A Maricopa County nonprofit that makes much of its money off low-level marijuana offenders would take a big financial hit if Arizona voters legalize marijuana in November.

The Treatment Assessment Screening Center, better known as TASC, contracts with the county to provide six months of mandatory drug-treatment services for first- or second-time offenders who get busted for possession of illegal drugs. TASC participants, with exceptions for low-income offenders, pay their own way for the program

COLLINSVILLE • Metro East’s first marijuana dispensary looks like a spa.

After signing the paperwork and before choosing which marijuana flower, someone with a medical permit can enjoy complimentary bottled water, Keurig coffee and granola bars in the clean and bright waiting room at HCI Alternatives. The point, said chief executive Chris Stone, is to make patients feel comfortable, and to counter perceptions some might have that dispensaries are sketchy, unsafe places.

“It’s not Colorado, it’s not California. It’s Illinois,” Stone said.

Although commercial cultivation of medical marijuana is prohibited in Newark under an ordinance unanimously approved Jan. 14 by the City Council, qualified patients and their primary caregivers will still be allowed to grow their own plants.

The city specifically banned medical marijuana dispensaries in 2011. However, the city's zoning ordinance did not specifically address whether commercial cultivation of medical marijuana is a permitted use or a conditionally permitted use in any zoning district. The new ordinance is meant to clearly prohibit commercial cultivation.

DENVER — When Lauren Gibbs gets married in rural Colorado this July, she'll wear a traditional white dress in front of about a hundred guests. She and her fiance will exchange vows, then celebrate into the night. 

A big, countryside ranch will host. The Colorado River cuts through the property. Surrounded by Rocky Mountain nature, alpine forests collide with blue sky where friends and family will toast the bride and groom. 

"It will be the picturesque, classic Colorado wedding," Gibbs tells me. 

It will also be a fantastic place to get high. 

She is detailing all the ways guests will be able to get stoned at her nuptial.

More than a year ago, I wrote about one of Israel's top medical innovations: the 3D printed medical marijuana inhaler. And now, one of the nation’s leading startups is bringing in another force of action to further legitimize the cannabis industry.

While it’s no surprise that cannabis has always been a topic surrounded by much controversy, one Israeli startup, Eybna Technologies Ltd., is helping to change the way the world perceives use of the drug.

Say hello to cannabis flavored and scented products, without the high!

TORONTO — Licensed marijuana producer Bedrocan is slashing the price of all six of its medical cannabis strains to $5 a gram, citing a desire to make medicine more affordable for patients.

The company’s products previously cost $7.50 a gram.

Bedrocan Canada Inc. is a subsidiary of Canopy Growth Corp. (TSXV:CGC), a combined company formed when Bedrocan merged with Tweed Marijuana Inc.

Bedrocan president Marc Wayne says the company will still be able to turn a profit, even after price cuts that amount to roughly 33 per cent.

“We’re very good at producing cannabis at a low cost,” said Wayne.

CHAMPAIGN — Fact: 44 Americans die every day from prescription-drug overdoses, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

"That doesn't happen with cannabis," Caprice Sweatt said Sunday. "Medical cannabis is a safe, legal option."

With the legal version of the drug set to debut locally in a matter of weeks, the founder and CEO of Medical Cannabis Outreach was in Champaign on Sunday to give a seminar on what's ahead.

Sweatt spoke from first-hand experience — as a longtime sufferer of Crohn's disease, her introduction to medical marijuana in Colorado was life changing, letting her trade 22 prescription medications for one $15 transdermal patch that gives her all the benefits she needs.

Forget waiting for that shady dude perpetually claiming he'll "be there in five." Online services linking patients with cannabis-friendly doctors are the future. The rise of telemedicine has made cannabis accessible to everyone - even those who loathe the hassle of lining up at dispensaries or sealing grey-market deals.

One of the biggest players in the nascent online-delivery game? California's SpeedWeed.

Little precedent has been set on medical cannabis use in the workplace. Over the last two weeks we looked at two Canadian cases, Wilson vs. Transparent Glazing Systems and French vs. Selkin Logging. Both cases begin to inform employees and employers about boundaries on cannabis use at work. 

One of the main messages is that employers in Canada have a broad duty to accommodate medical cannabis as a treatment, assuming the employee has a valid prescription from a doctor. 

Unless you’re living under a rock, you’ve probably heard that marijuana is now legal in some states in the U.S. hinting at a future where cannabis is no longer illegal at all. The end of prohibition for marijuana in the U.S. would be hugely disruptive and create the potential for a great deal of money to be made off of marijuana legally.