February 2016| News Nuggets

Bay Area

 Sacramento Proposes Zoning Ordinance for MMJ Cultivation 

Like many cities in California, Sacramento finds itself rushing to regulate cannabis in accordance to the Marijuana Regulations and Safety Act (MMRSA). Signed by Governor Jerry Brown last year, the MMRSA currently requires each city to put in legislation covering 17 different licenses with the first deadline on March 1 for laws concerning cultivation. Sacramento Revenue Director, Brad Wasson has been tasked to reach out to collectives and determine where cannabis can grow within the city, according to KCRA 3. While the March 1 deadline was discovered to be a flaw, Sacramento city lawmakers have decided to propose zoning changes to cannabis cultivation, according to the Sacramento Business Journal. Similar to zoning ordinances put in place for collectives, visible signage will be prohibited for any grow site and they will have permitted areas of operation.

Fremont City Council Bans Cannabis Cultivation and Delivery

Tuesday, January 5, the Fremont City Council voted unanimously to ban the cultivation and delivery of cannabis. While there were many at the meeting who addressed the positive impacts of cannabis, the Council agreed with police and concerned citizens that cannabis was a public safety problem, according to Bay Area News. While Mayor Bill Harrison stated that cannabis patients in Fremont will still be able to utilize their medical cards, advocates questioned how patients, who are unable to drive or have no support system will be able to obtain medical cannabis.  The city staff report states that the ban was created to remove “the potential negative side effects resulting from medical marijuana cultivation and delivery, including risk of criminal activity such as burglary, trespass and robbery, potential fire hazards, and environmental degradation.”

Colorado

 “Original Jurisdiction” Case Against Colorado Gets Dismissed by Obama Administration

On December 16, the Obama Administration asked the Supreme Court to throw out a case against Colorado set forth by Nebraska and Oklahoma back in December 2014. The case concerned Colorado’s legal recreational cannabis market, with Nebraska and Oklahoma stating that tons of cannabis have illegally been smuggled across their borders, raising public safety concerns, according to Yahoo News. In a recent supplemental brief, Oklahoma Attorney General, Scott Pruitt states that Colorado exported thousands of pounds of cannabis to 36 states, going on to state, “If this entity were based south of our border, the federal government would prosecute it as a drug cartel.” Because the case was filed under a rare process called “original jurisdiction,” U.S. Solicitor General, Donald Verrilli states that it, “would represent a substantial and unwarranted expansion of this court’s original jurisdiction.”

Cannabis Business Bank Application Denied

On January 6, U.S. District Judge R. Brooke Jackson dismissed a lawsuit from the state’s first credit union (called the Fourth Court Credit Union) which sought federal approval. The FCCU announced that it would be the first credit union to service cannabis businesses throughout Colorado in November 2014. Although prospects looked good for FCCU to open in January of last year, the Kansas City Federal Bank denied its application to open a master account, stating that cannabis is still illegal on a federal level, according to Westword. This action caused FCCU to file a lawsuit against the U.S. Government in July 2015, which was eventually thrown out by Judge Jackson, under the same claims. While the FCCU’s complaint stated that leaving cannabis businesses without bank accounts is a “public risk” concern, Jackson responded, “These guidance documents simply suggest that prosecutors and bank regulators might ‘look the other way’ if financial institutions don’t mind violating the law.” While Jackson disagrees with the FCCU’s claims, he does feel that it is up to Congress to resolve issues revolving around bank services for cannabis businesses

Los Angeles

 Sixth Collective Permit in Palm Springs Granted to Non-Profit Venture

The Palm Springs City Council voted 3-2 to grant Joy Brown Meredith approval to operate the city’s sixth legal medical cannabis collective. Seven applications were submitted for the sixth permit but only three made it to the final cut, with Meredith winning over council votes due to previous contributions she has made to the city as a business owner. Mayor Robert Moon referenced Meredith’s long history as a retailer in Palm Springs, “She’s been there in the good times and the bad times . . . she has given, and given, and given.” Meredith’s collective will be a non-profit venture called Joy of Life Wellness and will be located in an industrial area within the city. Continuing Meredith’s altruism, Joy of Life Wellness will donate 10 percent of its proceeds to local charities. 

