EDITORIAL STANDARDS
Sources and
standards.
How this site checks sources, labels legislative status, and separates reporting from opinion.
Article review dates appear on each explainer
Source documents
Our legislative explainers link to bill histories, enacted text, official regulator guidance, government publications and other identified source material. Numbered references connect factual paragraphs to the records behind them. We check a bill’s status separately from its text.
The explainers are an editorial selection of consequential issues, not an exhaustive inventory or a quantitative ranking. Each article shows when its record was checked. The site is a published snapshot; it does not automatically monitor legislatures, courts or agencies.
Our resource directory groups official records, research, advocacy organizations, and transparency tools. Advocacy groups have stated policy positions; their campaigns can help readers participate, while legal claims should be checked against the original government record.
State classifications
The directory covers the 50 states and the District of Columbia. Its broad classifications draw on the National Conference of State Legislatures’ state-law table, updated September 2, 2026. We checked selected official state sources on November 13, 2026 for recent changes and the issues featured in our articles.
That is not an individual audit of every law in every jurisdiction. NCSL’s summary text and tables can reflect different update dates. For a specific legal question, follow the linked state agency or legislature and check the current statute, effective date and local rules.
Adult-use
The jurisdiction authorizes some adult-use possession or activity within its rules. This label does not promise open retail sales, home cultivation or permission to use cannabis in public.
Medical-only
A medical program is authorized. Patient eligibility, permitted products, registration and the availability of licensed providers differ. An authorized program may still be rolling out.
Limited or prohibited
A broad group covering narrow cannabinoid exceptions and jurisdictions without broader authorization. It does not mean all cannabis-related activity is prohibited. Iowa, for example, has a restricted medical patient program.
Two important distinctions: DC’s adult-use possession rules are separate from its medical retail program. Virginia’s 2026 retail law schedules ordinary retail sales to begin July 1, 2027. An adult-use label alone cannot describe either system.
A bill is not a law.
Proposed or pending
The measure has not completed enactment. Introduction, a hearing or passage in one chamber does not itself change the law.
Enacted
The identified measure became law. Its provisions may have different effective dates, and some may require later regulations or implementation.
Stalled, failed or expired
The recorded procedural outcome matters. A past-session bill does not remain live merely because its ideas are still being debated.
Scheduled
A future date has been announced or set by law. It is a milestone to watch, not an event that has already happened.
Federal and state systems also differ. State authorization does not remove every federal restriction, and federal rescheduling is not interchangeable with nationwide legalization.
Our advocacy position
This is an advocacy site supporting continued legalization, fair access, accountable regulation and public participation. Our articles label editorial opinion separately from factual reporting so readers can distinguish the record from our conclusions.
We scrutinize licensing barriers, market concentration, changes to voter-approved policy and the use of public revenue. Criticism should identify the decision, its evidence and its consequences. Claims of personal wrongdoing need evidence; disagreement with a policy is not proof of corruption.
Discussion should address ideas and documented decisions. Thoughtful disagreement is welcome. Personal threats, harassment, spam and unsupported accusations do not contribute to a useful debate.
Limits and corrections
This site provides general education and advocacy resources, not advice for an individual legal or medical situation. It does not establish whether a particular purchase, possession, business activity or border crossing is lawful. Local ordinances, federal rules, workplace policies and court orders can change the answer.
Follow the official source links to verify details. If you contribute a correction in the discussion, identify the article, the specific statement and a primary source so the issue can be reviewed. Submissions are moderated; publishing is not automatic.