💸 The Tape

For years, North Carolina has been the state where medical cannabis goes to die — not for lack of trying, but for lack of political will in the right chamber at the right time. Federal rescheduling may have just changed the equation.

Senate President Pro Tempore Phil Berger (R) told WRAL-TV last week that his caucus will discuss whether to revive medical cannabis legislation in light of the Trump administration's rescheduling order, which moved state-licensed medical marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule III of the Controlled Substances Act. It's a notable signal from a Republican leader in a state where the Senate has passed medical cannabis bills in multiple past sessions — only to watch them stall and die in the House of Representatives.

"We'll have a conversation within our caucus as to whether or not we do something, if they're interested in continuing to pursue that," Berger said.

That's not a commitment. But in North Carolina cannabis politics, it's more momentum than advocates have had in years.

The Federal Catalyst

The timing isn't coincidental. Last week's DEA final order didn't just reclassify medical cannabis — it sent a permission signal to state legislatures that have been hesitant to move on marijuana policy while the federal government maintained its hardline Schedule I stance. For conservative lawmakers in particular, the ability to point to a Republican administration rescheduling cannabis under President Trump's executive order removes what had been a convenient excuse for inaction.

North Carolina is exactly the kind of state where that signal matters most. The political dynamics aren't driven by opposition to cannabis in principle — polling consistently shows majority support for at least medical legalization — but by the institutional inertia of a legislature where leadership in one chamber has repeatedly declined to bring the issue to a vote. Federal movement gives Senate leaders new cover to push the conversation forward and puts additional pressure on House leadership to explain why they continue to block a measure their own colleagues across the rotunda have already endorsed.

The Governor's Commission Adds Pressure

Federal rescheduling isn't the only force at work. Just weeks before the DEA order, a governor-appointed cannabis commission in North Carolina issued an interim report that went significantly further than most observers expected.

The North Carolina Advisory Council on Cannabis, convened by Governor Josh Stein (D) last year, recommended that the state move away from its criminalization-based approach and toward a system of "robust" regulations providing adults with legal access to THC products. The commission — comprised of legislators, law enforcement officials, agriculture stakeholders, health experts, tribal representatives, and advocates — didn't mince words about the current landscape.

The state's unregulated cannabis market "raises numerous concerns," the report says. Hemp-derived THC products are already widely available across North Carolina yet remain largely unregulated, while marijuana remains prohibited entirely — even for medical use. Governor Stein was blunter: "Our state's unregulated cannabis market today is the Wild West and is crying for order."

Perhaps most notably, the commission explicitly rejected a medical-only program as an effective interim step, recommending instead that North Carolina proceed directly to adult-use access with built-in protections for medical consumers. The panel argued that constructing separate regulatory frameworks for hemp and marijuana is unnecessary, advocating instead for molecule-based regulation focused on THC itself — regardless of whether it's derived from hemp or marijuana.

"The plant source is irrelevant and should not drive different treatment when the intoxicating compound is the same," the report states.

That's a remarkably progressive position for a commission operating in a state that hasn't even legalized medical cannabis. It also reflects the practical reality that North Carolina's unregulated hemp-derived THC market has already created a de facto cannabis economy — just one without age restrictions, potency limits, testing requirements, or consumer protections.

The House Problem

The persistent obstacle in North Carolina has never been the Senate. Medical cannabis bills have cleared that chamber repeatedly, with bipartisan support. The bottleneck has been the House of Representatives, where leadership has declined to advance the legislation.

Whether federal rescheduling changes that calculus remains an open question. Berger's comments suggest the Senate is ready to try again, but he acknowledged uncertainty about how House leadership would respond. The political dynamics within the House Republican caucus — where some members support medical cannabis while others remain opposed — have historically been enough to keep the issue off the floor.

But the ground has shifted in ways that make continued inaction harder to defend. Federal rescheduling removes the argument that state legalization conflicts with federal policy. The governor's commission provides a detailed, stakeholder-vetted framework for regulation. And the unregulated hemp market continues to grow, creating consumer safety concerns that do nothing to strengthen the case for prohibition.

There's also a precedent already operating within the state's borders. The Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians launched North Carolina's first marijuana dispensary in 2024 — a move that drew protests from certain Republican congressional lawmakers but demonstrated that legal cannabis sales can function in the state without the catastrophic consequences opponents have long predicted.

The Bigger Pattern

North Carolina's situation mirrors a pattern playing out across the South and in other traditionally conservative states. Federal rescheduling hasn't just changed the legal classification of medical cannabis — it's reframed the politics. When a Republican president and his Justice Department move marijuana out of Schedule I, it becomes significantly harder for Republican state legislators to argue that cannabis reform is a partisan or radical proposition.

States like North Carolina, Georgia, and Texas — where legislative support for medical cannabis exists but institutional resistance has blocked progress — are exactly where the federal signal is likely to have the most impact. The permission structure has changed.

