Legislation

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Woman Fired Over Medical Marijuana To Get Day In High Court

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on December 27, 2010 Legislation, Medical, News

Should companies be able to fire employees for using medical marijuana — at home, with no effects on job performance — even in states where the medicinal use of cannabis is legal?

Washington judges and lawmakers will be wrestling with that question next month as the state Supreme Court hears the case of a woman fired for legally using pot medicinally, and the Legislature looks at a bill to expand patient protections in the state’s 12-year-old medical marijuana law, reports Vanessa Ho of the Seattle P.I.

The case before the high court involves a woman suing her former employer after she failed a drug test and was fired from a customer-service job in Bremerton. The woman, using “Jane Roe” as a pseudonym in court records, was using marijuana authorized by her doctor for debilitating migraines.

Philippine Group Pushes For Marijuana Legalization

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on December 21, 2010 Global, Legislation

Graphic: PORMAL

Pointing to its medicinal value, a group in the Philippines is pushing for the legalization of marijuana use in that country.

In an article posted on its website, the Philippine Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (PORMAL) said marijuana, also known as hemp and cannabis, has shown “established” effects in the treatment of nausea, vomiting, premenstrual syndrome, unintentional weight loss, and lack of appetite, reports Kimberly Jane Tan at GMANews.tv.

Other “relatively well-confirmed” medicinal effects include the treatment of spasticity, painful conditions (especially neurogenic pain), movement disorders, asthma, glaucoma, inflammatory bowel disease, migraines, multiple sclerosis, spinal cord injuries, and hepatitis C, according to PORMAL.

Appeals Court: Medical Marijuana Use OK While On Probation

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on December 21, 2010 Legislation, Medical

Photo: LAist

A Sutter County, California judge was wrong in not allowing a man who had been convicted of transporting methamphetamine to use medical marijuana while on probation, appellate justices ruled on Friday.

In a 22-page ruling, the Third District Court of Appeal in Sacramento said Vernon Emile Smith Jr., 23, of Sacramento, had a right to use medical marijuana with a doctor’s authorization under California’s Compassionate Use Act, reports Rob Young at the Marysville Appeal-Democrat.

Arizona’s Pot Patients Have Job Protection; California’s Don’t

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on December 21, 2010 Legislation, Medical

Photo: Addiction Inbox

When Arizona in November became the 15th state in the union to legalize medical marijuana, with voters approving Prop 203 by a thin margin, they got something that perhaps no other state has: employment protection for patients.

It’s much more difficult to get a doctor’s recommendation for cannabis in Arizona, and possession is limited to only 2.5 ounces, nobody can grow more than 12 plants, and if you live within 25 miles of a dispensary, you can’t grow at all. But unless you show up at work noticeably impaired, you won’t be fired simply for being a medical marijuana patient, points out Joe Eskinazi at the SF Weekly.

In California, Oregon, Washington, and most or all other medical marijuana states — even though you aren’t breaking the law if you use marijuana medically with a doctor’s recommendation — you can still get your ass fired in a heartbeat if, say, you have a workplace accident and get the standard urinalysis that follows.

Arizona Won’t Regulate Marijuana’s Strength Or Quality

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on December 20, 2010 Dispensaries, Legislation, Medical

Graphic: TestCountry.com

Arizona has no plans to regulate the strength or quality of medical marijuana sold at dispensaries, authorized last month by voters, when they start opening next year.

The top health official in the state said buyers of medicinal cannabis will know when the pot was grown, whether pesticides were used or even how often it was watered, but not the potency, reports Howard Fischer at the Arizona Daily Star.

The Department of Health Services is writing the rules for distribution of medical marijuana once the new law takes effect in March 2011.

“We’ve got some basic labeling requirements,” state health director Will Humble said. “But we haven’t gone that extra step to require an analysis to determine exactly how much THC in every single piece of inventory. And I doubt that we’re going to go there.”

Public Comments Open On Colorado Medical Marijuana Rules

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on December 16, 2010 Legislation, Medical

Photo: examiner.com

The Colorado Department of Revenue has released 99 pages of new regulations governing medical marijuana in the state.

