420 FILE--There’s a reason cannabidiol (CBD) is becoming a ubiquitous product nationwide. At the end of last year, health authorities removed hemp — a species of cannabis that doesn’t contain psychoactive qualities — from the controlled substance list, meaning the plant is no longer considered illegal under federal law. Since most CBD products are derived from hemp, that change meant new products could flood the market. And they did.

420 FILE--Legislation is pending, AB 286, to temporarily reduce tax rates imposed on the retail sale and commercial cultivation of cannabis.

State and local taxes currently imposed upon retail cannabis sales can total in upwards of 40 percent. This excessive taxation places an undue financial burden, particularly on patients, many of whom are now unable to consistently afford their medicine.

420 FILE--Legislation has been reintroduced from last year, Senate Bill 34, which would exempt compassionate care programs from paying state cannabis taxes when they are providing free medical cannabis to financially disadvantaged people living with serious health conditions. Last session, the measure was vetoed by Governor Brown.

420 FILE--In an attempt to help erase or reduce marijuana-related convictions for thousands with eligible criminal cases in Los Angeles County, the Board of Supervisors unanimously approved a measure on Tuesday that puts pressure on officials to address the backlog.

420 FILE--Call it Reefer Madness 2.0. The notion that marijuana makes you crazy is back – and with a vengeance.

420 FILE--Let’s face it: California stumbled out of the gate with its 2018 launch of regulated cannabis. Tax revenues of about $345 million in 2018 were a far cry from the $1 billion expected.

420 FILE-It’s no wonder that people want to know how long it’s going to take for their CBD to work - it is becoming increasingly common for people to turn to CBD to try and treat a vast array of serious illnesses. These conditions include fibromyalgia, IBS, PTSD, chronic pain, anxiety, Parkinson's, and sleep disorders.

420 FILE--Among the wealth of popular alternative medicine options on the market, nothing has quite received the amount of attention that CBD has in recent years. From foods that feature this ingredient all the way to various products you can take at home, it seems as if it’s being marketed as a cure-all.

LET’S TALK CANNABIS--With Christmas around the corner giving weed as a gift has now legally opened up as an option. 

420 FILE--Gavin Newsom, a cannabis supporter who pushed for the passage of Prop. 64 to legalize adult recreational use in California, will be the new governor of the state.

420 FILE--The Campaign Against Marijuana Planting (CAMP) has raided 254 illegal cannabis grows in the Golden State this year — less than half as many than they busted in 2017.

420 FILE--Cannabis consumers soon should be able to shop at licensed stores in California without worrying about whether products on the shelves are laced with pesticides and other contaminants often found in black-market weed.

420 FILE--Just weeks after a California measure legalizing the use of recreational marijuana went into effect, San Francisco District Attorney George Gascón announced on Wednesday that the city will wipe clean the records of thousands of individuals who have been charged with marijuana-related misdemeanors and felonies over the past several decades.

NEIGHBORHOOD POLITICS--The County of Los Angeles has made public input a priority as it grapples with the complicated and historic work of developing regulations for newly legalized cannabis in the unincorporated areas of the county.

POLICING THE POLICE-News reports last week suggest the city of Oakland may be ready to settle a civil lawsuit filed by the teenage woman at the heart of a sex-abuse scandal that rocked Oakland’s and other nearby police departments since 2015. 

All things considered, the city is fortunate. The reported settlement is just under $1 million, far below the $66 million she had originally sought. 

CONNECTING CALIFORNIA--Dig deep enough into any of California’s biggest problems, and you’ll eventually hit upon a common villain: our court system.