The Donald returns to one of his favorite themes, Arizona legalization initiative organizers have hit the 200,000-signature mark (they need 150,000 valid ones), patients in New York protest that state's restrictive medical marijuana law, Western Australia wants to force meth users into drug treatment without having to convict them of a crime first, and more.

Arizona Legalization Initiative Signature Drives Passes 200,000 Mark. The Campaign to Regulate Marijuna Like Alcohol in Arizona announced Tuesday that it has collected more than 200,000 raw voter signatures for its legalization initiative. The group needs 150,564 valid voter signatures by July to qualify for the November ballot.Having 200,000 raw signatures at this point means that a full quarter of them would have to be disqualified for the initiative to come up short--and it still has time to gather more. 

Medical Marijuana

Colorado Bill to Allow Medical Marijuana at School Moves. A bill that would require schools to allow students to use medical marijuana on campus has passed its legislative hurdle. House Bill 1373 was approved 10-3 by the House Agriculture, Livestock and Natural Resources Committee and now heads for a House floor vote. State law already gives school districts the power to allow the use of medical marijuana under certain circumstances, but no district has done so.

New York Patients, Families Rally in Albany to Demand Fixes for State's Medical Marijuana Law.  Dozens of advocates gathered in Albany Tuesday to urge legislators to support a slate of bills that would amend the Compassionate Care Act, New York’s medical marijuana law. The law, which was passed in June of 2014, took eighteen months to implement and has been criticized for being one of the most restrictive and burdensome programs in the country. Launched in January of this year, to date, only 494 of the state’s 79,000 physicians have agreed to participate and only 2,390 patients have been certified by their doctors to enroll in the program. This lackluster start is likely due to a number of barriers and restrictions in the program that make it both difficult and unappealing for physicians and patients to participate.

Drug Policy

Trump Blames Mexico for America's Drug Problems. Returning to one of his favorite themes—Mexico bashing—GOP presidential contender Donald Trump Monday warned that drugs from Mexico are "pouring into the country" and "poisoning our youth." His comments came as he defended his plan to build a border wall and make Mexico pay for it. The US trade deficit with Mexico is $58 billion a year. "And that doesn’t include the drugs that are pouring into the country poisoning our youth," Trump added. "They’re poisoned with this crap. People won’t be driving their pick-up trucks through the wall or over the wall, he added. Did you ever see that? The trucks go over, they unload the drugs and then they go back. So we get the drugs and they get the money. Not very good folks. That’s going to all change."

International

French Minister Reignites Marijuana Legalization Debate. A French junior minister, Jean-Marie Le Guen, secretary of state for relations with parliament (and an MD) has reignited discussion of marijuana law reform there by saying "prohibition is not effective" and that a public health approach was needed. Le Guen clarified that he was not speaking for the government, but said the subject should be debated by the next president. His remarks did not go over well with drug reform-averse French politicians, including his fellow governing Socialists.  "And what will we do tomorrow? Will we legalise cocaine and weapons because we cannot stem the flow of weapons? That's not serious!" retorted Socialist Senator Samia Ghali. A spokesman for the government added that the Socialist Party was free to debate the issue, but the government isn't interested "neither in work nor thought."

Victoria Becomes First Australian State to Legalize Medical Marijuana. The state Parliament has passed the Access to Medicinal Cannabis Bill, making Victoria the first state in the country to approve medical marijuana. State Health Minister Jill Hennessey said children with severe epilepsy will be the first to be able to access the medications next year. The state government will set up an Office of Medicinal Cannabis to regulate the industry and educate patients and doctors about their roles and eligibility to prescribe or use medical marijuana.

Western Australia Wants to Subject Meth Users to Forced Detention, Treatment. The state's Mental Health Minister, Andrea Mitchell, said forcing meth users into drug rehab was the way to deal with the state's growing number of them. "I've got a responsibility to balance the rights of the individual with also protecting the community, and I need to do that with the burglary and the assaults and the other side of things that do tend to happen with people with a meth problem," she said. "And I also have a duty of care to protect that individual and give that individual the best possible chance of coming out of that and being a responsible citizen." The scheme would require legislative changes to allow the state to hold against their will people who have not been convicted of any crime.

 (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.)

Congress continues to block DEA harassment in medical marijuana states, Washington state could see a lot more pot shops, it looks like Florida will vote again on medical marijuana, Ireland is moving toward setting up a supervised injection site in Dublin, and more.

Marijuana Policy

Congress to Continue Blocking DEA Interference With Medical Marijuana States. Lawmakers have extended a ban on funding for the DEA and Justice Department to go after medical marijuana in states where it is legal. They also extended protections for hemp research, but failed to include provisions that would have allowed pot businesses to use the financial system and would have allowed Veterans Administration doctors to recommend medical marijuana.

