MJ News for 04/08/2014

[7greeneyes]

hMPp://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/govbeat/wp/2014/04/08/retail-marijuana-sales-in-washington-face-regulatory-delays/

Retail marijuana sales in Washington face regulatory delays​

Correction: An earlier version of this story incorrectly identified the year in which measures were passed in Colorado and Washington. Those measures passed in 2012, not 2013.

SEATTLE — Drive down virtually any thoroughfare in Seattle and you are likely to pass several medical marijuana dispensaries. On Rainier Avenue, in southeast Seattle, the Northwest Cannabis Market sits between a fish store and an Italian bakery. A mile or so down the road, another dispensary occupies an old drive-in burger stand. There are about half as many medical marijuana dispensaries in Seattle — about 200 — as Starbucks locations.

But unlike in Colorado, where retail sales of marijuana for recreational uses began on New Year’s Day, a year after voters passed a ballot initiative legalizing the drug, Washington state regulators have taken months to craft new rules, and to comb through the thousands of applications for growing and retail licenses. More than 16 months after voters approved legalization, anyone hoping to score some dope in Seattle still has to have a medical prescription.

The state Liquor Control Board, tasked with overseeing marijuana sales, estimates the first of what will ultimately be 334 stores that receive licenses will be open by July.

The delay is a product of ambiguously-worded 15-year-old legislation and strict structures in which marijuana growers will have to operate; it has served to heighten pre-existing tensions between the state’s thriving medical marijuana industry and retail sellers eager to turn a profit. And the delay is costing businesses eager to begin selling, and the state hungry for tax revenue, millions of dollars.

“There’s people that are spending money and taking risk” to set up retail stores, said John Davis, CEO of the Northwest Patient Resource Center, a Seattle dispensary. “The Liquor Control Board being all over the place, this could very easily turn into a lawsuit.”

Part of the blame for the delay rests with the authors of a 1998 ballot initiative that legalized marijuana for medical use. That law allowed patients to possess up to a 60-day supply of marijuana, though what constituted a 60-day supply was never defined. The state legislature passed a bill that would have imposed regulations on the medical marijuana industry in 2011, but then-Gov. Christine Gregoire (D), worried that those regulations would put state officials at risk of arrest by federal agents, vetoed it.

Consequently, the medical marijuana industry has existed in a state of legal limbo for more than a decade. Dispensaries, which technically operate as “collective gardens,” operate without state regulations. Some pay their fair share of sales taxes to the state; others don’t.

The authors of the 2012 measure, Initiative 502, consciously created a more regimented structure. Under the new law, marijuana is treated like alcohol: Retailers cannot grow their own product, and they cannot win a license to sell the drug without a property rental agreement.

Colorado’s medical marijuana industry, on the other hand, had the most sophisticated set of regulations in the country, and the ballot measure voters passed in 2012 required the kind of vertical integration that Washington’s system prohibits. Instead of preventing retailers from growing their own crop, Colorado requires retailers to grow at least 70 percent of everything they sell.

In Washington, the Liquor Control Board has moved quickly to establish the rules that will govern marijuana sales. Those rules require retail stores to have a compliant location, far enough away from venues that cater to minors, such as schools. But the board has been overwhelmed by applications, many of which were incomplete. Brian Smith, a spokesman for the Liquor Control Board, said 20 to 50 percent of the retail applications came back without all the required information. The board allowed applicants time to submit the missing
data, adding weeks to the permitting process.

“The LCB, to their credit, has really been bending over backward to help” retail applicants, said Alison Holcumb, the Criminal Justice Director at the ACLU’s Washington branch and the campaign manager of the successful marijuana initiative. “They didn’t really have a good idea of how many applications they would get.”

A lottery system will determine which of the more than 2,000 applicants will receive licenses to begin operating by July. Those who win the lottery will have to show proof they have secured a lease for retail space, get finger-printed for background checks and make sure they pass the licensing process. But in many places demand hugely outpaces supply; in Seattle, 411 retail hopefuls applied for just 21 licenses.

That means at least 90 percent of the medical distributors operating now won’t be allowed to sell to retail customers. In an effort to protect their monopoly, and in an ironic twist of fate, the medical marijuana industry was one of the heaviest spenders against the legalization initiative. Some in the medical marijuana industry say their business is being put at risk by less experienced retail applicants who don’t necessarily know what they’re doing.

“Everyone is leaping into the green rush,” Davis said. “We’re weighted exactly evenly with the people who are just trying to take advantage of the system.”

Marijuana legalization is also proving to be something of an experiment for law enforcement officials. Several jurisdictions, including King County, home to about 2 million of Washington’s 7 million residents, backed off prosecuting low-level marijuana crimes even before the vote to legalize the drug. Now, law enforcement officials are weighing how they should respond to extra-legal circumstances — say, sales between two individuals, which are still illegal.

“Do we care? Are we going to arrest that person and prosecute that person? What if that person sells to minors? Then we might care,” said Dan Satterberg, the King County Prosecuting Attorney. “There’s real conflicted expectations on what law enforcement’s role is going to be going forward.”
Both private businesses and state government stand to make millions of dollars when sales of marijuana for recreational use begin. Washington state budget officials estimated the state would reap about $134 million in tax revenue generated by marijuana sales in the 2015-2017 biennium.

