March 2015 | News Nuggets

Flickr User Edward the Bonobo

OREGON

Bill to allow
cannabis edibles in OR may be delayed until 2016

House Bill 2885 was introduced last month, and if it’s
approved, the arrival of cannabis edibles might be delayed until July 1, 2016,
according to the Willamette Week.
With recreational cannabis just around the corner for Oregon, and possession
officially becoming legal on July 1, 2015, lawmakers have very little time to
approve business licenses by January 1, 2016. This leaves even less time for
regulations on edibles to be determined, and thus the bill would delay the
arrival of edible cannabis treats to shelves for at least six months. Although
the possible delayed arrival of medibles might be a disappointment to many,
lawmakers hope to implement the new bill to ensure that proper regulations are
put in place. Backers of HB-2885 are Representatives Ann Lininger, the co-chair
of the “Joint Committee” for the state’s cannabis regulations, and
Representative Peter Buckley, known for his dedication to cannabis legalization
over the years.

Hemp-growing
legalized in OR

Finally, hemp has been legalized in Oregon, and the news
comes just in time for Spring planting. According to Salem-News.com, hemp hasn’t been grown in Oregon since the 1950s
due to a nationwide ban on the plant. Hemp farming is actually permitted in 18
states, however only Colorado, Kentucky and Vermont have proceeded to plant crops
so far. Farmers in Oregon who want to begin growing hemp must submit a license
to grow and handle industrial hemp, and a permit for growing and handling
agricultural hemp seed. Oregon has already approved its first candidate, Edgar
Winters, for hemp farming, and he’s now waiting to obtain the correct seed in
order to begin planting. “We have to import to get started. We don’t want our
farmers to sit around [for] another year,” stated Winters.

BAY AREA

New bill moves
forward to support the rights of medical cannabis patients on organ transplant
list

Recently, CULTURE
reported on the advocacy group, Medical Cannabis Organ Transplant Act (which is
sponsored by Americans for Safe Access) who had advocated for equal rights of
California patients who are waiting for organ transplants. Now, news has
surfaced that a bill, AB-258, is aimed at keeping cannabis patients from being
denied a much needed organ transplant, according to the San Francisco Gate. Specifically, it references that “A hospital,
physician and surgeon, procurement organization, or other person shall not
determine the ultimate recipient of an anatomical gift based solely upon a
potential recipient’s status as a qualified patient.” Many patients have lost
their lives over the years due to being denied an organ that would have kept
them alive longer. Currently, similar laws already exist in Arizona, Delaware,
Illinois, Minnesota, New Hampshire and Washington that protect patients from that
kind of discrimination.

California’s oldest
collective gains support from Federal Judge

The Berkeley Patients Group (BPG) has survived multiple
attempts at being forced to close by U.S. Attorney Melinda Haag in the past,
and once again it comes out on top—this time with the support of Federal Judge
Jon S. Tigar. According to The Huffington
Post, Judge Tigar announced last month that the BPG can continue to operate
while the court continues litigation. Haag’s initial move to close the
collective began in 2011, and briefly succeeded in 2012 while she attempted to
seize the property. Fortunately, the city of Berkeley came to BPG’s aid, suing
Haag and claiming that the business’ closure would cause “irreparable harm” to
the area. The legal fight led to a court stating that the city of Berkeley had
no stake in the business and couldn’t fight on its behalf. The city appealed,
and resulted in the Judge’s decision, which now allows the business to continue
operating as a part of the city once more.

COLORADO

Colorado colleges ask
permission to grow cannabis for research

Recently, the State Attorney General’s office asked
permission for local Colorado colleges to grow and study cannabis, or to
“obtain marijuana from non-federal government source,” according to The Los Angeles Times. Now that cannabis is
legal, there are many questions about the herb’s health effects, and only
extensive studies can reveal further proof of its effectiveness. A partnership
between the state and the National Institute of Drug Abuse (NIDA) would be
ideal, according to state officials, as the organization already operates a
cannabis farm intended for studies. Representative Dan Pabon is a supporter of
the idea of cannabis grows at colleges, “Universities are generally where the
best research takes place so why not have the best and brightest working on
discovering not only the dangers but also the therapeutic benefits of
marijuana?” Support is needed on a federal level to ensure that, if approved to
study the herb, colleges aren’t penalized by federal law, since cannabis is
still technically illegal in the country.