Washington Could Allow Lots More Marijuana Stores. The Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board (WSLCB) today heard a staff recommendation to increase the number of retail marijuana outlets from 334 to 556. The move is expected to be finalized in emergency rules to be announced January 6.

Medical Marijuana

Florida Medical Marijuana Initiative Already Has 900,000 Signatures. The United for Care initiative campaign says it already has 900,000 signatures, but is aiming for more than one million. These are raw signatures. The initiative will need 683,149 valid voter signatures to qualify for the 2016 ballot. A similar initiative won 58% of the vote last year, but failed because, as a constitutional amendment, it needed 60% to pass.

Illinois to Consider Adding New Qualifying Conditions. State residents hoping to add a new disease or medical condition to the state's list of qualifying conditions will be able to do so during the month of January, state health officials said Wednesday. They can submit petitions to the state Department of Public Health through January 31.

Methamphetamine

Indiana Legislators Compete Over How to Restrict Access to Cold Medications. Faced with a bill that would require a doctor's prescription to obtain cold medications containing pseudoephedrine, two lawmakers have come up with an alternative measure that would instead allow pharmacists to decide whether or not customers could buy the cold medications.

Drug Treatment

Most People in Treatment for Marijuana Are Sent There By Courts. A report this month from the US Department of Health and Human Services finds that between 2003 and 2013 52% of people in drug treatment for marijuana were referred by the criminal justice system. Only 18% were in treatment because they sought it themselves.

International

Irish Cabinet Approves Supervised Injection Site in Dublin. The cabinet has approved a pilot plan for a medically supervised injection facility in the nation's capital. The move came yesterday and was at the behest of Aodhan O'Riordain, the minister in charge of the National Drug Strategy. The country's drug law must first be amended to allow for such facilities, which should happen early next year.

There's good polling news for Michigan pot legalization campaigners, a South Dakota Indian tribe legalizes weed, a new study refutes concerns that allowing medical marijuana leads to increased teen pot-smoking, and more.

Marijuana Policy

Michigan Poll Has Solid Majority Support for Legalization. A new poll from the Glengariff Group has support for marijuana legalization at 56%, with 36% opposed. The poll comes as two different groups are about to embark on signature-gathering campaigns to put an initiative on the 2016 ballot. Click on the link for more demographic data and discussion.

Flandreau Santee Sioux Become South Dakota's First Tribe to Embrace Marijuana. In a vote taken last week, the tribe's executive committee legalized the sale and use of marijuana on tribal land. The tribe has plans for a marijuana grow operation and for an establishment where people can buy and use pot. "Throughout Indian country, Flandreau's been trail-blazers,' Tribal President Anthony Reider said. 'We were with the casino, we were the second compacted tribe in the United States, the first and largest casino in between Atlantic City and Las Vegas, so it's something that's not new to us. We kind of like taking the forefront on issues."

Medical Marijuana

Study: Medical Marijuana Doesn't Lead to Increased Youth Use. A study published Tuesday in the British medical journal The Lancet finds that allowing for the legal use of medical marijuana has not led to an increase in the number of teens using it in the US. The study relied on 24 years' worth of data from the Monitoring the Future and found that while youth use levels were higher in some medical marijuana states, those higher levels of use had preceded the legalization of medical marijuana.

Georgia Unveils Online Registry for CBD Cannabis Oil Patients. The Department of Public Health today went live with its online registry for patients authorized to use low-THC CBD cannabis oil. Also today, the Georgia Commission on Medical Cannabis meets for the first time.

Methamphetamine

Meth Precursor Bill Passes New York Senate. A bill that would limit over-the-counter cold remedy sales to not more than 3.6 grams of pseudoephedrine per package and nine grams per person per month has passed the state senate. Senate Bill 627 would also require buyers to show photo ID and sign a logbook and requires retailers to electronically submit purchase information to state police before the sale is finalized, allowing state police to block sales in real time. The bill now goes to the Assembly.

Asset Forfeiture

Pennsylvania Civil Asset Forfeiture Reform Bill Filed. State Sen. Mike Folmer (R-Lebanon) has introduced Senate Bill 869, which would require a criminal conviction before property could be seized. Asset forfeiture has come under fire in the state, especially since the ACLU released a report earlier this year detailing abuses and revealing that cops had collected more than $100 million in seizures in the past decade.

An Ohio legalization initiative heads for signature-gathering, the NYC city council calls for decrim and legalization, the DEA's "cold consent" searches get critiqued, Kentucky pols can't agree on how to deal with heroin, and more.

