BETHESDA, Md., May 2, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- PRESS RELEASE -- CULTA, a cannabis company in Maryland, received multiple awards for its digital branding and creative assets. These awards were distributed by the AVA Digital Awards and Hermes Creative Awards, two of the largest creative competitions in the world.

CULTA took home one platinum and two gold AVA Digital Awards for its brand guidelines and stop motion videos, respectively. The AVA Digital Awards is an annual competition that honors excellence in digital creativity, branding and strategy, and recognizes the creative professionals responsible for all aspects of digital communication. Since its inception, over 300,000 entries have been judged, with an AVA statuette being given to the top contenders. This year, there were over 2,000 entries for various categories, and other winners include AT&T, DELL, Harvard University, Microsoft and Uber.

"At CULTA, we've invested in our branding so winning a coveted statuette from the AVA Digital Awards is a validation of that hard work," said Renier Fee, senior director of marketing at CULTA. "We're honored to receive such a prestigious award and look forward to entering the competition again next year."

CULTA was also the winner of two gold awards at the annual Hermes Awards. The Hermes Awards is one of the oldest and largest creative competitions in the world and highlights the creative industry's best publications, branding collateral, websites, videos, and marketing programs. This is the first year CULTA entered the competition and CULTA took home the awards for its 7/10 and Bones designs. Other Hermes Awards winners include ASICS, David's Bridal, Duke University, Paramount Pictures, PepsiCo, and SEGA.

"Considering this is the first year we entered the Hermes Awards, it's incredible that we walked away with two awards," said Chris 'Cheeto' Batten, creative director at CULTA. "We love bringing our patients fashion-forward designs and will continue to push creative boundaries."

In 2021, CULTA was also the recipient of platinum, gold, and honorable mention awards at the MarCom Awards for its t-shirt designs and the "Best Clothing Product" award at the Explore Maryland Cannabis 2021 awards. CULTA's winning designs, stop motion videos, and other collateral can be viewed on their clothing website at www.ShopCulta.com and official CULTA YouTube channel.

Fluresh, a vertically integrated cannabis business based in Michigan, closed a $25-million note with a federally regulated bank back in December. The company announced the loan transaction just this past week. It’s a headline celebrated as an “important rite of passage” for the industry by Stephen Lenn, Managing Partner of Brennan, Manna & Diamond in Phoenix.

And for Fluresh, it’s a major feather in the company’s cap. The business also completed a $23-million debt refinancing on its Grand Rapids property—also through the federally regulated bank, which is based in southeast Michigan.

"For the industry, [the note closing] reflects its inexorable movement out of the shadows and into the mainstream,” Lenn said in a public statement. “Possibly of greater significance is the normalization of cannabis, which likely extends far beyond banking. This substantiates the view that, whether any of the pending federal legislation is enacted, bank lending to the cannabis industry will continue to accelerate."

The note is secured by that Grand Rapids property, according to the company, and it’s set to mature in December 2024.

"We are pleased to successfully complete one the largest debt financings of a cannabis operator by a federally chartered bank," CFO Jacob Fein said in a public statement. "This non-dilutive debt financing represents an industry-leading cost of capital and simplifies our capital structure. This debt financing is a significant milestone for both Fluresh and the cannabis industry."

New Hampshire will likely be the last state in New England to reform its laws to allow adult-use cannabis.

That’s because a pair of House-passed bills were voted down in the Senate on April 28: one to legalize an adult-use market, and the other to permit possession and home grows.

With Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts and Vermont already joining the adult-use green wave, Rhode Island and New Hampshire are the only states in New England that have yet to fully legalize cannabis. But Rhode Island remains poised to pass adult-use legislation with its bicameral Legislature on the same page and two months left in its legislative session.

In New Hampshire, adults 21 and older would have been allowed to possess up to three-fourths of an ounce of cannabis, 5 grams of hashish or 300 milligrams of infused edibles under House Bill 629. In addition, adults would have been allowed to home cultivate up to six cannabis plants. But the legislation, sponsored by Rep. Carol McGuire, R-Epsom, would not have allowed for the commercial sale of cannabis.

While the bill gained broad support in the New Hampshire House, where it passed, 241-113, earlier this year, it was defeated by a 15-9 vote Thursday in the Senate.

The upper chamber’s opposition to a cannabis reform effort is not something new, New Hampshire Public Radio reported.

