Legislation

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Maryland Senate Passes Medical Marijuana Bill

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on April 10, 2010 Dispensaries, Legislation, Medical

The Maryland Senate on Saturday voted 35-12 to pass SB 627, a bill that would allow qualified patients to use medical marijuana with their doctor’s recommendation, and receive safe access to their medicine through state-licensed dispensaries.

The bill now moves to the state House. The General Assembly’s session ends Monday night.

“I’m very proud of my Senate colleagues today for voting to provide some of our most vulnerable residents with the compassion and care that they deserve,” said Sen. David Brinkley (R-Frederick), the bill’s sponsor and a two-time cancer survivor.

Two Redneck CA Counties Still Refuse To Give Medical Pot Cards

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on April 8, 2010 Legislation, Medical

Graphic: Reality Catcher

See those two little red counties? Those are the heart of redneck California, ladies and gentlemen. Sutter and Colusa counties are the only two in the state still violating state law by refusing to issue medical marijuana ID cards.

Fourteen years after Californians voted to legalize the medicinal use of marijuana, two counties — in violation of state law — are still refusing to issue official identification cards to cannabis patients.

The Sutter County Board of Supervisors’ rejection of a plan Tuesday night left the county as one of only two in the state, along with Colusa County, without such a program, reports Howard Yune at the Yuba Appeal-Democrat.

Senate Bill 420, passed in 2003, directs California counties to issue ID cards to patients using medical marijuana with a doctor’s approval. Unfortunately, SB 420 doesn’t list specific sanctions against counties that refuse to do so.

The plan voted down by the myopically marijuana-phobic Sutter County supervisors was so reasonable, so middle of the road, that even the county sheriff endorsed it.

Oregon: Cannabis Legalization Effort Now Gathering Signatures

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on April 7, 2010 Legislation, News

Graphic: KVAL.com

Legalizing and taxing cannabis could help plug holes in Oregon’s state budget, according to supporters

Oregon’s marijuana legalization initiative, the Oregon Cannabis Tax Act (OCTA), is kicking off its signature-gathering phase at the OR NORML meeting in Portland this Saturday, April 10.

Petitions have just been approved for circulation by the Oregon Secretary of State’s Office, and OCTA said it expects more than 300 attendees to be among the first to sign the petition for this historic ballot measure.

OCTA will generate revenue by taxing commercial cannabis sales, which will be permitted to adults 21 and older. More than $140 million a year would be generated by OCTA for the state’s General Fund, according to projections, paying for education, roads, health care, and other public projects.

“OCTA will transform Oregon,” said co-chief petitioner Madeleine Martinez, executive director of OR NORML. “Supporting OCTA is a no-brainer.”

Alabama: House Committee Approves Medical Marijuana Bill

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on April 7, 2010 Legislation, Medical

Photo: Loretta Nall

Loretta Nall: “We plan to keep fighting our way through the process”

An Alabama House committee approved a bill Wednesday that would legalize marijuana for medicinal purposes in the Heart of Dixie.

This is the first time in Alabama history that a medical marijuana bill has advanced out of committee to the House floor.

Patricia Todd (D-Birmingham), who sponsors the bill, said it had no real chance of being approved by both the House and the Senate before this legislative session ends in five days, reports Scott Johnson of the Montgomery Advertiser.

The bill, known as the Michael Phillips Compassionate Care Act, is named after a medical marijuana patient with a brain tumor who fought to make the herb legal for medicine in Alabama. Phillips died in 2007 at the age of 38.

Marijuana was the only thing that allowed Phillips to function normally, according to his mother, Jackie Phillips. Without it, she said, Michael had seven or eight seizures a day.

“I could see the difference in him when he smoked and when he didn’t,” Phillips said.

Maryland Senate Committee Approves Medical Marijuana Bill

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on April 6, 2010 Legislation, Medical

Graphic: MarylandMedicalMarijuana.com

Maryland’s Judicial Proceedings Committee voted 7-4 Monday night to pass SB 627, a bill that would provide qualified patients with safe access to medical marijuana and protection from arrest for using the medicine that works best for them.

The bill now moves to the full state Senate for consideration.

“This vote represents the biggest victory to date for supporters of an effective medical marijuana law in Maryland,” said Dan Riffle, a legislative analyst with the Marijuana Policy Project (MPP).

