MICHIGAN—420 came and went. Michigan dispensaries moved $20 million worth of weed in a single day. And somewhere in Lansing, there’s a memo that nobody wants you to read.
Here’s your weekly rundown.
HEAVY HAUL: Michigan dispensaries sold more than $20 million worth of weed for the 420 holiday—up from $16 million last year when 420 landed on Easter and sort of killed the vibe.
TAX FIGHT: The Michigan Supreme Court has ordered an expedited look at the legality of Michigan’s 24% wholesale cannabis tax—a move that keeps the industry’s lawsuit alive and could finally settle the question of whether the tax was ever legal in the first place.
HIDDEN MEMO: Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s administration is blocking the release of an internal memo that could shed more light on the decision to implement a 24% wholesale tax on weed. The Detroit News tried to obtain the document under the Freedom of Information Act and got back a heavily redacted version with all the actual analysis about industry impact stripped out.
CALIFORNIA SOBER: Michigan liquor sales dropped by more than $100 million last year, and cannabis is getting some of the credit. Industry insiders cited a mix of inflation, changing social habits, and a growing number of Michiganders swapping cocktails for gummies and joints.
FATAL ROBBERY: Four Ohio men were convicted in connection with the murder of a Pontiac cannabis business owner. Prosecutors say the suspects met the victim, Sam Simko, at a cannabis festival in Ann Arbor and devised a fake business deal to stage a deadly robbery.
PUFF DISMISSED: A judge threw out Puff Cannabis‘ longstanding lawsuit against the city of Menominee, ruling that the company had essentially signed away its right to sue when it filed its license application paperwork. For months, Puff has been trying to force its way into a local market that voters decided to cap at nine dispensaries. The company can still file an appeal.
SPRING PICKS: The Detroit Metro Times recently put together a spring cannabis guide worth bookmarking—including flower, rosin, drinks, edibles, and more. Regular readers of The MichiGanja Report will recognize a few of the brands. Consider this a second opinion.
COOLER CONSPIRACY: It turns out most of the cannabis drinks being sold at Michigan dispensaries all come from the same place. In case you missed last week’s MichiGanja Report, I bought five different brands for a taste test and traced them all to a single facility in Mt. Clemens. Some of them were worth buying. Some of them were not. I ranked all five.
READ MORE: What Trump’s latest marijuana reclassification actually means for Michigan stoners
Want more Michigan cannabis news, product picks, and culture? Click here to sign up for The MichiGanja Report, our free weekly newsletter about all things marijuana.
