New Florida Bill Would Legalize Recreational Marijuana And End ‘Monopolies’ In Medical Cannabis With Expanded Business Licensing
A Florida lawmaker has introduced a new bill to legalize recreational marijuana that also aims to break up what he calls “monopolies” in the state’s current medical cannabis program by revising the business licensing structure. The legislation, filed by Sen. Carlos Guillermo Smith (D), comes as the state Supreme Court reviews the constitutionality of proposed […]
Florida Patients Could Lose Medical Marijuana Registrations For Having Open Containers Of Cannabis In Cars Under New Legislation
The ban on the carry of open cannabis products applies to both drivers and passengers. By Christine Sexton, Florida Phoenix Carrying an open package of medical marijuana, hemp or THC products, including beverages, in a car, would be illegal and could lead to suspension or possible revocation of a patient’s access to medical marijuana under […]
Florida Attorney General Asks Supreme Court To Block Marijuana Legalization Measure From Ballot
The attorney general of Florida and several business and anti-marijuana groups are telling the state Supreme Court to block a cannabis legalization initiative, calling it “fatally flawed” and unconstitutional as advocates work against the clock to qualify the measure for the November ballot. In a series of briefs submitted to the court on Friday, Attorney […]
Florida Bills Would Reduce Medical Marijuana Fees For Military Veterans And Ban Public Smoking
Florida lawmakers have filed new bills for the 2026 session that would reduce medical cannabis patient registration fees for military veterans and clarify that smoking or vaping marijuana in public places is prohibited. Sen. Keith Truenow’s (R) proposal would make it so that veterans would only need to pay a $15 state fee to receive, […]
Florida Used Taxpayer Money to Kill Legal Weed
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ administration diverted more than $35 million in taxpayer funds that investigators say were used to influence last year’s ballot fights over abortion and recreational cannabis, according to a months-long investigation by the Miami Herald and Tampa Bay Times. The money, originally allocated for healthcare, child welfare and opioid recovery programs, was […]
Florida GOP Lawmaker Files Medical Marijuana Expansion Bill Allowing Patients To Qualify If They’ve Been Prescribed Opioids
A Florida Republican lawmaker has introduced a bill to expand the state’s medical marijuana program in a number of ways, including by allowing doctors to recommend cannabis to any patient who has a condition for which they have been prescribed opioids. The legislation from Rep. Bill Partington (R), filed for the 2026 session on Wednesday, […]
Florida Senator Moves To Let Medical Patients Grow Their Own Cannabis
Florida’s medical marijuana program could see one of its most significant expansions yet. Senator Carlos Guillermo Smith filed a bill that would allow qualified medical marijuana patients to grow cannabis at home, creating a right that advocates have pushed for since the program was approved by voters in 2016. Senate Bill 776 authorizes eligible patients […]
Florida Democratic Party Chair Slams Congress Over Federal Hemp Ban, Saying Her State Will Legalize Marijuana Next Year
The chair of the Florida Democratic Party, Nikki Fried, says the looming federal hemp ban that was tucked into a spending bill President Donald Trump signed into law this month is precisely why people “hate government”—with a multi-billion-dollar industry now in jeopardy just years after the crop was federally legalized. And she believes lawmakers will […]
Florida Is Fighting to Legalize Adult-Use Cannabis While Massachusetts Moves to Ban It All Over Again: What’s Going On?
Massachusetts fights to keep legal weed while Florida battles to win it. For years, the story of cannabis reform sounded linear. Voters legalize, regulators build a system, the market matures, everyone moves on. But that story is starting to glitch. In Massachusetts, opponents are trying to yank the plug on a $1.6 billion adult-use market […]