Tag: regulation

U.S. House Bill Could Force FDA to Focus on Disposables

Credit: ArieStudio
A new House bill would require the FDA to update its enforcement guidance to prioritize its enforcement against disposable electronic nicotine delivery system (ENDS) products.
U.S. Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick (D-Fla.) introduced the bill that would also close a legal loophole that allows for the sale of flavored e-cigarettes if the delivery device is disposable.
“Too many of our youth are forming nicotine addictions, increasing their risk of future addiction to other drugs,” Cherfilus-McCormick said in a news release. “I am even more troubled by the fact that Chinese manufacturers and suppliers are flooding the U.S. market with unregulated, harmful substances that are altering our children’s brain development and lives, according to a release.
The bill, known as HR 901, was referred last week to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce for review and consideration. The bill wouldn’t ban disposable vapes or give the FDA additional authority if passed.
The bill could find support from some House members and tobacco companies. Last week, R.J. Reynolds filed a formal FDA citizen petition asking the agency to prioritize enforcement against disposable vapes.
February 18, 2023
Medicinal Cannabis Research Act Survives Senate Committee

Credit: EKKAPON
The Senate Committee on Veterans’ Affairs advanced the VA Medicinal Cannabis Research Act on Thursday, marking the first-ever standalone cannabis bill to be passed out of a Senate committee.
If passed, it would be only the second standalone marijuana legislation to be passed federally.
The bipartisan bill, which advanced in a markup session that occurred off the floor, would direct the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to conduct both a study and clinical trials on the “effects of cannabis on certain health outcomes of veterans with chronic pain and post-traumatic stress disorder,” as well as for other conditions.
The Senate legislation is sponsored by Montana Sen. Jon Tester, also the chair of the committee, and co-sponsored by Alaska Sen. Dan Sullivan; House Reps. Lou Correa and Jack Bergman have introduced the House version, Cannabis Wire reports.
“I’m particularly proud we cleared a number of my bills allowing VA to increase the number of providers in rural areas, authorize important VA projects, and conduct research into medicinal cannabis as an alternative treatment to treating the wounds of war,” Tester said in a statement after the advancement of three veterans bills on Thursday.
The VA has been an ongoing example of where state and federal cannabis laws clash. While medical cannabis is now legal in a majority of states, cannabis remains a Schedule I substance under federal law. VA doctors, beholden to federal law, have been unable to recommend these products to patients.
“Medicinal cannabis is already in use by thousands of veterans across the country, but we don’t yet have the data we need to understand the potential benefits and side effects associated with this alternative therapy,” Sullivan said in a statement when introducing the bill.
Last year, for the first time, a standalone piece of marijuana reform legislation was signed into law by a U.S. president. The “Medical Marijuana and Cannabidiol Research Expansion Act” is just one signature away from historic enactment.
February 18, 2023
CTP Announces new Director of Office of Science

Matthew Farrelly (Credit: RTI International)
The new director of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s tobacco science division is Matthew Farrelly, former chief scientist and director of the Center for Health Analytics, Media, and Policy for RTI International.
In an announcement, The FDA’s Center of Tobacco Products (CTP) stated that Farrelly’s extensive work in the field of tobacco and nicotine science for more than 25 years, and being recognized internationally as an expert with proven leadership and organizational management skills will help him succeed as the director of the CTP’s Office of Science.
“He has led or been involved with numerous scientific endeavors related to tobacco control policies and regulatory approaches, including those related to graphic health warning labels, excise taxes, smoke-free policies, quitlines, state tobacco control programs, retail advertising, and flavored tobacco products,” the release states. “He has also extensively researched the influence of mass reach health campaigns, including FDA’s The Real Cost.”
Farrelly also has authored or co-authored over 120 articles in peer-reviewed scientific literature, which have been cited over 10,000 times. He earned his Ph.D. in Economics from the University of Maryland at College Park.
Farrelly will replace Matt Holman, who left the position last year to Philip Morris International. Holman was hired in 2017 and took over for David Ashley.
February 17, 2023
California Lawmaker Brings Tobacco ‘Endgame’ Bill

Credit: Niro World
A California legislator has introduced a bill to ban vaping and other tobacco products from being purchased by anyone born after January 1, 2007. If enacted, it would mean that eventually no one in California would be legally allowed to buy any form of tobacco product, including cigars, snus and vapes.
Assembly Bill 935, a phased ban introduced on February 14 by assembly member Damon Connolly, would mean that anyone in California who is presently 16 years old or younger could never legally buy a tobacco product in that state. Penalties would be up to $6,000 for repeat offenders and include a tobacco license loss, reports Davis Savona of Cigar Aficionado.
Connolly, an attorney, has also served as Vice-Mayor of San Rafael, among other positions.
There is precedent for such legislation, but not in the United States. This move would mimic a New Zealand law that has banned tobacco sales to anyone born in or after 2009.
February 16, 2023
DEA: Two Cannabinoids ‘Do not Occur Naturally’ in Hemp

Credit: piter2121
In an expected move yesterday, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) says that two cannabinoids with a growing market presence do not meet the federal definition of legal hemp and are therefore considered illegal controlled substances.
Attorney Rod Kight inquired about the legal status of delta-8 THC-O and delta-9 THC-O with the federal agency last year and followed up earlier this month.
DEA sent a response letter on Monday, saying the two cannabinoids “do not occur naturally in the cannabis plant and can only be obtained synthetically, and therefore do not fall under the definition of hemp,” according to Marijuana Moment.
“Delta-9-THCO and delta-8-THCO are tetrahydrocannabinols having similar chemical structures and pharmacological activities to those contained in the cannabis plant,” the letter from Terrence L. Boos, chief of DEA’s Drug & Chemical Evaluation Section, continued.
Kight responded to DEA’s letter in a blog post on Monday, writing that “although I do not always agree with the DEA’s view on cannabis matters, I agree with this opinion and, frankly, am not surprised. This is what I have been saying for a while.”
“I have been concerned about the proliferation of THC acetate ester (THCO) for a while. It has always been my view that THCO is a controlled substance under federal law,” he said. “Although it can be made from cannabinoids from hemp, THCO is not naturally expressed by the hemp plant. It is a laboratory creation that does not occur in nature, at least not from the hemp plant.”
February 14, 2023
Montana Moving to Separate Vaping From Tobacco

