Latest news with #Baginski
Yahoo
16-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
RI lawmakers weigh hemp beverage bills amid industry dispute
PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI) — Hemp-derived THC drinks are popping up in stores across the state. It's a non-alcoholic beverage that can still give you a buzz, and now lawmakers are considering two bills on the topic. House Bill 6270, co-sponsored by Rep. Scott Slater, would ban the sales altogether, and House Bill 6056, co-sponsored by State Rep. Jacquelyn Baginski of Cranston, would regulate how they are sold. 'There are some liquor stores that report to me that these drinks will account for nearly 10% of their sales by the end of the year,' said Rep. Baginski. 'It is legal to be sold here already, and the market is exploding for them.' Hemp drinks are legal under federal law if they stay under 0.3% delta-9 THC. In Rhode Island, sales began last August under limited regulations, but this new legislation aims to tighten control. 'The Department of Business Regulation requires only that you have a specific type of retail sales license to sell these beverages, and they contain, emp-derived elements that can make the beverages intoxicating as an alcoholic beverage, or as a cannabis based THC beverage,' explained Baginski. Bill 6056 would legalize the sale of beverages at liquor stores, bars and restaurants by a trained server. 'Liquor stores already sell intoxicating beverages. The staff are trained to identify and appropriate purchasers as they're trained on safe sale, and they're trained to understand how intoxicating these beverages might be and how to label them for sale to appropriate markets,' said Baginski. If Baginski's bill is signed into law, it will require staff to receive minimum safety and intoxication training and prohibit sales to people under the age of 21. 'There are no safety precautions around these drinks currently. Someone could sell one of these drinks at a convenience store and there's no accounting for how intoxicating it is,' said Baginski. 'There's no accounting for how intoxicating it is or if there are any safety warnings that are posted on the can or container that alert the buyer that it's intoxicating.' 'We don't know who's buying them, children could be buying them,' she continued. 'Young kids could be buying them and then getting behind the wheel of their car on their way to high school.' However, there is some pushback amongst hemp farmers and cannabis cultivators as they believe this legislation has an unfair advantage in the hemp market. 'If it's intoxicating, I believe that those should be sold at a cannabis dispensary where cannabis is sold. If it's nonintoxicating, I think it could be sold with the CBD consumable retail license, which already exists in the state,' said Mike Simpson, Co-Founder of Lovewell Farms in Hope Valley. 'These other bills come in and create an additional regulatory structure that overlaps. That makes it confusing not only for consumers, but it makes it less safe.' Both pieces of proposed legislation have been a move that hemp farmers, like Simpson said, left them out of the conversation. 'We've been building this industry in Rhode Island since 2018 from the ground up, yet there are two bills, neither of which engaged with the hemp industry meaningfully and left both of us out of those bills,' said Simpson. 'I'm happy to receive all of the feedback from different stakeholders in the industry. But I want us to keep focused on the fact that this is about safety,' noted Baginski. The state currently supports over 100 licensed hemp retailers and distributors, permitting the sale of delta-9 THC products such as gummies, packaged baked goods, and beverages. Baginski's bill also proposes increasing the annual fee for liquor wholesalers from $500 to $1,500 and introducing a $250 annual fee for bars and restaurants. Rhode Island's seven cannabis dispensaries each pay an annual $30,000 licensing fee to sell THC products, under regulations established by the state's Cannabis Control Commission. In Governor Dan McKee's FY2026 budget proposal, it recommends transferring regulatory authority of hemp-derived products from the the Department of Business Regulation to the Cannabis Control Commission. 'These bills highlight the growing need for consistent oversight of hemp-derived cannabinoid products, particularly beverages with intoxicating effects,' said Rose Charon with the Cannabis Control Commission. 'A unified framework would enhance consumer safety, reduce regulatory confusion, and support Rhode Island's evolving cannabis and hemp policies.' Testimony was heard Thursday during a House Committee on Corporations meeting on house bill H6270. Many liquor retailers expressed their opposition to a total ban on hemp-derived beverages in RI. 'Beverage alcohol retailers, who already specialize in selling intoxicating age-restricted products, are perfectly set up and equipped to ensure that these hemp-derived THC products get to the public in the safest manner possible,' said Nicholas Fede, Executive Director of The Rhode Island Liquor Operators Collaborative. Some cannabis dispensary's support H6270 including The Slater Center in Providence who also submitted testimony. 