

Cannabis industry stakeholders are holding out hope that the reform will be achieved as soon as possible, but opponents—including NDASA and

The post Drug Testing Industry Group Is ‘Sounding The Alarm’ About Marijuana Rescheduling As Trump Plans Action appeared first on GrowCola.com.

President Donald Trump is expected to order cannabis be reclassified as a less dangerous drug as soon as today.

What happens next – and exactly when the $32 billion legal marijuana industry could expect to reap the benefits – is less clear and may remain so even after the president issues an executive order, legal and political observers told MJBizDaily.

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“It’s difficult to say precisely exactly what the rescheduling process will look like at this time,” said Tim Swain, a Boston-based partner at law firm Vicente LLP.

“There are several avenues the process could take,” he added, including “a return to last year’s hearings on the DEA’s proposed rulemaking or something similar.”

Whether marijuana rescheduling follows a Biden-era pattern or whether Trump takes

The post What’s next after President Trump reschedules marijuana? appeared first on GrowCola.com.

Congressional candidate pledges legalization bill on 1st day; AK psychedelics initiative; Study: Legal marijuana reduces suicide rates in older people

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/ TOP THINGS TO KNOW

Bipartisan members of Congress spoke to Marijuana Moment about reports the Trump administration is planning to reschedule cannabis—with Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) calling it a “no brainer” that the two parties have been in a “race” to achieve and Rep. Andy Harris (R-MD) saying he doesn’t “agree with everything the president does.”

Colorado Democratic congressional candidate Wanda James, who is also a cannabis business owner, reacted to news of the Trump administration potentially rescheduling marijuana by pledging to file legislation to “fully

The post Lawmakers react to Trump’s big cannabis news (Newsletter: December 15, 2025) appeared first on GrowCola.com.

“It’s a bad situation for a lot of hemp growers and processors and retailers.”

By Charlotte Rene Woods, Virginia Mercury

Richmond-based Bingo Beer legally joined a nationally-growing market for hemp-derived THC products earlier this year when it unveiled THC seltzers.

The nonalcoholic beverage option has been growing nationwide as an alternative for people who are looking to cut back or cut out alcohol altogether. A recent Gallup poll showed the percentage of Americans drinking alcohol has fallen to 54 percent.

Analysts and farmers say the hemp-based THC industry, however, could come to an abrupt halt by November of next year as Congress voted to ban most hemp-derived THC products in a last-minute addition to a government spending bill that ended the most recent government shutdown.

The THC seltzers and other hemp-based products are a “big and growing segment of the economy,” Bingo Beer co-owner Jay Bayer told the Mercury earlier this year.

“I don’t think the solution is to put the genie back in the bottle,” Bayer said in a recent call.  He added that offering THC products has been a “lifeline” for some in the alcoholic beverage industry to stay afloat while meeting consumers’ needs.

But as Virginia continues to explore a legal cannabis market, Bayer

The post Virginia Hemp Businesses Consider How To Pivot With Federal Ban Looming appeared first on GrowCola.com.

“So many chemical products are used. Because it’s criminalized, there is no control over the waste process. It contaminates water, soil and animals in the surroundings.”

By Alexander Lekhtman, Filter

Drug prohibition is a driver of the climate crisis, outlines a major report by international researchers and policy experts. Both drug policy reform and “ecological harm reduction,” it argues, are essential to climate justice.

“From Forest to Dust: Socioeconomic and environmental impacts of the prohibition of the coca and cocaine production chain in the Amazon basin and Brazil” was produced by a coalition called Intersection – Land Use, Drug Policy and Climate Justice, involving numerous NGOs.

Its 100-plus pages cover vast historical and geographical expanses, from the Spanish colonial era to today, and from the jungles of Brazil to the ports of West Africa. It calls for a system of legal regulation for coca, but one that doesn’t simply replace the control and violence of trafficking networks with that of multinational corporations. Instead, the authors argue, Indigenous communities and family farms should be centered, to ensure that the coca and cocaine trade won’t harm people and their lands.

“In some regions, coca acts as a direct driver of deforestation,” Rebeca Lerer told Filter.

The post The War On Drugs Makes The Climate Crisis Worse, New Report Shows appeared first on GrowCola.com.

“I am absolutely elated today because we’re on the cusp of having a working program.”

By Anna Barrett, Alabama Reflector

The Alabama Medical Cannabis Commission Thursday approved three dispensary licenses, which members of the commission hailed as a critical step toward making medical cannabis available in Alabama nearly five years after the Legislature established the program.

“We waited a long time to get to this point in time where we can make a decision like this, and it is monumental,” Rex Vaughn, chair of the commission, said. “It’s a milestone meeting for us, so I’m tickled we can get this far.”

GP6 Wellness, RJK Holdings and CCS of Alabama will receive dispensary licenses within 28 days, as long as the companies pay the $40,000 licensing fee. A fourth license will be approved by the commission in late January due to a recommendation from an administrative law judge, Vaughn said after the meeting.

