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Arkansas governor spikes medical marijuana drive-thru windows

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The bill could still become law, however, because Arkansas only requires a simple majority to overturn a governor’s veto.

Drive-thru windows at cannabis shops are a common sight in some states, but Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders isn’t having it on her watch.

On Wednesday, Sanders vetoed a bill from the legislature that would have permitted licensed medical marijuana dispensaries to add drive-thru windows to their shops, saying such a move would’ve “expanded access to usable marijuana,” the Arkansas Times reported.

The bipartisan measure “squeaked through” both chambers of the legislature with the bare minimum of majority votes, the Times reported.

The measure, House Bill 1889, also would have permitted patients to tour dispensaries as they can medical cannabis grows and slashed requirements on the number of workers required to man dispensary delivery vehicles.

Drive-thrus and the other changes could still become law, the Times noted, if the same lawmakers that passed the bill keep their votes the same, because Arkansas law only requires a simple majority in both chambers to override a governor’s veto.

But the odds of a veto override vote happening before the 2025 legislative session adjourns are slim, the Times reported, with regular business for the year concluded and lawmakers not expected to gather again prior to adjourning in a few weeks.

Growth in the southern state’s cannabis market has been stymied by politics in recent years. Last year, a campaign to expand the Arkansas medical marijuana industry was kept off the ballot by a legal challenge, and in 2022, voters shot down a ballot question that would have legalized recreational marijuana.

In the meantime, the Arkansas medical marijuana market has been weathering wholesale price compression even as it watches revenues climb.



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Arkansas

Arkansas cannabis revenue drops 2.5% despite record volume in 2024

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Arkansas medical marijuana patients bought more cannabis but spent less money in 2024, as softening prices drove sales higher but cut into dispensary revenue.

The state’s 37 licensed retailers sold 75,598 pounds of medical marijuana last year, up 21.5% from 2023. But total sales fell 2.5% to $275.9 million, according to figures released this week by state regulators and first reported by KNWA-TV.

“Lower prices were a key reason for the increase,” Scott Hardin, spokesperson for the Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration, said in a news release.

The state collected more than $31 million in marijuana taxes during the year, including nearly $16 million from the standard 6.5% sales tax and $15.2 million from a special 4% tax on sales between growers and dispensaries.

Suite 443 in Hot Springs, which was Arkansas’ first dispensary, led December sales with 730 pounds. Natural Relief Dispensary in Sherwood sold 547 pounds, while CROP in Jonesboro moved 419 pounds. Eleven stores sold less than 100 pounds for the month, according to Cannabis Business Times.

The Arkansas market had been looking to expand, but in October, the state Supreme Court blocked a ballot measure that would have let more patients qualify and grow plants at home, ruling 4-3 that the proposal’s language was misleading.

Arkansas’ medical marijuana program, which serves about 110,000 patients, has generated more than $1.3 billion in sales since the first store opened in May 2019. December sales hit $24 million on volume of 6,721 pounds.

The state has collected roughly $150 million in total tax revenue from the program since its launch.



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Arkansas

Arkansas medical marijuana sales down year-over-year through October

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Arkansas medical marijuana sales are down slightly year-over-year through the end of October, according to newly released state data, which shows total cannabis sales for 2024 at $227.8 million, as opposed to $234 million for the first full 10 months of 2023.

According to the Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration, the state’s 37 dispensaries sold $23.9 million worth of cannabis in August, followed by $21.9 million in September and $23.4 million in October. While those figures are all up from a summer lull, the actual volume of marijuana products being purchased has increased solidly.

“While the overall spend is down this year, there is a significant year to year increase in total pounds purchased, reflecting lower prices,” Scott Hardin, spokesperson for the ADFA, said in a press release. “We will have to see two extremely strong months in November and December to surpass the 2023 sales record of $283 million.”

Dispensaries sold a combined 19,516 pounds of medical marijuana between August and October, the ADFA announced, including 6,714 pounds in August, 6,196 pounds in September and 6,606 pounds in October.

Total medical marijuana sales in Arkansas have topped $1.2 billion thus far since the market launched in 2019, Hardin said.

The Arkansas cannabis market had a chance to expand even more this year through a proposed ballot measure, but that initiative was nullified even though it appeared on the November ballot, due to a state Supreme Court ruling last month which found that the ballot measure name and title were misleading.



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Arkansas

The Daily Hit: November 20, 2024

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The Daily Hit is a recap of the top financial news stories for Wednesday, November 20, 2024.

On the Site

Village Farms, veterans group challenge DEA’s role in cannabis rescheduling

The motion argues that the DEA has “stacked the deck” against rescheduling efforts.

Read more here.

FDA approves clinical trials for medical cannabis to treat PTSD in military veterans

MAPS has been fighting for approval from the agency for three years.

Read more here.

LoneStar Farms loses legal battle with CenTex CBD

LoneStar Farms has been ordered to pay CenTex over $100,000 when the company originally only wanted a $3,400 refund.

Read more here.

Minnesota cannabis office could face legal action from rejected license applicants

An attorney who assisted some of the rejected applicants said the state offered “flimsy” excuses for some rejections.

Read more here.

Psyence Biomedical to consolidate shares in bid to keep Nasdaq listing

The consolidation follows Psyence’s March debut on the Nasdaq through a SPAC merger with Newcourt Acquisition.

Read more here.

Arkansas medical marijuana sales down year-over-year through October

Total medical marijuana sales in Arkansas have topped $1.2 billion thus far since the market launched in 2019.

Read more here.

Earnings:

In Other News

US Cannabis Council

The US Cannabis Council hired Mercury Public Affairs to lobby on issues related to the cannabis industry. The lobbyist on the account is Bryan Lanza, who served as communications director for President-elect Trump’s first transition team.

Read more here.

California consumption lounges

Sacramento city leaders passed an ordinance in a controversial 5 to 4 decision — with Mayor Darrell Steinberg casting the deciding vote — that will allow the social consumption of marijuana at select dispensaries.

Read more here.

MindMed

Mind Medicine appointed Gregg A. Pratt, Ph.D., as its chief regulatory and quality assurance officer. Pratt will oversee the company’s regulatory and quality functions, as well as its product registration strategies.

Read more here.



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