The state of Wisconsin is among 16 states with no legal cannabis industry jobs, according to a study by Leafly, a website that provides information about marijuana and connects licensed retailers to consumers. 

The state has not approved either recreational or medicinal marijuana products and thus has no legal cannabis sales, the report states. 

Nationwide, the $10.7 billion legal cannabis industry supports the equivalent of 243,700 full-time jobs, according to the Leafly analysis, as of the beginning of 2020. Such jobs are increasing at a rate of 15 percent per year in the United States, the study said.

Once again, cannabidiol (CBD) has found itself in a gray area, although this time it’s not due to its legality. Proprietors of CBD retail shops and dispensaries throughout the Milwaukee area were surprised to find out on Wednesday, March 31, they were considered “nonessential” businesses under the State of Wisconsin’s “Safer at Home” order.

Throughout history, cannabis was regulated by federal law on reservations, so it was generally illegal. But after the 2013 Cole Memo, the topic of cannabis on tribal land and how it ties into the tribe’s government autonomy became increasingly prevalent.

This year is set to be another big one for drug reform in the United States. Not so in Iowa, where politicians with old-timey views on science and personal freedom insist on preserving strict prohibition.

Take a look at the six states bordering Iowa, ranging from staunchly conservative to moderately liberal, and you can see how embarrassing the situation is. Iowa already has some of the region’s harshest criminal penalties for marijuana possession, and there’s a good chance we will look even worse by comparison at the end of 2020.

In early December, the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System and others issued new guidance for hemp banking to clarify the legal status of commercial hemp production and requirements for financial institutions under the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA).

The past year saw lots of talk about the status of marijuana in Wisconsin. But the closest we came to any action was Governor Tony Evers putting language in his budget that would have essentially legalized pot here — a non-starter for Assembly Speaker Robin Vos (R-Rochester).

“I don’t want to legalize recreational marijuana, I want to allow for the limited use of medical marijuana to help people in pain and who are suffering,” said Vos, adding that Evers “poisoned the well,” by attempting to legalize cannabis via the state budget.

Amid increasing availability of marijuana in neighboring states, lawmakers in Wisconsin are vying to pass at least limited medical cannabis legislation.

Last week, following several unsuccessful attempts, two Republicans, Representative Mary Felzkowski and Senator Kathy Bernier, introduced a bill to legalize medical cannabis.

The bill is inspired by rising public support and their own personal experiences with cancer.

For more than a decade, the Wisconsin Legislature has been where marijuana reform bills go to die. But a new bill to legalize some forms of medical marijuana, introduced by a pair of Republican lawmakers instead of the usual cohort of Democrats, may fare differently. At the very least, the new medical marijuana proposal may mean that the Wisconsin GOP’s brick-wall opposition to marijuana legalization is beginning to crack.

The laws about marijuana in Wisconsin aren't changing. But recent legalization of recreational marijuana in neighboring states and shifting societal norms are causing employers to rethink how to treat cannabis use. 

Calls to MRA's human resources hotline about workplace drug testing increased in recent months. Employers are asking just how exactly the changing tides will affect them. 

"It's still a little hazy," said Michael Hyatt, human resources government affairs director at MRA. Pewaukee-based MRA is one of the largest employer associations in the country, with more than 4,000 member organizations. 

Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers has signed a hemp bill into law that brings the state into line with the Federal 2018 Farm Bill.

Senate Bill 188, now 2019 Wisconsin Act 68, saw a number of changes introduced, including the modification of the definition of the plant – the Act uses the term “hemp” instead of “industrial hemp” throughout.

The Act also repeals Wisconsin’s hemp pilot program, which will occur one year after U.S. Department of Agriculture establishes a plan for regulating production of the crop.