One more ballot has a powerful nationwide majority for marijuana legalization, employment drug check dishonest is at document excessive ranges, and extra.
No therapeutic magic mushrooms for you, California, not this 12 months after a invoice dies within the Senate. (Inventive Commons)
Marijuana Coverage
Ballot: Registered Voters Assist Legalizing Marijuana by a Margin of Extra Than Two-To-One. A brand new ballot commissioned by Fox Information has practically seven out of 10 registered voters saying sure to “legalizing the leisure use of marijuana on a nationwide degree.” Some 69 p.c of respondents, together with majorities of Democrats, Republicans, and independents, had been in favor, with solely 30 p.c opposed.
The ballot additionally indicated rising help for legalization, with the share of these expressing “sturdy help” up by six factors since 2019, the final time Fox Information requested the query.
The ballot is just the newest in a protracted sequence of polls relationship again at the least at decade that present majority help for marijuana legalization, together with a YouGov ballot launched final week that discovered a majority of adults within the US have consumed marijuana and most discovered their expertise “principally optimistic.”
New Hampshire Senate Approves Marijuana Legalization Invoice. For the primary time, the state Senate has authorised a marijuana legalization invoice, Home Invoice 1633, after amending the Home-passed model of the invoice to carry it consistent with the desires of Gov. Chris Sununu (R), who has demanded that it incorporate a franchise mannequin quite than a licensed retail mannequin.
However as a result of the invoice was considerably amended within the Senate, each the Home and the Senate should vote once more earlier than it might probably go. The invoice has now gone to the Senate Finance Committee for an preliminary assessment. It’s going to then head to the Home for approval earlier than going again to the Senate for one final vote.
Beneath the invoice adopted by the Senate, the state would see not more than 15 shops franchised from the state. The Senate model additionally offers extra management to the state authorities and regulators and permits localities to choose out of this system.
The franchise mannequin would cap retailer numbers at 15 and provides extra management to the state authorities and regulators.
Psychedelics
California Therapeutic Psychedelics Invoice Dies as Time Runs Out. A invoice that may have paved the way in which for the therapeutic use of sure psychedelic substances, Senate Invoice 1012, is lifeless for this session after failing to maneuver out of the Senate Appropriations Committee this week. However invoice sponsor Sen. Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco) says he might be again subsequent 12 months.
The legislature final 12 months handed a broader invoice that may have decriminalized specified pure psychedelics, however Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) vetoed it, saying he would be capable of help a narrower invoice for therapeutic psychedelics if it had ample guardrails. So Wiener got here again this 12 months with SB 1012, however now that effort has been blocked for the 12 months.
Weiner responded with this assertion on Thursday:
“We’ve been working for 4 years to legalize entry to psychedelics in California, to carry these substances out of the shadows and into the daylight, and to enhance security and schooling round their use,” mentioned Sen. Wiener. “We’re in a horrible price range 12 months, the place all payments with vital prices are in danger. However, it’s disappointing for this invoice to not transfer ahead. Psychedelics have large promise in serving to individuals heal and get their lives again on monitor. It makes huge sense for California to steer in creating regulated entry beneath the supervision of a licensed skilled. I’m extremely dedicated to this difficulty, and we’ll proceed to work on increasing entry to psychedelics.”
Drug Testing
Worker Drug Check Dishonest Hits File Excessive, Says Quest Diagnostics. The nationwide drug testing firm Quest Diagnostics stories that the share of staff dishonest on drug checks skyrocketed final 12 months, leaping six-fold over the quantity for 2022.
The surge in worker drug check dishonest comes as marijuana legalization spreads throughout the land, with greater than half of the nation’s inhabitants now residing in states the place it’s authorized. Some firms have begun shifting away from testing for marijuana whereas others are reviewing their drug testing insurance policies.
Quest additionally discovered that the optimistic charge for worker drug checks remained at document excessive of 4.6 p.c, up from a low of three.5 p.c between 2010 and 2012.
Staff cheated the checks both by substituting their urine specimens by changing them with artificial formulation and even animal urine, or submitting invalid specimens, suggesting they’d been tampered with with a view to conceal drug use.
“Given the rising acceptance and use of some medication, notably marijuana, it could be unsurprising that some individuals really feel it essential to attempt to cheat a drug check,” mentioned Dr. Suhash Harwani, senior director of science for workforce well being options at Quest. “It’s potential that our society’s normalization of drug use is fostering environments through which some workers really feel it’s acceptable to make use of such medication with out really understanding the influence they’ve on office security.”
