Lady Business: Taylor West, Deputy Director at National Cannabis Industry Association | Ladybud

Bethany Moore: You’ve been working as Deputy Director of National Cannabis Industry Association since last winter. What are your responsibilities and how do you like working in the cannabis industry?

Taylor West: Working in the cannabis industry has been one of the most exciting, interesting, and educational jobs I’ve ever had. As one of our members told me, cannabis industry years are kind of like dog years – one is equivalent to seven in any other business. That certainly feels like it’s been true for my first year!

My job at NCIA covers a lot of different areas, but one of the most important is strategic communications and media relations. Our industry is in a very bright spotlight these days, with an intense amount of media interest. I try to make sure we’re telling the real story of our members, highlighting the businesses that make up our responsible, legitimate, and community-engaged industry. It’s really important that policymakers understand that we are an industry of hard-working, innovative small-business people, and that we deserve to be treated fairly.

Number of marijuana license seekers in Illinois tops expectations | Chicago Tribune

Illinois received 369 applications for medical marijuana business licenses, which means about 1 in 5 applications will win approval to open grow houses and retail centers in the state.

The state received 211 applications for dispensaries — retail shops for medical marijuana — and 158 applications for grow centers. Illinois will allow 60 dispensaries statewide and 21 grow centers.

Bob Morgan, statewide project coordinator for the Illinois Medical Cannabis Pilot Program, said the number of applications, which were due Monday, was higher than anticipated.

Lady Business: Bethany Moore from National Cannabis Business Association | Ladybud Magazine

LADYBUD: You work at the National Cannabis Industry Association NCIA — what is it that you do there?

BETHANY: My primary role at NCIA is focused on membership development. I foster deeper relationships with our existing members, as well as seek out relationships with cannabis companies that are not yet a part of NCIA. I travel quite a bit for the events we do all around the country, and I enjoy that opportunity to feel the connection of this growing community from one end of the country to the other. I obviously recruit new members, but also do fun stuff like work with members to write blog posts, match members with event sponsorship opportunities, and otherwise assist in development for the organization. The future is bright and I’m honored to be in this role at this time, after years of being a volunteer activist for drug policy reform issues, when honestly, I didn’t see this whole legalization thing coming as soon as it did. I’m pleasantly surprised about the forward progress of the movement recently and look forward to helping the industry and movement progress forward responsibly and ethically.

HISTORY: Congress Takes Bipartisan Step to End War on Medical Marijuana

With a 219-189 vote, including 49 Republicans voting in support, the House of Representatives approved a measure denying the use of federal funds to undermine state-authorized medical cannabis laws

First act of Congress to protect medical marijuana patients and caregivers reflects overwhelming public support for medical cannabis

WASHINGTON, DC – In an historic vote late last night, the U.S. House of Representatives took a major step to end the federal government’s war on medical cannabis patients and caregivers. With 219 Members of Congress, including 49 Republicans, voting in support, the Rohrabacher-Farr amendment to the Commerce, Justice, and Science appropriations bill forbids the use of federal funds to raid, harass, or otherwise interfere with medical cannabis patients or providers in states where medical marijuana is legal.

“On behalf of lawful cannabis businesses across the United States, NCIA applauds the Members of Congress who supported this historic step,” said National Cannabis Industry Association director of government relations Michael Correia. “Voters overwhelmingly support the idea that patients whose lives can be changed by medical cannabis should be able to get that medicine legally, and the time has come for the federal government to respect the states that have made that possible. The House took that step last night.”

“This is a truly historic vote and a great day for state-legal businesses that many advocates and business owners, myself included, have worked for years to make happen,” said Etienne Fontan, chief operations officer for Berkeley Patients Group in Berkeley, California. “We’re elated and hope this signals an end to federal interference in states where cannabis is legal.”