But those projections could prove too optimistic. Colorado initially estimated that taxes and fees from marijuana would generate $134 million for the forthcoming fiscal year; on Tuesday, Gov. John Hickenlooper (D) is expected to tell lawmakers that figure was about $20 million too high. Legislative budget analysts expected the state to reap just $65 million, less than half Hickenlooper’s initial projections, in the first year.

It’s not clear, either, that those businesses that are allowed to open first will have anything to sell. Washington has approved just eight grower licenses to businesses around the state — all marijuana sold in retail outlets must be grown in Washington — though the Liquor Control Board is nearing final inspections on three dozen new growers.

“If I’m given a license, sure, I’ll open my doors to let people come down and film my empty shelves. There’s not going to be much supply to begin with,” Davis said. “There’s nothing easy about the cannabis industry.”

 

[7greeneyes]

hMPp://baltimore.cbslocal.com/2014/04/07/md-lawmakers-enter-last-day-of-session-marijuana-decriminalization-minimum-wage-on-agenda/

Maryland General Assembly Decriminalizes Marijuana, Approves Minimum Wage Increase​

ANNAPOLIS, Md. (WJZ/AP) — The Maryland General Assembly has given final approval to a minimum wage increase. The state will also decriminalize marijuana. A bill that takes jail time out of the equation for possession of small amounts of weed is headed to the governor’s desk.

Political reporter Pat Warren reports some say the bill goes too far, while others say it doesn’t go far enough.

Gov. Martin O’Malley says he will sign the bill into law and hopes it allows greater focus on greater threats to public safety.

He released the following statement:

“With more effective policing and more widely available drug treatment, together in Maryland, we have driven violent crime down to its lowest levels in 30 years. This progress has been hard-won and much remains to be done. Recent spikes in homicides and heroin overdose deaths underscore the life-saving urgency of the work before us.

“The General Assembly has decided after much consideration — and with clear majorities in both Chambers — to send to my desk a bill that would decriminalize the possession of small amounts of marijuana, and I plan to sign it.

“As a matter of judicial economy and prosecutorial discretion, few if any defendants go to prison for a first or even a second offense of marijuana possession in Maryland. Desuetude is often a precursor of reform.

“As a young prosecutor, I once thought that decriminalizing the possession of marijuana might undermine the Public Will necessary to combat drug violence and improve public safety. I now think that decriminalizing possession of marijuana is an acknowledgement of the low priority that our courts, our prosecutors, our police, and the vast majority of citizens already attach to this transgression of public order and public health. Such an acknowledgment in law might even lead to a greater focus on far more serious threats to public safety and the lives of our citizens.”

The General Assembly has stripped jail time out of the penalty for possession of small amounts of marijuana, over the protest of anti-drug advocates.

“When decriminalization happens, more people smoke pot,” said Mike Gimble, anti-drug advocate.

Views on the use of marijuana have changed and are reflected in the General Assembly’s decision to decriminalize it.

The Senate voted Monday to accept several compromises the House added over the weekend.

On Saturday, the House passed a bill that changes the penalty for possession of 10 grams or less from jail time to a citation and fine. There will be no arrest and no criminal record.

The bill keeps marijuana use illegal but make it akin to a traffic violation. The House opted to require all teen offenders to be evaluated for treatment. It also voted to raise the penalties to $250 for a second offense and $500 for a third, up from a maximum fine of $100.

“You’re going to allow civil process for people who possess it. And the guy who sells it to ‘em, you’re still going to call him a distributor and he’s going to have a five-year felony on his record. Now that’s ridiculous!” said Mike McDermott, (R)-Eastern Shore.

Supporters of the bill agree that sales and other issues still need to be addressed, including pipes and papers.

“The paper that people use to smoke marijuana with, any paraphernalia regarding marijuana, is still illegal, still arrestable, and even though it’s a fine, it’s a criminal offense,” said Baltimore Del. Curt Anderson.

Del. Anderson calls the bill a step toward legalization.

“It would have to be a step that we could take first so we could see if Maryland actually wants to legalize,” Anderson said.

Decriminalizing marijuana became an issue for the ACLU based on racial disparities in arrest rates.

“Despite comparable rates of use, African-Americans in our state are overwhelmingly arrested for marijuana possession,” said Sarah Love, ACLU.
That motivated members of the Black Caucus to move beyond forming a task force to study marijuana to a vote to decriminalize it.

Delegate and gubernatorial candidate Heather Mizeur sponsored the bill and is in favor of legalizing marijuana.

“People’s minds change,” Mizeur said. “Ninety percent of Marylanders have been very clear in survey after survey across the state that they support marijuana decriminalization and the time to get it done is now.”

MINIMUM WAGE HIKE

Meanwhile, the Maryland General Assembly has approved incremental increases to the minimum wage over several years.

The House of Delegates voted 87-47 Monday to give final approval to increasing the minimum wage from $7.25 an hour to $8 in January.

It would rise to $8.25 in July 2015; $8.75 in July 2016; $9.25 in July 2017 and $10.10 in July 2018.

The vote sends the bill to O’Malley, who made the measure a priority this legislative session.