Louisiana’s registered medical cannabis patients now have access to smokable flower as lawmakers consider additional ways to expand the program, but the state’s current laws say nothing about medical cannabis in the workplace.

Rep. Mandie Landry, D-New Orleans, aimed to change that with a bill that would make it illegal for public companies or departments to refuse to hire a candidate because they are a medical cannabis cardholder, according to a local WAFB report.

The legislation would not have prevented employers from reprimanding employees who are impaired or using medical cannabis at work, the news outlet reported.

The bill ultimately died in committee this week when some lawmakers deemed Landry’s bill unnecessary since employers can make changes to their policies about medical cannabis and the workplace without a new law, WAFB reported.

Landry voluntarily deferred her bill and now intends to work with committee members who offered suggestions to rework the legislation, according to the news outlet.

GATINEAU, Quebec, April 29, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- PRESS RELEASE -- HEXO Corp today announced that Charlie Bowman has been appointed the company’s acting president and chief executive officer, effective today. Bowman will move into a permanent role upon the successful completion of Health Canada’s security clearance process for key personnel, which has been initiated. Concurrently, Scott Cooper is stepping down from his role as HEXO’s president and chief executive officer.

"I am honored to lead HEXO into the future," said Bowman. "We are entering the next phase of HEXO’s strategic growth plan by remaining laser-focused on becoming cash-flow positive, expanding our leading brands market share across Canada’s recreational market, whilst growing our international business and launching new products for medical."

Bowman, who previously served as HEXO’s acting chief operating officer and general manager of HEXO USA, brings a wealth of global leadership experience in spanning the past two decades. After resetting operations as acting COO, he is well positioned to guide HEXO towards becoming cash flow positive.

“I am pleased to welcome Charlie to his new role at HEXO. I have no doubt that his leadership and commitment to executing HEXO’s strategic plan will lead the organization into its next phase of growth,” said Executive Chairman Mark Attanasio, “On behalf of the entire organization, I would like to thank Scott Cooper for his leadership through a very challenging period.

The company also announced the departure of acting Chief Financial Officer Curtis Solsvig and the appointment of Julius Ivancsits as acting chief financial officer, effective May 16, 2022. Ivancsits will move into a permanent role upon the successful completion of Health Canada’s security clearance process for key personnel, which has been initiated.

The American Bankers Association and bankers associations from all 50 states are urging Senate leadership to pass the Secure and Fair Enforcement (SAFE) Banking Act in the House-Senate conference version of the America COMPETES Act.

In a letter sent to lawmakers April 28, the bankers associations said, “The SAFE Banking Act is an urgently needed, and widely supported, bipartisan legislative solution to allow banks to handle the proceeds from state-licensed cannabis business and the accountants, skilled trades, landlords, law firms, and other service providers they rely on for legal operations.”

Currently, federal law prohibits banks from providing services to state-legal cannabis businesses, as well as ancillary businesses that serve the industry.

In their letter, the bankers associations argue that without access to financial institutions, the cannabis industry “is operating primarily in cash, which causes significant public safety concerns and undermines the ability of cannabis regulators, tax collectors, law enforcement and national security organizations to monitor the industry effectively.”

The SAFE Banking Act, sponsored by U.S. Rep. Ed Perlmutter, D-Colo., passed the U.S. House five times between 2019 and 2021, including twice as a standalone bill and as an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act.

MIAMI, April 29, 2022 – PRESS RELEASE – Ayr Wellness Inc., a leading vertically integrated U.S. multistate cannabis operator, announced the opening of its 46th Florida dispensary, located in southern Tampa.

The new dispensary encompasses approximately 3,000 square feet of retail space in Hillsborough County, and is located just off the Dale Mabry Highway, an artery connecting several major shopping destinations, MacDill Air Force Base and Tampa International Airport. The store features Ayr’s full line of concentrates, edibles, gummies, vapes, and a selection of high-quality flower, including whole flower and prerolls.

“We are proud to welcome the latest addition to our Florida footprint,” Ayr founder, chairman and CEO Jonathan Sandelman said. “This opening, our 46th in the state, coincides with the recent launch of Kynd premium flower and Walking STIX prerolls, representing further expansion of our product portfolio and selection of high-quality product offerings available to our Florida patients.”

In February 2021, Ayr purchased Florida-based Liberty Health Sciences (LHS), which included 31 dispensaries across the state. Since then, the company has opened 15 additional locations—bringing the current total to 46 stores. This location marks Ayr’s fourth LHS location serving patients in the Hillsborough area.

