Chronicle AM: VT Pot Bill Hits Wall in House, Brit Poll Has Near Majority for Pot Legalization, More... (4/11/16)
Ted Cruz takes a states' rights line on marijuana policy, a Vermont House committee has amended the pot legalization bill beyond recognition, a counterculture icon dies, a new poll has plurality support for marijuana legalization in Great Britain, and more.
[image:1 align:right caption:true]Marijuana Policy
In Colorado, Ted Cruz Says He Would Leave State's Pot Law Alone. The Republican presidential contender told the Denver Post ahead of last Saturday's GOP caucus that as president, he would not interfere with Colorado's marijuana legalization even though he personally opposes legalization. "I think on the question of marijuana legalization, we should leave it to the states," he said. "If it were me personally, voting on it in the state of Texas, I would vote against it. The people of Colorado have made a different decision. I respect that decision." Cruz won the Colorado caucus.
Arkansas Attorney General Rejects Legalization Initiative. Attorney General Leslie Rutledge has rejected a proposed constitutional amendment to legalize pot. The initiative would legalize the use, possession, cultivation, and distribution of marijuana, but will have to go back to the drawing board to come up with language that is not ambiguous. Any initiative in Arkansas this year will need 85,000 valid voter signatures to qualify for the November ballot.
Vermont Legalization Bill Hits Wall in House. The fate of the legalization bill, Senate Bill 241, is at best uncertain after the House Judiciary Committee first refused to pass even a watered-down version of it last Friday, then amended it to delete legalization and expand funding for anti-drug campaigns, provide police with more drugged driving resources, and ban potential dangerous methods of concentrating the drug. While the Judiciary's version of the bill bears little resemblance to the version passed by the Senate, it does leave the door open for Senate supporters to re-insert the deleted language if the amended version passes the House. But it is not at all clear that a majority of House members would vote for that.
Medical Marijuana
Louisiana Medical Marijuana Bill Introduced. State Rep. Ted James (D-Baton Rouge) has filed House Bill 1112, which would expand the scope of medical marijuana in the state. The state passed a restrictive medical marijuana bill last, but there has been little progress made on producing medical marijuana in the state. James' s bill would allow for the commercial production of medical marijuana and allow patients to petition state agencies to expand qualifying conditions for use of the medicine. The bill also seeks to ease the regulatory burden on marijuana by cutting state agencies out of some of the regulatory process.
Ohio Attorney Generals Okays 2nd Medical Marijuana Initiative. Attorney General Mike DeWine has certified the petition summary for a medical marijuana and industrial hemp initiative from Legalize Ohio 2016. Now, the initiative goes to the Ohio Ballot Board to determine whether it is one issue or two. Another initiative, backed by the Marijuana Policy Project, has already been approved for signature gathering. Initiatives will need 305,000 valid voter signatures by early July to qualify for the November ballot.
International
Poll: Plurality of Britons Support Marijuana Legalization. A new poll from The Independent has support for legalization at 47%, with 39% opposed. The poll asked whether respondents supported a plan for licensing the sale of marijuana through shops that has been adopted by the Liberal Democrats.
No More Mr. Nice. Welsh counterculture icon Howard Marks, widely known as "Mr. Nice," has died of stomach cancer at age 70. Marks smuggled marijuana in the 1970s and 1980s before being arrested and imprisoned in the United States. His 1996 memoir, "Mr. Nice," brought him to broader public attention, and he continued to campaign for marijuana legalization until his death.
Guatemala Marijuana Legalization Bill Filed. Deputy Alvaro Velasquez has introduced a bill that would legalize and regulate the use, possession, cultivation, distribution, and commercialization of marijuana. The bill would legalize the weed for people 18 and over and regulation would be in the hands of the Ministry of Public Health and Social Assistance. Velasquez is a member of the National Convergence Front, whose presidential candidate, TV comedian Jimmy Morales, won the 2015 election.
(This article was prepared by StoptheDrugWar.org"s lobbying arm, the Drug Reform Coordination Network, which also pays the cost of maintaining this web site. DRCNet Foundation takes no positions on candidates for public office, in compliance with section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, and does not pay for reporting that could be interpreted or misinterpreted as doing so.)
Comments
Vermont Should Scrap MJ Legalization
To date Vermont has spent money and other resources for a RAND study on legalizing recreational marijuana, vermonters have spent time and effort expressing their opinions on the subject (the public forum I attended was easily 4 to 1 in favor of legalization) and now the consensus amongst our joke of a legislature is that we need more study. I say (as one of the 55% of vermonters who favor legalization) that the VT legislature should scrap its pathetic and highly restrictive legalization measure so as not to tie up floor time or more money on a "legalization" bill that seeks to replace the street dealers with state sponsored dealers and hire more cops. Frankly this is getting to be embarrassing. It seems that despite a majority favoring legalization our legislature thinks "why the rush?" So I say screw it, lets wait for our neighbor to the south (Massachusetts) or, more likely, to the north (Canada) to get it right-perhaps that will light a match under the asses of our legislature. By the way I find it very odd that there is such vast disagreement between the house and senate on this bill, part of me thinks they are afraid to vote no so maybe its best to disagree. So lets kill it and free up our "representatives" to get on with more important work like raising the smoking age from 18 to 21 or act 46 (school consolidation) because let's face it Vermont's budgetary woes and tax burdens need to be addressed.
Add new comment