'This bill stops the current practice of retailers like liquor stores and convenience stores from selling hemp-derived THC beverages, which are already appearing on shelves throughout Rhode Island,' the company wrote in a statement. 'This legislation mirrors action already taken in nearby states like Massachusetts which has banned hemp-derived THC beverages for health and safety reasons.' 'We further maintain that Rep. Baginski's bill, H6056, is the correct solution to the current emerging problem in the Hemp-derived THC category; availability of intoxicating substances in an environment that is not age-restricted,' Fede the and apps to get breaking news and weather alerts. Watch or with the new . Follow us on social media: Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
09-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
After winning over House for second year, fate of election deepfakes bill hangs on R.I. Senate
A chat bubble shows ChatGPT's response to a user query of 'What's a deepfake?' (Photo by Alexander Castro/Rhode Island Current) ChatGPT was hardly a household name when Rep. Jacquelyn Baginski first pitched state regulations limiting artificial intelligence in elections in January 2024. Seventeen months later, the AI-powered chatbot is part of the zeitgeist. 'Probably everyone has it downloaded on their phones right now,' Baginski, a Cranston Democrat, said in an interview Wednesday. It's only a matter of time, in Baginski's view, before the rapid embrace of artificial intelligence filters through to local elections, potentially harming candidates and voters manipulated by deceptive images, audio and video created by generative AI. Which is why Baginski is again pushing for legislation that would restrict and regulate election deepfakes for the second year in a row. Like last year, her proposal sailed through the Rhode Island House of Representatives Thursday, with a 64-1 vote, with one abstention. Rep. Jennifer Stewart, a Pawtucket Democrat, cast the sole vote against the bill. Stewart did not immediately return inquiries for comment Thursday. Rep. Arthur Corvese, a North Providence Democrat, abstained. Corvese's son-in-law works as policy director for Meta. But across the rotunda, companion legislation from Sen. Lou DiPalma remains held for review by the Senate Committee on Judiciary, the same place where it languished and eventually died in the 2024 session. DiPalma, a Middletown Democrat, insists he intends to shepherd the legislation 'across the finish line' this year. 'This is an opportunity for us to get out in front of what's going to happen,' DiPalma said in an interview Thursday. 'It's going to happen in Rhode Island. Let's get out there and put some regulations in place before it does.' Longstanding fears that AI could be used to manipulate elections and deceive voters was put to the test in 2024, with mixed results, according to experts. In January 2024, a robocall impersonating then-Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden urged New Hampshire voters not to participate in the state's presidential primary. The high-profile example of deceitful AI was later linked to a Democratic political consultant fined $6 million by the Federal Communications Commission. But AI was used in positive ways too, helping candidates connect to voters more efficiently through self-deployed chatbots, emails and text campaigns. In Tokyo's 2024 gubernatorial election, an obscure independent candidate placed fifth out of 56 contenders after using AI to respond to 8,600 submitted questions from voters, according to analysis by the Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation out of the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University. Secretary of State Gregg Amore acknowledges there are positive and negative outcomes for AI in elections. The legislation, which has Amore's backing, doesn't stop anyone from relying on artificial intelligence to advance campaigns or candidacies. Instead, it simply requires that the candidate, campaign or political action committee wielding AI disclose they are using manipulated images, audio or video in any ads that run within 90 days of an election. 'We're not designing a felony here, we're not trying to put someone away,' Amore said in an interview Thursday. 'We're just trying to make sure the public has accurate information 90 days before an election. And that they're comfortable with the information they're receiving – who it's from and how it was created.' It's not unlike the 2012 state law that forced special interest groups to publicly report donations and spending to the state elections panel and include financial disclosures in any campaign ads, John Marion, executive director of Common Cause Rhode Island, wrote in a March 18 letter to the House Committee on State Government and Elections. 