In 2021, Ayr relocated its U.S. headquarters from New York City to Miami, underscoring the company’s commitment to the region. Florida has approximately 710,000 patients enrolled in its medical cannabis program as of April 22, 2022, per Florida’s Office of Medical Marijuana Use. Florida’s cannabis market ranks fourth in the nation by total legal cannabis sales, per BDSA, and generated more than $1.8 billion in medical cannabis revenue in 2021. BDSA expects Florida’s cannabis market to generate $3.4 billion per year by 2026.

For more information about Ayr Wellness or to locate your nearest dispensary, please visit https://ayrwellness.com.

Despite lawmakers’ efforts this year to revive the rollout of Georgia’s medical cannabis program, the licensing process has largely stalled due to challenges brought by unsuccessful applicants.

Now, a medical cannabis company that was not granted a license has sued the state’s regulators, alleging that the licensing process was marred by “conflict of interest,” according to a local FOX 5 report.

The lawsuit, filed by Cumberland Curative against the Georgia Access to Medical Cannabis Commission, claims that the licenses were “bought and sold through closed door politics and back room deals,” the news outlet reported.

RELATED: Georgia’s Small Farmers Shut Out During ‘Secretive’ Cannabis Licensing Process, Advocate Says

"If there is no wrongdoing or corruption, then why not turn these applications, evaluation sheets, etc. over to the public?" Cumberland Curative President Charlie Arnold told FOX 5.

Sharing a border with Massachusetts and New York, Connecticut no longer wants to see cannabis advertising from out-of-staters leading up to its own adult-use retail launch later this year. Or at least that’s the way lawmakers voted earlier this week.

With bipartisan support, Connecticut House members voted, 98-48, to pass House Bill 5329. In part, the legislation takes aim at banning those without a Connecticut-issued cannabis license from advertising cannabis products or services within the state.

The legislative action comes after billboard ads from out-of-state cannabis retailers started emerging along roadways near the state’s border with Massachusetts, The Associated Press reported.

The bill is being sponsored by the Joint Committee on General Law, which Rep. Mike D’Agostino, D-Hamden, chairs.

D’Agostino said lawmakers from both sides of the aisle who represent border towns approached the committee and said, “Look, I’m sick of seeing these billboards with cannabis leaves splayed all across them, within 1,500 yards across from a school or church or whatever. Can’t we do something more about that?” the AP reported.

But the border-town lawmakers aren’t the only ones taking aim at the advertising.

Kansas lawmakers began their final medical cannabis negotiations for this year’s legislative session this week.

A House and Senate conference committee met for the first time April 27 to draft a new medical cannabis legalization proposal under Senate Bill 12, according to a KSNT report.

RELATED: Will Kansas Join the Medical Cannabis Legalization Club?

The committee’s chair, Sen. Rob Olson, R-Olathe, told the news outlet that lawmakers are working to draft a bill that can garner the support of both chambers.

“We still got some time,” Olson said. “If we don’t get it done this session, … we still have a couple weeks when we come back for sine die to run that. But I believe we’ll probably work hard the next few days trying to get a bill together.”

PHILADELPHIA, April 26, 2022 — PRESS RELEASE — Ethos Cannabis has announced its acquisition of two cannabis businesses in the Ohio medical cannabis market. The acquisition of these businesses will further the Ethos footprint westward.

Previously, Ethos’s footprint included retail and production operations in Massachusetts, Pennsylvania and Maryland. This expansion into the Ohio market allows the company to continue advancing its intent to deliver high-quality cannabis to consumers across the United States.

In December 2021, Ethos acquired Agri-Med Ohio, a Tier II Medical Cultivation Licensee located in Langsville. Agri-Med Ohio is being integrated into the Ethos platform to further enhance and expand operations. Ethos will continue to produce the Meigs County line of products and looks forward to introducing additional products to the Ohio market in the future.

In April 2022, Ethos acquired About Wellness Ohio, a medical dispensary licensee located in the Greater Cincinnati Area in Lebanon. In the near-term, the dispensary will continue to operate as About Wellness Ohio but the company plans to transition the dispensary to the Ethos Cannabis brand later in 2022. Ethos is focused on continuing to provide all the positive attributes of the About Wellness Ohio experience, while launching attractive enhancements to continue to improve the patient experience.

