Pubdate: Thu, 07 Jan 2016
Source: Chico News & Review, The (CA)
Copyright: 2016 Chico Community Publishing, Inc.
Contact: https://www.newsreview.com/chico/contactLetter2editor
Website: http://www.newsreview.com/chico/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/559

PARADISE: DON'T BAN POT

The Town Council Has an Obligation to Look into the Matter Further 
Before Making a Hasty Decision

The Paradise Town Council next week (Jan. 12) will discuss a Planning 
Commission recommendation to ban the cultivation and delivery of 
medical marijuana within town limits. But the commission gives little 
in the way of rationale behind making such a sweeping decision. The 
plant smells? Big deal.

The recommendation to ban deliveries and cultivation was sparked by 
three state laws, collectively known as the Medical Marijuana 
Regulation and Safety Act, which went into effect Jan. 1. They pave 
the way for licensing of businesses related to medical 
marijuana-namely, dispensaries, delivery services and growing for 
profit. They also give local governments a short window of time to 
set forth policies-including outright bans-on these activities.

It seems to us that the Planning Commission is being reactionary by 
recommending an outright ban, particularly on cultivation, which is 
currently allowed. Instead, the panel chose the easiest way to deal 
with the issue rather than the most thoughtful or prudent.

The Town Council has an obligation to look further into the 
implications of a ban. First, the panel must think about its 
residents, some of them disabled, who need medical marijuana to live 
full lives. How will they get their medicine if they can't grow it, 
buy it locally or get it delivered? Second, the council must think 
about the potential for increased tax revenue in the future. Banning 
cultivation, in particular, will set the town well behind other 
nearby communities.

In short, council members, do your homework before making a hasty, 
ill-advised decision.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom