Legislation

Maryland Senate On Verge Of Approving Medical Marijuana Bill

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on March 23, 2011 Legislation, Medical

The Maryland Senate is expected to take up final approval of a medical marijuana bill this week, after giving it a preliminary OK on Tuesday. Although the bill has been drastically amended since being introduced, its sponsor said he still feels it represents progress.

The bill, proposed by state Sen. David Brinkley of Frederick County, will now allow people charged with use or possession of marijuana to argue before a judge that they did so out of medical necessity, reports Meg Tully of the Frederick News-Post. If a judge agrees, the person would be found not guilty of the charge, known as an “affirmative defense.”

Marijuana DUI Bill Advances In Colorado

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on March 23, 2011 Legislation, News

Photo: THC Finder

A bill increasing restrictions on people in Colorado who drive after using marijuana took another step forward in the legislative process on Tuesday.

But the approval of House Bill 1261 by the state House of Representatives had some attendant drama, including a skirmish among the bill’s two sponsors, reports John Ingold at The Denver Post.

HB 1261 [PDF] would create a limit on the blood-THC levels of drivers. Anybody who tests above an arbitrary amount, five nanograms per milliliter, would be considered too high to drive, much as someone with a blood-alcohol level above 0.08 percent is considered too drunk to drive.

Montana Bill Would Let Voters Repeal Or Keep Medical Pot Law

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on March 22, 2011 Legislation, Medical

Graphic: KTVQ

Letting the voters decide? What a concept.

If you’re a resident of Montana, you may believe you already sent a pretty clear signal to the state’s politicians in 2004, when voters overwhelmingly approved the legalization of medical marijuana in a 62 percent to 38 percent rout. Let’s just assume some politicians are slow learners.

As legislators talk over repealing or amending the state’s medical marijuana law — effectively thwarting the will of the voters — one lawmaker from Kalispell wants to give Montanans another chance to vote on the issue, reports Charles S. Johnson at the Billings Gazette.

MT: Crackdown On Medical Marijuana Is Coming In ‘Next 30 Days’

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on March 21, 2011 Legislation, Medical

Photo: Erik Peterson/Bozeman Daily Chronicle

A federal agent looks over marijuana plants and equipment following a raid in Montana on March 14.

Expect the Montana Legislature to crack down on medical marijuana, State Rep. Jon Sesso (D-Butte) told the Montana Bar Association on Friday.

Sesso, the House minority leader, said he expects “significant reform,” but not outright repeal of the 2004 Medical Marijuana Act, approved by an overwhelming 62 percent of Montana voters. He spoke to the lawyers’ group in Butte, reports Tim Trainor at the Montana Standard.

“The abusers will be on notice, probably in the next 30 days,” Sesso said. “If you aren’t legitimately sick, you are not going to be able to use.”

Maine Law Enforcement Against Lowering Marijuana Penalties

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on March 18, 2011 Legislation, News

Graphic: Reality Catcher

Two bills to broaden the decriminalization of marijuana in Maine got bipartisan support from lawmakers at public hearings Thursday, but were — surprise, surprise! — opposed by law enforcement officials.

One measure, L.D. 754, would double the amount of usable marijuana that individuals could possess and still have it treated as a civil, rather than a criminal, offense, reports Rebekah Metzler at Maine Today. The other, L.D. 750, would decriminalize possession of up to six cannabis plants.

“It is my fundamental belief that people who use marijuana for personal use on a recreational basis are not criminals,” said state Rep. Ben Chipman, an independent from Portland, when he spoke to lawmakers on the Criminal Justice and Public Safety Committee.

“I just do not think that it’s reasonable to allow 2.5 ounces to be a civil infraction but having zero tolerance for plants and forcing consumers to the black market,” Chipman said.

Medical marijuana has been legal in Maine since 1999, and voters legalized dispensaries in 2009. The Maine Legislature in spring 2009 doubled the amount of marijuana a person could possess without facing criminal charges from 1.25 ounces to 2.5 ounces. Chipman’s proposal would double that amount again, to five ounces.

Michigan Medical Marijuana Patients: State Has Us In Catch 22

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on March 18, 2011 Legislation, Medical

Photo: mlive.com

Michigan Atty. Gen. Bill Schuette: “The zero tolerance standard should be followed”

If you’re a Michigan medical marijuana patient, you don’t get to drive, according to your Attorney General.