He released this statement:

“My central focus as Governor of Maryland has been to strengthen and grow the ranks of our ever more diverse and upwardly mobile middle class. That’s why we invested record amounts in our #1-ranked public schools, why we did more than any other state in the nation to hold down the cost of college, why we expanded the Earned Income Tax Credit, why we chose to invest more in putting people to work rebuilding our transportation infrastructure, and why we are the only state in the nation that’s passed a living wage law.

“This year, we are building on this record of strengthening the middle class by raising Maryland’s minimum wage to $10.10. We worked hard to bring people together and forge the consensus necessary to make this important progress possible. I commend the General Assembly for giving so many Maryland families the raise they deserve.”

Supporters say the increase will provide more money for people to spend to help boost the economy. But opponents contend it will hurt businesses and lead to job losses.

The measure includes a provision to keep the salaries of community service providers who work with the developmentally disabled above minimum wage.
Lawmakers have until midnight to pass any legislation they want to see take effect this year. Any bill that does not do that is considered dead.

 

[7greeneyes]

hMPp://time.com/52569/medical-marijuana-legalization/

Medical-Marijuana Advocates Descend on Capitol Hill​

More than 100 marijuana-legalization advocates went to Washington to lobby lawmakers on a subject that has seen little action in Congress despite a rising tide of Americans supporting legalization for medical purposes.

Medical-marijuana supporters flocked to Capitol Hill on Monday to push for legislation that would prohibit the federal government from restricting state medical-marijuana laws.

“We’re doing this work,” said Steph Sherer, executive director of Americans for Safe Access, a pro-medical-pot group that brought 152 people to Washington to lobby 300 members of Congress. “It’s not just a bunch of potheads [saying], Please let us do this.”

The House bill would offer legal clarity to the growing number of states that are legalizing medical marijuana even as it remains illegal under federal law. New York might become the 21st state to legalize medicinal marijuana this year, but the Drug Enforcement Agency considers marijuana a drug on the same level as heroin, and the Justice Department under the Obama Administration hasn’t always been consistent in its level of prosecutorial restraint and its willingness to defer to state laws.

The bill is a long shot, to say the least, but advocates aren’t letting that dent their enthusiasm. Sherer pointed to groups that have issued scientific standards for quality control in medical-marijuana products as a way of showing its increasingly mainstream status. Sherer uses cannabis daily; she says she can’t get out of bed without it because of a disorder called dystonia, which causes her muscles to contract involuntarily. She called herself one of a million legal medical-cannabis patients in America.

“Once you use this medication and it works for you, or you see it work for a loved one, it really is crazy that we can’t even get a hearing at this point,” Sherer said. “We’re actually regulating this product from seed to consumption.”

But the pro-cannabis message will likely fall on deaf ears. It’s a nonstarter in the Republican-controlled House — Dan Rush, who directs the medical-cannabis department at the United Food and Commercial Workers union, listed California Representative Dana Rohrabacher as the sole exception to what he called an “entire Republican side of the building” opposed to legalization. And Democrats who control the Senate are hardly ready to make it a priority in a midterm-election year. The American public increasingly favors legalization, and for the first time, a CBS poll in January showed a slight majority supporting it.

Medical-marijuana advocates may find more success working through the Executive Branch. On Friday, Attorney General Eric Holder said the Obama Administration is ready to work with Congress to take marijuana off the federal government’s list of the most dangerous drugs. Obama has said marijuana is “not very different” from cigarettes and less dangerous “on the individual consumer” than alcohol.

Marijuana advocates just want things to change.

“I don’t care who fixes it,” Sherer said. “But it seems like we keep getting ping-ponged around.”

 

[7greeneyes]

hMPp://www.telluridenews.com/articles/2014/04/06/news/doc533f392c9a364791642866.txt

Airport clarifies marijuana rules​

The Telluride Regional Airport Authority has decided to handle the issue of marijuana at the airport with an advisement to passengers.

The board voted at its March meeting to install signs at TEX that advise anyone boarding flights that they risk prosecution if they enter federal airspace with marijuana. The new warning signs will be placed in various locations at the airport.

Sales and possession of retail marijuana might be legal in Telluride, but marijuana is still federally illegal, which puts TEX in a tough position. According to TEX Board Chairman Jon Dwight, the board is attempting to walk a fine line between conflicting federal and state laws.

“We’re respecting Colorado state law; you can legally possess marijuana, but once you leave the airport by air, you’re subject to federal law,” Dwight said.

“Once flights are in air, you’re in federal airspace. There’s been no direction yet by the [Federal Aviation Administration] or the Department of Transportation, so we’ll wait to see what direction they give airports in states where they’ve legalized marijuana.”

* According to the board’s approved motion, the new signs will read: “While the possession/use of marijuana is legal in Colorado, it is illegal in federal airspace under the Controlled Substance Act. If you are departing this airport by air, you will be entering federal airspace.”

Dwight said he thinks the signs will be helpful, especially for people traveling within Colorado.

“A lot of people don’t equate that if you take off from Telluride and just fly to Denver [that they are breaking the law],” Dwight said. “Some think ‘I’m still OK.’ Well, they’re not, because it is still illegal in federal airspace.”

Along with the new signs, the board also said the airport needs to update its employee manual to address the new Colorado laws and how they apply to airport staff. The handbook updates will be completed with an attorney’s oversight but, in general, Dwight said TEX is not interested if people are in possession of marijuana on the premises. However, if anyone is under the influence of marijuana at the airport, it’s similar to if they were drunk.

