Ron Strider
Well-Known Member
With a bill altering the voter-approved legal marijuana law expected by the end of the month, marijuana activists held a rally on the Statehouse steps Wednesday to tell lawmakers to leave the law as it is.
For more than 20 years, the Massachusetts Cannabis Reform Coalition and the local chapter of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws attempted to legalize marijuana in Massachusetts, activist Bill Downing said, and for more than 20 years the Legislature ignored the subject.
"They had the opportunity to pass a marijuana legalization bill and they could have written it any way they wanted to. But they abrogated that responsibility," Downing said. "We, the voters of Massachusetts, were able to change the law ourselves. And of course, as soon as the law was passed our legislators said, 'Wow, you guys wrote that law. We don't like it when you guys write your own laws and it's an insult to us and it's an affront to our egos.'"
This year, legislative leaders created the Committee on Marijuana Policy to produce a bill changing the ballot law written by marijuana advocates and approved by Massachusetts voters in November. After that vote, the Legislature and Gov. Charlie Baker quickly delayed implementation of most of the bill by six months, though it has been legal since December for an adult to use, possess or gift marijuana.
The committee expects to release its recommendations by the end of the month, and the activists outside the Statehouse wanted to send a message that significant changes to the law will not be welcome.
"The new law will be changed and this is our last chance to influence the changes to our law," Jeff Morris, a member of the MassCann/NORML Board of Directors, said before many of the ralliers ventured inside the Statehouse to talk with lawmakers.
Lawmakers over the years have largely avoided altering ballot laws, but they seem eager to change the marijuana law and that's likely to trigger constant debate over whether their recommendations go too far.
Reps. Denise Provost and Mike Connolly each spoke at Wednesday's rally in support of a bill Provost filed to remove restrictions on farming cannabis, remove limits on personal adult possession, authorize marijuana farmer's markets, and limit the bureaucratic aspects of marijuana oversight.
Downing said he expects that the committee will "make a lot of limitations."
Among the possible changes to the law, the tax rate on sales appears most ripe for revision. The law established a 3.75 percent tax rate on marijuana sales, on top of the state's 6.25 percent sales tax. Cities or towns have the ability to add their own 2 percent tax as well.
Both committee chairs, Rep. Mark Cusack and Sen. Patricia Jehlen, said they have no specific number or range in mind for an appropriate tax rate. But Cusack predicted at the outset of the committee's work that it will be "a major balancing act" to find the sweet spot where marijuana sales bring in enough revenue to support the regulatory system but do not make it cheaper for users to return to the illicit market.
News Moderator: Ron Strider 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: Marijuana activists: Leave law alone - Sentinel & Enterprise
Author: Colin A. Young
Contact: Contact us - Sentinel & Enterprise
Photo Credit: Nigel Killeen
Website: News - Sentinel & Enterprise
For more than 20 years, the Massachusetts Cannabis Reform Coalition and the local chapter of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws attempted to legalize marijuana in Massachusetts, activist Bill Downing said, and for more than 20 years the Legislature ignored the subject.
"They had the opportunity to pass a marijuana legalization bill and they could have written it any way they wanted to. But they abrogated that responsibility," Downing said. "We, the voters of Massachusetts, were able to change the law ourselves. And of course, as soon as the law was passed our legislators said, 'Wow, you guys wrote that law. We don't like it when you guys write your own laws and it's an insult to us and it's an affront to our egos.'"
This year, legislative leaders created the Committee on Marijuana Policy to produce a bill changing the ballot law written by marijuana advocates and approved by Massachusetts voters in November. After that vote, the Legislature and Gov. Charlie Baker quickly delayed implementation of most of the bill by six months, though it has been legal since December for an adult to use, possess or gift marijuana.
The committee expects to release its recommendations by the end of the month, and the activists outside the Statehouse wanted to send a message that significant changes to the law will not be welcome.
"The new law will be changed and this is our last chance to influence the changes to our law," Jeff Morris, a member of the MassCann/NORML Board of Directors, said before many of the ralliers ventured inside the Statehouse to talk with lawmakers.
Lawmakers over the years have largely avoided altering ballot laws, but they seem eager to change the marijuana law and that's likely to trigger constant debate over whether their recommendations go too far.
Reps. Denise Provost and Mike Connolly each spoke at Wednesday's rally in support of a bill Provost filed to remove restrictions on farming cannabis, remove limits on personal adult possession, authorize marijuana farmer's markets, and limit the bureaucratic aspects of marijuana oversight.
Downing said he expects that the committee will "make a lot of limitations."
Among the possible changes to the law, the tax rate on sales appears most ripe for revision. The law established a 3.75 percent tax rate on marijuana sales, on top of the state's 6.25 percent sales tax. Cities or towns have the ability to add their own 2 percent tax as well.
Both committee chairs, Rep. Mark Cusack and Sen. Patricia Jehlen, said they have no specific number or range in mind for an appropriate tax rate. But Cusack predicted at the outset of the committee's work that it will be "a major balancing act" to find the sweet spot where marijuana sales bring in enough revenue to support the regulatory system but do not make it cheaper for users to return to the illicit market.
News Moderator: Ron Strider 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: Marijuana activists: Leave law alone - Sentinel & Enterprise
Author: Colin A. Young
Contact: Contact us - Sentinel & Enterprise
Photo Credit: Nigel Killeen
Website: News - Sentinel & Enterprise
