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The Oregon House on Monday took a major step toward legitimizing the state's booming medical cannabis industry on Monday, approving a bill that would create licenses for retail providers of the drug.
House Bill 3460, narrowly approved by a 31-to-27 vote that fell mainly along party lines, was embraced by medical marijuana patients who have long maintained they have trouble finding reliable access to the drug. Opponents said the bill doesn't do enough to address the diversion of medical cannabis to the black market.
No Republican voted in favor, and only two Democrats voted against the bill, which now heads to the Senate.
Oregon law allows people who qualify for medical marijuana to grow it or have someone else do it for them. But many patients say they aren't able to cultivate marijuana, and finding a dependable grower is a challenge.
Monday's vote puts Oregon on the cusp of joining about a dozen other medical marijuana states that allow dispensaries or have recently approved legislation to do so, said Allen St. Pierre, executive director of National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws.
In recent years, an industry of medical marijuana retailers has cropped up in Oregon to meet patient demand. Multnomah County authorities have largely tolerated the presence of such establishments.
But retail outlets operate in a gray area of the state's medical marijuana law. Many medical marijuana clubs and collectives in other countieshave been raided in the past year. Operators of these now-shuttered establishments face prosecution in Jackson, Lane, Washington and Malheur counties.
The number of dispensaries or medical marijuana retailers operating in Oregon is unknown, though lawmakers and law enforcement officials say it could be as high as 200. The establishments are not tracked or licensed by any government agency. Law enforcement has no clear idea how much marijuana or cash moves through these places.
The dispensary bill, endorsed by Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum, creates a statewide registry of medical marijuana retailers. Business owners would have to pass criminal background checks, document the amount of marijuana coming into their establishments and verify that the drug comes from state-registered growers. The bill also requires that marijuana sold by state-registered outlets be tested for impurities.
House approval of the dispensary bill is the latest victory for medical marijuana advocates in Oregon. Earlier in the session, lawmakers expanded the state's medical marijuana program by adding post-traumatic stress syndrome to the list of qualifying conditions for medical marijuana.
The vote was closer than expected.
Speaking forcefully against the bill was Rep. Andy Olson, R-Albany, a retired Oregon State Police lieutenant. Olson pressed the bill's sponsor, Rep. Peter Buckley, D-Ashland, on how it would stop black market trafficking of marijuana grown under the auspices of the state medical marijuana program.
Olson said the bill doesn't address what he sees as problems with the state program: a handful of doctors writing the vast number of medical marijuana recommendations and the lack of oversight of minors in the program. Olson said he is also concerned about the production of hash oil, a popular concentrated form of marijuana.
Olson disapproves of what he sees as light penalties for medical marijuana retailers who fail to comply with the proposed registry law: revocation of their licenses.
"I'm just a little frustrated with this whole bill right now," Olson said.
Olson urged his fellow lawmakers to wait until 2014 for more comprehensive medical marijuana legislation.
But other lawmakers said the bill serves an important purpose.
"This bill does not straighten out all the problems in the medical marijuana program," said Rep. Mitch Greenlick, D-Portland. "What this bill does is regulate dispensaries so people with a legitimate need for medicine can get easy, safe, proper access to that drug."
News Hawk- Truth Seeker 420 MAGAZINE ®
Source: oregonlive.com
Author: Noelle Crombie
Contact: Contact OregonLive.com or The Oregonian
Website: Medical marijuana retail outlet bill passes Oregon House; now heads to Senate | OregonLive.com
House Bill 3460, narrowly approved by a 31-to-27 vote that fell mainly along party lines, was embraced by medical marijuana patients who have long maintained they have trouble finding reliable access to the drug. Opponents said the bill doesn't do enough to address the diversion of medical cannabis to the black market.
No Republican voted in favor, and only two Democrats voted against the bill, which now heads to the Senate.
Oregon law allows people who qualify for medical marijuana to grow it or have someone else do it for them. But many patients say they aren't able to cultivate marijuana, and finding a dependable grower is a challenge.
Monday's vote puts Oregon on the cusp of joining about a dozen other medical marijuana states that allow dispensaries or have recently approved legislation to do so, said Allen St. Pierre, executive director of National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws.
In recent years, an industry of medical marijuana retailers has cropped up in Oregon to meet patient demand. Multnomah County authorities have largely tolerated the presence of such establishments.
But retail outlets operate in a gray area of the state's medical marijuana law. Many medical marijuana clubs and collectives in other countieshave been raided in the past year. Operators of these now-shuttered establishments face prosecution in Jackson, Lane, Washington and Malheur counties.
The number of dispensaries or medical marijuana retailers operating in Oregon is unknown, though lawmakers and law enforcement officials say it could be as high as 200. The establishments are not tracked or licensed by any government agency. Law enforcement has no clear idea how much marijuana or cash moves through these places.
The dispensary bill, endorsed by Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum, creates a statewide registry of medical marijuana retailers. Business owners would have to pass criminal background checks, document the amount of marijuana coming into their establishments and verify that the drug comes from state-registered growers. The bill also requires that marijuana sold by state-registered outlets be tested for impurities.
House approval of the dispensary bill is the latest victory for medical marijuana advocates in Oregon. Earlier in the session, lawmakers expanded the state's medical marijuana program by adding post-traumatic stress syndrome to the list of qualifying conditions for medical marijuana.
The vote was closer than expected.
Speaking forcefully against the bill was Rep. Andy Olson, R-Albany, a retired Oregon State Police lieutenant. Olson pressed the bill's sponsor, Rep. Peter Buckley, D-Ashland, on how it would stop black market trafficking of marijuana grown under the auspices of the state medical marijuana program.
Olson said the bill doesn't address what he sees as problems with the state program: a handful of doctors writing the vast number of medical marijuana recommendations and the lack of oversight of minors in the program. Olson said he is also concerned about the production of hash oil, a popular concentrated form of marijuana.
Olson disapproves of what he sees as light penalties for medical marijuana retailers who fail to comply with the proposed registry law: revocation of their licenses.
"I'm just a little frustrated with this whole bill right now," Olson said.
Olson urged his fellow lawmakers to wait until 2014 for more comprehensive medical marijuana legislation.
But other lawmakers said the bill serves an important purpose.
"This bill does not straighten out all the problems in the medical marijuana program," said Rep. Mitch Greenlick, D-Portland. "What this bill does is regulate dispensaries so people with a legitimate need for medicine can get easy, safe, proper access to that drug."
News Hawk- Truth Seeker 420 MAGAZINE ®
Source: oregonlive.com
Author: Noelle Crombie
Contact: Contact OregonLive.com or The Oregonian
Website: Medical marijuana retail outlet bill passes Oregon House; now heads to Senate | OregonLive.com