Medical marijuana advocates are unhappy about Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette’s reaction to a case concerning a medical marijuana cardholder who was arrested for “driving under the influence of drugs,” reports Carol Hopkins at the Oakland County Daily Tribune.

Atty. Gen. Schuette filed a brief in support of the Grand Traverse County prosecutor’s appeal to the Michigan Court of Appeals in People v. Koon, a case in which Koon, a medical marijuana patient, was charged with driving with cannabis in his system.

Michigan’s motor vehicle code prohibits drivers from operating motor vehicles with “any amount” of a Schedule I substance in the body.

Washington Legislature Looks At Two Marijuana Bills

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on March 18, 2011 Legislation, News

Graphic: Medical Marijuana Dispensaries Directory

Dispensaries already exist in at least King, Pierce and Snohomish counties, but if SB 5073 passes the Washington Legislature in 2011, they could operate statewide

Washington lawmakers are spending some time on cannabis this week, discussing both outright legalization as a source of revenue, and legalizing medical marijuana dispensaries to provide safe access for patients under the law approved by voters in 1998.

Supporters of a bill to legalize cannabis made a push to revive a measure they say would be worth $440 million in a two-year state budget cycle, reports Jim Camden at The Spokane Spokesman-Review. With a state budget deficit projected at more than $5 billion, that’s a more powerful argument than ever for legalization in the Evergreen State.

HB 1550, the legalization bill sponsored by Rep. Mary Lou Dickerson (D-Seattle), already had one hearing in the House Public Safety Committee, “where it attracted the usual list of supporters, who noted that some of the Founding Fathers grew hemp, and detractors who warned of growing usage by teens and drivers should marijuana become legal,” noted the Spokesman-Review.

Bill To Take Marijuana From Cancer Patients Gets Trashed

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on March 17, 2011 Legislation, Medical

Photo: Torsten Kjellstrand

Oregon voters approved medical marijuana in 1998, but conservative legislators are trying to restrict which patients can qualify.

Legislators got an earful Wednesday from medical marijuana advocates who opposed a proposal to greatly restrict who can legally use cannabis to combat illnesses.

It’s the second time the issue has come up recently, with some lawmakers claiming too many people are scamming the law that allows the use of marijuana to treat some diseases and symptoms, reports Harry Esteve at The Oregonian.

“I personally think the program is out of control,” sniffed the self-righteous windbag Sen. Jeff Kruse (R-Roseburg), sponsor of one of the bills targeting the growth of medicinal cannabis use. “I know people who just find it a legal way to smoke pot,” he claimed.

WA Paper: Strip Medical Marijuana Bill Of Onerous Amendments

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on March 17, 2011 Legislation, Medical

Graphic: Spokane Spokesman-Review

A major newspaper in Washington state has called for legislators, currently trying to revamp and clarify the state’s medical marijuana law, to drop onerous amendments which threaten to torpedo what started out as a good piece of legislation.

“The present bill does a thorough job of establishing a system for the legal production and distribution of marijuana, but heavy-handed amendments were added in the Senate before that body passed it,” editorialized the Spokane Spokesman-Review.

“The amended bill would not allow medical marijuana to become a commercial enterprise, unlike other drugs,” the Spokesman-Review wrote. “Nor could it be advertised as other drugs are. In addition, individual communities could choose to outlaw dispensaries.

Colorado: Proposed Ban On Cannabis Edibles Dropped

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on March 17, 2011 Legislation, Medical

Photo: THC Finder

Colorado patients will still be able to use their cannabis in the form of edibles after one busybody lawmaker backed down on her effort to ban the treats

A Colorado state lawmaker on Tuesday withdrew her proposal to ban cannabis-infused products for medical marijuana users in favor of optional childproof packaging standards.

The House Judiciary Committee approved the bill 7-3 after it was changed to allow — but not require — state regulators to call for tamper-proof packaging, reports The Denver Post. No edible cannabis products were banned.

Earlier this month, the prospect of a ban on medicinal cannabis edibles galvanized patients and advocates. Dozens of activists testified against the ban.

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