Berkeley Patients Group is a licensed medical cannabis collective in California and has provided legal cannabis to patients for 15 years and has been the target of federal property forfeiture action despite its standing as one of the nation’s most well-respected medical cannabis operations. Fontan, a Gulf War combat veteran who also serves on the Board of Directors for NCIA.

The Justice, Science, and Commerce appropriations bill making its way through the U.S. Senate does not currently include the language of the Rohrabacher-Farr amendment, so the provision must either be added during Senate debate or retained during the conference committee actions that will reconcile differences between the two bills.

“If you’ve been wondering when Congress would be forced to catch up to public opinion on cannabis, it started last night,” said Correia. “The House of Representatives has done its part to respect state laws, patients, and the will of the voters. The Senate should do the same.”

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Obama administration clears banks to accept funds from legal marijuana dealers | Washington Post

The Obama administration on Friday gave the banking industry the green light to finance and do business with legal marijuana sellers, a move that could further legitimize the burgeoning industry.

For the first time, legal distributors will be able to secure loans and set up checking and savings accounts with major banks that have largely steered clear of those businesses. The decision eliminates a key hurdle facing marijuana sellers, who can now legally conduct business in 20 states and the District.

Banks still wary about marijuana business | Politico

When it comes to doing business with marijuana sellers, it’s going to take a lot more than a thumbs-up from Eric Holder to get paranoid bankers on board.

The U.S. attorney general made waves last week when he said the Obama administration plans to give banks the go-ahead to make loans or open accounts for marijuana dispensaries in states where they’re legal without running afoul of federal laws, which still consider cannabis an illegal substance.

While the reassurance from Holder is nice, bankers say it’s not that simple.

US marijuana policy edges toward acceptance | Christian Science Monitor

Uncle Sam isn’t ready to light up just yet, but the Obama administration and at least some Republican governors seem to be edging toward a more accepting attitude toward marijuana use. Or at least they’re falling in line with that majority of Americans – 58 percent, according to Gallup – who favor legalization of marijuana.

US Attorney General Eric Holder this week said the federal government will issue banking regulations for state-approved marijuana businesses licensed to sell the drug for recreational or medical use.

Intense Media Spotlight on Marijuana Bodes Well For Cannabis Industry | Marijuana Business Daily

This week alone, dozens of media outlets covered daily developments on everything from Florida’s medical marijuana legalization push and the latest favorable cannabis poll, to marijuana billboards near the Super Bowl and the first licensed cultivation operations in Connecticut. Others ran features on the top marijuana websites (TheStreet.com), the growing acceptance of cannabis (Christian Science Monitor) and the industry’s banking issues (Politco).

This is having a real-world impact on the cannabis industry.

The mainstream media’s intense coverage of all things cannabis not only reflects changing attitudes about marijuana in the United States, it’s also helping to accelerate that shift. The coverage has brought marijuana into homes and executive suites across the country, sparking conversations, spreading awareness and spurring debate among everyday Joes and politicians alike.

Medical marijuana firms face cash economy as banks steer clear | Boston Globe

The conflict between federal and state marijuana laws has become a bigger issue as more states legalize the drug for medical and, more recently, recreational, uses. Dispensaries in the other 19 states that have legalized medicinal cannabis have run into similar banking problems, requiring entrepreneurs to hide the nature of their business, establish separate holding companies, or just haul around bags of cash.

Last week, Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. said that legal marijuana businesses should have access to the banking system and that the Obama administration would provide rules aimed at easing banks’ concerns, mainly by making these activities low priorities for federal prosecutors.

Bank officials in Massachusetts, however, are far from assured, worried what might happen under different administrations. Their preferred solution: changing federal law.

DEBATE: How has marijuana changed Colorado’s image? | 9NEWS Denver

DENVER – A new NBC News-Wall Street Journal poll finds a majority of Americans support legislative efforts to legalize marijuana.

Fifty-five percent say they would support laws in which adults 21 and older are allowed to buy limited amounts of marijuana for personal use.