The public has until January 14, 2011 to submit written comments on the new rules.

In addition, there will be a public hearing on January 27 and 28, 2011.

One item among the regulations and procedures for Colorado’s medical cannabis industry is making some patients particularly nervous — the plan for a massive new database of patients who enroll in the Medical Marijuana Registry.

The list will be available around the clock to law enforcement agencies.

The Cannabis Therapy Institute has called the new plans a violation of the Constitutional amendment approved a decade ago by Colorado voters when they legalized medical marijuana.

Where Next For Marijuana Reform? Berkeley Conference Jan. 29

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on December 15, 2010 Legislation, News

Graphic: California NORML

In the aftermath of Proposition 19, California NORML will host a statewide conference to discuss the future of marijuana reform efforts in California on January 29 in Berkeley.

The conference, at the David Brower Center, will feature a public discussion with drug reform leaders, legislators, attorneys, physicians, medical marijuana groups and the press.

The first part of the conference will cover lessons from the Prop 19 campaign; where to go from here, and what changes in wording and tactics should be adopted in future legalization efforts.

Germany: Cannabis Decrim Petition Open For Signatures

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on December 15, 2010 Global, Legislation

Graphic: German Hemp Association

Citizens of Germany are now able to weigh in on cannabis decriminalization with an official petition.

After first being rejected by the public petitions committee of the Bundestag (the German legislative body comparable to Parliament), an online petition calling for the nationwide decriminalization of cannabis, originally launched in late October, is finally open for signatures.

Petition initiator Georg Wurth, who is also a spokesman for the German Hemp Association, cites a survey conducted earlier this year that found 54 percent of the population support the decriminalization of marijuana.

“There is a popular majority that criticizes the current harsh attitude towards cannabis users and would like a more liberal approach,” Wurth said.

Wurth urged supporters to sign the petition, which will be the last of its kind until the end of the election term in 2013.

“This is no drill; this is serious!” Wurth said.

The petition (in German, of course), now open for signatures, can be found by clicking here.

Washington Wants To Collect Medical Marijuana Sales Tax

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on December 14, 2010 Legislation, Medical

Graphic: Boulder Weekly

Washington State wants its cut of medical marijuana sales — and if it doesn’t get them, the DEA could be visiting.

Activists Worry It’s A Way To Open The Door To The Feds

The Washington State Department of Revenue has launched a statewide effort to collect sales tax from medical marijuana dispensaries.

The department mailed letters to 90 dispensaries and “related organizations” on Friday, insisting that medical marijuana is not exempt from state sales tax — as are other medicines — and telling dispensaries they must collect that money and turn it over to the state, according to The Associated Press.

The letter also warned dispensaries that they must pay Washington state’s business and occupation tax, according to Department of Revenue spokesman Mike Gowrylow.

“Are sales of ‘Medical Marijuana’ subject to sales tax?” asks an informational page on the website of the Washington State Department of Revenue, and of course no time is wasted in giving the answer.

“In the state of Washington, sales of medical marijuana are retail sales,” the site informs us. “As such, the seller is subject to the business and occupation (B&O) tax under the retailing classification. This is true even if it is sold by a medical marijuana dispensary.”

N.J. Medical Marijuana Rules Called “Kafkaesque” By Advocates

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on December 13, 2010 Legislation, Medical, News

Graphic: Baristanet

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie claims he’s trying to ensure that medical marijuana will be used only by approved patients, and “won’t become as easily accessible for recreational use in the Garden State as it has in California and Colorado.”

But on Monday, state senators, led by Sen. Nick Scutari, will vote on a resolution which would require the Department of Health and Senior Services to nullify Gov. Christie’s proposed rules and make the regulations more patient-friendly.

None of the governor’s concerns about other states’ leniency regarding medical marijuana have anything to do with New Jersey’s law, according to registered nurse Ken Wolski, executive director of the Coalition for Medical Marijuana New Jersey (CMMNJ).

“We think he’s absolutely wrong in comparing the programs,” Wolski told Erika Bleiberg of Baristanet. “The law itself has safeguards to protect New Jersey from the excesses that occur in California and Colorado.”

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