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President of Uruguay Calls for Legal Regulation of Marijuana

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By on Global, Legislation, News

MercoPress
President Jose Mujica of Uruguay says his country will be the first in the world to legally supply marijuana

Uruguay Would Be First Country in World to Legally Supply Marijuana; Revenues Would Fund ‘Treatment’ and ‘Rehabilitation’
 
Ethan Nadelmann of Drug Policy Alliance: Bold Move by Uruguay Part of Growing Trend in Latin America; Moving from Whether to Legalize Marijuana to How
 
The government of Uruguay on Thursday announced that it will submit a proposal to legalize marijuana under government-controlled regulation and sale, making it the first country in the world where the state would sell marijuana directly to its citizens.
According to local media, the law would make marijuana legally available in government-authorized locations under certain criteria: there would be a national registry of consumers; sales would only be legal for adults over 18 years; there would be a maximum amount available per month per consumer (according to Toke of the Town‘s source in Uruguay, 40 joints per month); and strict quality controls would be ensured.
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N.H.: Gov. Lynch Vetoes Medical Marijuana Bill

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By on Legislation, Medical, News

Patrick Whittemore/Boston Herald
New Hampshire Gov. John Lynch, for the second time since 2009, has vetoed a bill which would have provided safe access to medical marijuana for seriously ill patients in his state

Patients’ Hopes Now Rest With House and Senate
New Hampshire Governor John Lynch on Thursday followed through on his threat to veto SB 409, New Hampshire’s medical marijuana bill.  The bill will now return to the House and Senate for a final vote that will decide the bill’s fate.
 
Veto override votes are planned for June 27 in both the House and Senate.
 
The veto came as no surprise. Lynch vetoed similar legislation in 2009, after which the House voted by more than two-thirds to override the veto, but support in the Senate fell two votes short of the necessary two-thirds.
 
Senator Jim Forsythe (R-Strafford), prime sponsor of SB 409, vowed he would continue urging his colleagues to vote in favor so seriously ill patients can finally be protected from arrest if their doctors recommend medical marijuana.
 
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MT Repubs Join Dems In Calling For New Medical Marijuana Law

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By on Legislation, Medical, News

KTVQ
Montana Republicans ignored the will of 62 percent of the state’s voters last year when they passed the restrictive SB 423. Now, with the election approaching, they seem to have suddenly discovered their hearts.

It seems nobody is happy with the medical marijuana law passed by the GOP-controlled Montana Legislature in May 2011. Now even the Montana Republican Party has joined the call for a new bill in 2013.

State Republicans ignored the will of 62 percent of Montana’s voters last year when they passed the restrictive SB 423. Now, with the election approaching, they seem to have suddenly discovered their hearts.
In a landmark change to the party platform this past weekend, Republicans joined Democrats in supporting medical marijuana and called for “the next legislature to create a workable and realistic regulatory structure.”
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Michigan Marijuana Legalization Runs Low On Signatures, Time

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By on Legislation, News

The Weed Blog

It appears increasingly unlikely that a proposal to legalize marijuana in Michigan will make the ballot in November, but organizers say they haven’t given up.

Supporters of the proposal, which would make cannabis legal for adults 21 and older, said on Wednesday they’ve collected about 40,000 signatures, reports Tim Martin at mlive.com. That’s a long way from the nearly 323,000 signatures they need by July 9 to make the ballot and allow voters to decide.
The effort to collect signatures is continuing, according to Committee for a Safer Michigan organizer Matt Abel. He said he hopes volunteers working on the campaign will submit thousands of signatures in the next few weeks and gain new momentum for the push.
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Uruguay Plans To Sell Marijuana To Registered Buyers

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By on Global, Legislation, News

AFP
Uruguayan President Jose Mujica

The government of the South American nation of Uruguay plans to not only legalize marijuana, but to sell it, according to local news media.

Unnamed lawmakers from Uruguay’s ruling party were quoted as saying that the government would send a bill to Congress on Wednesday that would legalize cannabis sales as a “crime-fighting measure.” Only the government would be allowed to sell marijuana, and only to adults registered as “users,” reports Pablo Fernandez of the Associated Press.
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Long Beach Moves Toward August Marijuana Dispensary Ban

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By on Dispensaries, Legislation, News

Where’s Weed?

Barring a miracle, all medical marijuana dispensaries will be banned from Long Beach, California on August 12.