Long Beach Allows Delivery Services as Trial Run for Storefront Collectives

In December the Long Beach City Council voted 5-4 to reverse its ban on medical cannabis delivery services, while deciding to uphold its ban on storefront collectives. This motion was brought forth by Third District Councilwoman, Suzie Price who proposed that the city choose four companies that will be permitted to deliver within its limits. Price’s proposal also stated that six months after the first delivery, city staffers would be required to review sales tax receipts, enforcement costs and other details and report their findings to the Council, according to the Press-Telegram. With this information the council would then consider allowing four collectives to open in Long Beach, adding three more if they proved to be beneficial. Price saw this as a better alternative to having a collective in every district as the projected $3 million in cannabis revenue would likely offset by law enforcement costs. Price saw this as a better alternative to having a brick-and-mortar collective in every district, as the projected $3 million in cannabis revenue would likely be offset by an extra $3 million in law enforcement costs.

Michigan

 Initiative to Fully Legalize Cannabis in Michigan Approved by Election Officials

A third cannabis initiative has been approved by Michigan election officials. The initiative, Abrogate Prohibition Michigan, is organized by Timothy Locke of Midland and aims to fully legalize cannabis in the state of Michigan, recreationally, medically and agriculturally. The initiative also aims to prevent taxation and regulation from diminishing use, according to WSBT 22. Through this effort the proposal states that its intent is to, “Return cannabis to the pre-1937 non-criminal status, when it was in the disciplines of Botany, Agriculture, and the daily use of the common person, requiring only their free will to do so for any non-violent purposes, as they see fit.” Although the initiative was approved by election officials, it must obtain 31,000 signatures in order to appear on the November ballot for statewide elections.

Detroit Works to Weed Out Non-Medical Collectives

The Detroit City Council is making moves to ensure that all medical cannabis collectives are run in accordance to city regulation. In December, the Council approved of an ordinance that would require collectives to obtain a permit that will only be provided if they are not in violation of city zoning regulations, according to Fox 2. These regulations include a 1,000 foot buffer zone between any collective and any schools, churches, city parks, liquor stores and bars. This means that collectives that currently reside in any of these buffers zones will be closed down on the promise of Detroit Police Chief, James Craig. Craig sees this as an opportunity to close down recreational collectives, posing as medical establishments, stating, “Sometimes we get complaints that collectives are operating, and it’s not for medicinal purposes,” said Detroit Police Chief James Craig. “People are just simply going in and purchasing marijuana without a marijuana card.” This initiative was approved on a 6-1 vote and is expected to go into effect by March.

Oregon

 Bend Receives First Batch of Applications for Cannabis Land Use

On Monday, January 4, the city of Bend began accepting applications for cannabis land use. In preparation for high volume submissions, the city set up a table in the Council Chambers and handed out numbers for applicants to be called upon. At the end of the day, the city had received 16 applications, from medical dispensaries hoping to go recreational, become growers, and open a testing lab or an edible bakery, according to The Bulletin. Those who applied were required to show that their businesses could operate in compliance with city zoning regulations. Although many businesses were expected to apply to go recreational, only eight of the 17 in Bend submitted an application on January 4. Those who did apply camped out before Chamber doors opened, to prevent being out buffered by another dispensary. Oregon has been rolling out its recreational cannabis market industry since November, 2014, in October 2015 medical dispensaries were able to sell cannabis to anyone 21 and over, but new regulations gives those not licensed under new laws until 2017 to do so.

Silverton City Council Votes to Allow Cannabis Cultivation and Manufacturing

After a council meeting on January 4, which lasted over two hours the Silverton City Council voted to allow cannabis cultivation and manufacturing in a 4-3 vote, according to the Statesman Journal. During the meeting, recently changed state regulations had to be addressed to make clear the definition of indoor and outdoor grow facilities as well as address questions concerning security requirements. So far, updated legislation requires grow operations to be concealed with a concrete wall that is 100 feet away from indoor sites and 300 feet away from outdoor operations. Grow sites must also adhere to a 2,000-foot buffer around schools, according to KTVZ. During this reading, Council members requested a change to the ordinance that would allow grow sites to be located in the city’s “general commercial district.”

San Diego

 Encinitas Bans Cannabis Cultivation with Intent to Sell

The Encinitas City Council has voted 4-0 to uphold its ban on cannabis cultivation and distribution. Although council members decided not to allow businesses to grow with the intent to sell cannabis, they are trying to figure out how they can get cannabis to patients who need it, according to The San Diego Tribune. Councilwoman Catherine Baker agreed to withhold the ban after learning that patients were permitted to grow cannabis for personal use, under city and state legislation. On the matter of delivery services being allowed within Encinitas, the Council was in disagreement and ended up voting 3-1 with council member Kristin Gaspar as the only member in opposition. The city’s initial ban however, was decided by voters on a 2014 initiative. If voters had allowed collectives in the city, they would have had to comply with city zoning, including a 600-foot buffer in between schools.

