Kharla Vezzetti

CaNORML 2010 Accomplishments and Plans for 2011

CaNORML kicked off 2010 with a major legalization blitz in Sacramento, asking all activists to contact their Assemblymembers about AB390, Tom Ammiano’s landmark legalization bill that was sponsored by CalNORML. On January 12, the Assembly Public Safety Committee voted to approve the bill, the first time a legislative body has ever voted to repeal MJ prohibition. The bill was resubmitted as AB2254 and back burnered pending the results of the vote on Prop. 19.

CalNORML was back in Sacramento in February, when in a landmark report to the state legislature, the California Center for Medicinal Cannabis Research announced that its studies have shown marijuana to have therapeutic value in six different human clinical trials regarding chronic pain, spasticity and vaporization.…

Where Next for Marijuana Reform? Cal NORML Conference January 29th in Berkeley

See preliminary conference schedule.

Dec. 15 – In the aftermath of Proposition 19, California NORML will host a statewide conference to discuss the future of marijuana reform efforts in California at the David Brower Center in Berkeley on Saturday, January 29, 2011.

The conference will feature a public discussion with drug reform leaders, legislators, attorneys, physicians, medical marijuana groups and the press.

The first part of the conference will be devoted to lessons from the Prop 19 campaign;
where to go from here, and what changes in wording and tactics should be adopted in future legalization efforts.…

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Cal NORML Director Dale Gieringer Named Freedom Fighter of the Year

On Monday, November 22, California NORML director Dale Gieringer will receive the High Times Freedom Fighter of the Year Award in Amsterdam at the magazine’s annual Cannabis Cup celebration.

Gieringer has been the state coordinator of California NORML (National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws) since 1987. He is also Vice-Chairman of the national NORML board of directors, director of the California Drug Policy Forum (DPFCA) and treasurer of the Oakland Civil Liberties Alliance (OCLA).

Dr. Gieringer has published research on medical marijuana usage, marijuana smoke harm reduction, potency testing, marijuana and driving safety, and drug urinalysis, and has testified before the legislature and in court on issues concerning personal use of marijuana.…

California Voters Approve Local Medical Marijuana Tax Measures, Vote 46% To Support Prop. 19

November 3, 11 AM PDT – While Californians rejected Prop 19 to allow adult use of marijuana, they proved eager to approve measures to tax and regulate medical marijuana. At last report, Prop 19 was at 46%, the highest vote ever recorded in a legalization initiative; the previous record was a 2006 Nevada initiative which scored 44%.

Ballot measures to tax medical marijuana passed overwhelmingly in several cities, while voters in Santa Barbara and Morro Bay rejected initiatives to prohibit dispensaries (Santa Barbara voted 39.4% to 60.64% to reject Measure T; Morro Bay voted 45.5% to 54.6% against Measure B-10).…

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The November Election And Beyond

November 3 – Voters rejected California’s path-breaking marijuana legalization initiative Proposition 19 by 46% – 54%.

Prop 19 did better than any previous marijuana legalization initiative, beating out a Nevada initiative that scored 44% in 2006. It was hurt by an unfavorable voting turnout in a strongly conservative off-year-election. Contrary to hopes, a large youth vote did not materialize.

Prop 19 broke new ground in the marijuana debate. Opponents conceded that legalization might be an attractive policy, but argued successfully that the propostion was poorly written and would not be able to achieve its promised results.…

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CAMP Eradicates 4.3 Million Plants – More Than State’s Annual Consumption

October 30 – California’s CAMP (Campaign Against Marijuana Planting) marijuana eradication reported 4,320,314 plant seizures in 2010, slightly less than last year’s all-time record of 4,463,917.

CAMP estimates the wholesale value of the destroyed crop at $17.2 billion – enough to qualify for agricultural disaster aid for any other crop. This works out to $4,000 per plant, or over 1 lb per plant. At this rate, the total amount of marijuana destroyed by CAMP works out to over four times the estimated consumption of the entire state of California (1 million lb/year).…

Marijuana Taxes & Regulations on Local Ballots

UPDATED 10/18 – Several cities will be voting on marijuana business tax measures on this November’s ballot. In addition to applying to medical marijuana sales, some would apply to recreational marijuana in the event Prop 19 passes.

Cal NORML opposes Albany Measure Q, La Puente Measure N, Rancho Cordova Measure O, San Jose Measure U, and the dispensary bans in Santa Barbara and Morro Bay. We support Berkeley’s Measure T and are neutral on the other tax measures.

The city of Albany is proposing a $25/square foot tax on non-profit medical marijuana facilities of any kind, plus a 1.8% business tax on for-profit cannabis businesses.…

California NORML: YES on PROP 19

Californians will have an historic opportunity this November to vote on a landmark initiative to legalize adult use and sales of marijuana. Polls indicate a tight race, with Prop 19 leading in most of them, presenting the likelihood that California will actually become the first state to legalize.

Prop 19 is by no means a full legalization measure. Statewide, its major effect is to legalize private adult possession of one ounce for personal use and home cultivation of 25 square feet or less.…

BILL TO DECRIMINALIZE MINOR POT POSSESSION OFFENSES SIGNED BY GOVERNOR SCHWARZENEGGER

Also see: Reported Drop in CA Marijuana Arrests: Less Than Meets the Eye

Sacramento, Sept 30th: A bill to downgrade the possession of one ounce or less of marijuana from a misdemeanor to an infraction was signed into law by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger. The bill, SB 1449 by Sen. Mark Leno, will spare petty pot offenders the necessity for a court appearance and criminal arrest record while saving the state millions of dollars in court and prosecution expenses. The bill treats petty possession like a traffic ticket punishable by a simple $100 fine and no arrest record.…

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Bill Bans Collective Operations Within 600 Feet of Schools

Sacramento, Sept. 30 – Gov. Schwarzenegger signed bill AB 2650 (Buchanan), which prohibits medical marijuana collectives from operating within 600 feet of a school as of Jan 1, 2011. It covers all activities by dispensaries or other providers that have a storefront location or mobile outlet and are required to have a business license. The bill grandfathers dispensaries that are currently allowed to operate there under existing local regulations.

See text of the bill.

Also see:
Watered-Down Dispensary Bill Passes Assembly…

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