The Cannabis Control Commission (CCC) voted in late December to approve draft regulations establishing the framework for the recreational marijuana industry of Massachusetts. Less than one week later, U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced a reversal in a previous federal policy that instructed U.S. Attorneys not to interfere with legal and regulated marijuana markets established by individual states. State regulators vowed to forge ahead with implementation of the state’s voter-approved law despite the resulting disruption and anxiety the shift has sewn within the nascent industry. In response to the Sessions announcement, the CCC indicated that “the role of the Cannabis Control Commission remains the same—to fulfill the will of the voters of Massachusetts by implementing and administering a regulatory process that is safe, equitable and efficient.” The CCC has scheduled 10 hearings around the state seeking public input on the proposed regulations.

U.S. Department of Justice Issues Memo on Marijuana Enforcement -

On January 4, 2018, U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions issued a memo on federal marijuana enforcement policy announcing a return to the rule of law and the recision of the Obama-era Cole memo. Those guidelines were authored by former Deputy Attorney General James Cole in 2013 after Colorado and Washington voted to decriminalize marijuana for recreational use. The policy discouraged prosecutors in states where marijuana was legalized from bringing charges for marijuana-related crimes unless they involved distribution to minors, benefits to gangs or cartels, and other aggravating factors. The policy did not legalize marijuana at the federal level. In place of the previous hands-off policy, Sessions gave individual U.S. Attorneys general discretion, not guidance, to pursue marijuana-related prosecutions. Sessions’s approach will highlight the ongoing legal battle over states’ rights and when they properly supersede the power of the federal government.