Some Hawaii lawmakers and advocates say medical marijuana dispensary applicants could be at a disadvantage because health department rules don’t allow greenhouses.

Lawmakers are considering a bill to allow medical marijuana business owners to grow plants in greenhouses, shade houses or outdoors in open air. Hawaii has some of the highest electricity costs in the nation, and potential business owners say they could save thousands of dollars in electricity costs growing marijuana with sunlight.

Right now, Hawaii Department of Health rules ban growing marijuana in greenhouses or outdoors.

Lane Britnell says the Saskatoon police ruined $2,000 worth of his legally obtained marijuana extracts following a raid of they city’s only medical marijuana dispensary. 

The former employee of the Saskatchewan Compassion Club says when police returned cannabis extracts that were seized from his home during raids last October, he found that most of the cannabis products were ruined. 

“I would say 80 per cent of it was destroyed or rendered unusable,” Britnell said. 

His lawyer successfully applied to have a judge order police to return the cannabis seized from his home during the Oct. 29 raids, he said. 

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police have released numbers that show that African Americans are arrested for simple marijuana possession at far higher rates than other groups.

“It’s basically like stereotyping, because I don’t have no felony,” said Gerald Laney, who was arrested Thursday night for possession and he feels there is a bias.

Chief Kerr Putney takes issue with that argument.

“If people are dealing drugs out in the open, we're going to have to deal with it,” he said.

Since 2010, arrests for simple possession of marijuana have declined for all groups, but it’s still higher for African Americans. Back then there were 695 blacks, 73 whites and 46 Hispanics arrested; last year it was 336 blacks 29 whites and 13 Hispanics.

SALT LAKE CITY — In a new statement issued Friday, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints clarified its stance on two competing pieces of medical marijuana legislation being considered by Utah lawmakers.

Two people from Nova Scotia have been charged after RCMP seized a large amount of drugs during a traffic stop Thursday on the Trans-Canada Highway in Moncton.Police found what they believe to be 100 pounds of marijuana and 17 pounds of hashish in a vehicle that was travelling eastbound near the exit for Highway 15.Dale Fetinko, 51, and Stephanie Fetinko, 49, from Lawrencetown face charges for drug possession and trafficking.The two suspects have been remanded into custody and will appear in court on Feb. 15 for a bail hearing.RCMP say the investigation is ongoing.

Medical marijuana clone plants at a medical marijuana dispensary in Oakland, Calif.(Photo: AP File)

Vermont's Senate Finance Committee approved marijuana legalization on Friday, moving the issue closer to the Senate floor.

The committee settled on a 25 percent tax rate. Sen. Tim Ashe, D-Chittenden, said earlier that the committee's task was to set a tax rate that would make marijuana cheap enough to compete with the existing black market.

The Finance committee also changed the proposed possession limit to one half an ounce. The previous version of the bill set a 1-ounce limit.

The vote comes two weeks after the bill cleared the Senate Judiciary, which focused early in the session on drafting a legalization bill.

Quebec’s finance minister is clarifying his comments about refusing to help with the federal government’s plan to legalize and regulate marijuana in Canada.

Carlos Leitao said Thursday his government wanted nothing to do with selling marijuana and that Ottawa should figure out on its own how to distribute pot on Quebec territory if and when it becomes legal.

Leitao took to Facebook later in the day to clarify his remarks.

He wrote that discussions about the distribution of marijuana are premature and the federal government still needs to create legislation to legalize and regulate the drug.

Police have laid more charges after a home search that saw the seizure of marijuana and stolen items in Mahone Bay last week.RCMP seized more than $20,000 worth of stolen property related to a number of recent thefts among many other things.

A bill to impose a new 15% state excise tax on retail purchases of medical marijuana has been proposed in the California legislature (SB 987 by Sen. McGuire).  The tax would be in addition to the current 7.5+% sales tax plus various local business taxes assessed by some localities.

“At this time when providers already face burdensome new costs under the Medical Marijuana Regulation and Safety Act (MMRSA), it is unwise and inappropriate to impose any new state tax on medical marijuana,” says California NORML director Dale Gieringer.  Many patient advocates regard any taxes on medicine as unjust in principle.

The Vermont Senate Committee on Finance approved a bill (6-1) on Friday that would end marijuana prohibition in the state and regulate marijuana for adult use. The bill was approved by the Senate Committee on Judiciary on January 29, and it will now be considered by the Senate Committee on Appropriations.