Marijuana and medical marijuana dominate the drug policy news again today, the Maryland Senate votes to ban Everclear, meth and prescription pills continue to draw legislative attention, and Schapelle Corby will soon be freed from an Indonesian jail, and more. Let's get to it:
New Mexico Senate Committee Considers Legalization Bill Today [20]. The Senate Rules Committee was expected to consider a marijuana legalization bill today. The bill is Senate Joint Resolution 10 [21], sponsored by Sen. Gerald Ortiz y Pino (D-Albuquerque). It would create a constitutional amendment legalizing marijuana, which, if approved by the legislature, would then have to be approved by voters in a referendum.
Arizona Legalization Bill Introduced [22].Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-Phoenix) has introduced House Bill 2558 [23], which would allow adults to use, possess, and cultivate small amounts of marijuana, and set up a system to tax and regulate marijuana commerce.
Oregon Bill Would Allow Gun License Despite Marijuana Conviction [24]. Oregon law currently allow people with marijuana possession convictions to obtain a concealed hand gun permit, but a new bill, House Bill 4068 [25] would expand that protection to include people busted in other states, and perhaps, people busted before 1973. The bill got a hearing Wednesday. It is supported by the Oregon State Sheriff's Association, which called it "an issue of fundamental fairness."
Joe Biden Reiterates Obama Administration Marijuana Policy [26]. While the Obama administration thinks cracking down on marijuana is a waste of resources, it doesn't favor legalizing it, either, Vice President Biden told Time magazine Thursday. "I think the idea of focusing significant resources on interdicting or convicting people for smoking marijuana is a waste of our resources," Biden said. "That's different than [legalization.] Our policy for our administration is still not legalization, and that is and continues to be our policy."
Massachusetts Poll Has Slight Majority for Legalization [27]. A new Suffolk University/Boston Herald poll has support for marijuana legalization in the Bay State at 53%, with 37% opposed and 10% undecided.
Medical Marijuana
Michigan High Court Rules for Medical Marijuana [28]. In a bellwether case, the Michigan Supreme Court ruled Thursday that cities and counties cannot pass ordinances that conflict with the state's five-year-old Medical Marihuana Act. The ruling came in Ter Beek v. the City of Wyoming [29]. A number of cities had attempted to ban medical marijuana activities, but the ruling says they cannot do that, although they can regulate them.
Maine Medical Marijuana Bills Get Hearings [30]. Medical marijuana bills are getting attention in Augusta. Legislative Document 1674 [31], which would expand prohibitions on the use of pesticides in cultivation to include patients growing for themselves, got a hearing Thursday. Legislative Document 1597 [32], which would give government officials access to any medical marijuana grow, is set for a hearing next Thursday. The industry group Medical Marijuana Caregivers of Maine [33] thinks the latter bill is too broad. Legislative Document 1739 [34] would create additional regulations and is set for a hearing next Tuesday. Click on the title link for more hearing information.
Florida CBD Medical Marijuana Bill Filed [35]. Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Shalimar) has filed a bill to allow for low-THC, high-CBD strains of marijuana to be used for medical purposes. The bill is House Bill 843 [36].
Georgia CBD Medical Marijuana Bill Gets Hearing Monday [37]. A bill that would allow the use of high-CBD cannabis oil for patients suffering from certain types of seizures will get a hearing Monday. House Bill 885 [38], sponsored by Rep. Allen Peake (R-Macon), will get a hearing at the House Health and Human Services Committee.
Hemp
President Obama Signs Farms Bill With Hemp Amendment [39]. President Obama Friday signed into law the omnibus farm bill, which includes a hemp amendment allowing for research pilot projects in states that have approved them.
Hemp Bill Moving in Washington State [40]. A bill that would authorize Washington State University to study the feasibility and value of a hemp industry in the state is on the move. House Bill 1888 [41] passed out of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on General Government & Information Technology Thursday and now heads for the Ways and Means Committee. The just-passed federal farm bill includes a provision allowing for hemp research in states that have approved it.
Alcohol
Maryland Senate Passes Ban on Everclear [42]. The Maryland Senate this approved a bill that would ban the sale of any alcohol product at or above 190 proof, or 95% ethyl alcohol. The bill is Senate Bill 75 [43], and supporters said the ban would cut down on binge drinking and date rape, but opponents called it a "feel good" move. Similar legislation has twice previously passed the Senate, only to die in the House, but this year it has the backing of Del. Charles Barkley (D-Montgomery), chair of the Economic Matters subcommittee on alcohol, which increases its chances of getting a floor vote.
Prescription Drugs
South Carolina Bill Would Increase Penalties for Pill Trafficking, Set Them By Pill Quantity [44]. A bill backed by Lt. Gov Glenn McConnell (R) and aimed at what he called "a criminal cancer that will affect the health of seniors" would increase penalties for prescription drug trafficking and set penalties based on the number of pills seized -- not the weight of the drugs. Possession of 600 or more prescription pills would garner a mandatory minimum 15-year prison sentence. Senate Bill 1012 [45] would also make having multiple prescriptions for the same drug evidence of possession with intent to distribute.
Methamphetamine
Michigan Bill Would Bar Drug Felons From Buying Pseudoephedrine [46]. A bill that would bar people with felony drug convictions from purchasing products containing pseudoephedrine, a precursor chemical for meth, got a hearing Wednesday in the House Criminal Justice Committee. House Bill 5088 [47] was introduced by Rep. John Kivela (D-Marquette). Two related bills, House Bill 5089 [48] and House Bill 5090 [49] were also discussed. They address "smurfing."
Harm Reduction
Needle Exchange Reform Bill Moving in Maryland [50]. The state Senate Thursday approved a bill to undo a restriction in existing state law that prevents injection drug users from picking up more clean needles at the Baltimore needle exchange [51] than they turn in. The Senate approved Senate Bill 263 [52]by an overwhelming 39-5 vote. The measure now heads to the House.
International
Schapelle Corby Wins Parole in Indonesia [53]. Indonesian authorities announced Friday that Schapelle Corby, an Australian woman whose case made international headlines when she was convicted for smuggling nine pounds of marijuana into Bali in 2005, has been paroled. It's not clear yet when she will actually walk out of prison in Bali. She had been sentenced to 20 years in what many Australians considered a set-up.