Ron Strider
Well-Known Member
The House and Senate have staked out their positions on changes to the voter-approved marijuana legalization law and both branches appear primed to finally debate the issue this week and hand the divergent bills off to a conference committee.
Rep. Mark Cusack, the House co-chair of the Marijuana Policy Committee, has said a number of times that the House and Senate have "been in 80 percent agreement on the issues" for months, and there is substantial overlap between the two bills.
"Imitation is the greatest form of flattery and I'm very flattered they included a lot of the language that I had written specifically myself in their bill," Cusack said Monday of the Senate's draft bill.
Neither the House nor Senate proposal changes the previously implemented portions of the ballot law. Adults 21 or older can use marijuana in their home, possess up to one ounce in public and up to 10 ounces at home, give up to one ounce to another adult, and grow up to 12 marijuana plants at home if there is a second adult living in the home. Once retail shops open -- expected in July 2018 -- adults 21 or older will be able to legally purchase marijuana and marijuana-infused products.
The House and Senate plans are in agreement in moving the state's medical use of marijuana program, currently under the auspices of the Department of Public Health, under the soon-to-be-established Cannabis Control Commission by 2019. They also agree on giving the Department of Agricultural Resources oversight of the cultivation and manufacturing of hemp.
While the House bill repeals the law voters approved in November and replaces it with a fully new text, the Senate's draft bill keeps the ballot law as a skeleton and makes targeted amendments to the law.
Committee co-chairman Sen. Patricia Jehlen made clear last week her intention to limit the changes to the law written by activists and approved by nearly 1.8 million voters.
"We are not starting from scratch. We are starting from a law that was passed by the voters. It is law, it was passed in a high turnout election and we need to justify the amendments we make to it," Jehlen said at a press conference Friday.
Cusack said committee members recognized early on that "the issues of non-consensus were going to be around taxes, local control and expungement," and those issues represent the most significant differences in the House and Senate proposals.
Before debate gets underway and conferees are named, here are four of the issues likely to be topics of significant debate and negotiations.
House: The House's plan calls for a 16.75 percent marijuana excise tax and a mandatory 5 percent local tax on top of the state's 6.25 percent sales tax. The effective tax rate would be 28 percent on all marijuana products. The House's plan would extend the 16.75 percent marijuana excise tax to marijuana accessories -- like bongs, pipes, grinders, vaporizers and other items -- sold at licensed retail shops.
Senate: The Senate's bill does not change the tax rate or structure established in the ballot law. It calls for a 3.75 percent marijuana excise tax and a local option to levy a tax up to 2 percent in addition to the state's 6.25 percent sales tax. Depending on the community, the effective tax rate would be between 10 and 12 percent on all marijuana products.
LOCAL CONTROL
House: Revises the ballot law to allow marijuana establishments to be prohibited from a town by a vote of the governing body -- like a city council or board of selectmen -- rather than only by town referendum. The House also proposes requiring marijuana facilities to negotiate and sign an agreement with the host community and pay a "community impact fee" in proportion with the costs related to the marijuana facility incurred by the municipality.
Senate: Maintains the ballot law's requirement that a municipal ban or limitation on marijuana facilities be approved by a townwide referendum, and provides three versions of the language that a town could put on the ballot. The Senate's draft bill also lays out a process by which municipalities that have voted to ban marijuana facilities can vote to reinstate them in their town.
CANNABIS CONTROL COMMISSION
House: Expands the Cannabis Control Commission from three members to five paid commissioners, with one appointment made by the governor, one by the attorney general, one by the treasurer and two by consensus of the three officials. The commission chair would be appointed by the treasurer. Commissioners must have relevant experience and the commission can include no more than three members of any one political party. Commissioners would serve five-year terms but could serve for no longer than 10 years. The governor would be empowered to remove any commissioner for cause.
Senate: Also expands the commission from three to five members, with one appointment made by the governor, one by the attorney general, one by the treasurer and two by consensus of the three officials. The treasurer would appoint the commission chair, the only full-time and paid member. Commissioners must have certain relevant experience and would serve a maximum of two four-year terms. Commissioners could be removed for cause, but only by the office that appointed them.
SEALING CRIMINAL RECORDS
House: The House bill does not address sealing records of people convicted of marijuana crimes in the past for actions that are no longer criminal. Marijuana Policy Committee co-chairman Rep. Mark Cusack has said he thinks the issue of criminal records is better handled by the Judiciary Committee, which this session is working through numerous criminal justice reform proposals. Even Sen. William Brownsberger, the Senate chair of the Judiciary Committee, wrote on his blog that while he shares the motivations of advocates pushing for expungement, he thinks the issue is "a side show in this context" because "very few people will benefit from any feasible expungement process."
Senate: The Senate's proposal "clarifies that individuals who were charged with marijuana crimes in the past for actions that would no longer be criminal can have their criminal records sealed," according to Jehlen's office, and also directs the Executive Office of Public Safety and Security to launch a public awareness campaign informing people that such records can be sealed.
News Moderator: Ron Strider 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: POLL: Taxing marijuana and banning pot shops - News - The Patriot Ledger, Quincy, MA - Quincy, MA
Author: Colin A. Young
Contact: Contact Us - The Patriot Ledger, Quincy, MA - Quincy, MA
Photo Credit: Thinkstock
Website: The Patriot Ledger, Quincy, MA: Local & World News, Sports & Entertainment in Quincy, MA
Rep. Mark Cusack, the House co-chair of the Marijuana Policy Committee, has said a number of times that the House and Senate have "been in 80 percent agreement on the issues" for months, and there is substantial overlap between the two bills.
