Medical Marijuana Dispensaries, Full Legalization Pondered By Michigan Lawmakers

[+Malamute]

http://www.mlive.com/lansing-news/index.ssf/2015/07/marijuana_legalization_michiga.html
 

Medical marijuana dispensaries, full legalization pondered by Michigan lawmakers

on July 27, 2015 at 12:23 PM, updated July 27, 2015 at 12:28 PM
 

LANSING, MI — An evolving bill to allow medical marijuana dispensaries in Michigan could also provide a regulatory framework for full legalization of the drug, according to the sponsor.

State Rep. Mike Callton, R-Nashville, has been working on medical marijuana dispensary legislation for several years — a version passed the Michigan House by a wide margin in late 2013 before stalling in the Senate — but recent discussions have led to major changes in the bill.

 

"I think we've gotten more buy-in from the police groups, because it looks like we need some regulation of marijuana in place before a possible legalization referendum," Callton said, referencing active petition drives seeking to put legalization proposals before voters in 2016.

 

"If we don't have anything in place, and suddenly it's legal, it's going to be the wild wild west. It's going to be hard to shove Pandora back in the box."

 

Callton wants to allow larger-scale marijuana growing operations and medical sales through "provisioning centers." The system would run parallel to — rather than replace — Michigan's voter-approved medical law that allows certified patients and caregivers to grow a limited number of plants.

 

The 2008 law did not address dispensaries, and a 2013 state Supreme Court ruling empowered county prosecutors to shut them down as a public nuisance. Some facilities continue to operate at the discretion of local law enforcement authorities.

 

Callton called the original medical marijuana law "insane" and is pushing for a dispensary system that includes product testing, packaging rules, signage restrictions and restrictions on felon participation in the trade.

 

"What other medicine does a doctor prescribe and then tell you to grow yourself? I really think it should be similar to a pharmacy system," he said, noting pharmacy sales are not an option because marijuana remains illegal at the federal level.

 

A recent draft of the bill, which Callton said has already seen some changes since it was circulated last month for feedback, calls for a multi-tiered medical marijuana system — similar to the model used to sell beer and wine in the state.

 

A new board would be created within the Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs to license growers, processors, distributors, product testers and dispensaries in municipalities that decide to allow such facilities to operate within their borders.

 

Only a distributor could sell marijuana to a dispensary, and gross receipts from those transactions would be taxed at 16 percent. The state would also impose a fee for licenses and require all transfers to be recorded in a statewide database.

 

The tiered system would provide a "break of ownership" in the supply chain, Callton said. For instance, he continued, growers should not be responsible for testing the safety of their own products because they would have a vested interest in approval.

 

The Michigan Cannabis Development Association, which describes itself as a trade organization made up of business leaders and entrepreneurs that formed in late 2014, has advocated for a tiered medical marijuana distribution system and supports Callton's efforts.

 

"Businesses involved in different phases of medical marijuana should be put into different categories," said Willie Rochon, secretary of MCDA and operator of the Michigan Wellness Group, a dispensary in Detroit. "It keeps the bad actors out and it keeps safeguards in place."

 

Rochon said the proposed system would "support small business and vigorous competition."

 

But the tiered model sounds "unduly burdensome," according to attorney Matthew Abel, a medical marijuana advocate and board member of the Michigan Comprehensive Cannabis Law Reform Committee, one of two separate groups circulating legalization petitions this summer.

 

"There's no reason why a cultivator couldn't sell directly to a retailer," Abel said. "It's the same problem we're having in the beer industry where Atwater Brewery can't sell to the 7-Eleven down the street. It adds another layer of expense, in this case, a double layer."

 

State Rep. Jeff Irwin, D-Ann Arbor, also said he opposes the tiered medical proposal, calling it "stupid on multiple levels" because marijuana and alcohol are unique products with unique histories.

 

"You've got people who are pushing for all manner of regulatory barriers that won't actually work in the market and are only being designed, I think, to enrich a few investors," Irwin said.

 

A NEW PROPOSAL FOR FULL LEGALIZATION

 

Irwin, who sponsored marijuana decriminalization legislation last session, is preparing to introduce a full legalization bill in the state Legislature, where he recently reached out to colleagues with a letter asking for their support and co-sponsorship.

 

"It is clear that marijuana prohibition is a colossal failure. Rather than wasting hundreds of millions of dollars every year arresting and prosecuting marijuana users, legalizing marijuana will bring a black market cash crop under regulated control," he wrote. "Not only will it create jobs, but it will redirect scarce law enforcement resources to protect citizens by going after our most violent criminals."

 

Irwin's bill may face an unlikely path in the Republican-led state Legislature, but it is sure to inform the ongoing debate over what legalization should look like if and when it comes to Michigan.

 

Four states have already legalized marijuana — Colorado and Washington were the first to implement their laws — and at least two Michigan groups areseeking to put proposals on the 2016 ballot that would legalize use by adults over the age of 21.

 

One of those measures would empower the state Legislature to regulate and tax marijuana sales, while the other would leave licensing up to local communities and establish a 10 percent excise tax on retail sales.

 

Irwin, who argues that higher taxes in Colorado have likely depressed legal transactions, is proposing a 5 percent excise tax that would ramp up to 10 percent over five years. The state would also collect sales tax and cover program costs through licensing fees.

 

He estimates the excise tax could eventually generate about $100 million in new revenue for the state, which would be devoted to early childhood education, road repairs and substance abuse treatment programs.

 

According to a draft copy of the bill provided by Irwin's office, the state would license marijuana growers and retail stores, but local communities could choose to prohibit them. The state would also offer a distributor license but would not require a middle man for transactions between growers and retail stores. Residents could grow up to 12 plants at home.

