Chronicle AM -- January 24, 2014

Bills are popping at state houses across the land, pot politics continues hot and heavy, world leaders have harsh words for prohibition at Davos, and much, much more. Let's get to it:

Texas Gov. Rick Perry Touts Decriminalization, States' Rights. Texas Gov. Rick Perry (R), speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Thursday, said he believes states should have the right to legalize marijuana and that he would move Texas toward decriminalization.

MPP Petitions Obama to Deschedule Marijuana. The Marijuana Policy Project Wednesday unveiled a Change.org petition asking the Obama administration to deschedule -- not reschedule -- marijuana The petition had nearly 36,000 signatures by Friday afternoon; it needs 50,000 to be addressed by the White House.

Hawaii House Majority Floor Leader Introduces Marijuana Export Bill. House Majority Floor Leader Rep. Rida Cabanilla Thursday introduced House Bill 2124, which would put the state's Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism and Department of Agriculture in charge of a working group that would outline a plan to legalize the cultivation of marijuana in Hawaii for sale and export to foreign jurisdictions where marijuana is legal.

Rep. Jared Polis Invites Obama, Harry Reid to Check Out Legal Marijuana in Colorado. Colorado US Rep. Jared Polis (D-Boulder) Thursday sent a letter to President Obama and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) inviting them to come see how Colorado is implementing marijuana legalization. In the letter, Polis wrote that he was"confident that when you see Colorado's work to implement the law while protecting children and raising revenue for our schools firsthand, we can begin to make similar efforts on a federal level."

Pennsylvania Democratic Governor Candidate Says Legalize Marijuana. Former state Department of Environmental Protection head John Hanger, who is seeking the Democratic gubernatorial nomination, called for marijuana legalization at a campaign forum Wednesday night at Lehigh University. "This issue is moving and Democrats better get on board or we'll lose this election to Tom Corbett because people will not come out and vote," Hanger said. "We must expand the voting population." None of the other five Democratic candidates took a stand on the issue.

DC Council to Vote on Decriminalization Bill February 4. The District of Columbia city council will vote on a bill to decriminalize marijuana during its February 4 meeting. It is expected to pass, but may see some amendments during consideration. A legalization bill is also pending before the council, and activists are also leading an effort to legalize through the initiative process.

Medical Marijuana

Florida Medical Marijuana Initiative Has Enough Valid Signatures to Qualify for Ballot. The Florida Department of Elections reported today that the Use of Marijuana for Certain Medical Conditions initiative has more than enough valid signatures to qualify for the November ballot.The department reported more than 710,000 valid signatures; 683,000 were needed. The initiative campaign earlier said it had gathered more than 1.1 million raw signatures. It still must win approval by the state Supreme Court, which is expected to rule by April 1.

Florida Medical Marijuana Initiative Polling at 65%. A new Public Policy Polling survey has support for the Florida medical marijuana initiative at 65%, with only 23% opposed. The initiative will require the votes of 60% of voters to pass because it is a constitutional amendment, as opposed to a statutory initiative.

West Virginia Medical Marijuana Bill Filed. Delegate Mike Manypenny (D-Taylor) and nine cosponsors Thursday filed a medical marijuana bill, House Bill 4264. This is the fourth consecutive year Manypenny has filed such a bill.

Oregon Bill Would Let Localities Regulate, Ban Medical Marijuana Facilities. A bill that would allow local governments to regulate or ban dispensaries or grow ops will be heard by the legislature next month. Senate Bill 1531, sponsored by state Sens. Bill Hansell (R-Athena) and Rod Monroe (D-Portland), was filed at the request of the Association of Oregon Counties and the League of Oregon Cities. The bill is a response to legislation last year that created statewide dispensary regulation and left regulation in the hands of the state, not localities.

Pennsylvania Nurses Endorse Medical Marijuana Bill. The Pennsylvania State Nurses Association Thursday became the first medical professional group in the state to publicly support a pending medical marijuana bill, Senate Bill 1182. The bill gets a hearing before the Senate Law and Justice Committee Tuesday.

Vermont Bill Would Ease Limits on Dispensaries. A bill introduced earlier this month would ease the rules for dispensaries. Senate Bill 247 would remove the 1,000-patient cap on the number of patients dispensaries can see, remove the cap limiting dispensaries to four, allow patients to grow their own, and allow for delivery services. The bill is now before the Senate Committee on Government Operations.