Marijuana

Louisiana Legalization Bill Pre-Filed. State Rep. Dalton Honore (D-Baton Rouge) has pre-filed a marijuana legalization bill. He submitted House Bill 117 yesterday. To go into effect, it would have to both pass the legislature and be approved by the electorate in the November 2016 election. Louisiana has some of the country's harshest marijuana laws.

Ohio Ballot Board Clears ResponsibleOhio Legalization Initiative. Backers of the ResponsibleOhio legalization initiative have cleared the final hurdle before beginning signature-gathering. The state Ballot Board agreed that the proposal amounts to a single constitutional amendment, so it's good to go. Backers will now need to gather more than 300,000 signatures by July to qualify for the ballot. The amendment would allow only 10 growing sites already promised to investors.

NYC City Council Calls for Decriminalizing and Legalizing Marijuana. This week, the New York City Council called for the state to pass legislation to both decriminalize and to tax and regulate marijuana. As part of the Council's State Budget and Legislative Agenda for the 2015-2016 legislative session, the council urged the state legislature to pass two marijuana policy reforms -- the Fairness and Equity Act and the Marijuana Regulation and Tax Act (MRTA). The Speaker of the City Council, Melissa Mark-Viverito had previously announced her support for marijuana legalization in November, but this marks the first time that decriminalization and legalization have been part of the Council's official legislative agenda.

Medical Marijuana

Georgia Medical Marijuana Bill Wins Senate Committee Vote. The Senate Health and Human Services Committee approved House Bill 1 yesterday. The measure has passed the House and now heads for a Senate floor vote.

Methamphetamine

New York Senate Approves Bill to Increase Meth Penalties. The Senate has passed Senate Bill 1150, which would increase penalties for meth possession and sale. Meth would be treated similarly to heroin and cocaine under the bill. The bill is now in the Assembly Codes Committee as Assembly Bill 5577.

Opiates

Kentucky Legislators Still Can't Agree on Heroin Bills. House and Senate negotiators met yesterday to try to reach a compromise on competing bills that address heroin use in the state, but mainly agreed to disagree. There are differences over increasing penalties for heroin dealers, whether to allow needle exchanges, and on how to protect people who report overdoses. There is now a chance legislators could agree on a compromise that simply omits the sentencing and overdose reporting provisions.

Asset Forfeiture

Sen. Chuck Grassley Investigating Asset Forfeiture Abuses in US Marshals Service. The Iowa Republican sent a letter Wednesday to the agency demanding documents after he received whistleblower allegations that the service's Asset Forfeiture Division had used asset forfeiture monies "to purchase extravagant office decorations such as custom wall paper and window treatments." He is also looking into allegations of favoritism in hiring at the agency.

Law Enforcement

Justice Department Report Criticizes DEA's "Cold Consent" Searches. In a new report, the Justice Department's Office of the Inspector General details how the DEA's use of "cold consent" searches, where agents confront travelers at airports, bus, and rail stations and "ask" for consent to search them, may be racially profiling passengers and unjustly seizing their money. Click on the title link or read the report for lots more detail.

Reentry and Rehabilitation

Ex-Felon Federal Voting Rights Bills Filed. Sen. Ben Cardin (D-MD) has filed S 772 to secure the federal voting rights of people who have served their time. Rep. John Conyers (D-MI) has filed a companion bill, HR 1459, in the House.

Sentencing

Smarter Sentencing Act Picks Up More Cosponsors. The Senate version, S 502, now has nine cosponsors, with the latest being Sen. John Isaakson (R-GA). The House version, HR 920, now has 22 cosponsors, with six signing on in the past week. The bills would retroactively apply provisions of the Fair Sentencing Act and would reduce mandatory minimum sentences.

International

Canada Supreme Court Takes Up Medical Marijuana Edibles. The high court is hearing a case where plaintiffs charge that Health Canada violated medical marijuana patients' constitutional rights to life, liberty, and safety by barring any form of marijuana except dried plants. The government has lost at every step of the legal process so far, but continues to argue the case.

Zambia Opposition Party Joins Green Call for Marijuana Legalization. Zambia's second largest opposition party, the United Party for National Development, has joined the Greens in calling for the legalization of marijuana cultivation. "There is nothing wrong with cannabis. Just like you and me 'dear reader' Cannabis Sativa, the plant, was also created by God," wrote party vice-president for political affairs Canisius Banda. "Cannabis is a resource. Cannabis must be decriminalized the world over. Nonetheless, regulation, albeit wise, just as it exists for many other things ought to remain. Just like Zambia boasts of Copper, California boasts of Cannabis, the biggest cash crop, responsible for US$14 billion a year in sales. Zambia would do well, under decriminalized but controlled conditions, to start growing Cannabis, and at least, for now until we are a bit more civilized, only for export to countries that have made it legal."