“It has to be looked at just as alcohol is,” Dwight said. “Just like if someone was drunk in the terminal, we’d have to deal with it in a [consistent] manner.”

Several airports around Colorado have been tacklingh the issue of marijuana, coming up with different solutions for the issue.

According to The Associated Press, at least one airport in Colorado, the Colorado Springs Airport, has implemented amnesty boxes, which allow passengers to drop off marijuana before they go through security to avoid getting in trouble.

The passage of Amendment 64 in November of 2012 made it legal for adults 21 and older who are residents of Colorado to possess up to 1 ounce of marijuana. Non-residents can possess up to a quarter-ounce.

Recreational marijuana is illegal in the majority of the U.S., so anyone who is caught with it once they leave Colorado is subject to prosecution.

 

[7greeneyes]

hMPp://www.oregonlive.com/pacific-northwest-news/index.ssf/2014/04/heres_the_drill_under_oregons.html

Here's the drill under Oregon's new medical marijuana dispensary law​

SALEM — A line of patients forms in the lobby of a medical marijuana shop called Cherry City Compassion as a worker checks IDs, enters names into a computer system and performs other duties required under a new state law.

The extra scrutiny is new to these holders of Oregon medical marijuana cards waiting to enter a room with medicines priced at $140 to $290 an ounce, depending on the strain, grower and other factors.

Until now, medical pot shops have operated in a gray area. That's changed under a law passed last year that legalizes medical marijuana dispensaries as long as they apply for and are granted a license.

Cherry City was among the first dispensaries approved when the state began sending out licenses March 21. So far, the state has cleared 32 of the more than 300 dispensaries that applied to sell medical pot.

With the state's imprimatur come the state's rules.

Customers can't simply show a medical marijuana card to get in anymore. Now they also have to provide a photo ID before being buzzed through a locked door to an inner sanctum where the marijuana is kept. Security cameras record each transaction. Customer purchases are entered into store computers, accounting for every gram entering and leaving the facility.

One reason for all this is to keep Oregon medical pot from being sold on the black market.

The new law also addresses demands by holders of medical marijuana cards. Until now, they have had to grow the drug themselves, have it grown for them, or take their chances with a shop that might get busted because there was no legal foundation for its existence.

"The business and the market's changing," said Nole Bullock, Cherry City Compassion's executive director. "But it's a great day for Oregon patients to finally have a regulated system in place that guarantees them safe access to safe medicine."

A state license also affords dispensaries some protection by making infractions of state rules a civil matter rather than a crime, Bullock said.

Before now, dispensaries could not charge for medical marijuana, and growers could be reimbursed only for the costs of supplies and utilities, not labor or other expenses.

Some shops charged a membership fee, but provided the pot for free and allowed members to smoke or consume it on site. Others operated like a farmers' market, where growers rented space in the store to dispense their products to users who would reimburse their expenses. Another type dispensed pot in return for reimbursement for the grower and a service fee for the shop.

Allegations arose under the old system that some pot shops were illegally selling marijuana.

The new rules make it legal for dispensaries to pay growers for their product and receive payment from their customers directly. But sales will be scrutinized. The regulations say a shop must document operating costs, to include "costs of transferring, handling, securing, insuring, testing, packaging and processing ... and the cost of supplies, utilities and rent or mortgage."

Clatsop County District Attorney Josh Marquis said this change makes medical pot a commercial, for-profit industry. He said that's not what Oregon residents wanted when they voted to legalize medical marijuana in 1998 and rejected a 2010 ballot measure that would have created a dispensary system.

Dispensaries cannot profit "per se," said Karynn Fish, spokeswoman for the Oregon Health Authority, the state agency that sets the dispensary rules. They can, however, roll the costs of salaries and overhead expenses into what they charge patients, she said.

Bullock, whose dispensary is registered as a nonprofit, said the new program will cut down on black market "street slinging" and unregulated pot businesses.

"Six months from now, we're not going to have the kind of (unregulated) activity we have right now," Bullock said, referring to shops still operating without state licenses.

 

[7greeneyes]

hMPp://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/woman-arrested-911-call-quality-marijuana-article-1.1748624

Texas woman arrested after calling police to complain about quality of marijuana :rofl:​

LUFKIN, Texas — Police in East Texas have arrested a woman after she called them to complain about the quality of the marijuana she had purchased from a dealer.

Lufkin police Sgt. David Casper said Monday that an officer went to the home of 37-year-old Evelyn Hamilton to hear her complaint that the dealer refused to return her money after she objected that the drug was substandard.
Casper says she pulled the small amount of marijuana from her bra when the officer asked if she still had it.

She was arrested Friday on a charge of possession of drug paraphernalia.
Hamilton said Monday that she spent $40 on "seeds and residue." She says she called police when she got no satisfaction from the dealer's family.

 

[7greeneyes]

hMPp://www.huffingtonpost.com/billrobinson/building-a-cannabis-brand_b_4790349.html

Building a Cannabis Brand ... Straight​

With all the changes in Colorado and Washington state regarding marijuana smoking and possession, I was guessing there's a veritable hematoma burgeoning of small business and entrepreneurial activity in that industry. I was right (for a change).