“The acquisitions in Ohio position us to continue extending our retail experience and products to benefit more patients. As one of the most populated states in the U.S., Ohio is a natural progression for us as we further expand our operations. We are thrilled to continue leading this industry forward in a manner that puts health and wellness at the forefront,” said David Clapper, Ethos CEO.

The Ohio House Government Oversight Committee held its fourth hearing April 27 on legislation that would expand the state’s medical cannabis program.

Senate Bill 261, sponsored by Sen. Steve Huffman, R-Tipp City, would streamline the medical cannabis business licensing process and allow physicians to recommend cannabis for any medical condition in cases where they “reasonably” believe it will help a patient, according to a FOX 8 report.

“It makes it more patient-centered, and as a physician, I’ve always been for making it patient-centered, that they can get it for the right conditions and the right way for a good price,” Huffman told the news outlet.

RELATED: Ohio Republican Aims High With Medical Cannabis Expansion Bill

On the business licensing front, S.B. 261 would transfer most of the authority over Ohio’s medical cannabis program from the Board of Pharmacy to the Department of Commerce in a move that Huffman said will speed up the licensing process to keep up with the market’s demand.

A lack of licensed dispensaries has left many of California’s cannabis cultivators without a place to sell their wares, but legislation gaining traction in the state Legislature aims to provide some relief.

Assembly Bill 2691, sponsored by Assemblymember Jim Wood, D-Santa Rosa, would allow growers to sell products at licensed events, such as farmers markets, throughout the California.

The Assembly Business and Professions Committee passed the legislation April 26, according to a KCRA 3 report.

“It is no secret that cannabis businesses throughout the state are struggling, whether it’s taxes, compliance costs, competing with the illicit market or other challenges, but the focus of A.B. 2691 is to help legal cannabis farmers who grow less than one acre of cannabis get consumer recognition for their unique products, much as has been done for craft beer, artisanal wine and other family farm agricultural products,” Wood told the news outlet. “Giving these smaller farmers opportunities at locally approved events to expose the public to their products increases consumer choice and offers farmers a better chance to reach retail shelves, which is their ultimate goal. This is not about circumventing retailers, but growing the industry overall. My office has always been open to those who may have concerns about this bill and I’m here to listen to their concerns and their proposed solutions.”

RELATED: California’s Small Cannabis Farmers Launch Direct-to-Consumer Sales Platform Inspired by Industry Struggles

Virginia adults 21 and older can legally possess up to 1 ounce of cannabis, but the possession of up to 1 pound of will remain a civil violation with a max fine of $25, at least for now.

While first-year Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin signed 700 bills into law April 11, he added a proposed amendment to Senate Bill 591, one of the 141 bills he did not sign. His proposal was to establish new criminal misdemeanor penalties for people in possession of more than 2 ounces of cannabis.

That effort was squashed April 27 when the General Assembly held its veto session. Specifically, the amendment was defeated when legislators voted to re-refer the legislation to the Senate Rehabilitation and Social Services Committee for the next legislative session—killing the governor’s amendment for this year.

JM Pedini, NORML’s development director, said in a new release that there were pluses and minuses to the Senate kicking the can down the road. Pedini also serves as the executive director of Virginia NORML.

“The good news is Governor Youngkin’s effort to recriminalize personal possession failed,” Pedini said. “The bad news is lawmakers’ inaction today allows for products containing unregulated and potentially unsafe synthetically-derived THC products to continue to proliferate in Virginia.”

In part, S.B. 591 clarifies that the definition of “marijuana” excludes industrial hemp in several state code sections. Also, the bill defines “tetrahydrocannabinol” (THC) to include any naturally occurring or synthetic THC, removing specific references in state code to “delta-9” THC, according to the legislation’s summary.

Georgia voters will get the chance to make their opinions known on adult-use cannabis legalization in next month’s primary election.

One of the non-binding advisory questions on the state’s ballot asks if Georgia should legalize, regulate and tax cannabis like alcohol, according to The Dales Report.

The cannabis question is one of nine advisory inquiries that will appear on the ballot, the news outlet reported, and proposes legalizing cannabis for adults 21 and older and using the tax revenue generated from the market to fund health care and infrastructure.

If the majority of Georgia’s voters indicate support for the advisory question, it will not trigger immediate changes to the state’s laws, but will signal to lawmakers that their constituents are ready for cannabis policy reform.