Vaughn said multiple times during the meeting that the approval of dispensary licenses is a milestone and will lead to patients getting care they need and tax revenue for the state.

“It takes a while for that to come through the system, but we should be seeing revenue

The post Alabama Officials Approve Medical Marijuana Dispensary Licenses, Readying Program For Sales To Start In 2026 appeared first on GrowCola.com.

“This was my American dream, so to see it get taken away from you, kind of hurts.”

By Megan Henry, Ohio Capital Journal

Ohioans in the intoxicating hemp industry fear a bill heading to Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine’s (R) desk will put them out of business.

Ohio Senate Bill 56 is on its way to DeWine after Ohio Senate Republicans passed the bill Tuesday. The Ohio House passed the bill last month after it went to conference committee.

Ohio’s bill complies with recent federal changes by banning intoxicating hemp products from being sold outside of a licensed marijuana dispensary. If DeWine signs the bill into law before the new year, the ban could take effect as soon as March.

“This bill is going to put businesses like me and families like me out of business,” said Ahmad Khalil, one of the owners of Hippie Hut Smoke Shop, with locations in Ohio and Washington.

“Overnight, we’re going to see tens of thousands of people directly impacted, which will ripple effect into 50,000 of families that are also dependent on this person.”

Khalil has been in the hemp industry for nine years.

“This was my American dream, so to see it get

The post Bill On Ohio Governor’s Desk Will Put Hemp Companies Out Of Business, Owners Say appeared first on GrowCola.com.

President Donald Trump could issue an executive order reclassifying marijuana as a less dangerous drug as soon as Monday, multiple sources told MJBizDaily.

And along with moving cannabis to Schedule 3, unlocking major tax breaks for plant-touching businesses, the president may also hand the CBD industry a significant gift: allowing Medicare insurance coverage for certain CBD treatments, sources said.

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That timeline is consistent with reporting from CNBC, which said Friday the president “is expected” to order cannabis moved to Schedule 3 of the Controlled Substances Act at the beginning of next week.

The presidential executive order is not yet finalized, cautioned the sources, who agreed to speak on condition of anonymity. Thus, it’s not clear exactly how long the Trump marijuana rescheduling process

The post Trump marijuana rescheduling expected Monday along with coverage for CBD appeared first on GrowCola.com.

Bipartisan congressional lawmakers are weighing in on a potentially imminent decision by President Donald Trump to move forward with federal marijuana rescheduling—with Democrats like Rep. Alex Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) calling the reform a “no-brainer” and others like Rep. Andy Harris (R-MD) pushing back against the proposal.

It was first reported on Thursday that Trump intended to sign an executive order on rescheduling, potentially directing the attorney general to complete the Biden administration-initiated process to move cannabis from Schedule I to Schedule III of the Controlled Substances Act (CSA).

Since then, a number of lawmakers on both sides of the aisle have shared their views on the plan in interviews with Marijuana Moment. While Democrats might disagree with the president on a multitude of policy issues, they’ve generally welcomed the news about the rescheduling development, even if they’d ultimately like to see a complete end to federal prohibition rather than the incremental change.

Ocasio-Cortez said it’s a “no-brainer” to enact the policy change, which would federally legalize marijuana but would remove certain research barriers and let cannabis businesses take federal tax deduction, while symbolically recognizing the medical value of the plant.

“I’ve honestly felt that it’s been a race” between the two

The post Bipartisan Congressional Lawmakers Give Mixed Reactions To Marijuana Rescheduling News From Trump Administration appeared first on GrowCola.com.

After years of delays, Alabama is finally making progress on launching medical marijuana sales.

The Alabama Medical Cannabis Commission (AMCC) on Thursday unanimously approved dispensaries licenses for three companies: GP6 Wellness, RJK and CCS of Alabama, according to WVTM 13.

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The award of the fourth dispensary license available under state law is on hold for 46 days, but could be awarded in January, according to Al.com.

The first three MMJ dispensaries could be licensed by Jan. 8, more than two years after licenses were granted to cultivators and transporters. Cultivators have already harvested several crops.

When the licenses are issued, doctors can start recommending medical marijuana to their patients.

The first sale could then come by the spring, AMCC Chair Rex Vaughn said,

The post Alabama finally awards medical marijuana dispensary permits appeared first on GrowCola.com.

Wanda James, a marijuana dispensary owner and advocate in Colorado who’s running for Congress, is applauding news about a potentially imminent move by the Trump administration to federally reschedule cannabis. But that reform doesn’t go far enough, she said, pledging to introduce a bill to end prohibition altogether on her “first day” on Capitol Hill if she’s elected.

To help her accomplish that goal, James has hired Neal Levine—a decades-long veteran of the cannabis reform movement—to manage her campaign, Marijuana Moment has exclusively learned.

As one of the first Black dispensary owners in the country, the candidate said in a statement on Thursday that she welcomes reports that President Donald Trump would be making a final decision on moving cannabis from Schedule I to Schedule III of the Controlled Substances Act (CSA).