About a quarter would not approve of legalizing marijuana, but they wouldn’t actively oppose it either. Nineteen percent would actively work to oppose and overturn any legalization efforts.

There is no question that marijuana has changed Colorado’s image. Whether that’s for the better or worse is still up for debate.

“To the extent that the cannabis industry has changed Colorado. I think Colorado has even more changed the image of cannabis industry. We are showing the world that there is a sensible alternative to the underground black market for marijuana by taking it off the streets, out of the underground and putting it behind a highly regulated counter,” Taylor West of the National Cannabis Industry Association said.

Read more: How has marijuana changed Colorado’s image? | 9NEWS Denver

Medical marijuana in Oregon: Ashland conference draws packed house | The Oregonian

ASHLAND — If the packed meeting room Thursday at the refined Ashland Springs Hotel is any gauge, interest in Oregon’s medical marijuana industry is, pardon the pun, high.

The Oregon Medical Marijuana Business Conference, the brainchild of Ashland businessman Alex Rogers, opened Thursday morning with a keynote address by Troy Dayton, the man behind The ArcView Group, a San Francisco-based business that, for a fee, pairs marijuana entrepreneurs with deep-pocketed investors.

The sold-out two-day event in Ashland is one of two conferences this week that focus on the business of marijuana – the latest sign that the state’s once-underground industry has moved into the mainstream. Beginning in March, the Oregon Health Authority will register medical marijuana retail outlets, the first effort to regulate an already thriving trade.

Medical marijuana in Oregon: Be a good neighbor, California marijuana advocate tells prospective dispensary owners | The Oregonian

ASHLAND — Medical marijuana retailers in Oregon need to shift their focus from staying out of jail to being stand-up business owners who sweep their sidewalks each morning and donate to local charities, a California marijuana advocate told prospective dispensary owners on Friday.

Don Duncan, the California director of Americans for Safe Access, a medical marijuana patient advocacy group, spoke to about 150 people gathered here for the Oregon Medical Marijuana Business Conference.

The sold-out event is one of two major marijuana conferences being held this week in Oregon. The National Cannabis Industry Association, based in Washington, D.C., will hold a daylong symposium in Portland on Saturday.

Good Chemistry bring Colorado experience to Worcester medical marijuana dispensary | MassLive.com

WORCESTER — Medical marijuana is coming to Worcester’s canal district at 9 Harrison St, care of the Colorado medical marijuana dispensary Good Chemistry.

The company was one of two that received medical marijuana licenses in Worcester County Friday. It will be setting up shop at 9 Harrison St. between Water and Green Streets in Worcester’s canal district.

The Colorado company has two medical marijuana dispensaries located in Denver where they cultivate and dispenses marijuana, according to an informational folder that was given to MassLive. The company has 26 employees and grows over 60 strains of marijuana.

The storefronts in Denver have the atmosphere of a 1940’s apothecary, according to the company. The store is designated by a single lowercase “g” above the doorway. In addition to the storefront on Harrison Street, the company will also have a growth facility at another location in Worcester.

Obama on the problem of criminalizing marijuana use | CNN

Waukesha, Wisconsin – When it was pointed out that the President’s remarks to The New Yorker magazine about marijuana – which he described as a bad habit but not any worse for a person than alcohol – contradict the administration’s official policy on marijuana, Obama stood by his views.

The President declined to say whether he would support removing marijuana as a “Schedule One” narcotic, a classification that includes heroin and ecstasy.

“I stand by my belief based on the scientific evidence that marijuana for casual users, individual users, is subject to abuse, just like alcohol is and should be treated as a public health problem and challenge,” Obama said in an exclusive interview with CNN.

First medical marijuana dispensary licenses awarded in Massachusetts | Boston Globe

After much anticipation, state health officials Friday revealed the names of the companies that will receive the first 20 licenses to open medical marijuana dispensaries in Massachusetts, although it will likely be summertime before any open their doors for business.