Ron Marshall / Credit: State of Montana
A bill that aims to exclude vapes or e-cigarettes from tobacco regulations passed Friday in the Montana House.
The bill’s sponsor Rep. Ron Marshall said marijuana and alcohol aren’t regulated the same way, and he doesn’t think cigarettes and vapes should be either. according to the Fairfield Sun Times.
“Each one is in its own lane,” said Marshall, who is married to the owner of Freedom Vapes in Hamilton.
On second reading, 57 representatives voted yes, and 42 voted no on House Bill 293. It needs to pass third reading next.
Some legislators who voted against the bill said they worry it’s going to put more dangerous products in the hands of children.
The Montana legislature in 2021 passed a bill that blocks local governments from banning the sale of flavored vaping products.
February 13, 2023
New York City Cracks Down on Illegal Cannabis Shops

Credit: Rob
The illicit marijuana market in New York City is thriving. In a renewed push to snuff out the city’s growing illegal cannabis market, Mayor Eric Adams and Manhattan’s top prosecutor announced last week that they would go after landlords who allow hundreds of illicit shops to operate.
During a news conference with the mayor, Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg said his office has sent notices to more than 400 smoke shops that illegally sell cannabis, warning them of potential eviction proceedings. If shop owners do not cease operation, his office would seek to force property owners to evict the shops, reports the Associated Press.
It was the latest effort by authorities to force the closure of illegal dispensaries that could undermine the state’s nascent legal cannabis market, which began rolling out in recent months and is expected to quickly grow as more state-sanctioned shops open.
When the state legalized recreational marijuana two years ago, “many people took it that you can just open up a location any way you want,” Adams said.
Unauthorized pot shops have cropped up in droves, operating out in the open — and offering cheaper prices than the legal stores, where the products are highly taxed. The number of illegal shops across New York’s five boroughs could exceed 1,200, according to some estimates.
February 13, 2023
Key West, Florida Bans Vaping at Beaches, Parks
Credit: lazyllama
Officials in Key West, Florida banned smoking and vaping at Key West’s parks and beaches when they met on Feb. 7. But, not entirely.
Cigar smoking is still allowed. The state won’t let local governments restrict it. The city commission also can’t restrict the use of prescription medications, which for millions of Americans now includes marijuana, according to Keys Weekly.
So, while the goal is eliminating cigarette butts from beaches and parks, it’ll be interesting to see how enforcement of the new ban goes.
Any person who violates the rule commits a noncriminal violation, punishable by a fine of not more than $100 for the first violation and not more than $500 for each subsequent violation.
February 12, 2023
Philippines Leaders Urged to Ban Vaping ‘Eventually’

Credit: Carsten Reisinger
The government in the Philippines is being urged to raise the minimum age of people allowed to use vaping products to 25, ban flavored products, online sales, and “eventually” e-cigarettes entirely.
Southeast Asia Tobacco Control Alliance Executive Director Ulysses Dorotheo said also wants the introduction of “standardized packaging” on vaping products – removing colors, scents, and indications of flavors in a proposal issued to lawmakers during a Senate committee hearing on sustainable development goals, innovation, and future thinking on Friday.
“To raise the minimum age to 25 which is the cut-off for adolescent brain development so as to reduce the risk of nicotine addiction,” he said, reports the Inquirer.
Individuals as young as 18 years old may legally smoke vaping products in the Philippines.
The country’s Food and Drug Administration backed the suggestion of Dorotheo.
Restricting the sales of vaping products online is likewise pushed by Dorothero, noting it “is where our youth spend much of their time.”
Further, Dorotheo sought to increase the excise taxes on vaping products, pointing out that a lower tax rate is levied on such items compared to tobacco products.
Dorotheo eventually emphasized that the “long-term ideal outcome” is to ban vaping products.
The Philippine Tobacco Industry (PTI) recently called on the Philippines’ Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) to crack down on illicit vapor products.
February 11, 2023
Kansas State Senators File Medical Marijuana Bill

A new push to legalize medical marijuana in Kansas is picking up some steam. The bill, if passed, would also make vaping cannabis illegal.
According to Marijuana Moment, state senators filed a new measure – SB 135 – that seeks to provide legal access to medical cannabis for people with debilitating conditions.
Backed by the Senate Federal and State Affairs Committee, the new legislation would regulate the cultivation, processing, distribution, sale and use of medical cannabis.
“The patients of Kansas have been eagerly anticipating the opportunity for a program and to join the 37 other states that have adopted comprehensive medical cannabis programs,” Kevin Caldwell, a legislative manager at the Marijuana Policy Project told Marijuana Moment’s Kyle Jaeger. “Patients have been forced for too long to have to go to the illicit market for products that have not been tested for contaminants as well as face legal repercussions for possessing medicine that can greatly improve the quality of their lives.”
The licensing process would be overseen by a Division of Alcohol and Cannabis Control, while a Medical Cannabis Advisory Committee would supervise the implementation of the marijuana program.
Taxed at 10 percent, medical marijuana products would have to contain less than 35 percent THC for flower, while tinctures, oils and concentrates could not exceed 60 percent THC.
February 11, 2023