The Drive to Legalize Marijuana legalization advocates have submitted at least 18 ballot measures to the California secretary of state in an effort to let voters decide whether to allow recreation use of the drug next year. The Control, Regulate and Tax Adult Use of Marijuana Act -- Activists are trying to unify around this measure, which has the support of Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom and billionaire entrepreneur Sean Parker. The act would allow marijuana use by those 21 and older and would impose a 15 percent tax on retail sales. [continues 1192 words]
California Is Not Just Deciding Whether Pot Should Be Legal. It's Determining the Shape of a Major New American Industry. When my wife and I bought a house last year in the little town of Ukiah, California, the first person to offer us advice about growing marijuana was our realtor. The house was a stolid 1909 prairie box that had been partitioned into four units, with a front porch, dark green trim, and a couple of fruit trees in the yard. It was charming, but we probably would have settled for a yurt. What mattered most to us was having a foothold in Mendocino County, a place we had long ago decided was the most beautiful in America. [continues 7597 words]
As a Californian, I was interested by how many people were surprised that Proposition 19, "The Regulate, Control, & Tax Cannabis Act," failed to pass in the recent midterm election. Although the ballot initiative was widely considered the first legitimate opportunity for recreational marijuana use to be "legalized," Prop 19 was overwhelmingly defeated by an estimated more than half of a million votes. Why didn't Prop. 19 pass? Perhaps the most conceivable explanation is because a substantial amount of marijuana proponents and users actually voted against the measure. Humboldt, Mendocino and Trinity counties in northern California, which are referred to as the "Emerald Triangle" because their communities and economy revolve around the marijuana trade similar to how Iowa's do with corn, all voted against Prop. 19. A likely explanation is that the Emerald Triangle stands to lose its niche due to the risk that many places in California could then start producing marijuana, and that combined with the government regulatory taxes would diminish profit margins. It then makes sense to vote down a seemingly liberal measure with the liberal intention of keeping marijuana out of corporate and state control. [continues 348 words]
Hawaii's medical marijuana program has sparked fierce debate over the past decade. Some view it-and use it-as medicine, while others contend it is a dangerous drug, widely abused. How does the program work, and who is involved? Teri Heede pulls out 25 orange, prescription pill bottles from a cloth bag hanging from the handles of her red motorized scooter. Then an inhaler, and, from another bag, empty cranberry juice jugs filled to the top with disposable interferon shots. This used to be Heede's life living with multiple sclerosis (MS)-pills in the morning, afternoon and evening. Pills to quell the side effects of her other pills. Shots Monday, Wednesday and Friday and frequent trips to the doctor. She's a 55-year-old retired computer engineer who served in the Navy during the Vietnam War. She had grown accustomed to having no energy, being violently ill for weeks on end, and losing some of her motor skills. But 10 years ago, she quit the pills and shots and opted for something she says finally worked-medical marijuana. [continues 2992 words]
At an establishment called Coffeeshop, Johnny, a clerk, chatted us up, lamenting on the demise of the cannabis cafe in the Netherlands. I told the clerk to not be discouraged. I preached of a budding pot culture out West in which the blossoming may take place in Oaksterdam, California. In that American state on Nov. 2, over seven million voters weighed in on Proposition 19, also known as the Regulate, Control and Tax Cannabis Act, which would have allowed local governments to legalize the sale of marijuana and control it like alcohol. [continues 214 words]
Last week, thankfully, the 2010 election took place. New faces are now in office in our state and federal government. Hopefully the fresh blood will bring about change and make our country better. More importantly, the political ads are over. Like most elections, not only did we just vote for people, we also voted for propositions. Here in Wisconsin, we voted on whether to allow government officials to use money from the state transportation fund to use in other projects. The referendum, which passed in all 53 counties in which it was on the ballot, seeks to amend the state constitution to prevent the use of these funds that are generated by vehicle registration and fuel taxes. [continues 405 words]
