The parade of horribles seems endless for local government officials grappling with an anticipated "green rush" in Florida after voters in November overwhelmingly approved a measure legalizing medical marijuana for hundreds of thousands of patients with debilitating conditions

Meanwhile, the local moratoriums -- temporary bans on permitting and zoning for dispensaries -- are intended as status quo placeholders while officials wait for lawmakers, or the Department of Health, to impose new rules.

Most Americans believe that cannabis legalization is good for the economy, according to the latest statistics from New Frontier Data.

The data firm's most recent nationwide Cannabis Attitude Survey asked 1,671 people in January 2017 about their opinions on various facets of legalization.  

Surveyors found that 69 percent of respondents believe legalizing and taxing cannabis will raise valuable revenue for the government.

Federal rules effectively barring marijuana businesses from using banks stymie the medical marijuana industry.

An official in Illinois has asked President Donald Trump for guidance on his administration’s policy on the banking industry offering services to the cannabis industry.

In a statement released in January, State Treasurer Michael Frerichs said the president’s approach to the issue could impact the future of medical marijuana in the state of Illinois. He has sent a letter to the president, asking for his guidance on the issue.

With only five months left to implement regulations regarding Amendment 2, the Florida Department of Health has begun rule development workshops this week in Duval County.

The not-so-subtle undertone of the workshops, thus far, has been to avoid modeling impending legal definitions after preexisting ones.

The first of five workshops were held on Monday afternoon at the Duval County Health Department in Jacksonville. Every seat in the room was filled with men and women of all ages and nationalities, by the time the session began. 

Approval for cannabis-based products for medicinal use will no longer require ministerial sign-off, under changes announced by the government.

Associate Health Minister Peter Dunne has delegated decision-making for the prescribing of all cannabis-based products to the Ministry of Health.

"When applications first began to be received it was my view that the final decision appropriately lay at ministerial level, rather than exposing officials to risk, given the complicated and contentious nature of the issue - that is to say the buck stopped with me", said Mr Dunne in a statement.

"I have approved every application that has come before me with a positive recommendation - within a matter of minutes once the application came across my desk."

Knesset members join others urging public security minister to go beyond decriminalizing cannabis use.

Thousands of Israelis, including two lawmakers, demonstrated Saturday night for the full legalization of cannabis, urging the government to go beyond the recently announced measures to decriminalize use of the drug.

Among the estimated 3,000–5,000 people who gathered in Tel Aviv’s Rabin Square were MKs Sharren Haskel of the ruling Likud party and MK Tamar Zandberg from the opposition Meretz party.

The Utah House overwhelmingly approved a proposal Tuesday that would allow universities to study medical marijuana.

Lawmakers said research showing benefits of cannabis extracts on people may lead the state in the future to allow careful, controlled use of the drug by those with debilitating conditions.

HB130, sponsored by Rep. Brad Daw, R-Orem, has been endorsed by the Utah Medical Association, which says more study needs to be done on the drug before the state approves its broader use as a medicine.

The bill advances to the Senate for consideration.

The U.S. cannabis industry is projected to reach $50 billion in size by 2026, according to Cowen & Co., with over half of the population living in a state where the drug is legal.

Surprisingly, many cannabis business must operate completely in cash since the federal government exerts significant influence on financial institutions through the FDIC. The government’s confusing stance on the matter has led nearly all banks to avoid providing banking services to the sector.

Health Canada, which is facing a growing controversy over tainted medical marijuana, cannot say with certainty how widespread the use of banned pesticides is within the industry. Instead, the regulator has been leaving it up to the growers to police themselves on the use of potentially harmful chemicals.

In a background briefing with The Globe and Mail, a senior Health Canada official acknowledged that even though the government prohibits the use of potentially harmful chemicals such as myclobutanil, – which is known to emit hydrogen cyanide when heated –the department has not been testing cannabis growers to ensure the 38 federally licensed companies were, in fact, not using it.

Vancouver’s approach to regulating illegal marijuana dispensaries is working, says the councillor who helped develop Canada’s first municipal pot licensing regime, even if almost half of the stores continue to operate outside the bylaw.

Councillor Kerry Jang, point person for the governing Vision Vancouver party on the marijuana file, said that regardless of how long it takes to shut down these rogue shops, the city’s regulatory program – not police raids – is paying off. The strategy is meeting the city’s public-health goals of stamping out sales to minors and cutting down on the armed robberies now plaguing Toronto’s illegal dispensary sector.