Welcome back to Higher Law, our weekly briefing on all things cannabis. I'm Cheryl Miller, reporting for Law.com from Sacramento. May your Mother's Day CBD gift set arrive in time for Sunday's festivities.

This week, Fox Rothschild's Joshua Horn dishes on what's keeping him busy these days as co-chair of the firm's cannabis practice. Then, attorneys general, including Republicans, plead with Congress to do something about the lack of cannabis banking. And a legislative plan to pay pot taxes with cryptocurrency fizzles.

Thank you, Higher Law readers, for coming back each week and staying in touch. If you worked on a deal, have an interesting story idea or can tell me what to get Mom this year, drop me a line at [email protected] or call me at 916.448.2935. You can follow me on Twitter @capitalaccounts.

A Cannabis Lawyer's Advice: Don't Dabble

I had a chance recently to chat with Fox Rothschild partner and cannabis law guru Joshua Horn for Law.com's Legal Speak podcast. Who knew a tourist trip to a Colorado dispensary could spawn a legal practice?

We talked about CBD, marijuana-in-the-workplace issues and what makes cannabis law different from other practice areas. Here are a few takeaways from our conversation…

If you're going to practice marijuana law, don't dabble.

Horn tells me he gets a dozen or two news alerts every day about cannabis-related developments as he tries to stay on top of constant regulatory changes in the states and the federal government. And he's compiled a national survey of cannabis laws, which he updates weekly.

"It's a very labor-intensive process, which is why when I talk to colleagues at the firm, my advice is, much to the pleasure of our general counsel I think, don't try to dabble," Horn says. "Make sure you're working with somebody who's experienced in the space because it is a constantly moving target. You have to stay abreast of what's going on."

CBD ahead: Proceed with caution.

It seems like CBD is everywhere and in everything these days, from hamburgers to dog treats. But just because CBD doesn't create a buzz, that doesn't mean it's without regulatory risk, particularly from a wary U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

"Really what the FDA is predominantly focused on at the moment—and it could change any day, which is part of why I mentioned not dabbling—is whether companies are making real curative claims," Horn says.

That means no promises of cures for cancer or even insomnia.

"If you're making those claims the FDA is going to have an issue with it," Horn says.

Which state is the next to allow recreational marijuana? New Jersey, New York or Philadelphia?

"That's the penultimate question that clients and colleagues are stewing on," Horn told me.

His guess? New Jersey.

"New Jersey was pretty close this past winter. They didn't have all the votes needed and it was tabled 'til later this year. I think New Jersey has the most impetus behind it and then I would say probably a tie between New York and Pennsylvania."

>>> Do you have a tale to tell about your work in cannabis law? Drop me a line at [email protected] and let's talk Legal Speak.

State AGs Plead for Pot Banking

Thirty-eight attorneys general from 33 states, four U.S. territories and the District of Columbia urged Congress on Wednesday to pass legislation aimed at opening banks to the cannabis industry. Eight of the signatories to a letter sent to congressional leaders are Republicans.

The state prosecutors are seeking support for H.R. 1595, the Secure and Fair Enforcement Banking Act, which would provide legal safe harbor to banks and credit unions that open accounts for state-licensed marijuana-related businesses.

"This is simple: not incorporating an $8.3 billion industry into our banking system is hurting our public safety and economy," California Attorney General Xavier Becerra(above) said in a prepared statement. "When it comes to the cannabis industry, California has made clear that it is moving forward and our nation should do the same."

The letter from the attorneys general follows a similar plea sent to Congress last month by 17 state treasurers.

"The SAFE Banking Act is about public safety, accountability and respecting states' rights," the bill's author, Colorado Democrat Ed Perlmutter, said in a prepared statement.

The U.S. House Financial Services Committee advanced Perlmutter's bill last month on a 45-15 vote. The full House is expected to take up the legislation in the coming weeks. Its future in the Republican-controlled U.S. Senate looks less certain. Banking Committee Chairman Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, has not committed to holding a hearing on the bill.

Cryptocurrency Bill Crashes Speaking of marijuana banking, California legislation that would have allowed cannabis businesses to pay state taxes with cryptocurrency for the year.

A spokeswoman for the bill's author, Assemblyman Phil Ting, D-San Francisco, confirmed that AB 953 is now a two-year bill—legi-speak for: It won't get a committee vote in 2019. Ting's idea was to let canna-businesses pay taxes and government fees with stablecoin, or digital currency pegged to the U.S. dollar.

The bill had the support of blockchain advocates and some dispensaries but it never really caught fire in other circles. Separate California legislation to create limited-charter cannabis banks is scheduled for a fiscal committee vote next week.

Who Got the Work Andrew Brisbo, the newly confirmed director of Michigan's marijuana regulatory agency, won't divulge his personal feelings about the drug. "My job is to implement laws," Brisbo said at a Senate confirmation hearing last week, according to MLive. "My personal feelings don't matter." Brisbo will lead a 102-member staff charged with developing the state's new recreational rules and overseeing Michigan's medical regulations.

In the Weeds…

>> A California prosecutor says off-duty pot use cost her her job. In a lawsuitfiled in federal court, former Riverside County Deputy District Attorney Rebecca Madrid alleges she was fired after testing positive for marijuana when she returned from medical / family leave. Madrid's attorney, Joel Baruch of the Law Offices of Joel Baruch, said the county had no legitimate reason to drug test his client before she returned to work. A spokesman for the DA's office declined to comment on the lawsuit. [The Press-Enterprise]

>> Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker has unveiled his proposed marijuana legalization plan. Provisions include a $100,000 permit fee for growers, a sales tax that varies depending on a product's THC content, a personal-possession limit of 30 grams and a low-interest loan program to promote "social equity" in business ownership. [Chicago Tribune]

>> What if a worker tests positive for marijuana but says he only used a CBD-infused product? That's just one of a number of questions employers have to deal with as the cannabidiol-craze affects the workplace. "Because the FDA does not regulate CBD products other than Epidiolex, an employee has no guarantee that their supposedly pure CBD product does not contain THC," Fisher Phillips partner Howard Mavity writes. Employers should warn workers that, even if they're using a seemingly innocuous CBD product, if they test positive for THC the company "will have to take action." [Fisher Phillips]

>> Maybe next year, New Jersey. As hopes dim for a recreational marijuana bill to emerge from the New Jersey legislature this year, advocates are considering taking a measure to voters in 2020. A feud between the governor and Senate leader over tax credits may be hampering a deal on marijuana, according to NJ Advance Media. [NJ.com]

>> A tight labor market and greater acceptance of marijuana use may lead employers to eschew drug testing or initially ignore a positive drug screen. But employers should think twice before relaxing their drug-testing practices, says Erika Frank, general counsel and executive vice president of the California Chamber of Commerce. "You open yourself up to [liability] and this is not hypothetical." [The Workplace]

Your Calendar: All the Things

May 10 - Friday is the deadline to submit a request to attend, to make a presentation or to deliver in-person comments to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration at its May 31 hearing on CBD products in Silver Spring, Maryland.

May 12 - Licensed medical marijuana sales could begin as early as Saturday in Arkansas. A Hot Springs dispensary became the first outlet last week to receive state approval

May 17 - The nomination period for the board of directors of the International Cannabis Bar Association, previously known as the National Cannabis Bar Association, closes.