Entrepreneurs who want to sell supplies to help consumers grow cannabis at home are waiting anxiously for June 7, when Canadian senators are expected to vote on, and potentially amend, the Cannabis Act.

One amendment that may pass is a ban on Canadians’ ability to grow cannabis for recreational purposes at their homes.

The likelihood of that amendment passing in a vote of the entire Senate dimmed a bit May 28, when a Senate committee voted by a 6-5 margin against the proposal. That committee vote result, however, is not binding, and does not limit the full Senate from accepting an amendment in the Cannabis Act to have a nationwide ban on grow-your-own cannabis in a June 7 vote.

Two East Kootenay chambers of commerce are teaming up to find a way to protect and boost the lot of small business owners as Canada heads toward cannabis legalization this July.

The Kimberley & District and the Columbia Valley Chambers of Commerce report they are working to protect small business owners by submitting a policy resolution to over 200 delegates at the British Columbia Chamber of Commerce Annual General Meeting in Kamloops on Friday, May 25.

The resolution, entitled, Distribution Fairness for Craft Producers and Retailers (DFCPR) in the emerging cannabis market was adopted by the delegation making it an official policy of the BC Chamber of Commerce.

Resolution asks for even playing field for small micro growers.

The B.C. Chamber of Commerce has debated and passed a motion brought forward by the Kimberley Chamber of Commerce and the Columbia Valley Chamber of Commerce relating to the cannabis industry .

It reads; “The BC Chamber recommends that the provincial government:

1. Take measures to protect the interests of existing cannabis businesses by providing market access to micro license applicants.

US border officials can and do ask Canadians if they have ever used marijuana.

Creston Town Council has received a heads-up about some important border implications for Canadians who have used marijuana or will use it when it becomes legal.

The Honourable Mobina Jaffer, a British Columbia representative in the Canadian Senate, has written to government leaders around the province, warning of potential dangers for her constituents.

“…our constituents will soon be faced with a series of issues at Canada’s border with the United States that could have them barred from crossing the border for life,” Jaffer wrote.

Canada is about to enter a new gold rush with many dreaming of striking it rich in the marijuana industry, says former British Columbia premier Mike Harcourt, who has staked his own claim in a medicinal marijuana company.

But Harcourt said Friday there will be plenty of losers during the rush as qualified and unqualified entrepreneurs search for marijuana wealth. 

Harcourt, 75, invoked the images of past gold-fever eras during a keynote address about marijuana therapy at the annual B.C. Pharmacy Association gathering in Victoria. He mentioned the once thriving B.C. gold-boom town of Barkerville and the Klondike gold rush that sent thousands of people to Yukon during the 1890s.

Leighton Smith is worried.

It might seem like a strange feeling for the operator of a pot shop to have with the clock ticking down to cannabis legalization in Canada, but the operator of Phyven Medicinal Cannabis Dispensary said he fears the City of Kamloops is setting local marijuana stores up for failure — potentially paving the way for larger out-of-town chain retailers to move into the market.

“It’s a guessing game,” Smith told KTW.

Zenabis Ltd. (“Zenabis” or “the Company”), a licensed producer of medical cannabis, is pleased to announce that it has received its sales license from Health Canada. The sales license authorizes Zenabis to sell medicinal cannabis online at zenabis.com to registered medical patients across the country.

The addition of the cannabis sales license further solidifies Zenabis’ presence in the Canadian cannabis sector. The Company, which operates more than 400,000 square feet of licensed cannabis cultivation space, now has a fully licensed facility.

When Justin Trudeau was elected prime minister in 2015 with a promise to legalize marijuana a signficant plank of his campaign platform, it was already clear that individual municipalities across Canada would have the authority to decide how that would look on the local level.

While the feds would worry about the Criminal Code changes and the legal implications of how drivers might be tested for intoxication while the provinces would wrestle with wholesale supply and government-owned and/or private stores, municipalities would decide how easily or difficult pot would be available in their communities, through local bylaws and the awarding of business licences for retail and online sales, warehouse storage and industrial grow operations.

Cannabis is now being pedalled in Vancouver.

But don’t expect to see cyclists wearing brightly coloured green uniforms or backpacks to identify themselves. Because of security concerns, the cyclists who deliver cannabis for Spruce Delivery on bicycles deliberately don’t stand out.

If you order from Spruce Delivery, you’ll get someone who resembles a regular bike courier.

Spruce started delivering pot to people two and a half weeks ago, said Frank Le, one of four owners of the new company.

With all of the hype surrounding Canopy Growth Corp.’s (TSX:WEED) (NYSE:CGC) move to the New York Stock Exchange, marijuana stock investors would do well to look at smaller players finding a backdoor into the cannabis stock market. Here are two future pot stocks that engineered reverse takeovers:

MedMen Inc.