Supreme Court Asked to Rule on Cannabis Licensing
In our latest Trade to Black, presented by Flowhub, hosts Shadd Dales and Anthony Varrell break down a Supreme Court petition asking the justices to resolve a major circuit split over whether states can favor in-state residents when issuing cannabis business licensing.
Michigan resident Kenneth Gay, denied licenses in Washington State and Sacramento due to his residency, is asking the Court to overturn a Ninth Circuit ruling, arguing the Dormant Commerce Clause should apply to cannabis licensing the same way it applies to alcohol — while the First and Second Circuits have already ruled the opposite way in cases involving Maine and New York. Varrell doubts the Court takes it up and frames the industry as a “walled garden” built to favor a well-connected few, pointing to Florida’s original nursery-license requirement as an example.
The guys also cover Michigan’s governor race, where the Michigan Cannabis Industry Association formally endorsed Republican candidate John James, calling him “the clear choice” for the industry over his pledge to repeal or roll back the state’s 24% wholesale cannabis tax. James has also proposed cracking down on unregulated Delta-8 and THCA sales and specifically called out Chinese-linked illegal grow operations in the state. We note Michigan just crossed $17 billion in cumulative sales since launch, but with adult-use flower running around $60 an ounce and margins razor-thin, the hosts question whether the state can replace the roughly $420 million the tax earmarks for road repair — and are skeptical James follows through if elected.
In segment two, Kyle Sherman, CEO of Flowhub, joins to talk about Flowhub’s third annual Budtender Love Week, recognizing the frontline employees Flowhub’s own data shows are far more valuable than most operators realize. The busiest 10% of budtenders handle 36% of all transactions across Flowhub retailers, with top performers running 5.6 times the volume of the median employee. It begs the question: which budtenders perform better, and why? Sherman argues it comes down to passion and a consultative approach, and the group digs into high turnover near minimum-wage pay, and how better tools, training, and treating staff like family drive retention.
The show closes on a new Rasmussen poll finding only about a third of Americans consider marijuana dangerous, with just 18% believing the gateway theory — sparking a wider conversation on stigma, shifting generational habits, and the outsized risks of gambling and energy drinks.