"Imitation is the greatest form of flattery and I'm very flattered they included a lot of the language that I had written specifically myself in their bill," Cusack said Monday of the Senate's draft bill.
Neither the House nor Senate proposal changes the previously implemented portions of the ballot law. Adults 21 or older can use marijuana in their home, possess up to one ounce in public and up to 10 ounces at home, give up to one ounce to another adult, and grow up to 12 marijuana plants at home if there is a second adult living in the home. Once retail shops open -- expected in July 2018 -- adults 21 or older will be able to legally purchase marijuana and marijuana-infused products.
The House and Senate plans are in agreement in moving the state's medical use of marijuana program, currently under the auspices of the Department of Public Health, under the soon-to-be-established Cannabis Control Commission by 2019. They also agree on giving the Department of Agricultural Resources oversight of the cultivation and manufacturing of hemp.
While the House bill repeals the law voters approved in November and replaces it with a fully new text, the Senate's draft bill keeps the ballot law as a skeleton and makes targeted amendments to the law.
Committee co-chairman Sen. Patricia Jehlen made clear last week her intention to limit the changes to the law written by activists and approved by nearly 1.8 million voters.
"We are not starting from scratch. We are starting from a law that was passed by the voters. It is law, it was passed in a high turnout election and we need to justify the amendments we make to it," Jehlen said at a press conference Friday.
Cusack said committee members recognized early on that "the issues of non-consensus were going to be around taxes, local control and expungement," and those issues represent the most significant differences in the House and Senate proposals.
Before debate gets underway and conferees are named, here are four of the issues likely to be topics of significant debate and negotiations.
House: The House's plan calls for a 16.75 percent marijuana excise tax and a mandatory 5 percent local tax on top of the state's 6.25 percent sales tax. The effective tax rate would be 28 percent on all marijuana products. The House's plan would extend the 16.75 percent marijuana excise tax to marijuana accessories -- like bongs, pipes, grinders, vaporizers and other items -- sold at licensed retail shops.
Senate: The Senate's bill does not change the tax rate or structure established in the ballot law. It calls for a 3.75 percent marijuana excise tax and a local option to levy a tax up to 2 percent in addition to the state's 6.25 percent sales tax. Depending on the community, the effective tax rate would be between 10 and 12 percent on all marijuana products.
LOCAL CONTROL
House: Revises the ballot law to allow marijuana establishments to be prohibited from a town by a vote of the governing body -- like a city council or board of selectmen -- rather than only by town referendum. The House also proposes requiring marijuana facilities to negotiate and sign an agreement with the host community and pay a "community impact fee" in proportion with the costs related to the marijuana facility incurred by the municipality.
Senate: Maintains the ballot law's requirement that a municipal ban or limitation on marijuana facilities be approved by a townwide referendum, and provides three versions of the language that a town could put on the ballot. The Senate's draft bill also lays out a process by which municipalities that have voted to ban marijuana facilities can vote to reinstate them in their town.
CANNABIS CONTROL COMMISSION
House: Expands the Cannabis Control Commission from three members to five paid commissioners, with one appointment made by the governor, one by the attorney general, one by the treasurer and two by consensus of the three officials. The commission chair would be appointed by the treasurer. Commissioners must have relevant experience and the commission can include no more than three members of any one political party. Commissioners would serve five-year terms but could serve for no longer than 10 years. The governor would be empowered to remove any commissioner for cause.
Senate: Also expands the commission from three to five members, with one appointment made by the governor, one by the attorney general, one by the treasurer and two by consensus of the three officials. The treasurer would appoint the commission chair, the only full-time and paid member. Commissioners must have certain relevant experience and would serve a maximum of two four-year terms. Commissioners could be removed for cause, but only by the office that appointed them.
SEALING CRIMINAL RECORDS
House: The House bill does not address sealing records of people convicted of marijuana crimes in the past for actions that are no longer criminal. Marijuana Policy Committee co-chairman Rep. Mark Cusack has said he thinks the issue of criminal records is better handled by the Judiciary Committee, which this session is working through numerous criminal justice reform proposals. Even Sen. William Brownsberger, the Senate chair of the Judiciary Committee, wrote on his blog that while he shares the motivations of advocates pushing for expungement, he thinks the issue is "a side show in this context" because "very few people will benefit from any feasible expungement process."
Senate: The Senate's proposal "clarifies that individuals who were charged with marijuana crimes in the past for actions that would no longer be criminal can have their criminal records sealed," according to Jehlen's office, and also directs the Executive Office of Public Safety and Security to launch a public awareness campaign informing people that such records can be sealed.
News Moderator: Ron Strider 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: POLL: Taxing marijuana and banning pot shops - News - The Patriot Ledger, Quincy, MA - Quincy, MA
Author: Colin A. Young
Contact: Contact Us - The Patriot Ledger, Quincy, MA - Quincy, MA
Photo Credit: Thinkstock
Website: The Patriot Ledger, Quincy, MA: Local & World News, Sports & Entertainment in Quincy, MA
