Marijuana Moment: Marijuana & alcohol industries oppose hemp bill, congressman says (Newsletter: May 18, 2026)

[Tokeativity]

VA gov signs cannabis resentencing bill; Fetterman praises Trump’s marijuana & psychedelics moves; Study: CBD to treat cancer in dogs

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/ TOP THINGS TO KNOW

Rep. Andy Barr (R-KY) said in a meeting with hemp industry representatives that his forthcoming bill to regulate products derived from the crop is facing opposition from a coalition of strange bedfellows that includes sectors of the alcohol industry, marijuana businesses and cannabis legalization opponents.

Sen. John Fetterman (D-PA) praised President Donald Trump’s moves to reschedule marijuana and accelerate therapeutic access to psychedelics, saying “we could all agree” on the reforms.

• “I don’t judge or knock anyone for whatever that they knock their edge off to just make it through in this world… A little weed, whatever, sitting in front of the fire pit in your backyard.”

Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger (D) signed legislation to provide resentencing relief to people with marijuana convictions—even after lawmakers rejected her proposed amendments to scale back the scope of the reform.

A new scientific review highlighted the “potential of CBD as an anticancer agent across different cancer types” in dogs, finding that studies “consistently show” that cannabidiol “exerts antiproliferative and proapoptotic effects.”

• “CBD has been shown to be safe and well-tolerated in dogs.”

Alabama’s first medical cannabis dispensary is just “days away” from opening its doors and beginning sales to patients—nearly five years after lawmakers voted to enact legalization.

A lawyer for two Jersey City, New Jersey police officers who were fired for off-duty marijuana use says the new mayor has failed to reinstate them despite several rulings in their favor.

Some petitioners for a failed referendum to block new marijuana and hemp restrictions say the campaign didn’t pay for signatures they collected.

Texas hemp business owners say a flurry of conflicting court rulings that have alternately paused and reinstated a ban on smokable products has already forced them to scale back hours, cut staff and prepare to shut down.

Shannon Hughes of Elemental Psychedelics argues that the pharmaceutical and natural medicine pathways for psychedelics “are not competing rivers” but are in fact “tributaries of the same watershed.”

/ FEDERAL

The Drug Enforcement Administration said a question on a medical cannabis business registration form about previous unregistered involvement with controlled substances is “not intended to serve as a categorical barrier” to approval.

The new acting director of the Food and Drug Administration’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research previously served as an official for the Usona Institute, which develops psychedelic medicines.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture is seeking White House Office of Management and Budget approval for information collection related to state and tribal hemp plans.

The House bill to delay the federal recriminalization of hemp THC products got one new cosponsor for a total of 34.

/ STATES

Oklahoma’s attorney general noted marijuana enforcement efforts in a press release about how he was invited to White House to discuss the state’s “public safety wins.”

Colorado lawmakers sent Gov. Jared Polis (D) a bill to establish an ibogaine research pilot program.

The Delaware Senate passed a bill to decriminalize drug paraphernalia.

The New Jersey Assembly Appropriations and Oversight Committees approved a bill to allow sales of large-container hemp beverages and to let medical cannabis dispensaries add adult-use marijuana sales without local approval.

Wisconsin’s Assembly minority leader said Democrats see cannabis legalization as a way to generate revenue to pay for other priorities.

Oklahoma regulators expanded a recall of medical cannabis products.

Michigan regulators published a monthly report on disciplinary actions taken against marijuana businesses.

—
Marijuana Moment is tracking hundreds of cannabis, psychedelics and drug policy bills in state legislatures and Congress this year. Patreon supporters pledging at least $25/month get access to our interactive maps, charts and hearing calendar so they don’t miss any developments.

Learn more about our marijuana bill tracker and become a supporter on Patreon to get access.
—

/ SCIENCE & HEALTH

A review concluded that “cannabinoids hold significant potential to address diseases driven by inflammation and oxidative stress and to expand therapeutic landscape.”

/ ADVOCACY, OPINION & ANALYSIS

A poll of U.S. adults found they support legalizing marijuana, 56 percent to 30 percent.

/ BUSINESS

Ascend Wellness Holdings is closing a Lansing, Michigan cultivation facility.

Good Day Farm is facing a lawsuit from a consumer who alleges it and affiliated LLCs used a network of marijuana dispensary licenses to limit competition and inflate prices.

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