One might imagine a small, smoke-filled office full of "Jeff Spicoli's," toking on all manner of spliffs, blunts, bongs, chillums and the like; urgently ordering delivery pizzas, as they plot the rise and dominance of the cannabis sector in America.

Well, though there are certainly those 'budding' entrepreneurs smoking like chimneys, 'one' would be wrong to assume that they are all riding Puff the Magic Dragon's tail.

And now for something completely different: There are two young ladies in Denver, Colorado who are quietly building a small empire especially designed to help the cannabis business sector build their brands and increase business.

Though they both admit to smoking weed occasionally, I get the strong impression that Olivia Mannix and Jennifer (Jen) DeFalco spend the preponderance of their waking hours straight and focused on their business goals--which just happen to involve marijuana instead of toothpaste.

Cannabrand is these ladies' real-world extension of what they strongly believe is an enormous opportunity: the rising cannabis industry's need for Branding, Marketing and all the ingredients like strategy, website, graphic and creative development.

As you can certifiably see from the photos above, there's no evidence of toking, Doritos or red eyes in the Cannabrand' workday.

Note to Reader: I am the father of a daughter and while I will strive for objectivity, my opinions, observations and everything I write here should be viewed in that overarching, helicoptering and loving context. I was not in favor of complete and total legalization. That however, might be changing.

Both 25 years old and filled with the superb, youthful exuberance that entails, these gals met while at the University of Colorado at Boulder. Boulder's a great town to meet and make a friend, they chime chirpily. Jen is the creative mind behind Cannabrand, enjoying the 'imagineering' for clients and Olivia is more strategic and overall business-oriented. They make a highly-complimentary pair of 'entrepreneuresses.'

"Going to college in Boulder," Jen DeFalco told me, "a lot of our friends smoked pot, of course. But we wanted to try and take the stigma away from cannabis. We see cannabis as a healthier alternative to alcohol." Olivia Mannix chimed in, "Most traditional agencies won't associate themselves with cannabis and we wanted to take advantage of that and provide our branding, marketing and website development services." Serving an under-served market seems to be these ladies' clear strategy.

Mannix, who's an unrepentantly passionate skier had a personal, defining, medical moment involving weed or more specifically, cannabis edibles. "I had blown out both knees skiing," she told me painfully, "and the Percocet the doctor gave me didn't help and made me feel worse. When I ate some (cannabis-laced) watermelon tarts, I felt much better and was in less pain."

DeFalco started a newspaper--of all things--in her neighborhood at age 10 and then went hawking it door-to-door. Mannix was selling makeup door-to-door at age 13; both early jobs were harbingers of their entrepreneurial thrust later.

Hailing from Wilton, Connecticut, Mannix told me they're both concerned about this new law working out well for all those concerned. "It's a lot cleaner because people can grow and use it openly and not hide it," Mannix told me. DeFalco concluded, "It'll be handled a lot like alcohol is restricted to prevent kids from getting it or adults getting it for them. We're totally against driving on alcohol, drugs or cannabis. We're really against that."

Alan Katzker is the founder of Boulder Elevated Events and a Cannabrand client. Katzker is really amped up and hard-charging about the Mannix/DeFalco service he's received and seems utterly genuine to me. "I absolutely love Jen and Olivia ... love, love, love," he gushed. "They helped me re-brand and built a great website for me. I'm very impressed with them--they are cutting-edge and real pioneers." In a key supporting act for his satisfaction stated above, Katzker has connected the Cannabrand' ladies with a friend of his who is a very successful "cannabis entrepreneur" and that represents the most powerful form of marketing known to man, WOM (Word of Mouth).

Weedmaps is a local Colorado success story and has been described as the "Yelp for marijuana dispensaries." It started out as a kind of early Internet directory for legal medical marijuana dispensaries for sick patients, which has positioned it well for the new recreational user market. "I met Jen and Olivia at an Edible Events function," Barry Bard, who works at Weedmaps told me, "it's so cool to see other young people starting their own businesses."

And the Cannabrand gals aren't just branding, marketing and promoting their clients' businesses, they're also promoting their own enterprise with policy-type, op-eds on their Cannabrand Tumblr blog.

In an effort to paint a more complete picture of these two young ladies, I asked them a few questions regarding Colorado and the mesmerizing 'gold rush' activity there around cannabis.

1. Do you think Colorado's cannabis legalization will lead to higher drug addiction in CO? Why?

Jennifer DeFalco responded:

"I do not believe in the slightest that Colorado's cannabis legalization will lead to higher drug addiction in Colorado. First off, cannabis is not a physically-addictive substance--it's even reported to be less addictive than caffeine. If you're asking if it's a gateway drug, I'd have to disagree with that theory. People who choose to alter their minds with hard drugs would probably also choose to experiment with marijuana and alcohol, regardless. So, do I think that consuming cannabis influences the average person to use and abuse hard drugs later down the road? No."

2. Do you think Colorado's cannabis legalization will lead to more DUI's and DUI deaths in CO?

Jennifer DeFalco responded: "I do not think that Colorado's cannabis legalization will lead to more deaths or DUI's in CO. Since cannabis is much safer to consume than alcohol (one cannot overdose and die from marijuana), I would argue that if cannabis consumption replaces alcohol consumption, you will see a decline in fatalities - including those related to traffic. A recent study reported by PBS even cites that the rate of traffic-related deaths drops by about 9% in states after they legalize (medical) marijuana."