 

The goal, according to Irwin, is a regulatory system that includes important safeguards but is not so restrictive that it encourages consumers to continue participating in the black market, which has generally thrived despite a long-standing prohibition.

 

"If we want to strike a blow against the Mexican drug cartels and the people who are organizing a lot of the violence in our cities here, we have to drive this activity into the light, into the regulated space," he said. "The best way to do that is to set up a system where compliance is the rationale choice."

 

The Legislature will have the opportunity to consider marijuana legalization this session, one way or another. Along with Irwin's bill, both petition drives would send initiated legislation to Lansing, where lawmakers would have 40 days to approve the measure, propose an alternative or simply allow it to go before voters in 2016.

 

"I do think right now there is a sense that eventually this is an inevitable outcome," Irwin said, noting he will fight for a free-market model.

[AbominableDro-Man]

"What other medicine does a doctor prescribe and then tell you to grow yourself? I really think it should be similar to a pharmacy system,"  to me comes across as translating to "You mean we can't screw homegrowers out of their money if they can grow it themselves? 

[trichcycler]

ehhh boy, here it comes.

[trichcycler]

Marijuana testing, the new green rush!

[t-pain]

"If we don't have anything in place, and suddenly it's legal, it's going to be the wild wild west. It's going to be hard to shove Pandora back in the box."

its going to be a will smith movie co-starring kevin kline and selma hayek?

giant robot spiders and flying death frisbees?

 

 

 

nah. will smith is terrible.

have some kool moe dee instead.

 

 

flower NPRA for supporting these clowns.

 

well, calltons old enough to remember the wild wild west tv show too

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tu-8W-Sredo

[Restorium2]

"If we don't have anything in place, and suddenly it's legal, it's going to be the wild wild west. It's going to be hard to shove Pandora back in the box."

 

Or .... everything will just settle down with cannabis .... and we will all live happily ever after .... with all of our stuff ..... and not in prison.

[bobandtorey]

 

"What other medicine does a doctor prescribe and then tell you to grow yourself?

 

Their you have it . 

 

There are many types of medicine people grow themselves like Veggies ?  

[trichcycler]

^^that

 

and doctors often prescribe "sun", fiber, protein, water etc....all "home grown" medicines when needed, with pharmaceutical alternatives too yet, good docs continue to suggest using the natural alternatives.

[Restorium2]

MANY great medicines are Over The Counter. We really don't need a doctor at all. We just need a doctor because of repression. By now everyone knows it IS medicine. The cops just handed their hostage, cannabis, over to doctors to keep the Money Ball rolling. 

[Norby]

Drs. don't prescribe it, they recommend it, like chamomile tea before bed or valerian(sp) root.  Or like mint tea for stomach upset. Two of which I grow in my yard. Aspirin was first extracted from willow bark and willow bark has been used for 2400+ years for headaches(also in my yard).  Just because you can buy aspirin in the store doesn't mean you couldn't pull an old recipe and make your own to substitute. Mushrooms have hypoglycemic affects and some 50 + are prescribed by asian drs. for things such as diabetes and to boost the immune system to fight cancer.  Some of these mushrooms grow in the woods here in Mi.

I'm sure there's a lot more examples. 

[trichcycler]

http://www.herbmuseum.ca/files/images/CannabisPrescription3.jpg

[GregS]

Salma Hayek? What? Where?

[trichcycler]

(when silent)  She's Hhhooot

[Grateful Dad]

What is that smell? The money is in keeping pot illegal and that is a big cash cow for you name it; prisons, special law enforcement teams, pharmacy industry, beer distributors and it does go on. It is all important to keep this going because livelihoods are dependent on the revenue derived from the fact that this plant is illegal in any event. If the government actually were to make pot legal in Michigan or even federally it would put a serious dent in some of these people’s lifestyles. A lot of these people are "connected" to the people in power or even sitting in elective offices. I think it is naive to believe this legislative body will approve of a change in the law that might adversely effect their or their friend’s paychecks. I am planning on this matter being on the ballot come next fall.

I think the smell is bull spoors. The history of this legislative body has been to allow the Michigan Medical Marijuana Act to be eviscerated in direct defiance to the voter’s voiced preference of having available marijuana to those who need it and are certified to have it. To the patients they said “Sure you can have this for your pain but you can’t get it since you have nowhere to go to obtain this produce.” In addition they have allowed the law to be perverted to exclude the patient from using cannabis in any way except smoking or vaping leaving stranded countless patients who cannot smoke due to their conditions and cannot use a vaporizer either. Those people paid the state 100 dollars for the permission to use marijuana, not to mention the expense of getting medically certified and they got ripped off by this legislative body. I am not any more confident about this body today than when they betrayed the voters earlier. The smell is even greater when I consider that they will use delaying tactics to keep this question from getting to the voters in 2016. We have to make sure this does not happen. 

[trichcycler]

"Never be deceived that the rich will permit you to vote away their wealth."


“If voting made any difference they wouldn't let us do it.”
― Mark Twain

[AmishRnot4ganja]

"Never be deceived that the rich will permit you to vote away their wealth."

“If voting made any difference they wouldn't let us do it.”

― Mark Twain

 

It is literally going to take some kind of revolution.

[Wild Bill]

It is literally going to take some kind of revolution.

Our founding fathers would have been shooting long ago.

[trichcycler]

It is literally going to take some kind of revolution.

I believe it is happening, albeit by the unorganized spill of mush brains and ego's for the first wave.