Jurisdiction: Florida
Florida’s Highest Court Hears Arguments in Two High Priority Cannabis Matters
For years we have been intrigued about the prospect of legal recreational marijuana in Florida—not a particularly far-fetched notion given the overwhelming support for Florida’s 2016 constitutional amendment broadly legalizing medical marijuana in the state.
Read MoreLegalization Efforts in Florida Take a Hit
It now appears that Floridians will not have the opportunity to legalize marijuana by ballot initiative in the upcoming 2020 election. Make it Legal Florida, the organization attempting to get the issue on the 2020 ballot, announced on Monday that they will not be able to secure enough petition signatures to qualify the issue for the election.
Read MoreRecreational Marijuana Proposal May Reach Florida Voters in 2020
Florida legislators and Governor Ron DeSantis do not appear eager to legalize recreational marijuana. A bill to do so failed last year, and Governor DeSantis (who supports medical marijuana) has indicated he believes recreational marijuana has a “detrimental effect.” Nevertheless, advocates continue to work to move recreational marijuana forward via ballot initiative, and early returns appear promising.
Read MoreFlorida Appellate Court: State Marijuana Licensing Scheme is Unconstitutional
Florida’s First District Court of Appeals issued an opinion in Florida Dept. of Health, et al. v. Florigrown, LLC, Case No. 1D18-4471, last week. The court’s ruling upended Florida’s medical marijuana industry by deeming the state’s current regulatory scheme—and by extension the cap on the number of licenses—unconstitutional.
Read MoreGrowing in Sunshine: Hemp and Hemp-Derived CBD Now Legal in Florida
Governor Ron DeSantis and the Florida Legislature have continued to liberalize Florida’s treatment of cannabis. After previously lifting the prohibition on smoking medical marijuana, the Legislature passed and Governor DeSantis signed Senate Bill 1020, which legalized hemp effective July 1, 2019.
Read MoreNot So Magical: Great-Grandmother Arrested at Disney World for Possession of CBD Oil
A 69-year-old great-grandmother was arrested at a Disney World checkpoint by an Orange County deputy that found CBD oil in her purse. While the Farm Bill legalized CBD at the federal level in December 2018, the Florida Legislature has not yet removed the product from its state controlled substances list.
Read MoreFlorida to Revamp Application Process and Issue New Medical Marijuana Licenses
After months of uncertainty and anticipation, Florida is overhauling its medical marijuana application process and issuing new licenses. The breakthrough stems from recent settlements between the Florida Department of Health and plaintiffs that were denied licenses in the first round of licensing in 2015.
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