Proposition 19 loss stems from apathy, funding, fear, and loathing. Don't stop believin'" was the message from Proposition 19 creator Richard Lee of Oakland after the initiative to tax and regulate pot lost by around 540,000 votes, 46 percent to 53 percent last Tuesday night. About 3.3 million Californians voted for the measure, and 3.9 million didn't. But Lee said Prop 19 elevated the discussion about the nation's drug war to unprecedented levels. "The fact that millions of Californians voted to legalize marijuana is a tremendous victory," he said. "We have broken the glass ceiling. Prop 19 has changed the terms of the debate. And that was a major strategic goal." A Newsweek study found more than 1,800 articles on the measure, a 50 percent increase over coverage of Proposition 215 in 1996. [continues 775 words]
Yreka, Calif. - On the heels of the defeat of Proposition 19, the "Regulate, Control and Tax Cannabis Act of 2010," the Yreka City Council voted Thursday night to continue its moratorium on medical marijuana dispensaries within the city limits for another year. The current ordinance, adopted on Nov. 19, 2009, is set to expire this month, according to the agenda worksheet provided to the council. The ordinance adopted Thursday, listed as an urgency ordinance, will continue the moratorium for another year to await the outcome of various decisive issues on marijuana use, according to City Attorney Mary Frances McHugh. [continues 188 words]
What Happens If 19 Passes? SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. -- In 1913, California became the first state in the U.S. to make marijuana illegal. And in less than a week, it could be the first to reverse course. On Tuesday, voters will decide whether to approve the Regulate, Control and Tax Cannabis Act of 2010, known as Proposition 19. The possibility has attracted international attention, criticism from federal officials and debate around the country about the merits and drawbacks of legal marijuana. [continues 1330 words]
If marijuana is legalized on Tuesday, don't expect the Lodi Police Department to suddenly have a lot more time. A review by the News-Sentinel found that the number of marijuana arrests in Lodi is far below the state average. In 2008, the most recent year that data is available, a paltry 1.5 percent of all arrests in Lodi were marijuana-related, according to the state attorney general's office. By comparison, statewide marijuana-related offenses accounted for five percent of all arrests. Overall, there were only 15 felony marijuana arrests in Lodi in 2008. [continues 1093 words]
BOULDER CREEK -- It's no surprise that Santa Cruz County is home to a multimillion-dollar marijuana trade. From pot farms high in the Santa Cruz Mountains to dispensaries in many towns, the flourishing but subtle marijuana economy is the livelihood of hundreds, if not thousands, making it at least as viable as the region's pre-eminent strawberry business. Tuesday, California voters will decide whether to legalize marijuana, not just for the sick but for recreational users, ushering in a whole new audience for the long-established industry. In spite of the anticipated spike in demand, however, the prospect of legalization has put many local growers and retailers, comfortable with the current ambiguities of the marketplace, on edge about what might come. [continues 986 words]
LA PUENTE - Although it enacted a ban on marijuana dispensaries at the beginning of the year, the city is taking steps to prepare for a more pot-friendly future. La Puente is one of a few cities statewide with ballot measures to tax marijuana sales should Proposition 19 pass on Tuesday. Measure M would establish a new category of business licenses, "cannabis business," that would take effect if voters approve the Regulate, Control and Tax Cannabis Act of 2010. Taxes would be levied at a rate of 10 percent per $1,000 of gross receipts, which could bring La Puente about $2 million to $3 million each year in general funds. [continues 318 words]
If the shifting moral consensus of Americans was ever in doubt, look no further than Proposition 19. This proposition represents the single most groundbreaking stride in the legalization of marijuana, while it simultaneously represents a full out cultural shift of mindsets in Americans. The long-standing taboo against the evils of marijuana is slowly breaking. The glorification of marijuana is ever more prevalent in today's society, as shown heavily in Prop 19. California voters young and old are anxious to try and pass the proposition during the state's midterm elections. [continues 734 words]
If you've been secretly smoking your spliff, chill out. By this time next week, it could be legal. Proposition 19, the Regulate, Control, and Tax Cannabis Act of 2010 would legalize marijuana in California. Anyone over the age of 21 will be able to possess and grow marijuana for his personal use. If the Proposition passes, it will allow the state and local governments to regulate and tax cannabis. The governments will also oversee production, distribution, and sale. Legalization supporters say it could lead to hundreds of millions of dollars annually in taxes. Humboldt County's Board of Supervisors endorsed Proposition 19. [continues 429 words]
