​A January 25-26 Public Policy Polling survey found strong support for marijuana policy reform, including more than two-to-one support for reducing the penalty for possession of marijuana to a $150 civil fine. Marijuana possession is now punishable in Rhode Island by a $500 fine and up to a year in jail.

 

Of those polled, an overwhelming 65 percent supported decreasing the penalties for simple possession of less than an ounce of marijuana by removing the possibility of jail time and making the offense a civil citation. Such a change received support from across the political spectrum, with 73 percent of Democrats, 64 percent of Republicans, and 60 percent of independents in favor of the measure.

Two bills, H 7092 and S 2253, have been introduced in the Rhode Island House and Senate to remove the threat of arrest and jail for personal possession of less than an ounce of marijuana.

The unanimous vote by members of the House Committee on Higher Education came after Rep. Amanda Reeve (R-Phoenix) said the schools fear losing both direct federal aid and federally backed student loans if they allow faculty and students to possess medicinal cannabis, reports Howard Fischer at Capitol Media Services.

The move was backed by Kristen Boilini, who lobbies for several community colleges. She said the law will reinforce policies the schools already have in place.

Joe Yuhas, spokesman for the Arizona Medical Marijuana Association, did not attend the hearing. He told Capitol Media Services he believes his opposition would be meaningless.

​Despite hundreds of letters urging California lawmakers to support legislation to improve California's marijuana policies, two bills that would have done just that failed to advance out of their respective chambers by Tuesday's deadline.

Although both proposals enjoy strong public support, both were pulled prior to a vote by their sponsors due to a lack of majority support in their respective chambers.

The first bill was AB 1017, introduced by Assemblymember Tom Ammiano. This bill proposed changing the penalty for marijuana cultivation from an automatic felony to a "wobbler" that could be charged as a misdemeanor. AB 1017 received a vote last spring, when it lost 24-36, but it did not garner enough support to pass if it was voted on again.

Legislation written by Rep. Amanda Reeve (R-Phoenix) would make it illegal to use and even to possess marijuana on the campus of any public or private post-secondary institution of learning, reports Howard Fischer at Capitol Media Services.

Included under the overbearing law would be not only the state university system and network of community colleges but even various private schools that offer degrees or certificates.

That doesn't just mean keeping marijuana out of classrooms and open areas.

HB 2349, set for debate in the House Committee on Higher Education, also would prohibit students from using cannabis in their dorm rooms -- even if the patient is drinking a cannabis infused drink or eating a cannabis edible.

Sen. David Haley (D-Kansas City) introduced Senate Bill 354, the Cannabis Compassion and Care Act, during Monday's session. It was referred to the Senate Public Health and Welfare Committee, where it will likely sit without a hearing, reports Chris Hong at LJWorld.

"I have no interest on hearing the bill," the arrogant and uncaring Sen. Vicki Schmidt (R-Topeka) said haughtily. Schmidt chairs the Senate Public Health and Welfare Committee.

Turns out that you're not the only one who thinks so. U.S. District Court Judge Susan Bolton agrees, and she gave quite a spanking to Gov. Brewer and Arizona Attorney General Tom Horne on January 4 while dismissing the lawsuit.

State voters passed a medical marijuana law 14 years ago, back in 1998, but the city council is concerned about federal raids continuing in Spokane and elsewhere in Washington and other states that have legalized cannabis for medicinal purposes.

The council approved a nonbinding resolution endorsing a letter that Gov. Chris Gregoire and Rhode Island Gov. Lincoln Chafee sent to the federal Drug Enforcement Administration in November requesting that marijuana be reclassified from being a Schedule I drug to a Schedule II drug under the federal Controlled Substances Act, reports Jonathan Brunt at The Spokesman.

"They did find time, however, to pick the President's brain on pressing national issues like late night snacks, singing and dancing, celebrating wedding anniversaries and playing tennis," said Tom Angell of Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP).

"It's worse than silly that YouTube and Google would waste the time of the president and the American people discussing things like midnight snacks and playing tennis when there is a much more pressing question on the minds of the people who took the time to participate in voting on submissions," said Stephen Downing, the retired Los Angeles police officer and a board member of LEAP.

"A majority of Americans now support legalizing marijuana to defund cartels and gangs, lower incarceration and arrest rates and save scarce public resources, all while generating much-needed new tax revenue," Downing said. "The time to discuss this issue is now. We're tired of this serious public policy crisis being pushed aside or laughed off."

Last year, the bill drew stiff opposition as critics questioned the science of testing how high someone is -- and how, exactly, that affects their ability to operate a motor vehicle, reports Don Coleman at KJCT 8.

"I hear this story about well the science isn't there," blustered King. "The science is there and it's written in the blood if innocent people killed by DUI-D [driving under the influence of drugs] drivers."

​President Obama to Answer Top-Voted YouTube Questions on Monday

A question advocating marijuana legalization from a retired Los Angeles Police Department deputy chief of police won twice as many votes as any other video question in the White House's "Your Interview with the President" competition on YouTube this weekend. President Obama is slated to answer some of the top-voted questions on Monday. 

The marijuana question, submitted by retired LAPD officer Stephen Downing, a board member for Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP), is as follows: "Mr. President, my name is Stephen Downing, and I'm a retired deputy chief of police from the Los Angeles Police Department. From my 20 years of experience I have come to see our country's drug policies as a failure and a complete waste of criminal justice resources. According to the Gallup Poll, the number of Americans who support legalizing and regulating marijuana now outnumbers those who support continuing prohibition. What do you say to this growing voter constituency that wants more changes to drug policy than you have delivered in your first term?"