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Drug War Chronicle, Issue #1176 -- 12/23/22
Phillip S. Smith, Editor, psmith@drcnet.org https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/1176

A Publication of StoptheDrugWar.org
David Borden, Executive Director, borden@drcnet.org
"Raising Awareness of the Consequences of Drug Prohibition"

Please support our newsletter with a recurring or one-time year-end
donation!
https://stopthedrugwar.org/donate

Table of Contents:

1. THIS YEAR'S TOP TEN DOMESTIC DRUG POLICY STORIES [FEATURE]
The good, the bad, and the ugly in US domestic drug policy this year. https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2022/dec/23/years_top_ten_domestic_drug

2. BIDEN SIGNS MARIJUANA RESEARCH BILL INTO LAW [FEATURE]
For the first time, Congress has passed and the president has signed
into law a stand-alone marijuana reform bill. https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2022/dec/06/biden_signs_marijuana_research

3. STUDY OF POT SHOP ROBBERIES POINTS TO NEED FOR SAFE BANKING ACT NOW [FEATURE]
A groundbreaking study from StoptheDrugWar.org shows how attractive pot
shop cash is to robbers. https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2022/dec/09/study_pot_shop_robberies_points

4. ASSET FORFEITURE SHENIGANS DOWN IN HOUSTON [FEATURE]
In a reverse Robin Hood Act, Texas civil asset forfeitures take from the
poor and give to the state. https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2022/dec/23/asset_forfeiture_shenigans_down

5. MEDICAL MARIJUANA UPDATE
A marijuana research bill becomes law, the SAFE Banking Act doesn't, and
more.
https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2022/dec/23/medical_marijuana_update

6. THIS WEEK'S CORRUPT COPS STORIES
A small-town Pennsylvania police chief had a bad habit, an Indiana cop
gets caught stealing dope from DEA Drug Take Back campaign, and more. https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2022/dec/21/weeks_corrupt_cops_stories

7. ROTTERDAM MAYOR SAYS PORT CITY "DROWNING IN COCAINE," SAMHSA TO EASE
OPIOID TREATMENT RULES, MORE... (12/14/22)
The US Pardon Attorney says federal marijuana pardon certificates are
coming soon, an Irish parliament committee calls for drug
decriminalization and regulation, and more. https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2022/dec/14/rotterdam_mayor_says_port_city

8. LAST MINUTE PUSH FOR SAFE BANKING ACT, NH MARIJUANA LEGALIZATION BILL
FILED, MORE... (12/15/22)
Some Texas town officials are trying to run roughshod over the will of
the voters on marijuana enforcement, sponsors of the SAFE Banking Act
are not giving up hope yet, and more. https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2022/dec/15/last_minute_push_safe_banking

9. AG GARLAND MOVES TO END COCAINE SENTENCING DISPARITIES, BC
DECRIMINALIZATION GRANTED, MORE... (12/19/22)
Kansas City, Missouri, dismisses open marijuana cases; Colombia Congress advances marijuana legalization bill, more... https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2022/dec/19/ag_garland_moves_end_cocaine

10. SAFE BANKING ACT DEAD IN THIS CONGRESS, CA NATURAL PSYCHEDELIC BILL REFILED, MORE... (12/20/22)
The marijuana industry will remain without access to many services after Congress failed to act this year, the GAO looks at how the drug czar's
office is performing, and more. https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2022/dec/20/safe_banking_act_dead_congress

11. PAKISTAN MOVES TO END DEATH PENALTY FOR DRUGS; IN, TX POT POLLS;
MORE... (12/21/22)
Grenada is moving forward with multiple reforms, two new state polls
show strong support for marijuana legalization in Indiana and Texas, and
more. https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2022/dec/21/pakistan_moves_end_death_penalty

