Four states and the District of Columbia have legalized marijuana for recreational use, but only Colorado and Washington have licensed dispensaries that can legally sell recreational cannabis. Since legalization and sale came to those communities, the budding pot industry in these two states has tried to shape a future of vineyard-esque tours of marijuana farms, and fatty-friendly salons reminiscent of Amsterdam’s cafes. (The phrase “Napa Valley of weed” gets tossed around a fair bit.)

The top moving destination in 2014 was Oregon, which voted to legalize marijuana last November.

When choosing retirement locales, a few factors pop to mind: climate, amenities, proximity to grandchildren, access to quality healthcare.

Chris Cooper had something else to consider – marijuana laws.

The investment adviser from Toledo had long struggled with back pain due to a fractured vertebra and crushed disc from a fall. He hated powerful prescription drugs like Vicodin, but one thing did help ease the pain and spasms: marijuana.

In the past two months, police have seized two cars from an Anchorage marijuana delivery service. The owners said they’ve been left in the dark about when -- or even if -- their property will be returned.

Experts say current search and seizure laws allow law enforcement to take and hold the property, though they contend the Alaska Legislature needs to rethink the laws in terms of a ballot initiative that legalized recreational marijuana in Alaska.

Michael Crites, who owns Absolutely Chronic Delivery Company along with his wife, said two Anchorage Police Department stings in recent months resulted in the loss of two cars tied to the business.

ALASKA  – Native Alaskan Leif Abel knew how to hunt, fish, trap and grow organically by the time he was eight. In the family greenhouse, marijuana plants grew among the tomatoes, cucumbers and garden flowers. 

“On the Yukon when I was a kid, it was as normal as anything else,” he recalled. “I probably was pretty old before I realized that it was a little bit of a societal taboo.” 

Last November, Alaska legalized recreational marijuana use. The voter initiative passed 53 percent to 47 percent, but it was hardly unforeseen to people like Abel living in the state’s interior. Long ingrained in their culture, Alaskans have been growing and using marijuana in their homes for decades. 

ANCHORAGE –

The owners of a new marijuana business in Anchorage are furious, accusing police of stealing from them.

Wednesday night, a delivery driver with Absolutely Chronic Deliver Company — or ACDC — had his car seized by Anchorage police officers after making a drop at the Lakefront Anchorage, formerly the Millennium Hotel.

“I came out and I had two APD officers tell me to step out of my vehicle, yelling and screaming, ‘Show your hands, turn off your vehicle, get out,’” said Michael Everly. “They put me in the back of one of their police cars.”

ACDC is a delivery business that brings donated marijuana to customers for a $10 delivery fee. Michael Crites, co-owner of ACDC, said the police had no justification for this action.

Forget the Funyuns and drop the Doritos. New research out of Arctic Canada suggests that marijuana users, for some yet-to-be-understood reason, are slimmer and less at risk for diabetes than non-users.

A study by Quebec researchers found that among Inuit residents of Nunavik, the province’s northernmost region, use of cannabis was correlated with lower body-mass-index measurements, lower body-fat percentages and less insulin resistance.

Many states are facing numerous deadlines for legislation, but the marijuana movement keeps progressing through it all. A major cannabis banking bill is making waves, Alaska’s recreational lawmakers just released regulations, and Chile is on the verge of decriminalization. To top it off, Crimean authorities just discovered an island covered for miles with cannabis, as far as the eye can see. We’ve got the latest in cannabis legalization updates – are you in the know?

U.S. Cannabis Updates

NATIONAL

JUNEAU -- A trade association has been created to promote the nascent legal marijuana business in Alaska.

Four of the five board members of the Alaska Marijuana Industry Association held a news conference Thursday in Anchorage to discuss the group's formation; the event was teleconferenced. State records show the group received status as a nonprofit corporation in late April. The goal was to announce shortly after that, but those involved have been busy working at the local level to help set up the industry, board member and vice president Brandon Emmett said in explaining the timing of Thursday's announcement.

Alaska stands to make between $5.1 million and $19.2 million in tax revenue from commercial marijuana in 2016, according to a preliminary estimate by the Alaska Department of Revenue.

An estimate dated Jan. 2 looks at possible revenues that it calls “very uncertain.” The tax division had to estimate both how much marijuana is consumed in Alaska every year and what proportion of consumers will switch to marijuana from the legal retail market, said Ken Alper, Department of Revenue tax division director.

“To a certain extent you’re shooting in the dark here,” Alper said.

As of February 2015, recreational marijuana is legal in Alaska. Just over half of voters voted in favor of Ballot Measure 2, which made it legal to cultivate and possess small amounts of marijuana in Alaska. Adults age 21 and over may possess up to one ounce of marijuana and have up to six plants in their homes. But before aspiring retailers can set up shop and start selling in Alaska, the state needs to develop a regulatory framework for its sale and consumption.

Enter the Marijuana Control Board, the five-member board that will create this regulatory framework and manage its future development and enforcement.

Who’s on the Board?