'We hadn't yet seen large expenditures of dark money, but we knew we soon would,' Marion wrote, referring to the 2012 state law passed in reaction to the 2010 Supreme Court decision in the Citizens United case. 'In 2014, that prediction came true and the state was ready to respond because of the General Assembly's foresight.' At least two dozen states have passed some form of regulations around AI advertising in elections, the bulk of them enacting laws in 2024 or later, according to an online tracker by D.C. think tank Public Citizen. Rhode Island sought, but failed to join them in 2024, with the bill languishing in the Senate Committee on Judiciary. Amore chalked up the stall to concerns raised by broadcasters and technology companies afraid of legal action from AI ads broadcast or posted through their platforms without proper disclosure. This year's bill shifts the onus, and risk of civil court charges, from the content creator to the candidate, political action committee or campaign. And it expands disclosure requirements to AI ads promoted via mobile applications and streaming services. Like last year's iteration, satire and parody are exempt. Despite these tweaks, the American Civil Liberties Union of Rhode Island again raised First Amendment concerns in a March 18 letter to lawmakers. 'While we recognize that free speech standards in the political arena are not limitless, this legislation, as worded, suggests that any image or recording that meets the definition of 'synthetic media' is deceptive or fraudulent and can therefore be regulated,' the ACLU wrote in its unsigned letter. 'To allow the government to regulate or ban political speech that some might view as misleading undermines the breathing space that robust political speech requires, whether generated with the help of artificial intelligence or not.' To allow the government to regulate or ban political speech that some might view as misleading undermines the breathing space that robust political speech requires, whether generated with the help of artificial intelligence or not. – American Civil Liberties Union of Rhode Island in a letter to House lawmakers regarding proposed regulation of election deepfakes Indeed, misinformation and deception in elections is a centuries-old malady, considerably worsened and more evident as technology has advanced, as documented in a 2022 report by the Bipartisan Policy Center. Ahead of the 2000 election, a humor magazine manipulated Google search results so that a search of 'dumb motherf****r redirected to a George W. Bush merchandise center. The lighthearted 'Googlebombing' devolved into more sinister tactics by 2016, when Russian interference into the U.S. presidential elections prompted a yearslong special federal investigation and report, resulting in 100 criminal charges to 34 individuals and 3 companies. Given the rapid adoption of ChatGPT, Baginski and DiPalma don't want to wait for the next iteration of technology to sow confusion in elections. 'It may not seem urgent yet because nothing has happened here yet,' DiPalma said. 'Once something happens in a local election, watch how fast this passes.' A committee vote on DiPalma's bill has not been scheduled as of Thursday, according to Greg Pare, a Senate spokesperson. Senate President Valarie Lawson remained noncommittal. 'I will be reviewing the committee testimony and speaking to the [Senate Committee] Chairman [Matthew] LaMountain regarding the particulars of this legislation,' Lawson said in a statement Thursday. 'All elections should be conducted with the utmost fidelity and the highest standards of transparency and fairness.' SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Yahoo
28-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Cannabis and liquor retailers at odds over proposed rules on hemp-derived THC beverage sales
Hemp-derived THC seltzers seen on a shelf at Bottles Fine Wine on Providence's East Side. (Photo by Christopher Shea/Rhode Island Current) No one complained when state regulators quietly allowed hemp-derived THC beverages to be sold in Rhode Island's liquor stores late last summer. But now that state lawmakers are considering codifying the rules, the state's cannabis cultivators and retailers are speaking out, saying the liquor industry is circumventing stringent guidelines they've had to follow to get their psychoactive products to market A bill sponsored by Rep. Jacquelyn Baginski, a Cranston Democrat, would declare it legal for licensed distributors to sell beverages containing up to 5mg of delta-9 THC at liquor stores, bars, and restaurants. The bill would also increase the fee liquor wholesalers pay for the right to sell these products. Companion legislation is sponsored in the Senate by Robert Britto, an East Providence Democrat. 'The goal of my legislation is to get our arms around the sale of beverages that are already being sold,' Baginski said in an interview. 