Nevada’s sports regulators voted to send the Governor a proposal for a regulatory amendment that would protect athletes against being punished over using or having marijuana as per state law.
Nevada State Athletic Commission met on Tuesday, to discuss the proposed change. This would formalize a policy which was implemented informally in 2021. Members voted for the Cannabis Reform to go through the administrative process and be adopted as its guidelines, before sending it first to the Governor. Joe Lombardo, (R).
The commission’s marijuana regulations are part of an overall review of all state agencies that is required by the Governor.
The NSAC, , which regulates the unarmed combat sport in the state, , voted unanimously that professional fighters will no longer be penalized for testing positive for cannabis by 2021. However, the policy is not yet integrated into the code. The new amendment will change that.
According to an analyst at the Nevada Administrative Code, “before any regulation can become effective, it must go through the formal regulatory approval process as outlined by the Nevada Administrative Code.”
They said that the public will be able to comment on and provide input during this process. “For the moment, the Commission’s policy is in place but no formal regulations have been adopted.”
The proposed regulations still state that the World Anti-Doping Agency’s (WADA) list is adopted by the commission, which continues to include cannabis following of the international governing body’s scientific review from last year. However, they are trying to add language in order to make an exception for marijuana for fighters within the state.
The proposed Amendment states: “The Commission does NOT classify cannabis or its derived products as banned or prohibited substances under its drug testing and antidoping program that is included in one of or more of publications listed in subparagraph 1 provided that such substances are legal to use or consume under the laws of Nevada.”
The regulators are also planning to add another section to the code which states that “possession, consumption, or use of cannabis or cannabis-derived products will not be considered an antidoping violation, regardless of laws in the jurisdictions where such possession or use or consumption occurs if such possession, consumption, or use is legal under Nevada laws.”
This would seem to mean that athletes who consume cannabis in any state would not be sanctioned as long as their activity is legal under Nevada’s policy of legalization.
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In recent years, professional athletics organizations have reevaluated and reformed their cannabis policies at all levels in response to the legalization movement on a state level.
The National Basketball Association (NBA), for example, is reportedly planning on removing cannabis from its list of banned substances, and allowing players to promote the industry.
The Chicago Cubs became the first Major League Baseball team in the world to partner with a CBD-based company. This follows a league-wide collaboration with a CBD brand last season.
MLB stands out from other professional sports leagues for being more responsive to changing marijuana policies. In a memo from 2020, the league clarified that athletes will not be penalized for using marijuana when they’re not working. However, they cannot be sponsored personally by a cannabis company or have investments in the sector.
UFC announced that in 2021 they will no longer punish fighters for positive marijuana tests.
Separately student athletes who are members of the NCAA will no longer lose their eligibility for play if they test positive for marijuana , under new rules that were recommended last year by a major committee.
As part of the collective bargaining agreement, the National Football League (NFL’s) policy on drug testing has already been demonstrably changed in 2020.
In Nevada, meanwhile, the Assembly has recently passed a resolution calling on Congress to legalize cannabis, and sent it to the state Senate.
The lawmakers have also adopted a proposition to increase the state’s cannabis possession limit, and remove barriers for employment in the marijuana sector.
The Senate Health and Human Services Committee passed a revised bill last month that would establish a new group to study psychedelics and create a plan for regulated access to therapeutic purposes.
Colorado House approves Senate-passed Psychedelics Regulation Bill
Martin Alonso is the photographer of this photo.
The post Nevada Sports Regulators send Proposal to Stop Penalizing Fights over Marijuana to the Governor first appeared on Marijuana Moment.
