💸 The Tape

Florida’s long-running adult-use cannabis saga has encountered another plot twist. State officials confirmed that proposed citizen initiatives—including the adult-use marijuana measure backed by Smart & Safe Florida—did not meet the signature threshold required to appear on the November 2026 ballot. Under Florida law, campaigns needed 880,062 valid signatures by Feb. 1. The state’s running tally for the cannabis measure? 783,592. Close, but in ballot politics, “close” doesn’t print yard signs.

Still, if you think that’s the end of the story, you haven’t been following Florida election law. The campaign insists the count is incomplete, arguing that county election supervisors have verified significantly more signatures than the state website reflects. Smart & Safe Florida says it turned in over 1.4 million signatures, and that once the dust settles, the math may look very different.

Complicating matters, a three-judge panel from Florida’s 1st District Court of Appeal recently sided with the state in disqualifying 70,646 signatures. Those included petitions collected by individuals deemed ineligible to circulate them and signatures from voters listed as “inactive.” The campaign has asked the full appellate court to rehear the case, arguing—fairly pointedly—that a voter can cast a ballot on Election Day yet still be considered too “inactive” to sign a petition. In other words: active enough to vote, inactive enough to be ignored.

The legal wrangling doesn’t stop there. A Leon County judge ruled that the Secretary of State’s office failed to provide required weekly updates on verified signatures, prompting a long-stalled count to suddenly jump in late January. Meanwhile, a separate ruling previously knocked out roughly 200,000 petitions over formatting issues—an obstacle the campaign opted not to appeal.

Even if Smart & Safe Florida succeeds in restoring the 70,000-plus disputed signatures, it still needs tens of thousands more to clear the statewide bar. That means the path to the 2026 ballot now runs through courtrooms, not clipboards.

The proposed amendment would allow adults 21+ to possess up to 2 ounces of cannabis and 5 grams of concentrate. Financially, the effort remains well fueled. Trulieve Cannabis Corp., Florida’s largest medical operator, has already poured tens of millions into the campaign this cycle—after spending more than $145 million on the 2024 effort that earned 56% voter support but fell short of the state’s 60% supermajority requirement.

So, is adult-use off the table for 2026? For now, yes—administratively. Politically and legally? Not quite. In Florida cannabis reform, the ballots may be printed in ink, but the fight is written in pencil.

📈 Dog Walkers

$CRON ( 0.0% ) Dives Deep

In the increasingly brand-driven world of global cannabis, Cronos Group just added another pin to its international map—this time planting a premium flag in one of the industry’s most clinically sophisticated markets. The company has officially launched its Lord Jones® cannabis brand in Israel, marking a notable step in Cronos’ “borderless product” strategy.

Israel isn’t just another export destination. It’s widely regarded as one of the most advanced medical cannabis ecosystems globally, with a patient base that tends to be educated, quality-focused, and, frankly, not easily impressed. That makes it a proving ground—not just a sales channel.

What’s Launching

The first wave includes five indoor-grown flower strains, positioned squarely at the premium end of the medical spectrum. Lord Jones, which built its reputation in North America around design-forward presentation and elevated positioning, is now being translated into a pharmacy-led medical environment—no small branding pivot.

Cronos is leaning heavily into process and production discipline here:

• Carefully selected genetics

• Small-batch indoor cultivation

• Cold-curing to preserve terpene profiles and structure

• Hand-trimming

• Glass jar packaging to protect freshness and reduce light degradation

• Extensive batch testing

In other words, this is a “no shortcuts” pitch aimed at both patients and pharmacists—two audiences that, in Israel, actually read lab results and ask questions.

Why This Matters Strategically

CEO Mike Gorenstein framed the move as a natural extension of Cronos’ global brand playbook—taking established intellectual property and applying it to high-value international markets rather than chasing pure volume. That’s an important distinction. This is less about shipping commodity flower abroad and more about exporting brand equity plus process credibility.

Israel’s regulatory and medical infrastructure also makes it a useful staging point. Success here signals that a brand can operate under tight pharmaceutical-style oversight—something increasingly relevant as other countries tighten standards.

Adam Wagner, who leads Cronos’ Israel operations, emphasized the end-to-end control narrative—from genetics to final packaging. In medical markets, that traceability story often carries as much weight as THC numbers.

More Than a One-Off Drop

Cronos isn’t treating this as a single SKU launch. The company has already signaled plans for limited-run and special-edition releases, suggesting Lord Jones in Israel will evolve like a premium line—seasonal, curated, and scarcity-aware.

That approach mirrors luxury CPG playbooks more than traditional cannabis distribution models, reinforcing Cronos’ long-running thesis: long-term value in cannabis may come less from sheer cultivation scale and more from brand architecture, quality signaling, and disciplined global rollout.

Bottom line: This isn’t just another export announcement. It’s a test case for whether a North American premium cannabis brand can translate its identity—and margins—into one of the world’s most demanding medical markets. If it works, expect the passport stamps to keep coming.

$PLNH ( ▼ 3.3% ) Taps New Loyalty Initiative

In an industry known for flashy promotions and fine-print-heavy deals, Planet 13 Holdings is taking a more pragmatic approach: make loyalty simple, tangible, and actually rewarding. The company has rolled out a redesigned Planet 13 Rewards program that ditches complexity in favor of a model customers intuitively understand—earn points on purchases and spend them like money at checkout.

The structure is tiered but not tangled. Members start at the Insider level earning two points per dollar spent, with accelerated earning at Prestige and VIP tiers, topping out at six points per dollar. The conversion math is clean: 500 points = $5 off, and notably, there’s no cap on how many points can be redeemed in a single transaction. That effectively turns loyalty into a rolling discount balance rather than a one-time coupon.

Upgrades happen in real time once spending thresholds are met, while any potential downgrades only occur during an annual reset—an approach that rewards engagement without the mid-year penalty box. Points stay active as long as a member makes a purchase within six months, a nudge toward retention without the usual “use it by Sunday or it disappears” pressure.

There’s also a birthday perk (a penny-priced item, retail’s favorite compliant version of “free”), and full integration with the Planet 13 mobile app, where members can track points, tier status, and promotions. Still, the system remains accessible in-store via phone number or email for less app-inclined shoppers.

Strategically, this is bigger than feel-good perks. By turning loyalty into stored value, Planet 13 is driving frequency, strengthening customer retention, and capturing cleaner consumer data—all while making the experience feel less like a math test and more like a benefit. In today’s margin-tight cannabis retail environment, that’s smart business.

🗞️ The News

📺 YouTube

Supreme Court Case Brings Cannabis and Gun Rights Back Into Focus | TTB Powered by Flowhub

What we will cover:

✅ On the latest episode of TDR Trade to Black, powered by Flowhub, hosts Shadd Dales and Anthony Varrell walk through a week where cannabis law, politics, and market pressure all start overlapping.

Joining the show is Jacob Raver, Senior Managing Associate at Dentons, who has been following the NRA-related Supreme Court case involving gun ownership and medical marijuana for quite some time. The case centers on whether cannabis consumers can legally be barred from owning firearms. In a rare alignment, the NRA has joined cannabis advocacy groups in pushing back against that restriction. Raver explains what the Court is being asked to decide, how federal law runs into state cannabis programs, and why the outcome could have wider implications beyond just gun rights.

The conversation also references ongoing legal commentary from Eric Berlin, a cannabis attorney at Dentons, who has previously discussed how these Second Amendment cases fit into the broader federal cannabis framework.