Colorado Pot Smokers Can Still Be Fired For Failing Drug Tests | BuzzFeed

DENVER — Brandon Coats was working as a customer service representative for Dish Network when he was given a random drug test in spring 2010. Although he had worked there for three years, the company fired him when the 30-year-old quadriplegic tested positive for marijuana.

Coats — who has used a wheelchair since age 16 after a car he was riding in crashed into a tree — says he uses marijuana to control his muscle spasms, which weren’t alleviated by other pharmaceuticals.

“It’s a matter of need, and not a matter of want,” Coats’ attorney Michael Evans told BuzzFeed of his client’s marijuana use.

Coats sued Dish Network, arguing that his medicinal marijuana use was legal and that he was never impaired while working, but the trial judge quickly dismissed the case.

Last April, the Colorado Court of Appeals upheld Coats’ firing in a divided opinion.

The court decided Colorado’s Lawful Off-Duty Activities Statute, which prohibits employers from firing employees for participating in legal activities during their free time, like gambling or drinking alcohol, doesn’t apply to marijuana. For the judges, the fact that marijuana is still a federal crime means it is unlawful across the board and the protections of the law don’t apply.

Illinois pot stores may just accept cash | The Herald & Review (IL)

SPRINGFIELD – Even after the state implements rules for the sale of medical marijuana, federal banking regulations could make Illinois’ budding cannabis industry a cash-only operation.

While Illinois already has moved to legalize the use of marijuana for certain medical conditions, federal regulations prevent marijuana dispensaries and related businesses from using federally insured banks.

“What it means for a lot of businesses is that they’re forced to operate entirely in cash,” said Taylor West, deputy director of the National Cannabis Industry Association in Washington, D.C. “That’s not just the sales side. It also affects the business side.”

How to plan your Colorado “weedcation” like a responsible grown-up | Quartz

Visitors to Colorado are now welcomed at dozens of marijuana dispensaries, where they can buy up to a quarter ounce (7 grams) of pot for their own consumption. The new boom in weed tourism has meant long lines at Denver’s dispensaries, and a nascent but growing industry of packaged “green tours,” that are heavy on smoke-filled “magic bus” trips to local growers.

But what if you want to plan an upscale and, yes, responsible “weedcation” of your very own, taking full advantage of Colorado’s amazing outdoors and a serious foodie scene? Quartz asked police and people in the hospitality and cannabis business in Colorado their advice.

Legalizing pot: What’s happening in other states?

By Jack Markell for Associated Press

The votes in Washington and Colorado last month legalizing marijuana were just the latest developments in the debate over marijuana use in the United States.

Lawmakers and activists in some other states are contemplating their next moves in regards to marijuana.

Judiciary Committee Hearing Underscores Consensus: New Marijuana Industry Requires Access to Banking

Senators, Deputy Attorney General Cole, and witnesses all call for swift action to resolve banking crisis faced by legal marijuana businesses

Washington, D.C. – Today’s Senate Judiciary Committee hearing reinforced the growing consensus among legal marijuana regulators, law enforcement officials, and cannabis business professionals that allowing access to banking services is now the most pressing obstacle to the success of the regulated marijuana industry realizing its potential to effectively control marijuana sales in the states where it is legal for medical or adult use and ensuring the eight federal enforcement priorities outlined in last month’s Department of Justice memo can be upheld.
Witnesses Deputy U.S. Attorney James Cole, King County Sheriff John Urquhart, and Colorado Governor’s Chief Legal Counsel Jack Finlaw affirmed the concerns of Senators Patrick Leahy (D-VT), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) , and Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) that federal regulators’ actions to block state-legal marijuana business access to simple banking and financial services will inevitably undermine the viability of state-legal marijuana industries. Furthermore, Cole acknowledged that in states where marijuana has been decriminalized or made legal, implementing a strictly regulated system in which marijuana is sold is the only way to prevent criminal activity such as diversion to youth and across state lines and empowerment of criminals and cartels.
“We need to address the [banking situation] and we are working on it,” stated Deputy Attorney General James Cole who indicated the Department of Justice is conferring with the Department of Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Division to resolve the issue.
Statement from Aaron Smith, NCIA Executive Director:
“The Department of Justice is finally taking seriously the dangers that a lack of access to simple banking services poses to consumers, employees and business owners. We are encouraged that the growing consensus among essentially all stakeholders is that banking access must be available to legal businesses. It portends a quick reform to this dangerous and unnecessary situation.”