(Third in a series) What would the world be like if birds didn't sing? It's a frightening thought - an unearthly scenario - but one that the US Congress had to contemplate during hearings for the Marijuana Tax Act of 1937, the law that made marijuana illegal in the United States and in the process also banned hemp, the industrial form of the marijuana plant. During those hearings, American hemp companies testified against the proposed law, presenting arguments that were both reasoned and convincing. Attorney Ralph Lozier, representative for the National Institute of Oilseed Products, whose members produced the hemp seed oil used to make paints, varnishes, soap, linoleum and a number of other oil-based products, argued that hemp seed and oil should be exempted from the ban. "The drug is found only in the flowering tops of female plants," and not in the seeds and oils that his clients depended on for their livelihoods, Lozier said. In Russia, the people even used the seeds for food. "It is grown in their fields and used as oatmeal," he told the committee. The owner of the Rens Hemp Co., suppliers of hemp fiber to the US Navy, voiced his objection to the use of the word marijuana in the bill and asked that references to hemp in the "narcotic sense" be discontinued. He also complained that the law was overly complicated and the tax so high that it would put small hemp producers out of business. But it was the seed companies that got the committee's ear. Their representative insisted that there could be no replacement for hemp bird seed. In 1937, hemp seed was the primary birdseed for both wild and domestic birds and in that year alone over 4 million pounds of hemp bird seed was sold in stores across the US. The birds loved it and wouldn't sing without it. "We've never found another seed that makes a bird's coat so lustrous or makes them sing so much," he said. [continues 2491 words]
Proposition 19 Raises a Lot of Questions About Logistics, Legality and Tax Revenues. Vote yes on Proposition 19, the measure to legalize marijuana, and the unofficial state weed and largest cash crop will be controlled like alcohol, police will focus on serious crimes and California will get billions of dollars in new taxes. That's the pitch proponents make. "It's a jumbled legal nightmare," opponents retort, disputing those claims and insisting that the measure would lead to stoned nurses in hospitals, drugged motorists on the road and more high teenagers. [continues 1406 words]
with California gearing up for a vote next month on Proposition 19, a groundbreaking ballot measure that would fully legalize marijuana, a drug-policy expert is disappointed that Canada is moving in the opposite direction. Dr. Richard Mathias, a professor at UBC's school of population and public health, said it doesn't make sense that the Conservative government is continuing to push for mandatory prison sentences for cannabis possession. The physician was referring to Bill S-10, a Senate legislation that passed second reading on September 29. The bill is a reincarnation of two similar measures that previously died in the House of Commons. [continues 762 words]
Weed reform would benefit all Nearly all of us have done it, everyone from Lil Wayne to President Barack Obama. Yes, we're talking about marijuana, pot, reefer, Mary Jane, whatever you want to call it. Next month, California will vote on Proposition 19 - the Regulate Control and Tax Cannabis Act of 2010 - and if it passes, it would not decriminalize marijuana, it would instead entirely legalize marijuana in the state of California. If the proposition passes, only a federal agency - such as the Drug Enforcement Administration - would be able to arrest pot smokers, but the odds of that happening are highly unlikely. California has been a forerunner in marijuana reform laws. [continues 494 words]
Of the nine initiatives that will be on the statewide ballot on Nov. 2, the Regulate, Control and Tax Cannabis Act of 2010, better known as Proposition 19, is certain to be the most keenly watched. The effort to legalize pot has ignited a lively debate within L.A.'s black community, with proponents insisting that marijuana laws unfairly criminalize African-American youth and religious leaders and others advocating for the status quo. If California, which legalized medical marijuana in 1996, passes Prop. 19 by a simple majority, it would authorize local jurisdictions to regulate and tax the cultivation and sale of the schedule one drug. [continues 963 words]
Attorney General Eric Holder said the Obama administration "strongly opposes" a California ballot measure to legalize marijuana, warning that federal drug-enforcement efforts would be "greatly complicated" if the measure passes. Recent polls indicate voters narrowly favor passing the Regulate, Control and Tax Cannabis Act, also known as Proposition 19, in next month's election. If passed, the measure would only affect state law, leaving intact the federal law that classifies marijuana as a controlled substance alongside cocaine and other drugs. [continues 406 words]
