MICHIGAN—Spark up and catch up.
Here’s a quick rundown of what’s new on Michigan’s cannabis scene:
TAX WATCH: Most dispensaries are still waiting to feel the real impact of the state’s newly implemented 24% wholesale weed tax, reports the Midland Daily News. Many Michigan shops haven’t raised prices yet, but owners say the squeeze is coming and are expecting slower sales, tighter margins, and more customers drifting back to the unregulated market.
HEMP SHAKEUP: Michigan gas stations and smoke shops are running out of time to sell THC hemp drinks, gummies, and vapes. The Detroit Free Press reports that federal legislation is set to close a longstanding legal loophole that’s allowed intoxicating, hemp-based products to be sold outside licensed dispensaries. The new rules are slated to take effect in November.
LICENSE BRAWL: The fight over Menominee’s final dispensary license is getting messier by the day, with multiple cannabis companies—including Puff Cannabis—piling into court after voters decided to cap the city at nine dispensaries. With eight shops currently operating, Menominee Mayor Casey Hoffman described the situation as a full-blown “legal bloodbath.”
TURNAROUND TRY: Common Citizen has hired Florida cannabis executive Robert Beasley as CEO, hoping new leadership can help navigate collapsing prices and the new 24% wholesale tax. As other companies shut down or flee Michigan, Beasley told Crain’s Detroit Business that he still sees opportunity: “When you’re the last shrimp boat around, there is plenty of shrimp.”
SCHOOL ZONE: Did Ann Arbor slip up by shrinking the buffer between dispensaries and schools? A columnist at the Michigan Daily is laying out the case against the move, pointing to research linking closer proximity to easier youth access and increased underage use.
SMOKE SHOP SHUTDOWN: A smoke shop near Ypsilanti is facing a lawsuit after police seized weed and psychedelic mushrooms during a raid last fall, MLive reports. No criminal charges have been filed. But township officials still want a judge to declare the store a public nuisance and padlock it for a year, arguing it was illegally selling weed without a license.
BANKING BLUES: Big banks still aren’t budging on cannabis, reports MJBizDaily. Despite President Donald Trump’s order to reschedule marijuana, lenders say they still won’t work with weed businesses until federal rules are fully settled—and possibly not without new legislation.
READ MORE: Why cannabis-infused edibles don’t affect Michiganders the same way every time
Want more cannabis news delivered right to your inbox? Click here to sign up for The MichiGanja Report—our free weekly newsletter about all things marijuana.