3. Do you worry about cannabis legalization in CO making it easier for young people to get and start using cannabis?

Olivia Mannix responded: "No, regulating cannabis--if anything, will make it more difficult for young people to get a hold of it, because with regulation comes restriction. My friends who grew up in Boulder said it was easier to get marijuana than to get alcohol in high school, because alcohol is regulated.

Now that cannabis is regulated, it will be more difficult for teens to get a hold of it, because it's slowly distancing itself from the 'black market.' Marijuana regulation will also reduce teens' exposure to harder drugs now that it will be off of the illegal market (where hard drugs are found). The federal government has stated that teen marijuana use has decreased since it has been regulated."

4. What do you think of recent reports that CO food stamp cards are being frequently used to withdraw cash from cannabis dispensary ATMs to buy cannabis?

Olivia Mannix responded: "I have heard conflicting reports, and believe that these claims are false. SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) cards, cannot be used to withdrawal cash, they can only be used when purchasing food from authorized supermarkets."

Of course, this nation's eyes are upon Colorado and Washington state as the forerunners and a bit of an experiment in legalization. Screw-up, and America will be done with the idea perhaps forever. Succeed and most of the USA could look like Amsterdam within a few short years. What I've learned in the writing, research and conversations is this: Colorado is way ahead of Washington state because they had more experience with the medical marijuana legalization first, and, the industry people in Colorado are all aware that a misstep could be 'game over,' so are laser-focused on doing this right.

"State regulations are promoting compliance amongst owners and operators in Colorado. There's no reason to break the rules," said Joe Tremolada, who's a cannabis industry veteran experienced in the creation, financing, growing and distribution areas of this growing field.

Troy Dayton is the co-founder and CEO of The Arcview Group, a San Francisco-based, membership, investor network. According to Dayton, Arcview is "the Shark Tank of the cannabis industry" and doesn't invest their accredited-investor members' money directly but gives them the parade of potential companies to invest in and offers them deal-flow; investment advice and market research are Arcview's core products. Dayton and Arcview, like the ladies at Cannabrand, are placing big bets that the Colorado legalization--past the pre-existing medical marijuana usage--will succeed. Both have staked their businesses on this industry winning big.

I asked Dayton why he was so sure. "We're not talking about making a new substance available," he told me passionately, "we're talking about a product that already exists and is widely available. It's so much safer than alcohol or pharmaceuticals. There will be a net public-safety benefit out of this. The 'X-Factor' net benefit out of this is, for instance, I'm not a big cannabis consumer, 'but when I do,' I find it really helps me relax and I can see the 'big picture.' I have ideas and wonder about things that are really productive." I have found this too, back in the day, that it's not all "wow ... man" and couch-potato inactivity. Key point: The start-up funding and access to life's-blood capital so climacteric to economic success will have to fast materialize for the cannabis industry or it risks inertia. Arcview alone, seems to be leading the charge in this essential monetary component.

Recently, CNBC did a great documentary entitled, "Marijuana in America: Colorado Pot Rush" which features many of the leading proponents of Colorado's new law.

Mason Tvert is the Director of Communications for the Marijuana Policy Project (MPP) and seems so much more than that. CNBC calls him "the hero" of the push to legalize weed in Colorado and there's much to support that claim. Tvert doesn't come on strong and apparently prefers the 'get more flies with honey' method of discourse. I asked him why he had chosen the life path of pot policy and legalization--did he have some connection with a medical weed user or what? "I was harassed by law enforcement in college and while I'm not a big smoker now, I do enjoy it once in a while. The MPP is the largest marijuana policy organization and my primary concern now are the optics: how legalization is portrayed in the press and by its opponents. For instance, anti-legalization people often claim that teen use is up, when teen use has actually gone down." What about further restrictions for children, parents and so on? "At some point, we need to trust sensible human beings to make the right decisions."

When Tvert tells me that he's focused on other states now that his work in Colorado is done, I ask him what his informed bet would be for the next state to topple and legalize? "It's very likely Alaska will be next," the "Don Draper of pot" said. And he should know.

As I digest all the information, quotes and strategies I've heard and learned, there are some strong pros and cons on both sides of the future possibilities for Colorado, cannabis and ultimately Cannabrand's success:

Cons
**The possibility that children might have expanded access to marijuana. This is a potential nobody in their right mind wants and especially for parents, has caused a groundswell of concern.

**If the newly legal users use it in irresponsible ways--and drive--there will be a corresponding and tragic increase in DUI's and DUI-related deaths.

**If the overall ambition of new users and previous users smoking more is horribly reduced and has a smothering effect on the economies of the two states in an already depressed economic environment, then the frequent pro-legalization argument about increased tax revenues and economies of scale goes right out the window. The converse will be true.

Pros
**Contrarily to the above point about access by children, sick children (as young as six years old or younger) might now have expanded legal access for much-needed help for their pain and illnesses. This is something the parents, ironically, have been trying to get done for sometime now. So this seems very positive and good.