12. CRACK SENTENCING BILL LEFT OUT OF SPENDING BILL, SAFE BANKING ACT
WILL BE BACK NEXT YEAR, MORE... (12/22/22)
New York legal recreational marijuana sales are set to begin next week, Maryland's incoming Democratic governor says expunging past pot
convicitons will be a priority, and more. https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2022/dec/22/crack_sentencing_bill_left_out

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Articles of a purely educational nature in Drug War Chronicle appear
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This Year's Top Ten Domestic Drug Policy Stories [FEATURE]

Post to: Twitter Facebook Digg StumbleUpon Reddit

by psmith, December 23, 2022, 03:11pm, (Issue #1176)
Posted in:

Ballot Measures Congress Decriminalization Executive Branch
Fentanyl Harm Reduction Marijuana -- Personal Use Marijuana Industry
Marijuana Legalization News Feature Overdoses Paraphernalia Pill Testing
Safer Injection Sites State & Local Executive Branches State & Local Legislatures Task Forces

The good, the bad, and the ugly in US domestic drug policy this year.

Drug overdoses hit a record high in 2022, but may have peaked. (Creative Commons)
1. Overdose Deaths Appear to Have Peaked but Are Still at Horrid Levels

According to Provisional Drug Overdose Death Counts released by the
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in December, the
nation's fatal drug overdose epidemic has peaked. After reaching a
record high of more than 110,000 fatal overdoses in the 12-month period
ending in March, that number declined to 107,735 in the 12-month period
ending in July, the last month for which data is available. That is a
two percent decline from the March high.

While the decline is welcome, drug overdose numbers are still 25 percent
higher than they were two years ago and double what they were five years
ago. According to the CDC, synthetic opioids, mainly fentanyl, were
implicated in more than two-thirds of overdose deaths and stimulants
such as methamphetamine and cocaine were involved in nearly one-third.
But some fraction of stimulant-implicated overdose deaths are not caused
by the stimulants themselves but by stimulant users being exposed to
drugs cut with fentanyl.

2. Neither Marijuana Legalization nor Banking Access Pass Congress

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) vowed to make passage of a marijuana legalization bill a priority in this Congress, but it didn't
happen. While the House passed a legalization bill, the Marijuana
Opportunity Reinvestment and Expungement (MORE) Act (HR 3617) in April,
Schumer and congressional allies didn't even roll out a draft version of
their Cannabis Administration and Opportunity Act until this July -- 18
months after this Congress began -- and it never exhibited enough
bipartisan support to go anywhere in the evenly divided Senate.

Schumer and his Senate allies also repeatedly blocked efforts to get a
bill to allow state-legal marijuana businesses access to financial
services through the Senate. The Secure and Fair Enforcement (SAFE)
Banking Act (HR 1996) passed the House in April, and Senate allies tried repeatedly to attach it as an amendment to various spending bills, only
to be stymied by Schumer and his holdouts for full-blown legalization.
At year's end, though, while Schumer was finally ready to move forward
with it, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) came out in
opposition, helping to scuttle one last effort to tie it to a defense appropriations bill.

3. With Biden's Signature, A Standalone Marijuana Reform Bill Becomes
Law for The First Time Ever

For the first time ever, Congress passed and in December the president
signed into law a stand-alone marijuana reform bill, the bipartisan
Medical Marijuana and Cannabidiol Research Expansion Act (HR 8454). Some marijuana reform measures have been passed before, but only as part of
much broader appropriations bills. The aim of the bill is to facilitate research on marijuana and its potential health benefits. The bill will accomplish this by streamlining the application process for scientific marijuana studies and removing existing barriers for research by
allowing both private companies and research universities to seek DEA
licenses to grow their own marijuana for research purposes.

4. Three More States Legalize Marijuana

In May, Rhode Island became the 19th state to legalize marijuana when
the General Assembly passed and Gov. Dan McKee signed into law the Rhode
Island Cannabis Act. Sales to any adult over 21 at medical marijuana dispensaries that acquired "hybrid retail licenses" began in December.

