Is commercially grown cannabis being tested for harmful contaminants or are there unexpected health risks associated with sparking some Colorado green?

It turns out it’s still optional to test Colorado’s medical marijuana for harmful substances, but that is set to change next year. Depending on their condition, medical marijuana consumers are more likely to have a reduced immune system, making them even more sensitive to contaminants.

The battle to legalize marijuana is no longer just a Main Street issue. These influential business leaders have taken the helm to fight for the legalization of marijuana.

Whether you realize it or not, the debate over whether or not to legalize marijuana is no longer just an issue for Main Street to deal with. Wall Street has taken notice of the momentum behind the marijuana movement, and some of the world's most influential business leaders and CEOs have begun issuing their opinions on what should happen with marijuana going forward.

California and Florida could both pass legalized marijuana measures next year.

Marijuana advocates have been gaining momentum in states that have yet to legalize marijuana, but supporters and those interested in the legalization efforts are undeniably watching most closely to see what happens in California and Florida.

Those two states have different histories when it comes to their stance on marijuana, but both are likely to have marijuana bills on their ballots in 2016, and if those bills pass, then roughly 59 million Americans could enjoy greater access to marijuana by the end of next year.

Eco-friendly Bits, the San Francisco TechCrunch Disrupt very first runner up, brings point-of-sale software services to the world of legal retail cannabis. According to Ben Curren, CEO of Environment-friendly Bits, “The most interesting thing is that [cannabis retail] shops can run like regular companies. It gets rid of all the headaches of compliance.”

Plans for the world’s first cannabis theme park are underway as Native American tribes turn their attention away from casinos.

The Santee Sioux tribe of South Dakota, want to build its own farming venue complete with smoking room and nightclub.

Tribal President Anthony Reider said: ‘We want it to be an adult playground. There’s nowhere else in America that has something like this.’

The tribe said the project could generate up to $2m a month in profit, and work is already under way on the growing facility.

Members hope it will provide another revenue stream other than casinos.

While the Compassionate Care Act to legalize medical marijuana has yet to go into effect — the state is still aiming for a January start date — a “legal” method of vaporizing cannabis has emerged in New York City and is becoming an integral part of the existing electronic smoking culture.

"If you can meet the standards here in Canada, you can meet it anywhere in the world.”

Lift had a chance to speak with Don and Aaron of Amsterdam-based DNA Genetics and Mark Zekulin of Ontario’s Tweed Inc. yesterday about their recentannouncement of an exclusive partnership between the two companies.

On Thursday, December 11, 2014, the United States Department of Justice changed the landscape of the legal marijuana industry. They decided that Native American tribes across the country can grow and sell marijuana on their sovereign lands and must follow the federal guidelines in the four states where recreational marijuana is legal.

The United States is home to 326 federally recognized reservations and 566 federally recognized tribes, most of which are located in states that ban the use of marijuana for recreational purposes.

A leader emerges

High-tech medical cannabis delivery companies are racing to take marketshare in the Bay Area’s advanced and influential pot economy.