As the cannabis industry inches toward closing the books on yet another year in this nascent age of regulation, unfinished business may be the best phrase to describe the events of 2024.
A final rule for federal rescheduling, the farm bill’s reauthorization and the SAFER Banking Act all got kicked down the road. Not to mention, it wasn’t the most prominent year for state legalization other than Ohio’s adult-use sales launch in August and Nebraska’s big win for its medical cannabis measures in November’s election.
Meanwhile, countless bills fell by the wayside in state legislatures, and voters in Florida, South Dakota and North Dakota failed to pass legalization measures that appeared on their respective ballots on Election Day.
However, progress is progress in the cannabis world, and that progress included a major political tailwind in 2024: Both major party presidential candidates came out in support of loosening federal restrictions on cannabis ahead of the election—a campaign first in the U.S.
Specifically, president-elect Donal Trump vowed in September that he would work with Congress to pass common-sense cannabis laws like the SAFE Banking Act; decriminalize small amounts of cannabis for personal adult use; support states’ rights to legalize and provide access to tested cannabis products; and back research into medical cannabis as a Schedule III drug.
Many of these storylines—although unfinished—landed in Cannabis Business Times’ Top 10 list of most-read articles of the year, which you’ll find below.
As we take a peek back at 2024, CBT remains confident that 2025 will offer new opportunities for your business endeavors, industry reform, and hopefully, myriad pathways to overcoming regulatory hurdles that have hindered the full growth potential of state-legal marketplaces.
Regardless of the outcomes, CBT will be there to narrate the news of the day as well as provide meaningful viewpoints and tips that can help your business survive or thrive—whatever the economic forecast may hold in 2025.