Chronicle AM: San Francisco, LA Pass Legal Weed Rules, Sales Begin Next Month, More... (12/7/17)

California's big cities clear the way for legal weed sales, California's small marijuana farmers worry about big grower competition, Delaware cops want pot people's guns, and more.

California NORML Recommends Priority Licensing for Small-Scale & Outdoors Cultivators. The marijuana activist group is calling on state regulators to create a licensing priority scheme that would favor small outdoor grows of up to an acre over both indoor mixed lighting and indoor high-intensity lighting operations and leave large-scale operations out of consideration. The group fears that emergency licensing regulations as written could "open the door to large-scale, industrial mega-grows that could monopolize California's limited available acreage, exacerbate environmental harm, and stifle participation by smaller growers."

Los Angeles City Council Approves Legal Marijuana Rules, Sales Set for January 1. The city council agreed Wednesday to a package of regulations for legal marijuana commerce, clearing the way for legal sales to begin on January 1. The approved rules include a "social equity" program aimed at prioritizing communities that have historically been affected by the war on drugs. Under that program, cannabusiness operators that meet "social equity" criteria would be moved to the head of the line for license applications.

San Francisco Mayor Approves Legal Marijuana Rules, Sales Set for January 6. Mayor Ed Lee Wednesday signed into law legislation setting rules for legal marijuana commerce in the city. But because the city has been slow in reaching agreement on the pot rules, it won't quite be ready on January 1. Instead, city officials are looking at January 6 as the legal sales date.

Delaware Police Look at Gun Ban for Marijuana Users. Law enforcement officials Wednesday told a task force studying legalization that marijuana users should be forced to have an endorsement on their drivers' licenses indicating they use marijuana to help ensure that they cannot own guns. "It would make sure that we are doing everything we can to ensure that prohibited people are not buying firearms in Delaware," he explained after the meeting.

Indiana Prosecutors Formally Oppose Marijuana Legalization. The Association of Indiana Prosecuting Attorneys, Inc. formally opposed the legalization of marijuana in any form for any reason at a news conference in Indianapolis Wednesday. Also on hand were the Boone County Sheriff's Department, the Indiana Chamber of Commerce, and the anti-legalization group Smart Approaches to Marijuana (SAM).

Heroin and Prescription Opioids

Senator Manchin Calls on FDA to Adopt Changes in Opioid Fight. Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) has sent a letter to Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Dr. Scott Gottlieb calling for three major changes in opioid policy. Manchin wants mandatory and continuing education for healthcare providers, a review of every opioid on the market, and for the FDA to remove one opioid from the market for each new one it approves.

International

Dutch Justice Officials Accused of Interfering With Marijuana Research to Advance Their Political Agenda. Senior justice ministry officials are accused of interfering with research on marijuana tourism. According to a whistleblower, researchers concluded that a policy of repression and banning sales to foreigners was not needed because there was very little actual nuisance from drug tourism in many places. But ministry officials didn't like those conclusions, so they deleted research questions and removed an entire chapter with conclusions and recommendations on a better policy. This took place under then Justice Minister Ivo Opstelten. Current Justice Minister Ferdinand Grapperhaus said Thursday he had commissioned an external inquiry in the matter.