Pubdate: Sat, 17 Jan 2015
Source: Fairbanks Daily News-Miner (AK)
Copyright: 2015 Associated Press
Contact:  http://newsminer.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/764

LEGISLATOR SEEKS DELAY IN MARIJUANA-CONCENTRATES REGULATIONS

JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) - A Homer legislator has proposed delaying 
regulations for marijuana concentrates to allow officials to focus 
this year on rules for the sale and growth of legalized pot and 
licensing of marijuana businesses.

But Timothy Hinterberger, the chairman of the Campaign to Regulate 
Marijuana like Alcohol in Alaska, said the bill would "defy the will 
of the voters" and open the state to litigation, "which it would surely lose."

Republican Rep. Paul Seaton, the incoming chair of the House Health 
and Social Services Committee, said Friday that he wants regulations 
taken up in manageable units so there can be adequate time for consideration.

The delay proposed in the legislation, HB 59, would apply to 
marijuana concentrates and the chemical extraction of the 
psychoactive ingredient THC, he said. It would delay regulations 
related to the manufacturing, delivery, possession, sale, packaging 
or display of marijuana concentrates, calling for those rules to be 
finalized by November 2016 "in response to the difficulties other 
jurisdictions have found in unintended consequences of regulations 
permitting marijuana concentrates," according to the text of the bill.

The bill also says in a section outlining its intent that during the 
delay, activities related to marijuana concentrates would remain 
illegal and may form the basis for revoking an establishment license 
or for the seizure or forfeiture of assets.

Alaska voters last year approved legalizing the recreational use of 
pot by those 21 and older. While the initiative takes effect Feb. 24, 
the state has until this November to write regulations.

Alaska is one of four states where voters have approved legalizing 
recreational marijuana.

Hinterberger said in a statement that the Legislature has important 
roles to play in creating effective marijuana policy "but delaying 
implementation of the initiative is not one of them, nor is changing 
the definition of marijuana that the voters approved in November," he said.

"The state should move forward with implementing what Alaska voters 
approved, not try to roll it back," he said. Marijuana concentrate is 
included in the initiative's definition of marijuana.

Similar concerns were raised by the Coalition for Responsible 
Cannabis Legislation.

Seaton said he spoke with pot-initiative supporters at a recent forum 
who did not oppose splitting marijuana concentrates for separate 
consideration of regulations.

The bill was part of a second group of bills filed ahead of the start 
of the legislative session and released on Friday. The scheduled 
90-day session begins Tuesday.

Other bills include:

- -HB 57, from Rep. Bob Lynn, R-Anchorage, calling for voters to 
provide photo identification or two forms of ID that do not have 
photos, such as a certified copy of a birth certificate. Lynn was a 
sponsor of a similar bill in 2013 that failed to gain traction.

- -HB 60, from House Democratic Leader Chris Tuck of Anchorage, related 
to the reporting and handling of sexual assault cases in the Alaska 
National Guard.

- -SB 12, from Sen. Bill Wielechowski, D-Anchorage, calling for minimum 
paid sick leave for employees of certain businesses with at least 15 
workers. Currently, lower-wage workers often do not get paid sick 
time, he said.

- -SB 17, also from Wielechowski, would require signed, written 
responses and rationales for denials of requests for public records. 
He said this is a response to requests that he and others made under 
the prior administration that he said were not responded to by the state.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom