By Steve Elliott
Hemp News

Behind the scenes, Colorado lawmakers are talking about introducing a measure that could repeal marijuana legalization in the state, according to advocacy groups on both sides of the issue.

State lawmakers are considering a bill to tax newly legal marijuana by more than 30 percent. Some of them want to add a caveat to the tax proposal -- that cannabis won't be legal anymore unless voters approve the taxes in November.

Legalization supporters called a Friday morning news conference to decry the effort, reports John Ingold at The Denver Post. "Numerous" lawmakers are looking at putting a measure before voters that would repeal marijuana legalization in Colorado if voters don't agree to a measure on marijuana taxes this November, said Mason Tvert, one of the authors of Amendment 64, the initiative which legalized cannabis.

The tax measure, which was approved by one legislative committee on Thursday and another on Friday, would place state sales and excise taxes on marijuana that could reach 30 percent of the retail price.

So far, no lawmakers have publicly mentioned a proposal to repeal legalization.

By Steve Elliott
Hemp News

The pro-marijuana movement is making inroads in some unexpected places, with a new survey showing almost half of young Christians in the United States favor legalizing cannabis.

In the poll, conducted by the Public Religion Research Institute (PRRI), 50 percent of self-identified Christian young adults ages 18 to 29 favor pot legalization, with 44 percent opposed. By way of contrast, only 22 percent of Christian senior citizens who took part in the survey said they favor legalization.

"While most religious Americans overall continue to oppose the legalization of marijuana, the generational sea change on this issue is also shifting the ground inside churches," said Robert P. Jones, CEO at PRRI. "Christian young adults are twice as likely as Christian senior adults to say both that marijuana should be legal and that using marijuana is morally acceptable."

A bigger percentage of young Christians say they find smoking cannabis to be morally acceptable compared with the general population, interestingly enough. Fifty-two percent of young Christians said it's OK to smoke pot, compared with 49 percent of all Americans.

By Steve Elliott
Hemp News

A bill to regulate California's medical marijuana industry by turning it over to the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control cleared a hurdle on Tuesday when the Assembly's Public Safety Committee voted to move it forward.

AB 473, sponsored by Assemblyman Tom Ammiano (D-San Francisco), would require all cannabis-related businesses to follow rules created by Alcohol Beverage Control, reports Carly Schwartz at The Huffington Post.

Ammiano said medical marijuana in California is in a state of "chaos."

"It's never been regulated by the state as any other business," he said. "Cities and counties don't know what to do or what they can do. Police are unsure how to respond, and the federal actions are confusing."

Since California voters made the Golden State the first in the country to legalize medical marijuana back in 1996, the industry has exploded, generating more than $100 million in taxes annually. But the Obama Administration in late 2011 launched an aggressive crackdown on dispensaries, forcing hundreds of them to close and leaving thousands of workers unemployed.

According to former Ammiano spokesman Quentin Mecke, U.S. Attorneys "are using a lack of statewide regulation as justification."

By Steve Elliott
Hemp News

Coloradans who test positive for marijuana can be fired from their jobs, even if their marijuana use was legal under state law, the Colorado Court of Appeals ruled on Thursday.

The court in Thursday's split decision said marijuana use is still prohibited by the federal government, even though medical marijuana and adult cannabis use has been legalized by Colorado's voters, reports Steven K. Paulson at the Huffington Post.

"For an activity to be lawful in Colorado, it must be permitted by, and not contrary to, both state and federal law," the appeals court ruled.

The decision stems from the case of Brandon Coats, a 33-year-old telephone operator for Dish Network, based in Englewood. Coats, a quadriplegic, has been a medical marijuana patient in Colorado since 2009; he was paralyzed in a car crash as a teen.

He was fired after failing a company drug test in 2010, even though his employer didn't claim Coats was ever impaired on the job. He sued to get his job back, but his claim was dismissed by a trial court in 2011. That judge agreed with Dish Network that medical marijuana isn't a "lawful activity."

By Steve Elliott
Hemp News

The Bremerton Police Department, along with many other law enforcement agencies around Washington State, is not training its new police dog how to sniff out marijuana. After voters legalized marijuana last November, Dusty is the first drug detection dog in Kitsap County who won't be looking for pot.

But in the unlikely event that cannabis once again becomes illegal in Washington, it would be easy to train 18-month-old Dusty accordingly, said Bremerton Police Officer Dahle "Duke" Roessel. "We can train them on marijuana in a weekend," Roessel said, reports Josh Farley at the Kitsap Sun.

The Washington State Patrol won't be training future drug detection dogs to find marijuana, either, according to spokesman Bob Calkins.

"It's problematic because the dogs could alert on a legal amount of marijuana," Calkins explained. "And then we're violating someone's privacy."

There's a concern that if a dog were to find a valuable piece of evidence because he had alerted on a legal amount of marijuana, all the evidence might be thrown out in court, according to Calkins.

For example, if a dog sniffs out a legal amount of marijuana and then a gun used in a murder is found along with it, a judge could rule the gun isn't admissible in court.

By Steve Elliott
Hemp News

Marijuana policy reform is advancing on multiple fronts in Oregon, with both medicinal cannabis and general legalization measures gaining traction in an increasingly friendly Legislature.

"We are seeing the best legislative session for drug policy reform -- certainly since the Oregon Medical Marijuana Act passed in 1998, and perhaps ever -- this go-round," Paul Stanford, president of The Hemp and Cannabis Foundation (THCF) and the Campaign for the Restoration and Regulation of Hemp (CRRH), which owns Hemp News.

In the last week, the Oregon Senate:

• Passed SB 281 on a 19-11 vote. This bill adds post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) to the list of debilitating medical conditions which qualify patients for the protections of the Oregon Medical Marijuana Act (OMMA).

• Passed SB 40, 24-6. This bill realigns the felony level designations of Manufacturing and Possession to be consistent with the rescheduling in Oregon of marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule II; and creates misdemeanor marijuana possession (more than one ounce, less than four ounces) and misdemeanor hashish possession (less than 1/4 ounce).

By Steve Elliott
Hemp News

Funny how everyone in Washington suddenly seems to be a marijuana expert, now that the herb is legal in the Evergreen State. In one of the latest examples of how an advanced cluelessness can make its way into the press, prosecutors and crime lab scientists are claiming that the differentiation between marijuana and hemp in the state's legal marijuana law could make it impossible to go after any pot "crimes" at all.

The problem supposedly stems from a part of I-502 meant to distinguish marijuana from industrial hemp, which is grown for its fiber and seed oil. Washington law now defines marijuana as having more than 0.3 percent of the main psychoactive ingredient in cannabis, delta-9 THC (tetrahydrocannabinol).

Scientists (who really should know better) with the state crime lab clain that "often," even potent marijuana can have less than 0.3 percent, claiming that it's only when heated or burned that "another compound" turns into delta-9 THC.

"That means if people get caught with more than an ounce of marijuana, or if police bust illicit grow operations, prosecutors might not be able to prove the plants or material seized meets the definition of marijuana, The Associated Press inaccurately reported on Wednesday.

2013 National Drug Strategy Released – Health Rhetoric Doesn’t Match “Lock ‘Em Up” Reality

By Steve Elliott
Hemp News

The White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (more commonly known as the Drug Czar’s office; ONDCP) on Wednesday released its 2013 National Drug Control Strategy. The strategy has shifted a little from previous national drug strategies, and is being called a “21st Century Approach.”

The Drug Czar’s rhetoric has evolved over the last couple of years – reflecting the fact that three-quarters of Americans consider the drug war a failure – emphasizing the need to treat drug misuse as a health issue and stop relying on the criminal justice system to deal with the problem.

The strategy, however, calls for the expansion of drug courts, which continue to treat drug users in the criminal justice system, where punishment is often the response to addiction-related behaviors such as positive urine screens or missed appointments.

By Steve Elliott
Hemp News

"I know I'm gonna die," says Tracey Fanning. "But I know I can still do this. I can make a difference."

Fanning, 42, appears to be a typical mom in suburban Connecticut, reports Jeff Glor at CBS News. But after being diagnosed in 2006 with terminal brain cancer, she spent much of her time in bed, racked by seizures and debilitating headaches -- until she discovered medical marijuana.

"The first time I ever did it, it gave me my life back," Fanning said.

"I use medicinal marijuana," Fanning said. "I am breaking the law right now because we don't have growers and distributors here in Connecticut."

The state passed a law legalizing medical marijuana last May, but there is still nowhere to legally buy it.

When diagnosed in 2006, Fanning was the mother of a four-year-old and an 18-month old, and medical marijuana was still illegal in Connecticut. But the suggestion to try it came from her doctor, Andrew Salner.

"It's always difficult for me because when I make a recommendation about trying marijuana, it is telling someone to put themselves in harm's way to go purchase an illegal drug," Dr. Salner said.

But both Fanning and Salner are speaking out now because of the lack of safe access to medical marijuana for Connecticut's legal patients.

By Steve Elliott
Hemp News

With the tide of public opinion seemingly ready to sweep marijuana prohibition into the dustbin of history, the bipartisan Congressional Research Service, which works exclusively for Congress, has released a legal analysis aimed at helping legislators understand the ramifications of legalization.

The analysis found that there may be some wiggle room when it comes to interpreting the Controlled Substances Act, which makes marijuana illegal for any purpose under federal law, reports Bob Berwyn at the Summit County Voice.

One section of the CSA seems to indicate that "Congress did not intend to entirely occupy the regulatory field concerning controlled substances or wholly supplant traditional state authority in the area … States remain free to pass laws relating to marijuana, or other controlled substances, so long as they do not create a “positive conflict” with federal law, such that the two laws “cannot consistently stand together,” the analysis found.

The analysis gives Congress some solid legal footing to act, according to U.S. Rep. Jared Polis (D-Colorado). The report finds that the federal government cannot force states to prohibit cannabis use, according to a statement on Polis's website.

By Steve Elliott
Hemp News

California Lt. Governor Gavin Newsom, in a piece for The Huffington Post, has called on his state to lead the nation in ending marijuana prohibition and the failed Drug War, as it led in adopting the nation’s first medical marijuana law in 1996.

“It is time for California to decriminalize, tax and regulate marijuana and decide who sells it, who can buy it legally, and for how much," Newsom said. "When California became the first state to approve medical marijuana, we led the nation on progressive drug policies, and now it is time to lead again.

“Bolstered by growing public support and building on our initial leadership, Californians must renew our push for common-sense marijuana policy by developing a state level regulatory system and lead the national effort to end draconian laws that favor incarceration over education," the Lieutenant Governor said.

“Marijuana prohibition has caused irreparable harm to millions of people by saddling them with criminal records and the collateral sanctions associated with even marijuana misdemeanors, such as the potential loss of employment, housing, financial aid and child custody," Newsom said. "These sanctions and penalties fall disproportionally on African Americans and Latinos, devastating entire communities for generations."

By Steve Elliott
Hemp News

A new study says that an estimated 1,500 jobs will be created by Arizona's new medical marijuana industry.

Tim Hogan, a researcher with Arizona State University who wrote the study, said he used figures from Oregon's established medical marijuana industry to estimate the size of Arizona's market, reports Julia Shumway of Cronkite News Service.

"It's a pretty simple industry," Hogan said. "There's not too much nuance. The main driving mechanism is how many patients."

Hogan's study, paid for by the Regulated Dispensaries of Arizona Association, indicated the industry has the potential to directly create 1,500 jobs for marijuana growers and dispensary employees, and also indirectly create 5,000 more jobs at places like grocery stores.

Arizona has about 38,000 registered medical marijuana patients and is allowed 126 dispensaries. Only a handful of dispensaries are open so far.

His study only models the straight economic impact of the industry instead of offering a more extensive cost-benefit analysis, according to Hogan.

"Given the size of the industry, it seems it will generate substantial income and tax revenue," Hogan said.

Dispensaries brought in nearly $200 million in sales in Colorado in 2012, according to that state's Department of Revenue. The shops paid about $5.5 million in state sales tax last year.

By Steve Elliott
Hemp News

Republicans in the North Caroline Senate on Monday pushed through a bill that would take away food stamps and job training for people who fail a drug test. At the same time, they rejected an amendment offered by Democratic Senator Gladys Robinson which would have drug tested the governor, cabinet secretaries and the lawmakers themselves.

In a 35-15 vote almost completely along party lines, the senators passed SB 594. One lone Democrat voted for the bill, and no Republicans voted against it, reports David Edwards at The Raw Story.

The bill requires Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) applicants to pay for their own suspicionless drug tests. Those who test negative would be eligible to have the cost of the tests reimbursed.

The policy could cost the state more than $2.1 million.

"We receive state funds, we represent the law, we institute policy," Sen. Robinson told the other senators on Monday night. "So, it should not be above any of us to submit to drug screening."

Republican Sen. Jim Davis claimed he didn't mind being tested, but said that he would vote against the amendment because it had no mechanism to reimburse him for the $100 test. He didn't seem overly concerned that welfare applicants -- who have far less money than Senator Davis -- will face the same problem.

By Steve Elliott
Hemp News

A new study confirms what medical marijuana patients have known for years -- that ingesting cannabis through eating works longer than smoking -- while also possibly representing a further move by Big Pharma for a strategic takeover of the medicinal cannabis business.

The study found that a pill form of marijuana may work just as well to relieve pain as the smoked form of cannabis, but with fewer side effects and a longer duration, reports Rachael Rettner at MyHealthNewsDaily.

In the study, people who either smoked cannabis or took the pharmaceutical drug dronabinol (also known by the brand name Marinol) -- a pill containing a synthetic form of THC, the main psychoactive ingredient in marijuana -- were able to hold their hands in ice water for longer than participants who took a placebo.

The pain-reducing effect of the dronabinol lasted longer than that of smoking marijuana, according to the researchers. While smoking pot reduced pain sensitivity for about 2.5 hours, taking the dronabinol pill continued to reduce pain for about 4.5 hours.

However, the analgesic effects of the pill took about an hour to kick in, while the pain-relieving effects of smoked marijuana start almost immediately. Patients also report they can control their dosage more precisely by titrating the dose with smoking.

By Steve Elliott
Hemp News

The United States Supreme Court on Tuesday ruled that a legal immigrant is not subject to deportation for being convicted of possessing a small amount of marijuana.

The court voted 7-2 that Adrian Moncrieffe, a citizen of Jamaica, could not face mandatory deportation, because the basic possession of marijuana is not a federal felony, reports Lawrence Hurley of .

The federal government can deport legal immigrants when they are convicted of an aggravated felony.

Immigration officials tried to deport Moncrieffe after he was convicted under Georgia state law of possession and intent to distribute 1.3 grams of cannabis. The case is Moncrieffe v. Holder,, U.S. Supreme Court, No. 11-702.

A conviction for marijuana possession does not rise to the level of an aggravated felony if it's a small amount and the defendant was not being paid for it, Justice Sonia Sotomayor wrote on behalf of the majority in Tuesday's ruling.

Moncrieffe could still be subject to deportation, Justice Sotomayor wrote, but he and others would now be able to contest the decision in further immigration proceedings and the U.S. Department of Justice would be able to use its discretion.

Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito both wrote dissenting opinions.