Pubdate: Thu, 23 Sep 1999 Source: Arkansas Democrat-Gazette (AR) Copyright: 1999 Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, Inc. Contact: 121 East Capitol Avenue, Little Rock, Arkansas, 72201 Website: http://www.ardemgaz.com/ Forum: http://www.ardemgaz.com/info/voices.html Author: Rob Moritz PRYOR MULLS 2 PROPOSALS MAKING MARIJUANA LEGAL FOR MEDICAL USE One Plan Would Allow Possession Without Doctor's Prescription The state attorney general's office is considering two proposed initiated acts that would legalize the use of marijuana for medical purposes. One, filed by a North Little Rock man Sept. 14, would allow the use of marijuana for medical purposes without a doctor's prescription and would reduce the penalty for possession of a half-ounce or less to a $75 fine. The second, filed Tuesday by the Alliance for Reform of Drug Policy in Arkansas of Fayetteville, would allow the medical use of marijuana with a doctor's prescription. Attorney General Mark Pryor must issue an opinion within 10 working days of the date the initiatives were filed on whether the ballot title accurately reflects the proposal, said Pryor's spokesman Michael Teague. An opinion on the first must be made by next Tuesday. An opinion on the second must be released by Oct. 5. Once an initiated act's ballot title has been approved, the proposal will be sent to the secretary of state's office for publication. After that, supporters of the act will have until July 7 to collect at least 56,481 signatures of registered Arkansas voters to get the act on the Nov. 7, 2000, ballot. Barry Emigh of North Little Rock, a design engineer who said he plans to run next year for state representative from District 61 in North Little Rock, said he doesn't smoke marijuana but thinks reducing the punishment for possession of small amounts will cut down on jail overcrowding. The penalty for conviction of possession of an ounce or less is up to a year in jail and up to a $1,000 fine. Emigh's proposed maximum penalty of a $75 fine includes no jail time. "I don't believe the addiction or problem with marijuana is anything like other drugs like crack," he said. "I classify marijuana about the same way I classify alcohol. This would save the jail space for dangerous criminals." People who are terminally ill or who suffer chronic back pain would be allowed to grow and use marijuana to help ease their suffering, he said. Under his proposal, possession would be legal even if the possessor did not have a prescription from a doctor. The second initiative on marijuana would provide that the possessor of marijuana have a prescription from a doctor. Denele Campbell of Fayetteville, president of the Alliance for Reform on Drug Policy in Arkansas, said the proposal is patterned after an Oregon law, which allows marijuana to be used for medical purposes. She said six states and the District of Columbia have approved similar laws in the past three years. Emigh also has filed several other proposed citizen initiatives now being considered by the attorney general. They include proposed constitutional amendments to: Remove the state, county and city sales tax from groceries. The sales tax, however, would continue to apply to soft drinks, snack foods and food sold at restaurants. Give cities with a population of more than 10,000, and counties, local options on any gambling initiative. Already approved by Pryor's office is a proposed constitutional amendment to exempt some homesteads from property taxes and to raise the state sales tax, plus two proposed constitutional amendments to authorize casino monopolies within the state. Petitions for those measures are being circulated. A proposed constitutional amendment needs the signatures of 70,706 registered Arkansas voters to go on the ballot. In addition, the 1999 legislative session recommended to the 2000 ballot three proposed constitutional amendments, including one to revise the property tax, one to give local governments more financing options, and one to revise the constitution's judicial article. - --- MAP posted-by: Richard Lake