Cannabis welfare is
passed after first vote

Last month, a proposal known as Senate Bill 65 was approved
to move up the political ladder in CO, regarding welfare cards. SB-65 would
prevent welfare benefit cardholders from purchasing cannabis, according to The Denver Post. The Senate hearing
voted 23-12 in favor of approving the proposal, and is now one step closer to
reaching the governor’s desk. The welfare cards, often referred to as
electronic benefit cards (EBT), are also unable to be used at ATMs, as well as
at liquor stores, casinos or other gambling businesses, and retail stores
selling adult-oriented entertainment, according to the bill’s official text.
Those sponsoring the bill noted that additional steps must be taken in order to
“avoid possible federal sanctions” in the case of misuse. Although, during the
hearing, those who voted against it didn’t see enough evidence that misuse is a
problem, the bill is already heading towards the House next.

LOS ANGELES

Long Beach council
meeting contemplates new cannabis collective law

Last month, a City Council study session spoke on the topic
of medical cannabis in Long Beach, according to the Press Telegram. After discussing the already problematic issue of
illegal collectives in Los Angeles, and Long Beach’s own issues trying to shut
down illegal collectives, Long Beach Police Department Chief Robert Luna asked
for additional resources in case Long Beach approves a new medical cannabis law.
Five of the council members took office back in July 2014, during which a few
of the members displayed positive acceptance of the herb in Long Beach. Now
with the progression of the city’s cannabis law that was passed in October,
which will allow 18 collectives to operate citywide with strict regulations
regarding location. There were no specific decisions made at this particular
council meeting, but both Councilman Roberto Uranga and Councilwoman Suzie
Price agree that it’s an important issue that needs more time and preparation,
“I don’t think we should rush this process. If we’re going to do it, let’s do
it right,” stated Councilwoman Price.

Upland City Council
asks for report to determine approval of three collectives

Early last month, the Upland City Council met to discuss the
cannabis initiative that would allow three collectives to legally operate in
the city, according to the Daily Bulletin.
A total of 6,865 signatures were collected and 5,736 were validated—leaving the
next step for the City Council to approve the initiative. The City Council
didn’t approve anything at the last meeting, but a majority vote to request a
report with advice on how best to proceed with the initiative was requested.
More specifically, the report would advise the council to either adopt the
ordinance as-is, or to call for a special election. Cost is especially
important to the council, and Upland’s City Attorney Richard Adams requested
that Upland look at other neighboring cities for guidance on how much to make
collectives pay the city to operate (currently, it would cost $75,000 per year
for licensing and inspection fees). The county also noted that a special
election would cost an estimated $179,800. The report is set to be released to
the council sometime this month.

MICHIGAN

New proposal could
allow landlords to evict tenants who use medical cannabis

Last month, a new proposal was announced in Lansing that
would allow landlords to limit the use of medical cannabis by tenants or
possibly even kick out tenants who utilize medical cannabis, according to WNEM
TV 5. State Senator Rick Jones commented on the change, and he states that the
proposal would make it easier for landlords to kick out tenants who
specifically smoke cannabis, not those who consume via pill or edibles. “I want
to make sure people don’t destroy apartments or rental homes by making sure
they don’t grow or smoke without permission from the owners,” Senator Jones
stated. Unfortunately, if this proposal was approved, then it would limit
patients to only using cannabis in pill form, due to the current state of a
court appeals decision regarding medibles.

Lawsuit filed against
Detroit Police Department for violating rights of medical cannabis operation

Last month, a lawsuit was filed against the Detroit Police
Department (DPD) by Timothy and Hatema Davis, claiming that their rights as
cannabis growers had been violated, according to The Detroit News. This stems from an incident that occurred in
December, which unveiled the corruption of certain officers by the FBI and
Internal Affairs, and also later on led to the suicide of one officer shortly after
he was being investigated. The Davis’ lawsuit claims that the officers illegally
entered their home in Warren and proceeded to break down the door, point weapons
at the couple, search the entire house and confiscate 50 plants, with no
offering of a warrant to do so. This isn’t thought to be an isolated incident,
as investigations of that team have revealed multiple incidents of abuse and
harassment in other cases.

SAN DIEGO

San Diego’s first
medical cannabis collective permit is approved

The city’s first approved collective is well on its way to
opening legally under all laws and regulations, according to Fox 5 San Diego.
The new business, A Green Alternative, chose a location in Otay Mesa that is
zoned as a “heavy commercial” area that features a fast-food restaurant, a
filling station and a warehouse. However, the collective received its approval
because it “meets and exceeds” permit requirements, according to Commissioner
Susan Peerson. “The reason that we floated to the first position [among permit
applicants] is because every time the city requested something of us, we
doubled it,” stated owner David Blair. While A Green Alternative is technically
the second to be approved in the entire county, it will be the very first to
legally open in the city.