Governor Stein's commission has a final report due by December 31, 2026. If the Senate moves a medical cannabis bill in the meantime, the pressure on the House to act will be more intense than at any point in the state's history.

North Carolina has been stuck at the starting line for years. Between federal rescheduling, the governor's commission, and renewed Senate interest, the state may finally be running out of reasons to stay there.

Source: Marijuana Moment

📈 Dog Walkers

$GLASF ( ▼ 5.37% ) Releases Preliminary Results

Glass House Brands delivered a mixed bag in its Q1 2026 preliminary results — beating on revenue and production volume while missing on the margin line that investors watch most closely.

The California-focused cannabis producer reported anticipated net revenues of $40 million, ahead of its own $39 million guidance and flat against Q4 2025, though down from $45 million in the year-ago quarter. Biomass production came in strong at 151,000 pounds, well above the guided 138,000 pounds — a signal that the company's massive cultivation infrastructure continues to perform.

The trouble sits in the middle of the income statement. Gross profit margin landed at 25%, meaningfully below the guided 29% and a sharp step down from 34% in Q4 2025 and 45% a year ago. That compression prompted Glass House to revise its full-year 2026 gross margin guidance downward to the mid-40% range from a prior target of approximately 48%.

The culprit appears to be production costs. The company now expects cost of production to come in at roughly $111 per pound for the full year, up from prior guidance of approximately $100. That delta flows directly into margins and ultimately into adjusted EBITDA, which Glass House now expects in the high $30 million range — down from the high $40 million range previously guided. Period-ending cash expectations have also been trimmed to the low $40 million range from $50 million.

There are bright spots worth noting. Full-year net revenue guidance of $235–$245 million remains intact, as does the average selling price target in the mid-$180s per pound and the biomass production target of approximately 1 million pounds. Management also reiterated that its long-term $95 per pound cost of production target remains achievable, with expectations to hit that level on a quarterly basis at some point this year.

Importantly, the guidance excludes several potential catalysts: hemp sales, product sales outside California, contributions from the recently announced retail joint venture with Vireo, and cash from outstanding warrant conversions. Each of those represents upside that isn't yet baked into the numbers.

For Glass House, the Q1 story is one of volume strength offset by cost headwinds — a familiar tension for agricultural-scale cannabis operators navigating California's relentless pricing environment. The production machine is humming. The margin recovery is the piece that still needs to catch up.

$HELP ( ▼ 4.44% ) Finds A Dance Partner

Helus Pharma is tapping into veteran networks to accelerate enrollment in one of the most closely watched psychedelic therapy trials in the country.

The clinical-stage pharmaceutical company announced a collaboration with TARA Mind and Veterans Exploring Treatment Solutions (VETS) to support recruitment for its PARADIGM HLP003 Phase 3 program for Major Depressive Disorder (MDD). HLP003 holds FDA Breakthrough Therapy Designation and is part of Helus Pharma's broader pipeline of novel serotonergic agonists (NSAs) targeting unmet needs in mental health.

The partnership aligns directly with President Trump's April 18, 2026 Executive Order, "Accelerating Medical Treatments for Serious Mental Illness," which emphasizes expanding clinical research participation and advancing innovative treatments for populations facing disproportionately high rates of depression, PTSD, and suicide — a description that fits the veteran community with painful precision.

Interim CEO Eric So said the collaboration will leverage TARA Mind and VETS' deep experience working within veteran communities to expand awareness of clinical research opportunities and drive recruitment for the Phase 3 program. Marcus Capone, Chairman and Co-Founder of TARA Mind, echoed the urgency, noting that partnerships like this "connect veterans to cutting-edge clinical opportunities" and ensure access to the latest mental health resources.

For Helus Pharma, the collaboration serves dual purposes: it addresses a practical clinical trial need — enrolling enough participants to power a Phase 3 study — while aligning the company with the federal government's stated priority of accelerating treatments for serious mental illness in underserved populations.

🗞️ The News

📺 YouTube

Cannabis Sector Re-Rating Is Imminent | TTB Presented by Flowhub

What we will cover:

✅ The cannabis industry is entering a new era. In this episode of Trade To Black, host Shadd Dales and Anthony Varrell sit down with Seth Yakatan to break down the seismic shift underway following the DOJ's final ruling on cannabis rescheduling from Schedule I to Schedule III. We'll unpack what this landmark decision means for the re-rating of cannabis equities, operator margins, and the broader capital markets landscape.

Topics covered include:

-Section 280E tax relief and projected free cash flow impact for MSOs
-How institutional capital may finally enter the cannabis sector post-rescheduling
-Valuation multiples and why analysts are revisiting price targets across the industry
-Winners and losers among public cannabis operators, cultivators, and ancillary businesses
-The DEA hearing process, potential legal challenges, and remaining regulatory hurdles
-M&A activity, balance sheet implications, and uplisting pathways to major U.S. exchanges