MJBizMag July 2020 - 34

IndustryDevelopments | International & State
Oregon
A lawsuit against more than 200 Oregon marijuana companies is resulting in what
looks to be a victory for the group of cannabis companies that refused to settle.
The Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act lawsuit, which
alleged that smells from a neighboring marijuana processor diminished the " use
and enjoyment " of the plaintiff's property, was thrown out in May. The suit named
226 companies and principals who conducted business with marijuana processor
Oregon Candy Farm. The court dismissed cannabis retailers from the suit, which
cut the number of defendants in half. Some other defendants settled, with
settlement amounts declining to $1,000 as the case progressed.
Utah
The combination of patient demand and the coronavirus convinced Utah
regulators to allow the state's medical marijuana pharmacies to offer drivethru
windows and home delivery for patients. At least two of the state's three
operational dispensaries planned to use drive-thru windows, according to local
news outlets. Drive-thru service has become popular in many U.S. marijuana
markets during the coronavirus pandemic, as retailers have looked for ways to
maintain physical distancing while serving customers. The director of Utah's
MMJ program said three pharmacies won't be sufficient to meet patient demand
and indicated 11 more will open before the end of the year.
Washington state
The coronavirus pandemic has made it impossible for Washington state
lawmakers to conduct public hearings, so efforts to require pesticide testing for
recreational marijuana have been tabled until further notice. Nearly all states
with recreational cannabis programs require some form of pesticide testing.
Washington state requires only cannabis allotted for the " medically compliant "
program to be tested for pesticides. Under one proposal, pesticide tests would
cost $70 and all cannabis would need to be tested, 4 grams at a time for 5-pound
lots. Cannabis growers and processors in Washington state already pay a steep
37% excise tax as well as $120 per lab test for potency, microbials and mycotoxins.
West Virginia
Medical marijuana companies in West Virginia, which has one of the slowestlaunching
programs in the cannabis industry, will have to wait at least another
year before beginning sales. Bill Crouch, cabinet secretary of the state's
Department of Health and Human Resources, told WVNews the agency is
" looking at making the product available in the spring of 2021. " West Virginia
passed medical cannabis legislation in April 2017, but bureaucratic holdups have
mired the program in red tape. Reviews have been completed for applicants
seeking business licenses to grow and process marijuana, though dispensaries
are still under review.
Note: Entries sourced from Marijuana Business Daily, Hemp Industry Daily and other international, national and local news
outlets. These developments occurred before this magazine's publication deadline, so some situations may have changed.
32 Marijuana Business Magazine | July 2020

MJBizMag July 2020

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of MJBizMag July 2020