[PenZenMaster]

My thoughts to the Washington legislature:

Dear Representative,
The Washington Liquor Control Board as directed by Budget Proviso Language: 3ESSB 5034 Sec. 141(2) has issued its final Medical Marijuana Recommendations. During the upcoming legislative session which commences January 13, 2014 you will be asked to consider those findings.

As a medical marijuana patient I am grateful that the people of Washington passed the Medical Use of Marijuana Act in 1998 as a ballot initiative (I 692), and the Washington State Legislature amended the Act in 2007 with Senate Bill 6032 and in 2010 with Senate Bill 5798. These laws give me safe access to the medical marijuana that I need and allow me the right to form a collective garden from which all members benefit. Additionally in 2008, the Washington Department of Health clarified the law by adopting a rule defining a “60 day supply” of medical marijuana.

The final Medical Marijuana Recommendations, if adopted as submitted would effectively destroy a medical marijuana system that has been in place since 1998.

With just three words “Eliminate Collective Gardens” these recommendations rip the heart out of Washington’s successful medical marijuana program. Many members of collective gardens would be physically unable to cultivate their own medical marijuana if not for the help and assistance of other members of the collective. Collective gardens also allow patients to know exactly where their medical marijuana comes from and under what conditions it was cultivated. Finally collective gardens assure those patients on fixed incomes or those who are in low income households can afford the medical marijuana that they need.

In 2008 when the Washington Department of Health clarified the law by adopting a rule defining a “60 day supply” of medical marijuana it was not done hastily or without considerable research and investigation. If the current possession limits are imposed along with the restrictions on the number of plants in cultivation it will become impossible for the average medical marijuana patient to cultivate enough marijuana for their own use. Limiting the number of plants to 6 in total is, to be frank, ridiculous. Anyone with a basic understanding of cannabis cultivation knows that even in “perfect” conditions you will never be able to sustain a garden with such a small plant pool. One infestation of spider mites, an occurrence of powdery mildew or infection of mosaic virus can quickly destroy a small garden and leave the medical marijuana patient without a supply for up to six months.

Finally without publicly accessible locations for collective gardens that are separate from the cultivation location, collective members will not be able to receive the benefits of membership. The Legislature should continue to allow separate channels for recreational distribution and medical distribution of marijuana. Medical marijuana patients rely on high Cannabidiol (CBD) strains of cannabis which have no value in the recreational market as they are psychoactive but NOT intoxicating which is the primary goal of recreational use. Without a separate distribution channel for medical marijuana Washington medical marijuana patients will not have access to the specific strain of cannabis they need.

In closing I ask you to keep the Washington Medical Marijuana law intact and to vote to protect medical marijuana patient rights.

PenZenMaster

[yortbogey]

only if Recreational and medical STAY separate.......
WSLCB... can run recreational into the group....
just allow WDH to run and maintain medical... like any other health policy in WA state....

[xmobotx]

strictly talking WA st here:

there just is no provision for dispensaries or for a business/individual to profit from MMJ production/distribution

& therein lies the heart of the state's problem w/ MMJ; those who have tried to turn the MMJ scene into a profitable formula have created a situation where lawmakers are viewing the MMJ scene as problematic in particular, "un-regulated."

It's hard to say how the legislature will handle this. If they adopt WSLCB's recommendation, many MMJ patients will be unable to afford the levels of MMJ they require. {especially those who eat it}

As far as I can see {& IMO} the MMJ laws as they are written are just fine & provide any MMJ patient w/ the means to produce or have produced their medicine* There is however, nothing in the verbage to indicate that any kind of storefront "business" {non-profit or ?} is a lawful way to distribute MMJ.

The solution is simple, leave the MMJ laws as they are written ~where up to 3 people {the same 3} can grow 15 plants ea w/ a max of 45 in one household & 1 caretaker may grow for 1 disabled patient~ &, establish a protocol for producing, processing & distributing commercial MMJ for those who would prefer to buy it @ the store {the state's only going to be happy if this is regulated as heavily as the recreational & this may just as well be implemented by WSLCB}

* the main issue w/ people being able to acquire MMJ has been the lack of effective networking ~for instance, you can place an ad on craigslist but, some zealot will "flag" it & that results in the ad being removed

[RoadRash]

The states are making cultivation way too complicated.


The correct policy could be summed up in 3 words -

let people grow.


As far as taxes, I think $1 per gram is about max. for what people put up with before they go back to the old-fashioned Outlaw pricing system.

[xmobotx]

certainly as more & more states legalize, the prospect of growing your own w/o regulation or fear will become more viable for those who wish to do so {like CO's provision}

it hasn't been that long that you could distill your own liquor @ home legally where i am but, people have been brewing their own beer.

some people don;t want the bother & the market will eventually even out to be what it's going to be

[PenZenMaster]

Originally Posted by xmobotx

the main issue w/ people being able to acquire MMJ has been the lack of effective networking ~for instance, you can place an ad on craigslist but, some zealot will "flag" it & that results in the ad being removed

Indeed, we have tried to get networks like 420-Barter up and running and it's difficult to get people involved and to stay engaged.

The other silly provision is the 'new' 6 plant limit. It's hard enough working with 15 to keep the genetics I need going.

[vapedg13]

we can if people act fast and pressure the right people


A legislative proposal to protect medical cannabis patients and collectives in Washington has been filed in the state’s House of Representatives, according to the nonprofit organization Sensible Washington.
Under the proposed law - House Bill 2233 - medical cannabis patients would finally receive defined arrest protection, as would medical cannabis collectives who receive a simple business license from the state. The measure was formulated by Sensible Washington in conjunction with Americans for Safe Access.
The measure, which is sponsored by Representatives Sherry Appleton, Luis Moscoso, Roger Freeman and Jessyn Farrell, has been assigned to the House Health Care & Wellness Committee.
The bill is necessary given that under current Washington State law, although medical cannabis is “legal”, the possession, cultivation and use of cannabis is only an “affirmative defense” for patients, meaning that they can technically still be charged with a crime.
A different medical cannabis proposal - House Bill 2149 - has also been assigned to the House Health Care & Wellness Committee, though medical cannabis advocates are staunchly opposed to it, given that it would negatively alter numerous aspects of the state’s medical cannabis law, including reducing the cultivation limit to 3 plants, down from 15, and forcing all patients to join a mandatory registry to receive legal protection.
House Bill 2233 would provide arrest protection to any individual who receives a recommendation from a physician, with no requirement of joining a registry. The current possess limit of 24 ounces, and the cultivation limit of 15 plants, would remain unaltered.
The full text for House Bill 2233 can be viewed by clicking here.
Those in Washington State who support protecting medical cannabis should contact their district’s legislators – which they can look up by clicking here - to urge them to support House Bill 2233.

[JamesFarmer]

Take note:

An additional bill has been submitted: SB 6178

https://apps.leg.wa.gov/documents/bil...Bills/6178.pdf

This bill, if passed, would limit medical possession to 3oz. This is NOT realistic for legitimate medical patients.

PLEASE CONTACT YOUR REPRESENTATIVES AND LET THEM KNOW WHICH BILL TO SUPPORT!!!!