Washington, DC’s medical marijuana program will undergo a few changes in the coming months after a Congressional Review resulted in the approval of an amendment measure. The bill includes further social equity provisions, gets rid of cannabis business licensing caps and allows cannabis operators to obtain tax relief.
In addition, the bill will create new business categories in the state’s cannabis program, such as marijuana cooking classes and onsite marijuana consumption facilities. The measure also will allow sellers of nonmarijuana products in exchange for free cannabis items to enter the legal market and allow state officials to crack down on “gifting” operators that keep selling illegally.
The legislation was introduced by DC Council chair Phil Mendelson last year and was unanimously passed by the council in December before heading to the mayor’s desk where it was signed in January. Titled the Medical Cannabis Amendment Act, the measure would allow adults to certify themselves as medical marijuana patients.
This self-certification provision is quite crucial after congressional legislators approved an appropriations package containing a rider that prevents Washington, DC, from launching a regulated recreational cannabis industry. The controversial rider wasn’t included in the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), and stakeholders were hoping that it would also be excluded from the congressional bill.
Fortunately, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) ruled in 2022 that officials in Washington could begin taking preliminary legislative steps in preparation for eventual cannabis reform. Officials had drafted and introduced a bill to legalize recreational cannabis when Representative Andy Harris, who has regularly sponsored the anti-cannabis rider, sent a complaint to the GAO.
The Medical Cannabis Amendment Act extends the number of days unlicensed businesses have to apply for licenses from 60 to 90 days and also allows the businesses to seek cultivation center licenses. It will also launch a process to allow applicants to make appeals for rejected license applications.
However, one of the most significant amendments introduced by the measure is giving cannabis operators the chance to deduct taxes that the Internal Revenue Service prevents them from deducting through code 280E. Since cannabis is still illegal at the federal level, state-legal cannabis businesses cannot access a plethora of financial services including tax deductions, federal aid, and banking services.
The bill codified a permanent self-certification policy that would make it possible for adults aged 21 and older to become certified medical cannabis patients without a doctor’s recommendation. It also sets aside 50% of all cultivation center, courier, manufacturer, internet retailer and retailer licenses to cannabis social equity applicants.
As the medical cannabis program is expanded, a number of opportunities will be created for companies such as Advanced Container Technologies Inc. (OTC: ACTX) that serve the marijuana industry.
NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to Advanced Container Technologies Inc. (OTC: ACTX) are available in the company’s newsroom at https://cnw.fm/ACTX
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