And in November, voters in Maryland and Missouri approved marijuana legalization initiatives. Maryland's Question 4 came not from the people
but from the legislature and amends the state constitution and mandates
that the General Assembly "shall provide for the use, distribution,
possession, regulation and taxation of cannabis within the state."
Missouri's Amendment 3 overcame multi-sided opposition not only from the
usual suspects in law enforcement and the political establishment but
also from civil rights groups and marijuana industry insiders to eke out
a narrow victory. As of December 8, possession of up to three ounces by
adults is no longer a crime, but sales to adults will not begin until
next year.

But there were also losses at the ballot box this year. The Arkansas
Adult Use Cannabis Amendment garnered only 43.8 percent of the vote,
while North Dakota's Initiated Statutory Measure No. 1 managed only 45.1 percent, and South Dakota's Initiated Measure 27 came up short with only
46.6 percent of the vote. The South Dakota defeat was especially bitter,
given that just two years ago, voters there approved a broader marijuana legalization initiative with 54 percent of the vote only to see it
invalidated by the state Supreme Court.

5. The Year of Fentanyl Test Strip Decriminalization

Fentanyl test strips, which detect the presence of the powerful
synthetic opioid in all different kinds of drugs (cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine, etc.) and formulations (pills, powders, and
injectables) are recognized by the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention as a valuable harm reduction strategy and are increasingly
seen by the states as a crucial tool in the fight to reduce drug
overdose deaths. When the Biden White House first endorsed their use in
2021, they were considered illegal drug paraphernalia in a majority of
states.

Not anymore. As of the end of 2022, 31 states have now legalized or decriminalized fentanyl test strips, with Alabama, Georgia, New Mexico, Tennessee, and Wisconsin doing so this year alone. But that leaves 19
states, mostly in the South and including Florida and Texas where they
remain banned.

6. Colorado Becomes Second State to Approve Natural Psychedelic Reforms

Three years after voters in Denver opened the door to psychedelic reform
by approving a municipal initiative that made possession of psilocybin mushrooms the lowest law enforcement priority, voters statewide have
approved an initiative that decriminalizes plant- and fungi-derived psychedelics and creates a program for the therapeutic administration of
such substances. On Election Day, voters approved Proposition 122, the
Natural Medicine Health Act, with 53.55 percent of the vote. The victory
makes Colorado the second state to enact reforms decriminalizing a
natural psychedelic and setting up a program for therapeutic use. Oregon
voters led the way on that by approving Measure 109 in 2020.

Proposition 122 has two main prongs: First, it decriminalizes the
personal use, possession, and cultivation by people 21 and over of dimethyltryptamine (DMT), ibogaine, mescaline (not derived from peyote), psilocybin, and psilocyn, as well as providing for the sealing of
conviction records of people who have completed sentences for the use or possession of those substances. The measure sets no personal possession
limits. Second, it creates a "natural medicine services" program for the therapeutic administration of the specified psychedelics and creates a
rubric for regulated growth, distribution, and sales of those substances
to entities within the program. Only psilocybin and psilocin would be
okayed for therapeutic use until 2026. Then regulators could decide on
whether to allow the therapeutic use of DMT, ibogaine, and mescaline.

7. Marijuana Social Consumption Lounges Spread

Ever since the first states legalized marijuana a decade ago, one
question for users was where to go to smoke their newly legal product.
Most states ban smoking outdoors in public or indoors pretty much
anywhere except one's home -- and even that can be an issue if your
landlord isn't down with it. One solution is allowing places for
marijuana users to toke up in a convivial setting, the marijuana social consumption lounge, whether as part of a retail shop or as a standalone business.

Social consumption lounges are now legal in 11 states -- Alaska,
California, Colorado, Illinois, Massachusetts, Michigan, Missouri, New
Jersey, New Mexico, New York, and Nevada -- although they are not
actually up and running yet in some of them. Massachusetts has two
lounges now operating; in New Jersey, regulators just approved rules for
them; in Nevada, regulators just issued 20 provisional licenses; in New
York, they're still waiting for regulators to act; and in California,
the state's dozen or so lounges are set to double in number as more
localities okay them. Meanwhile, the nation's capital could be next: In
the District of Columbia, the city council just approved a bill allowing
them.