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The National Cannabis Industry Association (NCIA) is the only national trade association working to advance the interests of cannabis-related businesses in the US. NCIA promotes the growth of a responsible and legitimate cannabis industry and works for a favorable social, economic and legal environment for that industry in the United States.

National Cannabis Industry Association Statement on DOJ Response to CO, WA Marijuana Laws

The National Cannabis Industry Association welcomes apparent shift in Department of Justice intent regarding marijuana enforcement

Washington, DC – In a memo issued to U.S. Attorneys today, Deputy Attorney General James Cole reinforced guidance indicating that the Department of Justice will not interfere with implementation of adult-use marijuana laws in Colorado and Washington.

Statement from Aaron Smith, Executive Director of the National Cannabis Industry Association:

“We are encouraged by today’s response from the Obama administration. At the heart of the guidance is a willingness to respect the voters who have decided a regulated marijuana market is preferable to a criminal market in their states. Cannabis-related businesses in these states are creating thousands of jobs and generating tens of millions of dollars in tax revenue. These are clear public benefits.

Now is not the time to push marijuana sales back under ground. The new voter-approved, regulated systems in Colorado and Washington should be allowed to proceed. We have full confidence the businesses in these states will comply with any requirements put forth by the Department of Justice. That is what they do. They comply with rules and provide a service to their customers and their communities. We are pleased to see the Obama administration will not cause harm to citizens and states by shutting these businesses down, and hope this will lead to an expansion of sensible policies related to marijuana such as allowing these businesses access to banking and taxing them at a fair rate.”

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Medical Cannabis Businesswomen Call on President Obama to Freeze Enforcement Actions While Reviewing Administration’s Medical Marijuana Policy

Washington, DC — The National Cannabis Industry Association (NCIA), in conjunction with the Women’s CannaBusiness Network, a project it launched earlier this year, today called on President Obama to cease enforcement actions against state-legal medical cannabis providers while the administration reviews its policies to determine whether they are in the public interest. Respected industry businesswomen defended their work and powerfully expressed their frustration with the administration’s crackdown.

“The women here today are compassionate and courageous leaders,” said Jill Lamoureaux , owner of Colorado Dispensary Services. “They are pioneers in alternative medicine. They are job creators and tax revenue generators. They are hear to bring awareness to the Obama administration’s reversal on medical marijuana policy and to ask that the Justice Department immediately stop shutting down state-legal businesses that are serving patients, creating jobs and generating tax revenues.”

Jen Reynolds , a mother of four who will lose her job on Monday because of the actions of the U.S. attorney in Colorado, urged the President to think about the people whom are being affected.

“This is not about ‘marijuana dealers,'” Reynolds said. “This is about medical cannabis patients having a safe and regulated environment in which to purchase their medicine. It is about employees like me, who had the amazing opportunity to help patients alleviate their suffering, while earning a living wage. My center should have been a model for others to follow, not a target for federal action.”

NCIA also released a report entitled, “The Colorado Cannabis Industry: A Tale of Ten Cities,” which details the sales and tax revenues generated by medical marijuana centers in ten Colorado cities.

“The ten cities included in the report alone generated close to $10 million in state and local sales taxes in 2011,” explained Aaron Smith , NCIA executive director. “This money is being used to improve government services in these areas, which is one more benefit of a regulated medical cannabis industry.”