In the meantime, Georgia continues to grapple with the rollout of a medical cannabis program that would allow the state’s roughly 20,000 registered patients to access low-THC oil.

Tennessee lawmakers have tabled legislation aimed at regulating delta-8 THC products in the state.

House Bill 1927, sponsored by Rep. William Lamberth, R-Portland, would essentially ban the sale or possession of any hemp-derived products containing more than 0.3% THC on a dry-weight basis.

RELATED: Tennessee Legislation to Cap THC Content in Hemp-Derived Products at 0.3% Advances in House Subcommittee

Delta-8 THC products are currently legal to sell and consume in Tennessee since the compound is produced from hemp, but lawmakers have expressed concerns about the lack of regulations governing it and other cannabinoids in the state.

RELATED: New Legislation Would Outlaw Delta-8 THC Products in Tennessee

Lines wrapped around buildings as New Jerseyans 21 and older gained access to 12 adult-use cannabis dispensaries when the state officially launched its licensed retail program on April 21.

The results?

The 12 retail locations sold nearly $1.9 million in adult-use cannabis and products to 12,438 customers, or roughly $150 per transaction, according to the New Jersey Cannabis Regulatory Commission (CRC).

RELATED: New Jersey Adult-Use Cannabis Sales Have Commenced

CRC Executive Director Jeff Brown said in a statement April 27 that the 12 retail locations, which were already established medical cannabis dispensaries, did not report negative impacts to their medical cannabis supply amidst the adult-use rollout, the Asbury Park Press reported.

“We expected sales to be substantial, and the data shows that the market is effectively serving both adult-use consumers and patients,” Brown said. “We continue to monitor inventory and access for patients and are prepared to take enforcement action against any [retailer] that does not meet the requirements for patient access and supply.”

We are, all of us, swimming in debt. If you don’t owe anyone a penny then you’re not contributing to the International Monetary Fund’s estimate of $60 trillion of household debt.

Still, as a citizen of a sovereign nation or even a resident of a small town with a water tower to pay off, you’re on the hook for some of the $120 trillion of public-sector debt trading on the world’s bond markets. The IMF calculates that there’s roughly the same total of debt obligations issued by non-bank corporations globally. For comparison’s sake, the total market cap for all the world’s stocks is only about $93.7 trillion, according to the World Bank.

In other words, debt isn’t just big business. It’s the biggest business.

There are reasons why debt financing has become so much more attractive to issuers than equity. Some involve drivers internal to the firm—the founders’ desire to maintain control, for example. Some drivers are external—both regulatory and economic.

“[A] quirk of the U.S. tax code favors companies with capital structures that lean toward debt rather than equity,” according to American Estate & Trust. “Interest payments are tax-deductible; dividend payments are not.”

Adult-use cannabis products are expected to hit dispensary shelves in New York this fall, according to a top state official.

Cannabis Control Board Chair Tremaine Wright provided details about the program April 23 at a public forum hosted by the Central Harlem Community Board, Syracuse.com reported.

In sharing insight into New York’s adult-use cannabis cultivator and retail conditional licensing programs that the state launched last month, Wright said conditional dispensary license holders will be eligible to receive loans with interest—as opposed to grants or interest-free loans—and that the funding will come from a $200 million cannabis social equity fund, which Gov. Kathy Hochul announced during her State of the State address in January.

“Loan funds will be provided to our conditional dispensary licensees,” Wright said Saturday, according to Syracuse.com. “I want you to think about this as a franchise model: these folks don’t get to pick where their location is, they will have a lot of assistance on buildout, and they will repay their loans.”

The Dormitory Authority of the State of New York (DASNY) released a Request for Information in February, Syracuse.com reported, to gauge interest among possible investment partners in a program that would finance all expenses related to the sourcing, leasing, planning, design, construction and equipping of conditional license holders’ dispensaries.

Kentucky Gov. Andy Bashear is doing what he can to support a cannabis industry in his state.

The Democratic governor signed legislation April 26 that authorizes a cannabis research center at the University of Kentucky, according to the Associated Press.

The measure, approved by the Legislature on the last day of this year’s legislative session earlier this month, was backed by key lawmakers who were opposed to legalizing medical cannabis in the state, the news outlet reported.

The research center, they argued, would allow more time to study the effectiveness of medical cannabis in treating certain ailments.

Bashear used his line-item veto authority to expand the center’s work and allow more flexibility in choosing its oversight board, AP reported.