Louisiana Gov. Jindal Says Medical Marijuana Okay if Tightly Regulated. Louisiana's Republican governor, Bobby Jindal, said Wednesday night that he supports making medical marijuana available if it is tightly controlled. "I continue to be opposed to legalization of marijuana," Jindal said as he fielded questions Wednesday during an event at the Pennington Biomedical Research Center. "When it comes to medical marijuana… if there is a legitimate medical need, I'd certainly be open to making it available under very strict supervision for patients that would benefit from that."

Hemp

Virginia Hemp Advocates Meet, Look Ahead. The Virginia Industrial Hemp Coalition met Thursday in Harrisonburg to watch a film and plan how to advance the cause in the Old Dominion. They said they are considering proposing a bill for the next general assembly session.

Heroin

Ohio Attorney General Creates Special Heroin Unit. Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine (R) announced Wednesday the creation of an investigative unit in his office to combat heroin trafficking and use. The Heroin Unit will include investigators, lawyers, and drug abuse awareness specialists, and will work with local leaders and law enforcement. DeWine is allocating $1 million for the unit. The move comes as the state's heroin overdose toll more than doubled between 2010 and 2012. [But will it accomplish its goal, better than other such programs have in the past? California's naloxone bill would be a better idea for Ohio, too.]

Drug Testing

Indiana Welfare Drug Testing Bill Wins Committee Vote. A bill that would require welfare recipients to be screened for drug use and subjected to drug testing if they are likely drug users passed a House committee on an 8-4 vote Wednesday.

Harm Reduction

California Bill Would Expand Pharmacy Access to Overdose Reversal Drug. Assemblyman Richard Bloom (D-Santa Monica) has introduced Assembly Bill 1535, which would allow pharmacists to provide the overdose reversal drug naloxone to drug users, friends, and family members. "California's overdose crisis remains one of the state's most serious health problems," Bloom said. "Pharmacists are highly trained, highly trusted healthcare professionals. This bill makes it easier for them to help prevent a fatal drug overdose."

International

World Leaders Offer Harsh Assessment of Drug War at Davos. Global leaders gathered for the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, called drug prohibition a failure and said world leaders need to consider alternatives. "It's been a disaster and has inflicted enormous harm," said former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan. "My country has suffered probably the most from the war on drugs. We need to find more efficient ways to combat it," added Juan Manuel Santos, president of Colombia. "People are being given enormous prison terms just for use. There has got to be a better way than ruining so many people's lives," Kenneth Roth, executive director of Human Rights Watch, said.

Human Rights Watch Makes Case for Drug Reform in 2014 Annual Report. Human Rights Watch released its World Report 2014 and included in it a special essay (click on the title link) on a human rights approach to drug control. The group is calling for the decriminalization of drug possession, finding alternatives to the criminalization of drug markets, and the primacy of human rights considerations in drug treatment.

Dark Web Drug Buyers and Sellers Can Now Use DarkList. A dark web web site that reappeared Wednesday is designed to serve as a directory of underground drug dealers operating dark web drug marketplaces, such as Silk Road 2.0, Agora, The Marketplace, Blue Sky, and others. DarkList says it will help customers connect with preferred dealers. "Let's face it -- buying and selling anonymously on the Dark Web is currently in a volatile state," reads the tagline on the site's homepage. "We built this directory so that you can always have a way to stay in contact with those you love."

Bulgaria Moving Backward on Drug Policy, NGOs Warn. Bulgaria's draft penal code, which has already won initial cabinet approval, includes mandatory prison sentences for any drug possession offense, and that is drawing sharp criticism from drug policy and human rights groups. "With these new proposals, Bulgaria is traveling in the opposite direction to what most other countries are doing," said Ann Fordham, Executive Director of the International Drug Policy Consortium (IDPC). "They are going backwards, while the rest of Europe is modernizing their drug laws and implementing health-based approaches to drugs -- policies that support, rather than punish, people who use drugs."

Bermuda Marijuana Policy Debate Continues to Roil. Activist and attorney Alan Gordon continues to successfully stir the pot in the island nation's marijuana policy debate. On Wednesday, he sent an open letter to Governor George Fergusson asking him to clarify whether Government House would seek to block marijuana legalization legislation. Click on the link to read the letter.