**If pot users can resist the need to drive and a reverse-correlation can develop, where weed users can just know they shouldn't get into a car and drive when stoned ... this law will be almost home free.

**If it proves true--that the experience both Troy Dayton and I have had--wherein smoking pot actually increases idea generation, a 'thinking-outside-of-the-box' imagination and stimulates a kind of entrepreneurial drive and special zeal, well then, the GDP, small business sector and overall economy of Colorado will certainly soar.

That's a lot of 'ifs,' I know.

So, nobody knows what will prove true; least of all me. But if what I'm hearing from the people I've heard talking is accurate, then I feel strongly that Colorado will succeed and the law will be there to stay. And that's from a guy who was strongly against the idea in the first place.

Meanwhile, Jen & Olivia keep working to expand their cannabis clients' businesses ... and their own. They're always brand-building. This week, they're launching the Cannabrand Shop, a website specially designed to sell their own and their clients' products and merchandise.

In my three decade journey to discover what makes entrepreneurs tick, I'm zeroing in on the old maxim, "Do what you love and love what you do." If this is the essential entrepreneurial element, then Olivia Mannix and Jen DeFalco are on their way.

 

[7greeneyes]

hMPp://www.newswire.ca/en/story/1335345/canadian-patients-can-look-to-medreleaf-for-unique-medical-cannabis-varieties

Canadian Patients Can Look to MedReleaf for Unique Medical Cannabis Varieties
​

International Exclusive Partnership Brings Significant Scientific Advantage

MARKHAM, ON, April 7, 2014 /CNW/ - MedReleaf™, a licensed producer and supplier of medical cannabis, is tapping into its exclusive partnership with world-class leader Tikun Olam™, to bring Canadians an offering of medical cannabis varieties unmatched by any other producer licensed through Health Canada's Marihuana for Medical Purposes Regulations. Tikun Olam is the first and largest government-approved producer of medical cannabis in Israel - one of the most progressive medical cannabis markets in the world.

"Our partnership with Tikun Olam gives us a significant scientific advantage," said MedReleaf CEO, Neil Closner. "We have access to treatment data from more than 7,000 Tikun Olam patients that will give us great insight into the effectiveness and efficacy of various strains and in turn, an enhanced ability to work with patients and physicians to create the most beneficial treatment protocols. The partnership also provides us with exclusive access to a vast array of proprietary medical cannabis varieties."

Two of the many unique proprietary varieties of medical cannabis that MedReleaf will grow and make available to Canadians are Erez™, the best-selling variety in Israel, and AviDekel™. Erez, with its high tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) content, is well known for treating sleep disorders and managing pain, nausea, inflammation, and indigestion. AviDekel, a sativa-dominant strain, contains very high levels of cannabidiol (CBD) and almost no THC. CBD is a non-psychoactive compound found in cannabis that has been shown to have a positive impact on disorders such as multiple sclerosis, arthritis and epilepsy, amongst other ailments.

MedReleaf anticipates particular interest in AviDekel. Its exceptionally high levels of CBD (among the highest in Canada) with almost no THC contains similar properties to the variety of medical cannabis in the United States, known as Charlotte's Web, named after Charlotte Figi who experienced a reduction of her epileptic seizures after her first dose. World-renowned CBD expert, Professor of Immunology Ruth Gallily of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem is currently conducting laboratory research on all of Tikun Olam's unique CBD-rich cannabis strains to further understand their potential therapeutic applications.

"Tikun Olam has dedicated its work, time and passionate efforts to examining the efficacy and safety of our products; we do this through continued follow-up with patients, laboratory studies (both in vitro and in vivo as well as retrospective studies), surveys and clinical research," said Maayan Weisberg, Director of Marketing and Business Development. "We are pleased to collaborate with MedReleaf through this partnership and very much look forward to helping Canadian patients and physicians better understand the many benefits of medical cannabis."

MedReleaf, in partnership with Tikun Olam, is currently collaborating on more than two-dozen cannabis related research studies (lab and clinical) with doctors and professors at eight leading hospitals in Israel including the Hadassah Medical Center in Jerusalem, Wolfson Medical Center in Holon, Sheba Medical Center at Tel Hashomer, Meir Medical Center in Kfar Saba and Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center. MedReleaf is interested in conducting additional research in Canada and is seeking physician partners for these initiatives.

ABOUT MEDRELEAF
MedReleaf™ is a Canadian-owned and operated producer and distributor of medical grade cannabis. The company operates a 55,000 square foot state-of-the-art facility in Markham, Ontario. Its leadership team includes highly skilled and expert professionals who have more than 100 years of combined experience treating patients and working with cannabis. They have extensive backgrounds in business, molecular plant genetics, biotechnology, horticulture, clinical laboratory management and operations. MedReleaf is dedicated to improving the quality of life for patients across Canada by providing them with a broad range of the finest quality varieties anywhere in the world. MedReleaf obtained its license from Health Canada in February 2014.

SOURCE MedReleaf Corp.