'For every good actor and retailer who goes out and goes through the trouble of requiring that license, there are potentially one or two who have not done that.'' Existing hemp rules allow the sale of delta-9 THC products such as gummies, lozenges, packaged baked goods, and beverages at licensed retailers. The state now has 120 hemp retailers and distributors, which include businesses headquartered in Colorado, Connecticut, and Massachusetts. Connecticut last July mandated THC-infused drinks only be available at state-licensed liquor stores and cannabis retailers. Massachusetts regulators, meanwhile, declared last May that intoxicating hemp-based products cannot be sold outside of cannabis retail stores. Under Baginski's and Britto's bills, the annual fee paid by liquor wholesalers would increase from $500 to $1,500 to distribute delta-9 THC drinks under rules crafted by the state's Department of Business Regulation. Bars and restaurants would have to pay $250 a year. Rhode Island's seven cannabis dispensaries, meanwhile, pay a yearly $30,000 licensing fee to sell THC products. Those rules are based on regulations crafted by the state's Cannabis Control Commission. 'Why is one held to all this high regulation, while the other is not?' Magnus Thorsson, a professor at Johnson & Wales University's Cannabis Entrepreneurship Program, told Rhode Island Current. 'It's not fair and balanced.' Mike Simpson, co-founder of Lovewell farms in Hopkinton, said he's fine with liquor stores being allowed to sell hemp products in Rhode Island. He just wishes that hemp growers like himself had a say in the initial legislation. 'They completely left out the existing hemp industry, as if we don't exist,' Simpson said in an interview Thursday. 'This kind of not only feels superfluous, but also feels like they didn't actually engage with the industry — I hope they're open to hearing.' Baginski acknowledged that she has not met with hemp industry leaders but said she is always willing to connect with them. 'I don't claim to know everything, and I am happy to take all the feedback out there for me to absorb,' she said. Baginiski's bill received its initial hearing before the House Corporations Committee on April 8, where it was held for further study as is standard practice during a first vetting by a legislative panel. The state's liquor industry is backing the proposal. Why is one held to all this high regulation, while the other is not? It's not fair and balanced. – Magnus Thorsson, a professor at Johnson & Wales University's Cannabis Entrepreneurship Program Rhode Island Liquor Operators Collaborative Executive Director Nicholas Fede Jr. said alcohol retailers are well-positioned to be part of the hemp-derived THC market. He told Rhode Island Current that store owners and staff are already trained to recognize the effects of intoxicating substances when interacting with customers. 'We have a long history of high product integrity,' Fede said. 'We are the gatekeepers for public safety.' Alex Nendza, director of marketing for Bottles Fine Wine on Providence's East Side, understands the sense of resentment coming from cannabis dispensaries and cultivators but said he believes having more retail outlets will help the industry grow. THC drinks already account for 10% of Bottles' revenue. 'It's difficult to keep them in stock at times,' Nendza said in an interview. 'Our shelves empty out pretty fast.' Hemp has been legal at the federal level since 2018. Hemp-derived THC drinks were technically illegal in Rhode Island — at least until last August when the state's Office of Cannabis Regulation began allowing the sale of products containing low levels of delta-9 THC at licensed retailers, which includes vape shops and liquor stores. Beverages derived from cannabis continue to only be sold at licensed cannabis retailers. Hemp by itself produces little to no THC content and is typically non-psychoactive when first harvested, unlike other cannabis plants. 'It's a molecule, and your body doesn't make any discretion at all to where it comes from,' Stuart Procter, co-founder and lab director for cannabis testing facility PureVita Labs in West Warwick, said The main difference is how the psychoactive compound is derived. Delta-9 is a naturally-occurring cannabinoid within cannabis plants. With hemp, it takes a little chemical magic to convert non-psychoactive CBD into THC. Methods include soaking the hemp material in a liquid like butane or ethanol, applying enough pressure and heat to extract THC compounds, or exposing the plant to acid. 'If all of the processes are done properly by chemists and people who know what they're doing, you probably end up with a nice safe product which is absolutely identical to the delta-9 taken from marijuana plants,' said Procter, who chairs the Cannabis Advisory Board's Public Health Subcommittee. But because hemp testing rules vary from state to state, Procter said safety isn't always guaranteed. 'There are very limited to no testing standards guiding hemp-related products,' he said. 'If you were to bring hemp into the same regulatory protocols that would make sense — if they want to play in the same market, they should abide by the same regulations.' During the bill's April 8 hearing, Baginski told lawmakers she was surprised to see hemp-based THC products available on the marketplace 'and largely sold unregulated.' 