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NUGGETS

CHRONICLING LEGAL CANNABIS IN MINNESOTA

By Matt DeLong

In this week’s Nuggets: Minnesota could license hundreds of marijuana retailers, cultivators in the coming months; 6 noteworthy changes made to draft cannabis rules after public comments; will tribes have an unfair advantage in Minnesota’s cannabis market?; Social AF’s 4/20 CannaBus is returning to the Twin Cities; and DFL lawmakers introduce bills to decriminalize psychedelic mushrooms and create a therapy program.

Minnesota could license hundreds of marijuana retailers, cultivators in coming months: The state Office of Cannabis Management has received more than 3,500 cannabis business license applications as it sends its marijuana regulations to a judge for final approval. Read more. (Gift link)

6 noteworthy changes to draft cannabis rules after public comments: As noted in the story above, the OCM announced this week that it has submitted a draft of regulations that will govern the state’s legal marijuana market to an administrative law judge for final review. The judge has 14 days to either approve the rules, approve them with changes or reject them. Once the rules are approved and published in the state register, the OCM can begin issuing cannabis business licenses.

Minnesota cannabis attorney Jason Tarasek shared with Nuggets his analysis of the OCM’s revisions to the rules after a 30-day public comment period earlier this year. He didn’t see any major changes, but rather "a series of minor tweaks."

Here are some notable updates:

The biggest lightning rod for business owners and advocates in the earlier version of the regulations was a 70% THC potency limit for cannabis concentrates. The proposed limit has been raised to 80%.
Transdermal and topical cannabis products would be limited to 1,000 milligrams of THC per package.
A provision was axed that would have allowed a “trained server” employed by lower-potency hemp edible retailers to mix lower-potency, hemp-derived THC beverages on-site.
Terpene profiles will not be required on the packaging label for dried flower products.
If the statewide seed-to-sale monitoring system has an outage or failure, no sales may occur during that time period.
For medical cannabis combination businesses, the OCM must calculate the portion of plant canopy that may be used to cultivate adult-use cannabis as one-half of the portion used to cultivate medical cannabis, rather than one-third.

Will tribes have an unfair advantage in Minnesota’s cannabis market? “In discussions with state lawmakers, I championed the inclusion of tribal compact language in Minnesota’s 2023 cannabis legalization bill, believing strongly in its potential to empower tribes. Yet as Minnesota inches closer to fully launching its recreational cannabis market, I find myself increasingly concerned. Our state’s approach to tribal compacts, while well-intentioned, is unlike any other in the nation,” writes Minnesota Star Tribune opinion columnist Clemon Dabney. Read more.

Social AF’s 4/20 CannaBus is returning to the Twin Cities: If you’re looking to hit as many 4/20 events in the Twin Cities as possible this year, Social AF’s CannaBus will handle the driving. Revelers will meet at Surly at 1:30 p.m., then visit four other celebrations before returning to Surly at 8:30. Tickets are limited and priced at $60. Tickets and more info here.

DFL lawmakers introduce bills to decriminalize psychedelic mushrooms, create therapy program: A gang of eight DFL House lawmakers this week introduced HF 2699, which would remove criminal penalties for and explicitly authorize the cultivation, possession, transportation and personal use of psilocybin mushrooms for individuals 21 or older. It would also create a Psychedelic Medicine Board that would establish possession limits (no more than “a one-year supply of psilocybin in dried or prepared form,” per the bill) and make policy recommendations “to ensure the safe and appropriate use of psilocybin in the state.”

A second bill, HF 2906, introduced Thursday by a group of five DFLers, would establish a psilocybin therapeutic use program, allowing individuals 21 or older with qualifying medical conditions to use psilocybin in a therapeutic setting.

If HF 2699 becomes law, Minnesota would become just the third state to decriminalize psilocybin mushrooms, after Oregon and Colorado.

Did you miss last week's Nuggets? Read it here.

AROUND THE WEB

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FROM THE GARDEN

Huge thanks to Mike in Washington County for sending us this gorgeous shot! The strain is Dulce De Uva, which is the breeder cut of Grape Cream Cake, from Bloom Seed Co. It was grown indoors in an Earth Box sub-irrigated planter and flowered for 73 days under LED light. Mike said this photo is a focus stacked composite of more than 50 images.

Homegrowers, show off your plants! Share your best photo with us by clicking the button below and we'll publish one each week in Nuggets. By submitting a photo you affirm that you own the rights to it and you are granting permission to the Star Tribune to publish it on its platforms.

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CALENDAR

March 29 (Sat.): Home Growing the Easy Way - "Learn about seeds, soil & getting started growing autoflowers in your backyard, the easy way." Seating is limited. 2-4 p.m. CannaJoyMN, 4753 S. Chicago Av., Minneapolis. More info.

March 30 (Sun.): Seed Swap Extravaganza - "Join us for a day of gardening fun and community, exchange seeds with fellow gardening enthusiasts and learn gardening tips and tricks." 10 a.m.-3 p.m. Here2Heal Grow and Supply, 836 S. Lake St., Forest Lake. More info.

April 11 (Fri.): 420 Lounge - "Come celebrate 420 early at the Zen Arcade/ Mission Room at The Hook this April! Vibes curated by dj izzie p with Chico Chi, Lailah Reynolds, & more." 8 p.m.-midnight. Hook & Ladder Mission Room, 3010 Minnehaha Av., Minneapolis. Tickets and more info.