November 2–8, 2026 | Issue #14
Hey friend, welcome back to Last Week in Cannabis. Election night brought clear results for cannabis in Massachusetts and Idaho, Houston voted on how police should treat low-level possession, and the federal rescheduling hearing reached a key milestone. We also look at a remarkable archaeological discovery. Let’s get into it.
1. UNITED STATES: Massachusetts Voters Reject Question 8 and Keep the Regulated Adult-Use Market
In Massachusetts, Question 8, which sought to repeal key elements of the state’s adult-use cannabis framework, was defeated on November 3rd. In the unofficial count, about 76 percent of voters opposed the measure and about 24 percent supported it. Had it passed, licensed adult-use shops would have been required to close by the start of 2028, and home cultivation would have ended. The medical program would have continued. It was the first time voters anywhere in the United States had been asked to dismantle an existing recreational market. Massachusetts voters approved legalization in 2016 with 54 percent of the vote.
Local reporting put the state’s cannabis sector at about $300 million in annual tax revenue, including $40 million directed to cities and towns, and nearly 30,000 jobs. Supporters of the repeal had argued that ending commercial sales would address concerns about public health, impaired driving and high-potency products.
Mary Jane’s Take: Voters have given a clear answer, and the result preserves Massachusetts’ regulated adult-use market. The concerns raised by the repeal campaign, such as youth access, impaired driving and product potency, did not disappear with the vote. They remain part of how any regulated market is designed and monitored. What the result shows is that after nearly a decade of living with legal cannabis, a large majority of voters chose to keep the regulated system and continue improving it.
2. UNITED STATES: Idaho Voters Reject HJR 4 and Keep the Citizen Ballot Initiative Process
In Idaho, voters rejected HJR 4, a proposed constitutional amendment that would have given the state legislature exclusive authority over cannabis policy and removed that power from citizen-led ballot initiatives. It would have covered other psychoactive substances as well. The measure failed by roughly two to one in unofficial results, and results become official once certified by the state.
Cannabis remains illegal in Idaho, including for medical use, and this year’s medical cannabis initiative did not collect enough signatures to reach the ballot. The result preserves Idaho residents’ ability to bring future cannabis policy proposals to a public vote.
Mary Jane’s Take: This vote was not about whether cannabis should be legal in Idaho. It was about who gets to decide. Voters in several neighbouring states used the ballot initiative process to legalize cannabis, and Idahoans have now chosen to keep that tool available. Together with the Massachusetts result, election night kept the process in the hands of voters in both states.
3. UNITED STATES: Houston Voters Approve a Measure on Low-Level Marijuana Enforcement
Voters in Houston approved Proposition A, a charter amendment, with about 71 to 72 percent in favour. It directs the Houston Police Department to make enforcement of misdemeanor marijuana possession its lowest possible priority. It also prohibits officers from requesting or executing no-knock search warrants. Proposition A does not legalize marijuana. Possession remains illegal under Texas law, and the measure applies only to Houston police, not to other agencies such as constables or sheriff’s deputies. The city must now update its policies and train officers. The police officers’ union says officers have not yet received guidance, and the mayor has said the measure will not change much in practice.
Mary Jane’s Take: This is a good example of how much cannabis policy is decided at the local level, even where state law has not changed. A large majority of voters in one of America’s biggest cities chose to direct police resources elsewhere. Because the law itself is unchanged, the practical effect will depend on how the policy is written and applied. It will be worth watching how it works in the months ahead.
4. UNITED STATES: The DEA Rescheduling Hearing Reaches Its Final Briefs
On November 5th, the DEA and the opponents of rescheduling filed what are expected to be the final briefs in the hearing on moving cannabis from Schedule I to Schedule III. The DEA argued that the judge should give a federal watchdog report on drug scheduling procedures “no weight,” saying the opponents’ arguments are not supported by the record. It asked the judge to “expeditiously recommend” rescheduling. The opponents, including a drug testing association, an anti-impaired-driving group and a physician, argued the report deserves significant weight.
The judge will now consider the briefs and the hearing testimony and issue a recommendation to the DEA Administrator, who makes the final decision. No timeline has been announced. Separately, a congressional committee voted to block federal officials from taking further steps on rescheduling, though bipartisan lawmakers say they do not expect that provision to become law.
Mary Jane’s Take: After a hearing, a pause and several rounds of briefs, the written record is now complete. The judge’s recommendation is not binding, and the final decision rests with the DEA Administrator, so there are still steps to come. April’s order for medical cannabis and the first federal registrations we covered last week remain in place and are not affected by this process. As always, a timeline for the next step is the thing to watch for.
5. GLOBAL: Scientists Find the Earliest Direct Evidence of Cannabis Intoxication, 2,800 Years Ago
A study published in the journal Science on November 5th reports the oldest directly dated evidence of cannabis being used for its psychoactive effects. Researchers led by the University of Bern examined a monumental tomb in southern Siberia and found about 1,000 cannabis seeds. Radiocarbon dating placed them in the early eighth century BCE. In hair from the central burial chamber, the team found chemical signals consistent with cannabinol, a compound that forms as THC breaks down. They concluded that cannabis was used in a ritual burial setting. The seeds likely came from wild plants, and it is not known how the cannabis was consumed.
An outside expert quoted by the Associated Press cautioned that the hair data do not distinguish consumption from exposure by being buried alongside the plant.
Mary Jane’s Take: People have had a relationship with this plant for far longer than most of us imagine. Evidence from this tomb points to cannabis being used with purpose and ceremony thousands of years ago. It is also a good example of careful science. The researchers present their findings as strong evidence, and independent experts are already discussing what the hair analysis can and cannot show. That open debate is how we get closer to the truth.
That’s your week, with four stories from the United States and one from around the world. See you next Monday.
Mary Jane