'The intent of this legislation is not to make any changes to the existing structure of sales of marijuana-based THC, but to create a new safe marketplace for hemp THC beverages.' But state regulators argue Baginski's proposal could conflict with existing cannabis rules. Cannabis Control Commission Chairperson Kimberly Ahern wrote to the committee that the existing bill would revoke several existing hemp licenses and contradicts the state's commitment to 'building a robust cannabis economy.' Hemp-derived THC products under Baginski's bill would not be subject to the same testing, labeling restrictions, and additional safety protocols required under existing rules and upcoming regulations required for recreational cannabis. 'The absence of clear requirements for psychoactive hemp-derived products increases the risk of accidental overconsumption and potential exposure to vulnerable populations, including youth,' Ahern warned. Ahern asked that the General Assembly hold the bill until regulators and industry leaders could discuss 'alignment with the state's broader cannabis and hemp regulatory strategy.' Baginski said she's open to making any necessary changes to the bill to ensure it aligns with existing regulations, adding that the goal of any legislation is to spark conversation and let the democratic process unfold. 'I do think it's worth having a conversation about who we're selling these things to and what exactly they are,' she told Rhode Island Current. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Yahoo
08-02-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Come early, leave early: a gen X dance party that ends at 10pm is taking off across the US
The signature tequila cocktail is called a Hot Flash. The playlist skews towards nostalgic hits from the 80s, 90s and early 2000s. Cis men are politely asked to just stay away. Founded in Chicago by two friends in their 40s, the Earlybirds Club is a party designed for women and trans and non-binary people who have jobs and responsibilities that start early in the morning – but who still want a chance to dance crazily with their friends. The dancing starts at 6pm and ends around 10. Just a year after Laura Baginski and Susie Lee threw their first early-evening party in Chicago, the event has already started touring the country, from Brooklyn to Los Angeles. And the founders, whose clever idea has become a full-time business, keep getting more requests, from as far away as Dubai, Mumbai and Vancouver, as well as across the US, Baginski said. Earlybirds Club's first anniversary party this weekend quickly sold out a Chicago venue that holds 1,000 people, she said. 'Everyone is smiling and screaming lyrics at the top of their lungs. It's an experience that, especially in these times, feels so necessary and therapeutic,' Baginski said. By their 40s and 50s, many women are caretakers for others. 'It's important for us to remember to create joy for ourselves – because in this age group, we don't do that,' Lee said. The two women, both 49, have known each other since high school, when they both worked on the school paper and were, in their words, 'dorks', though Lee also identified as a 'goth new wave kid'. Neither has a background in party promotion: Lee was a makeup artist for 20 years, while Baginski was a journalist and then worked in marketing for non-profits. Both founders are definitively gen X; their DJ is a millennial, 'so she understands what millennials want', Baginski said. But their party has attracted a much wider range of generations than they expected. 'We've had people bring their daughters,' Baginski said. 'We've also had women in their 60s, sometimes in their early 70s, coming, which is so cool. I think younger women love to see that – I know I do.' They also did not expect just how enthusiastic partygoers would be about a chance to dress up, the founders said – devoting time to finding vintage outfits and doing their hair in decades-old styles. 'We did a 90s prom where people bought prom dresses in a 90s style to wear,' Baginski said. 'One woman wore the same dress that she wore to her 1989 prom, which is like, kudos, you win.' While the primary goal of the party is offering a fun night out that focuses on friends, not flirtation, the dancefloor experience often ends up being cathartic, the founders said. Lee is a cancer survivor still dealing with health challenges, and when the founders share her story at events, they often hear from participants who are also cancer survivors or in treatment. The Earlybirds Club's first foray into Los Angeles in January ended up being disrupted by wildfires, but some partygoers showed up for the pair of parties anyway. 'Was not feeling up for a dance party last night … but it turned out to be therapeutic and maybe exactly what people needed,' one woman at posted on Instagram after the event. 'I saw ladies crying while dancing and it just made sense.'