Law enforcement officers gave an update on the city’s current medical marijuana law — which includes an exception allowing 18 dispensaries — during Tuesday’s City Council meeting, reports Jonathan Van Dyke at Gazettes.com.
The Council voted in February to ban collectives, with a six-month exemption for the dispensaries that had gone through a long and torturous approval process — even including a lottery, for Christ’s sake — for the past several years.
On Tuesday, the question was whether the city ever wanted to offer another extension to the existing dispensaries, or whether the initial six-month exemption was intended as a grace period for the shops to “wind down” operations.
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Marijuana Patients Rally Against Fed Raid On Sacto Dispensary

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By on Dispensaries, News

Federal Actions Contradict Obama Administration’s Claims That It Is Not Targeting State Law-Compliant Businesses
The operator of Sacramento’s first permitted medical marijuana dispensary, which was raided by the federal Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), will speak out at a rally on Wednesday at 1:30 pm in front of the federal building along with other patients and supporters.
Last week, the union-run El Camino Wellness Center was forcibly shut down, after having served thousands of Sacramento patients since 2008. Though no charges have been filed against the dispensary operators, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has seized the facility’s bank accounts.
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World Leaders: Drug Criminalization Fuels Global HIV/AIDS

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By on Global, News

Global Commission on Drug Policy

Landmark Report Released in Advance of  2012 World AIDS Conference in Washington, DC
 
Global Commission Calls for Drug Decriminalization and Expansion of Proven, Cost-Effective Solutions to Reduce HIV/AIDS – Including Sterile Syringe Access, Safer Injection Facilities, and Prescription Heroin Programs
 
While Some Countries Have Virtually Eliminated Drug-Related HIV Transmissions, Drug War Policies in U.S., Russia, Thailand and China Cause Millions of Needless Infections and AIDS Deaths
 
On June 26, the Global Commission on Drug Policy will release a groundbreaking report at a press conference in London followed by a worldwide teleconference. The report describes how the global War On Drugs is driving the HIV pandemic among people who use drugs and their sexual partners.
The report condemns the Drug War as a failure and recommends immediate, major reforms of the global drug prohibition regime to halt the spread of HIV infection and other drug war harms.
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WA: Here’s A Way to Collect Legalization Signatures & Get Paid

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By on Legislation, News

The Weed Blog

Wanna get paid $3 per signature while gathering for Washington state’s Cannabis Child Protection Act, I-514?
 
Seriously? Yes, but the details will surprise you.
It’s a bit of a twist not seen in volunteer-supported campaigns, but Toke of the Town is about to pass along to Washington State cannabis reform activists something they’ve been lacking the past few years: the opportunity to collect signatures to legalize (remove penalties for adults, felonies for minors, allow home growing) for cannabis AND adjust I-502’s bad effects (if it passes) by requiring video evidence of impairment before anyone’s blood can be used in a DUI case, all while making cash money.
 
Curious? Here is the full story.
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Senate Republicans Kill Marijuana Reform In New York

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By on Legislation, News

ShadyHousePub.com
Surprise, surprise! More gutless non-leadership from the Party of No

Senate Republicans and Conservative Party Break With Top Law Enforcement Officials to Kill Legislation Clarifying Marijuana Possession Laws; Measure Supported by Cuomo, Bloomberg, NYPD Commissioner, District Attorneys Throughout State
 
Over 50,000 Needless Arrests Cost Taxpayers $75 million a Year, Undermine Ability of Youth to Gain Employment; Majority Leader Skelos and Conservative Party Leader Mike Long Apparently Believe Wasteful, Unlawful, Racially Biased Arrests is “Right Message” for “Youngsters”
 
Operations Order by Commissioner Kelly Has Proven To Be Ineffective; Advocates, Community Groups and Elected Officials Vow to Continue Fight for Legislation That Ensures Equity, Fairness and Fiscal Responsibility
 
Monday night, lawmakers in Albany failed to reach agreement on legislation to reduce the staggering number of unlawful, biased arrests for marijuana possession in New York.
The proposal, unveiled by Governor Andrew Cuomo two weeks ago and introduced in the Assembly by Assemblymember Hakeem Jeffries, was widely seen as a responsible measure to address the inconsistency and unfairness in the marijuana possession laws in New York. Yet Senate Republicans refused to take up the matter, appearing shaken, intimidated and frightened by threats from Conservative Party Leader Mike Long, who declared he would pull the Conservative Party line from anyone who supported the measure.
The Senate – in what can only be called a stunning failure of leadership – then refused to take up the legislation, undermining reform. Because of inaction in the Senate, tens of thousands of people, predominately young men of color, will continue to be needlessly funneled through the criminal justice system at an expense of tens of millions of dollars to state taxpayers and untold damage to the relationships between law enforcement and communities in New York.
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