Whether or when that happens remains unclear, and a White House spokesperson told Marijuana Moment that “no final decisions have been made” at this point.

In any case, James said that any incremental reform that “reduces barriers for research, protects patients, or eases access for workers and businesses is welcome.” However, “Coloradans and all Americans, deserve more than halfway measures that leave core issues of justice, equity, and

The post As Trump Nears Marijuana Announcement, Dispensary Owner Running For Congress Pledges To File Full Legalization Bill On First Day In Office appeared first on GrowCola.com.

An Alaska campaign says it failed to collect enough signatures to put an initiative to legalize certain psychedelics such as psilocybin and DMT on the state’s 2026 ballot—but activists are emphasizing that the “work is far from over” as they shift focus to placing the reform measure before voters in 2028.

About three months after state officials cleared Natural Medicine Alaska to collect signatures for the initiative, the campaign announced on Wednesday that, “despite months of tireless work,” they were “unable to gather enough signatures to place the Alaska Natural Medicine Act on the 2026 ballot.”

“Throughout this effort, we submitted initial signatures, mobilized volunteers across Anchorage, the Valley, the Kenai Peninsula, Haines, Juneau, and communities statewide, and built strong grassroots momentum,” it said. “Even with these tremendous efforts, we have determined that we will not reach the full signature threshold to qualify the Alaska Natural Medicine Act for the 2026 ballot.”

A spokesperson for the campaign told Marijuana Moment on Wednesday that organizers collected more than 10,000 signatures during the relatively short window to qualify the initiative for next year. But they won’t have to start over again to make the ballot in 2028, as those petitions will still

The post Alaska Psychedelics Campaign Ends Push To Put Legalization On 2026 Ballot, Shifting Focus To 2028 appeared first on GrowCola.com.

States that opened recreational marijuana dispensaries saw suicide rates decline among older adults, according to a new scientific analysis of more than two decades of nationwide data. Correlating state legalization to the decline, the researchers note a “modest yet statistically significant reduction” in states with legal access to cannabis.

The research, conducted by a team of public health economists, examined monthly suicide counts from U.S. states between 2000 and 2022. Their aim was to better understand whether easier access to marijuana, specifically through licensed retail stores, might have any measurable effect on mental health outcomes. Their working paper, published by the National Bureau of Economic Research, shows that may be the case.

The study found that in states where recreational cannabis dispensaries began operating, suicide rates among adults ages 45 and older declined. The effect was strongest among men, who historically have had significantly higher suicide rates and are more likely to use cannabis to manage chronic pain, a health challenge that increases the risk of suicide.

“Given that older adults are more prone to chronic pain and various physical and mental health issues, it is not surprising that this demographic is increasingly turning to marijuana for its medicinal properties,”

The post Legal Marijuana Access Reduces Suicide Rates For Older Adults, New Study Suggests appeared first on GrowCola.com.

Michael Kudrewicz/Courtesy photo

(This is a contributed guest column. To be considered as an MJBizDaily guest columnist, please submit your request here.)

As legalization continues to spread and regulated cannabis markets mature, a critical vulnerability is appearing at a fundamental link on the supply chain: unstable, poorly sourced genetics.

In the push for new strains that look different, sound different, or test at higher levels of THC, the $32 billion legal cannabis industry has drifted away from reliable cultivars. Yet the more we scale, the more it becomes clear that the future of cannabis hinges on heritage genetics.

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Legacy cultivars – the Blue Dreams, Trainwrecks, and Sour Diesels fondly remembered from the legacy market and early-stage medical cannabis era – provide a foundation that many modern

The post Blue Dream’s revenge: Why the market needs old-school cannabis genetics appeared first on GrowCola.com.

SCOTUS marijuana meeting; OH gov to sign cannabis restrictions; KY medical marijuana sales launch; ID ballot; FM DEA official on cartel/legalization

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/ TOP THINGS TO KNOW

Prohibitionist group Smart Approaches to Marijuana is warning that President Donald Trump may be about to imminently announce his administration will reschedule cannabis—but a White House spokesperson tells Marijuana Moment that “no final decisions have been made.”

U.S. Supreme Court justices are set to discuss whether to take up a case from marijuana businesses that are challenging the constitutionality of federal prohibition in a

The post Trump rescheduling cannabis imminently? (Newsletter: December 12, 2025) appeared first on GrowCola.com.

President Donald Trump could soon direct the federal government to reclassify cannabis as a less dangerous drug, the Washington Post reported late Thursday.

Echoing a similar Biden-era directive to ease restrictions, Trump is weighing an executive order that would direct federal agencies to move marijuana to Schedule 3 of the federal Controlled Substances Act, according to the Post, which cited six unnamed sources with knowledge of a discussion between the president and Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson.

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The timing is unclear – as is the president’s commitment.

Trump, who over the summer promised to look at marijuana rescheduling within a few weeks, “could still change his mind,” according to the Post’s sources, who added that the exact plan isn’t yet finalized.

But if

The post Report: President Trump close to marijuana rescheduling appeared first on GrowCola.com.