The Guardian
08-02-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
Come early, leave early: a gen X dance party that ends at 10pm is taking off across the US
The signature tequila cocktail is called a Hot Flash. The playlist skews towards nostalgic hits from the 80s, 90s and early 2000s. Cis men are politely asked to just stay away. Founded in Chicago by two friends in their 40s, the Earlybirds Club is a party designed for women and trans and non-binary people who have jobs and responsibilities that start early in the morning – but who still want a chance to dance crazily with their friends. The dancing starts at 6pm and ends around 10. Just a year after Laura Baginski and Susie Lee threw their first early-evening party in Chicago, the event has already started touring the country, from Brooklyn to Los Angeles. And the founders, whose clever idea has become a full-time business, keep getting more requests, from as far away as Dubai, Mumbai and Vancouver, as well as across the US, Baginski said. Earlybirds Club's first anniversary party this weekend quickly sold out a Chicago venue that holds 1,000 people, she said. 'Everyone is smiling and screaming lyrics at the top of their lungs. It's an experience that, especially in these times, feels so necessary and therapeutic,' Baginski said. By their 40s and 50s, many women are caretakers for others. 'It's important for us to remember to create joy for ourselves – because in this age group, we don't do that,' Lee said. The two women, both 49, have known each other since high school, when they both worked on the school paper and were, in their words, 'dorks', though Lee also identified as a 'goth new wave kid'. Neither has a background in party promotion: Lee was a makeup artist for 20 years, while Baginski was a journalist and then worked in marketing for non-profits. Both founders are definitively gen X; their DJ is a millennial, 'so she understands what millennials want', Baginski said. But their party has attracted a much wider range of generations than they expected. 'We've had people bring their daughters,' Baginski said. 'We've also had women in their 60s, sometimes in their early 70s, coming, which is so cool. I think younger women love to see that – I know I do.' They also did not expect just how enthusiastic partygoers would be about a chance to dress up, the founders said – devoting time to finding vintage outfits and doing their hair in decades-old styles. 'We did a 90s prom where people bought prom dresses in a 90s style to wear,' Baginski said. 'One woman wore the same dress that she wore to her 1989 prom, which is like, kudos, you win.' While the primary goal of the party is offering a fun night out that focuses on friends, not flirtation, the dancefloor experience often ends up being cathartic, the founders said. Lee is a cancer survivor still dealing with health challenges, and when the founders share her story at events, they often hear from participants who are also cancer survivors or in treatment. The Earlybirds Club's first foray into Los Angeles in January ended up being disrupted by wildfires, but some partygoers showed up for the pair of parties anyway. 'Was not feeling up for a dance party last night … but it turned out to be therapeutic and maybe exactly what people needed,' one woman at posted on Instagram after the event. 'I saw ladies crying while dancing and it just made sense.'
