Weekly Stories, Studies, Surveys, Poll Results, Laws, etc.
Analysis: Steep Declines in Teen Marijuana Use in States With Regulated Cannabis Markets
Washington, DC: Marijuana use by teens has fallen sharply in the majority of states that have legalized the adult-use market, according to an analysis of state and federal survey data by the Marijuana Policy Project.
MPP’s analysis acknowledges steady declines in self-reported marijuana use by young people in 19 of 21 states for which data is available. Federally funded survey data shows similar nationwide declines in teen marijuana use over the past decade.
“Over a decade into state-level cannabis legalization, the data is unequivocal: Legalization does not increase youth cannabis use. In fact, evidence suggests the opposite,” said Karen O’Keefe, Director of State Policies at the Marijuana Policy Project. “By transitioning cannabis sales from the illicit market to a regulated system with age-restricted access, we’ve seen a decrease in youth cannabis use.”
Last month, national data provided by the University of Michigan’s Monitoring the Future study reported that marijuana use by teens fell to historic lows in 2024. Specifically, it determined that the percentage of 8th graders, 10th graders, and 12 graders who reported having ever consumed cannabis declined 32 percent, 37 percent, and 23 percent since 2014.
A syndicated op-ed authored by NORML’s Deputy Director Paul Armentano highlights the long-term decline in teen marijuana use, stating: “Those wedded to the status quo of cannabis criminalization have long warned that legalizing the marijuana market will result in increased adolescent use. But ten years following the first states’ decisions to legalize and regulate adult-use cannabis sales, data conclusively shows that this fear was unfounded.”
Full text of the report, “Adult legalization corresponds with drop in teen marijuana use,” is available from MPP.
Federal Court: Farm Bill Doesn’t Preempt States From Restricting Retail Sales of Intoxicating Hemp-Derived Products
Richmond, VA: State lawmakers can adopt regulations limiting the public’s access to certain hemp-derived products in more stringent ways than those enacted by the federal Farm Bill, according to a decision by the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit.
Plaintiffs challenged a Virginia state law (SB 903) limiting the amount of THC that can be included in hemp products or industrial hemp extracts to no more than two milligrams per package. They argued that provisions in the Farm Bill do not permit state governments “to define what constitutes hemp or restrict any THC product that is not also outlawed by federal law.”
Judges rejected their argument, opining that the federal law provides states with the “primary regulatory authority over the production of hemp” and that it “expressly permit[s] states to regulate the production of hemp more stringently than federal law.”
They wrote: “Congress was clear. Despite the 2018 Farm Bill, the states retain a significant role in the regulation of hemp. … If anything, the 2018 Farm Bill expressly sanctions state regulation.”
Judges cautioned that state governments may “not … prohibit the interstate transportation or shipment of hemp that complies with federal law.” But they opined that Virginia’s hemp law imposes no such prohibition. “Federally licensed producers and growers are protected from criminal liability in transporting federally compliant hemp through Virginia,” they determined.
“When the actual language of the statutes is considered, SB 903 is not in direct conflict with the purpose of the Farm Bill. Nor does it pose an obstacle to its purposes,” judges concluded.
“This decision is a huge win for common sense and Virginia’s families,” said Attorney General Jason Miyares. “Harmful counterfeit THC products marketed to children will not be tolerated in the Commonwealth. The safety and wellbeing of our kids must always come first.”
In recent years, unregulated manufacturers have engaged in synthesizing hemp-derived CBD into a variety of novel intoxicating products, including delta-8-THC, HHC, and THC-O. This synthetic conversion process often involves the use of potentially dangerous household products. Lab analyses of unregulated products containing delta-8 and similar compounds have consistently found them to contain lower levels of cannabinoids than what is advertised on the products’ labels. Some products also possess heavy metal contaminants and unlabeled cutting agents. Other novel compounds, like THC-O, have not been tested for safety in human trials.
The case is Northern Virginia Hemp and Agriculture, LLC v. Virginia.
Study: Orally Administered CBD Significantly Reduces Pain, Other Symptoms in Patients with Nail-Patella Syndrome
Paris, France: Patients suffering from nail-patella syndrome-induced pain report significant improvements in their health-related quality of life following CBD therapy, according to data published in the journal Nature: Scientific Reports. Nail-patella syndrome (NPS) is a rare genetic disease characterized by skeletal malformation and chronic pain.
French researchers assessed the safety and efficacy of CBD treatment in a cohort of 28 patients diagnosed with NPS. Study participants ingested pharmaceutical-grade synthetic CBD for three months.
Investigators reported: “Treatment (median dose of 900 mg/day) was associated with a significant reduction in pain intensity (mean score of 7.04 at initiation versus 4.04 at three months. … Health-related quality of life and other NPS-associated symptoms also improved in most patients. CBD treatment was well-tolerated and no elevations in liver enzyme levels were reported.”
The study’s authors concluded: “Oral treatment with synthetic CBD was associated with a significant reduction in pain in most of the patients with NPS included in our study and led to improvements in most of the NPS-associated symptoms analyzed. Hence, synthetic oral CBD appears to be a safe and effective treatment option for NPS-associated pain and may be an alternative to conventional analgesics for managing chronic pain in this pathology.”
Full text of the study, “Evidence for therapeutic use of cannabidiol for nail-patella syndrome-induced pain in a real-world pilot study,” appears in Nature: Scientific Reports.
Virginia: GOP Governor Reiterates Opposition To Regulating Retail Marijuana Sales in State of the Commonwealth Address
Richmond, VA: Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin remains unwilling to consider legislative efforts to regulate adult-use marijuana sales.
Speaking to lawmakers on Monday during his State of the Commonwealth address, the Governor said, “Everyone knows where I stand on establishing a retail marijuana market.” He then encouraged legislators to work together on “other issues where we can find common ground.” Last year, he vetoed legislation that sought to establish regulations licensing marijuana retailers.
In his remarks, Gov. Youngkin alleged that jurisdictions with regulated adult-use markets have experienced “significant negative impacts” on mental health and adolescents’ safety. In fact, federally funded survey data reports that teens’ use of marijuana is at historic lows. Further, studies from both the United States and Canada have failed to identify a relationship between marijuana legalization and increased incidences of psychiatric illnesses among either high-risk individuals or the general population.
JM Pedini, NORML’s Development Director and Executive Director of Virginia NORML, pushed back on Gov. Youngkin’s claims. “What’s actually ‘bad for youth’ is leaving the control of Virginia’s marijuana market to illicit operators,” Pedini said. “Data gleaned from decades of real-world regulatory experience with cannabis in the US clearly shows that states which take marijuana off the street corner and place it behind an age-verified counter see a drop in youth use.”
In 2021, Virginia lawmakers enacted legislation legalizing the use, possession, and personal cultivation of marijuana by adults. That legislation called upon lawmakers to authorize licensed cannabis sales by January 1, 2024. However, when Republicans gained control of the House and Governorship in 2022, they failed to advance legislation to do so.
Since being elected Governor in 2021, Youngkin has steadfastly refused to consider the issue.
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