Votes for proposed
collective denied for Midway

At a recent meeting, the Midway Planning Group voted to deny
the approval of a medical cannabis collective within its limits, according to SDNews.com. As a part of San Diego’s
newest regulations regarding strict zoning policies and the minimal allowance
of collectives in the county, the zone that contains the Midway area (called
District 2) does have room for up to four cannabis collectives. In regards to
the decision, Group Chair Melanie Nickel stated the following: “We are not
decision makers, we are advisory,” and pointed out that the group makes
“recommendations” and not final decisions. The particular applicants who
desired to open up shop in Midway provided plenty of information for their
business, including plans for the commercial location that would have video
surveillance, bullet proof walls and glass, and would be ADA-compliant.
However, both a local airport parking business, as well as one of the Midway
Planning Group’s planners expressed concern about the clientele that the
collective would bring.

WASHINGTON

Access points in WA
are “off-limits” to troops according to military

The Joint Base Lewis-McChord military base located South of
Seattle recently sent notices to local access points stating that military
personnel are banned from entering any cannabis access points and/or purchasing
cannabis products, according to The
Denver Post. A total of 86 letters were sent out to neighboring access
points that are approved to legally sell cannabis under Initiative-502. The
letters stated that those businesses have 30 days to reply with a statement of
compliance to the military’s request. However, one Seattle-based attorney
stated that the access points have no responsibility to ask if their many
customers are military troops. Indeed, another source confirmed that the
military is often required to send similar letters to any local businesses that
are “harmful” to members of the military, and it is only the responsibility of
the military members to choose not to go to those places, stated Joe Kubistek,
a spokesman for military base.

Study suggests that
drivers who have used cannabis are safe

Thanks to a federal study of drugs and alcohol crash risks,
it’s been found that drivers who have used cannabis in the past are not more
dangerous than those who drive sober, according to The Seattle Times. Even when taking into account other factors,
such as age, gender and race, cannabis users still did not prove to be a
greater risk than those who are sober. In Washington, most impairment cases
have seen an increase in cannabis blood tests, but there has been no major
trend by those who tested positive. A similar gathering of facts in Washington
last June told that of 3,072 drivers who were given blood tests, 26.6 percent
of drivers tested positive. However, more recent statistics are needed to
further prove this, “We are still trying to be patient and understand the data
before we start making significant changes or investments in training and
equipment,” commented Robert Calkins, a spokesman for the Washington State
Patrol.

UNIVERSAL

Illinois Governor
unexpectedly grants medical cannabis licenses

A year and a half after Illinois legalized medical cannabis,
Republican Governor Bruce Rauner has approved several permits for a number of
cannabis businesses, allowing them to cultivate and sell the herb, according to
The Huffington Post. While medical
cannabis patients must wait a few more months to get cannabis, the unexpected
admittance of these permits comes as great news after so many challenging
delays in trying to get the state’s pilot program up and running. Former
Illinois Governor, Pat Quinn, was expected to issue licenses before leaving
office in early January, but failed to do so, prompting Rauner to hold back on
issuing licenses until a legal review process that began under Quinn’s watch was
completed. Overall, the state received 214 applications for up to 60 dispensary
licenses and 159 applications for 21 cultivation centers. The assistant
director for the Illinois nonprofit advocacy group National Organization for
the Reform of Marijuana Laws, Ali Nagib, told The Huffington Post that most advocates and lawmakers are
anticipating medical cannabis patients will have access to the herb “sometime
between late spring and early fall of this year.”

Jamaica’s medical
cannabis reform bill approved, moves to House

Recently, Jamaica’s Cabinet approved a long awaited reform
bill for cannabis, and it happened on Bob Marley’s birthday, according to The Huffington Post. The bill that was
passed earlier last month is an amendment to the Dangerous Drugs Act and will
decriminalize possession of the herb in small amounts for medical patients, and
for use in religious and scientific purposes. Prior to this approval, cannabis
possession charges could result in up to a five year prison sentence, as well
as a fine. The bill still needs to go through the Jamaican House of
Representatives, where it will be reviewed and voted upon once more. Prime
Minister Portia Simpson-Miller is said to be a supporter, and the bill is
expected to fully pass into law in the near future.