Ohio: Bill Proposes Legalizing Medical Marijuana

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on April 6, 2010 Legislation, Medical

Graphic: Ohio Patient Network

A bill which would legalize dispensing, growing and using marijuana for medical purposes has been introduced in the Ohio House. Passage is considered unlikely, but if that happened, Ohio would become the 15th state to make medical marijuana legal, reports Alan Johnson at The Columbus Dispatch.

Rep. Kenny Yuko (D-Richmond Heights) is the bill’s primary sponsor, along with five other co-sponsors. The Drug Policy Alliance (DPA) in Ohio worked with Yuko in writing the bill, which is similar to Senate Bill 343 fro the last legislative session, but has significant changes, according to advocates.

According to Edward J. Orlett, a former legislator who is Ohio representative for the California-based DPA, said if the Legislature doesn’t legalize medical marijuana, voters should take matters into their own hands.

Maine Setting Up Medical Marijuana Dispensaries, Patient Registry

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on April 6, 2010 Dispensaries, Legislation

Graphic: Medical Marijuana Blog

The Maine House of Representatives gave final approval Monday to a bill establishing medical marijuana dispensaries and a patient registration system in the state.

After a short but passionate debate, the House voted overwhelmingly, 128-17, in favor of the bill, which expands Maine’s existing medical marijuana law, reports Susan M. Cover of The Portland Press Herald.

In a November 2009 referendum, 59 percent of state voters supported allowing the nonprofit marijuana dispensaries.

The bill makes several changes to the measure approved by voters:

• It limits the number of dispensaries, at least for the first year, to one in each of eight “health districts.

• It gives the Maine Department of Health and Human Services until July 1 to establish rules regarding application and renewal fees for patients, caregivers and dispensaries. Dispensary fees will be set by the department, but will be at least $5,000 and not greater than $15,000 per year.

Medical Marijuana Patients Sue Two California Cities

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on April 6, 2010 Legislation, Medical

Photo: Christopher Victorio/OC Weekly

Medical marijuana advocates protest at a Lake Forest City Council meeting

Four medical marijuana patients have filed a federal lawsuit attempting to stop the recent crackdowns on cannabis dispensaries in the cities of Costa Mesa and Lake Forest, California.

In the lawsuit, which was filed Friday, Orange County residents Marla James, Wayne Washington, James Armantrout and Charles Daniel DeJong allege that the cities’ efforts to close down medical marijuana dispensaries deny them the access to public services, reports Ellyn Pak at The Orange County Register.

Sarah Palin Offered $25,000 By Marijuana Advocates

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on April 5, 2010 Legislation, News

Photo: Pundit Kitchen

Immediately following her Tuesday speech at the Wine & Spirits Wholesalers of America’s national convention, a marijuana advocacy group says it will offer former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin $25,000 to deliver a similar address to supporters of a regulated cannabis market in the United States.

In exchange for the $25,000, Palin will be asked to speak at one of the upcoming events of Nevadans for Sensible Marijuana Laws (NSML), according to NSML campaign manager Dave Schwartz.

According to Schwartz, Palin will be asked to acknowledge the fact that marijuana is just as legitimate a recreational substance as alcohol, which she is talking about at the WSWA convention (and in fact, marijuana is objectively much safer), and endorse taxing and regulating marijuana in Nevada and throughout the U.S.

Sen. Boxer Claims Legalizing Pot Could Increase Crime, Car Wrecks

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on April 5, 2010 Legislation, News

Photo: Theodore’s World

Desperate Sell-Out: Sen. Barbara Boxer “shares the concerns of police chiefs, sheriffs and other law enforcement officials that this mesure could lead to an increase in crime, vehicle accidents and higher costs for local law enforcement agencies”

California Senator Barbara Boxer may be considered a liberal, but when it comes to marijuana, all she knows is the same old song and dance. Sen. Boxer, facing the toughest reelection fight of her career, carries the unbecoming stench of desperation rather than the sweet smell of sinsemilla as she officially opposes a California ballot measure to legalize and tax cannabis.

“Senator Boxer does not support this initiative because she shares the concerns of police chiefs, sheriffs and other law enforcement officials that this measure could lead to an increase in crime, vehicle accidents and higher costs for local law enforcement agencies,” said Boxer’s campaign manager, Rose Kapolczynski, in a statement issued Friday to liberal blog Talking Points Memo.

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