8. Safe Injection Sites Are Operating in the United States

Safe injection sites, the harm reduction intervention proven to save
lives after years of operation in more than a hundred cities in
Australia, Canada, and Europe, are finally getting a toehold in the US.
New York City's two safe injection sites have just celebrated their
first birthdays after opening in late 2021, and in Rhode Island, a
two-year pilot program is underway.

But there will be no safe injection sites in California after Gov. Gavin
Newsom (D) vetoed a bill that would have allowed pilot programs in major
cities across the state. And the fate of a proposed Philadelphia safe
injection site -- and the Biden administration's attitude toward them -- remains in doubt. That facility was initially blocked by the Trump
Justice Department, and two years later, the Biden Justice Department
has yet to substantively respond to lawsuit from the site's would-be
operators. Just this month, a federal judge gave DOJ just 30 more days
to respond. A positive response would remove the obstacle to further
expansion of such sites that fear of federal prosecution brings.
Meanwhile, the Congressional Research Service has thoughtfully released
a report about other options for getting them up and running, such as
passing budget amendments similar to those blocking the Justice
Department from interfering in marijuana laws.

9. In DC and New York City, Gray Market Weed Finds a Way

In both the nation's capital and the nation's largest city, unregulated marijuana vendors have popped up to supply pent up demand as both cities
endure legalization without legal marijuana sales. In New York City,
it's only a matter of time before taxed, licensed, and regulators
marijuana retailers are able to open, but in the interregnum between legalization and legal access, the pot scene has gone hog wild with
marijuana being sold everywhere -- head shops, bodegas, even from
folding tables on street corners -- with one particularly hysterical
estimate putting the number at "likely tens of thousands of illicit
cannabis businesses." The market isn't waiting for the regulators, and
its emergence could undercut the legal businesses waiting in the wings.
The city has undertaken limited enforcement efforts, but to little
effect so far.

In Washington, DC, a congressional rider barring taxed and regulated
marijuana sales has seen something similar, but with a DC twist: a
multitude of shops that will "gift" you marijuana when you purchase some
other item. The stores call themselves I-71 shops, after the 2014
initiative that legalized marijuana in the city and they even have their
own industry association, which estimates there are a hundred or so of
them. The city vowed a crackdown in August, but put that on hold the
following month.

10. For the First Time, SAMSHA Funds Harm Reduction

In December 2021, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services
Administration (SAMHSA) announced that it would for the first time ever
make grants available to harm reduction groups to "help increase access
to a range of community harm reduction services and support harm
reduction service providers as they work to help prevent overdose deaths
and reduce health risks often associated with drug use." SAMSHA would
make available $10 million a year in grants for the next three years.

And this year, the first tranche went out. Some 25 different programs
from the Lost Dreams Awakening Center in New Kensington, Pennsylvania,
to the Mile High Council on Alcoholism and Drug Abuse in Denver, to the
Los Angeles County Health Department got grants this year, almost all of
them for $398,960. It's a drop in the bucket compared to federal
spending on prohibition -- and compared to harm reduction's full funding
needs -- but it's a start.

1 commen

================ ...
___________________

It's time to correct the mistake:
Truth:the Anti-drugwar
<http://www.briancbennett.com>

Cops say legalize drugs--find out why:
<http://www.leap.cc>
Stoners are people too:
<http://www.cannabisconsumers.org>
___________________

bliss -- Cacao Powered... (-SF4ever at DSLExtreme dot com)

--
bobbie sellers - a retired nurse in San Francisco

"It is by will alone I set my mind in motion.
It is by the beans of cacao that the thoughts acquire speed,
the thighs acquire girth, the girth become a warning.
It is by theobromine alone I set my mind in motion."
--from Someone else's Dune spoof ripped to my taste.

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