For further information:
Lindsay Peterson-Chisholm
GoldFenix Communications & Associates
lpc @ goldfenix . com
416-880-8240

Paul Tyler
GoldFenix Communications & Associates
pt @ goldfenix . com
905-235-2731

 

[7greeneyes]

hMPp://medcitynews.com/2014/04/congressional-hearing-improving-predictability-transparency-dea-fda-regulation-coming/#ixzz2yJVP0xWc

Congressional hearing on ‘Improving Predictability & Transparency in DEA and FDA Regulation’ coming up​

The Energy and Commerce Committee’s Subcommittee on Health (chaired by Representative Joe Pitts (R-PA)), has scheduled a hearing for Monday, April 7, 2014, at 3:00 p.m. in room 2123 of the Rayburn House Office Building.

The hearing is titled “Improving Predictability and Transparency in DEA and FDA Regulation.” Industry and government witnesses include, among others, Janet Woodcock, M.D. (Director CDER, FDA), Mr. Joseph T. Rannazzisi (Deputy Assistant Administrator, Office of Diversion Control, DEA); Dr. Nathan B. Fountain (Chair, Medical Advisory Board, Epilepsy Foundation), and Mr. John M. Gray (President and CEO, HDMA).

Subcommittee members will review three bills described below: H.R. 4299, “Improving Regulatory Transparency for New Medical Therapies Act,”; H.R. 4069, “Ensuring Patient Access and Effective Drug Enforcement Act;” and H.R. 4250, the “Sunscreen Innovation Act”.

H.R. 4299, blogged about here, would amend the CSA to improve efficiency of the DEA’s process for scheduling new drugs approved by the FDA. Introduced by Representative Pitts (R-PA) and Ranking Subcommittee Member Frank Pallone (D-NJ), the bill would require DEA to make a final determination within 45 days after receiving FDA’s scheduling recommendation for a new drug. Additionally, it would generate more transparency in the drug application process for clinical trials by requiring that DEA make a final determination within 180 days or provide the applicant with details about what outstanding issues remain unresolved.

H.R. 4069, introduced by Vice Chairman Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), Rep. Tom Marino (R-PA), would improve enforcement efforts regarding controlled substance drug diversion and abuse. The legislation would help prevent controlled substance abuse and diversion, yet ensure patient access to necessary medications by creating a collaborative partnership between drug manufacturers, wholesalers, retail pharmacies and federal enforcement and oversight agencies.

The bill also seeks to better define standards set forth in the CSA including the definition of “consistent with the public health and safety” as having a “substantial relationship“ to the CSA’s “purpose of preventing diversion and abuse of controlled substances.” In addition, the legislation would further define “imminent danger” as meaning “a significant and present risk of death or serious bodily harm that is more likely than not to occur in the absence of an immediate suspension order.” (Emphasis added.) This enhanced definition of “imminent danger” may be a fallout from DEA decisions to issue immediate suspension orders against at least two drug distributors and at least one nationwide retail pharmacy in the past few years where the subject of those immediate suspension orders involved conduct that occurred -- and typically had resolved – well prior to DEA’s serving of the immediate suspension orders, causing the parties to challenge the DEA’s definition and interpretation of what constitutes “imminent danger.”

The legislation would also require employers (specifically distributors and manufacturers of schedule I though V drugs) to obtain as a condition of the registration criminal background checks and drug testing for employees with access to controlled substances. The employee background checks must be obtained periodically (not more frequently than every two years) and at the time of hiring (if hired after the date of the enactment of the legislation). Those that fail to comply with the background check provision would be subject to civil penalties.

The legislation would also permit registrants the opportunity to submit a corrective action plan prior to revocation or suspension of a registration under 21 U.S.C. § 824(c). Specifically the amendment would require the DEA to provide notice to the registrant of the grounds for revocation or suspension including the citation to specific violations, and give the registrant an opportunity to submit a corrective plan within a reasonable period of time to demonstrate how the registrant plans to correct the grounds for revocation or suspension. The DEA would then make a determination whether in light of the plan, revocation or suspension proceedings should be discontinued or deferred or additional changes need to be made to the corrective plan.

Finally, the legislation would also establish the “Combat Prescription Drug Abuse Working Group” to include not more than 20 members (pharmacy, patient groups, manufactures, distributors, hospitals and health care providers, law enforcement, DEA representatives, states attorneys general representatives, and public policy experts, among others). The (non-paid) Working Group members would, among other things, review and report to Congress on efforts to reduce prescription drug abuse and diversion, examine recommendations for transfer of controlled substances between schedules, and make specific recommendations to reduce diversion and abuse of prescription drugs. The Working Group would also be responsible for various reports and recommendations for FDA, DEA and various other federal and state agencies on several topics identified in the legislation.

H.R. 4205, introduced by Representative Ed Whitfield (R-KY) and Rep. John Dingell (D-MI), would expedite the FDA’s approval process for new sunscreen ingredients while maintaining strict safety standards. The FDA has not approved a new sunscreen ingredient in almost two decades. As we previously reported, the legislation would attempt to streamline the drug approval process for sunscreens and provide transparency – through regular reports to Congress. The legislation would require that pending applications are completed within eight months and that new applications reviewed within 11 months.

 

[joshA]

People around the world have been smoking marijuana for thousands of years, while others use it for medication. In some states, it has been approved as medicine. Way back July 17, 2012, a bill was introduced, which was designed to protect state-licensed medical marijuana users when faced with federal prosecution. Barney Frank (D-Mass.) and Ron Paul (R-Texas) supported the bill. View the report here: Medical Marijuana.