City of San Diego Weighs Options in Drafting Cannabis Legislation

A memo put out by Deputy City Attorney Shannon Thomas may cause the city of San Diego to regulate and allow the cultivation of cannabis for the first time. With California lawmakers having extended the March 1 deadline for cities to change their cannabis legislation, Thomas suggested that the city put a moratorium in place, which will prevent the state from overruling the city’s regulations on cannabis. Another suggestion Thomas made was for the city to regulate cannabis by setting down a zoning ordinance or by allowing cultivation only in places intended for cultivation. Thomas states a moratorium would only need eight out of nine council members to vote on it and if passed, it would give San Diego more time to regulate its local cannabis industry, this and writing out cultivation guidelines would be a “complex and lengthy process,” according to The Los Angeles Times. 

Washington

 Washington’s Department of Health Discusses Rescheduling Alternatives for Cannabis

When Governor Jay Inslee signed the Cannabis Patient Act, he vetoed the part of the legislation that would have removed cannabis as a Schedule I substance in Washington. However, Inslee asked the Washington Department of Health (DOH) to bring him a draft resolution for the next legislative session, according to The Stranger. With this request in mind, the DOH came up with three options for rescheduling cannabis within the state, adding a fourth in a November meeting. The options were as follows; 1) Make no changes, 2) Make cannabis a “legend” drug by re-scheduling to II, III, IV or V and regulating it like medicine, 3) Make no changes but specifically exempt cannabis purchased, grown or sold through the state’s existing system and 4) Remove medical cannabis from scheduling entirely. While the DOH found a number of loop holes concerning each option, Commissioner Tim Lynch came up with a fifth alternative. Leave cannabis as a Schedule I substance, but de-schedule medical cannabis, so a distinction is made and it can be regulated as a pharmaceutical. This alternative passed with 9 of the 15 commission’s votes but still needs to be approved by the governor.

Seattle Sends Out 14-Day Notice for Medical Access Points

Recently, the Washington Liquor and Cannabis Board is sending out 14-day notices for access points in Seattle to either get a license or essentially close up shop. The notice states that there are too many applicants and not enough licenses available, giving access points only 14 days to move their business out of Seattle or assume full liability that they may not receive a license, and in that case, will be forced to close, according to King 5. Originally, access points expected to have until July 1, 2016 to make the necessary arrangements if they were not granted a license. With a total of only 21 licenses to go around, the notice has caused a lot of panic in access point owners whose businesses are at risk, “”It’s beyond frustrating. It’s absolutely beyond frustrating,” says local access point owner Maryam Mirnateghi. “To ask me to sign away my rights or lose my application? That’s extortion.” Currently, there are 100 access points operating in Seattle that are hoping to qualify for a license.

NATIONAL

NCAA Alleviates Penalties for Athletes Who Test Positive for Substance Use 

As cannabis use throughout the U.S. continues to increase and views on the plant shift to a more positive light, the National College Athletic Association (NCAA) is also changing its stance concerning cannabis and other “recreational” drugs. According to an investigation by the Associated Press (AP), the NCAA has cut back penalties for athletes who tested positive for substances like cannabis to nearly half. Of the 57 schools that the AP analyzed, it was found that since 2005, 23 of those schools have cut back on penalties or allowed athletes to test positive several times before being suspended or dismissed, according to The San Diego Tribune. While recreational cannabis is legal in Oregon and Washington penalties for athletes at state colleges have been alleviated. According to The San Diego Tribune, in the past, if an athlete tested positive for cannabis three times at Oregon State, they would be dismissed. Now, if an athlete tests positive three times, they are given one more chance. At Washington State suspension for an athlete testing positive three times used be a year, it is now only 30 days long.

WORLD

U.S. Dependence on Mexican Cannabis Drops

Due to loosening cannabis regulations in the U.S., growers in Mexico are seeing less profit in cultivating cannabis. In 2008, the cannabis users in the U.S. depended on Mexico for up to two-thirds of its cannabis supply, but that amount has dropped as growers begin to pop up throughout the U.S. Mexico now contributes to less than one third of the U.S.’s cannabis supply, according to the Los Angeles Times. Sinaloa’s agricultural secretary, Juan Guerra, states that although farmers do not want to abandon their “illicit crops,” drops in profit are forcing them to. Over the past four years, the amount of money cannabis growers in Mexico receive per-kilogram has dropped from $100 to $30. With the variety of craft cannabis strains available in recreational and medical markets in the U.S., it is easy for cannabis lovers to let go of Mexican crops which are typically low grade and full of seeds, according to High Times writer, Danny Danko.