Boston —Lawmakers wrangling over whether to legalize marijuana for medical use continued Tuesday to struggle with questions pertaining to federal enforcement, offering no indication that a legislative compromise might be in the works and likely leaving the issue up to voters to settle in November.An advancing ballot question on the topic will only be averted if backers fail to collect 11,485 certified signatures by July 3 or if they drop their effort in deference to a plan on Beacon Hill to pass an alternative proposal – an option that appears unlikely at the moment. Two bills before the Public Health Committee on legalizing medical marijuana (S 1161) and (H 625) have been sent to study – a legislative move that almost always ends the chances of a bill passing.Rep. Jeffrey Sanchez, co-chair of the committee, told the News Service after a hearing on the ballot initiative (H 3885) that his committee is “not working on anything” that would stop the planned ballot question. The Legislature has until May 1 to either pass the initiative, draft its own version of legislation, or refrain from acting on it and allow the process to continue toward the November ballot.“We will just have to wait and see what happens,” Sanchez said after a sparsely-attended hearing in Gardner Auditorium Tuesday morning.In 2008, Massachusetts voters settled another marijuana-related ballot question, approving a question that decriminalized possession of one ounce or less of marijuana and instituted a system of civil penalties and fines. The measure passed easily, with 1.9 million voters approving it and 1 million voting against it.After listening to arguments for and against legalizing medical marijuana for almost three hours, Sanchez said the issues “in and around this are very complicated.”“The patient’s perspective is really compelling because they are suffering from debilitating diseases,” he told the News Service. “At the same time the structures or the lack of structures in the bill for a controlled/non-controlled substance that isn’t structured by the FDA is a major concern.”But the biggest concern, Sanchez said, is the potential for prosecution by federal authorities of those who dispense the drug for medical purposes. The Jamaica Plain Democrat has voiced his fears over federal prosecution during previous hearings on the topic.“The attorneys general have said they will prosecute dispensaries and commercial providers, the commercial operations. So that means everyone. That means everyone involved in the process,” Sanchez said. “That means if we were to pass this the commissioner of public health could essentially be dragged out of his office, and held in contempt if we were to pass, and if he were to operate.”
Read more: Medical marijuana debated at hearing, headed for November ballot - Dedham, Massachusetts - The Dedham Transcript http://www.metrowestdailynews.com/archive/x1047088759/Medical-marijuana-debated-at-hearing-headed-for-November-ballot#ixzz1rltouE8J
| |
Boston —
Lawmakers wrangling over whether to legalize marijuana for medical use continued Tuesday to struggle with questions pertaining to federal enforcement, offering no indication that a legislative compromise might be in the works and likely leaving the issue up to voters to settle in November.
An advancing ballot question on the topic will only be averted if backers fail to collect 11,485 certified signatures by July 3 or if they drop their effort in deference to a plan on Beacon Hill to pass an alternative proposal – an option that appears unlikely at the moment. Two bills before the Public Health Committee on legalizing medical marijuana (S 1161) and (H 625) have been sent to study – a legislative move that almost always ends the chances of a bill passing.
Rep. Jeffrey Sanchez, co-chair of the committee, told the News Service after a hearing on the ballot initiative (H 3885) that his committee is “not working on anything” that would stop the planned ballot question. The Legislature has until May 1 to either pass the initiative, draft its own version of legislation, or refrain from acting on it and allow the process to continue toward the November ballot.
“We will just have to wait and see what happens,” Sanchez said after a sparsely-attended hearing in Gardner Auditorium Tuesday morning.
In 2008, Massachusetts voters settled another marijuana-related ballot question, approving a question that decriminalized possession of one ounce or less of marijuana and instituted a system of civil penalties and fines. The measure passed easily, with 1.9 million voters approving it and 1 million voting against it.
After listening to arguments for and against legalizing medical marijuana for almost three hours, Sanchez said the issues “in and around this are very complicated.”
“The patient’s perspective is really compelling because they are suffering from debilitating diseases,” he told the News Service. “At the same time the structures or the lack of structures in the bill for a controlled/non-controlled substance that isn’t structured by the FDA is a major concern.”
But the biggest concern, Sanchez said, is the potential for prosecution by federal authorities of those who dispense the drug for medical purposes. The Jamaica Plain Democrat has voiced his fears over federal prosecution during previous hearings on the topic.
“The attorneys general have said they will prosecute dispensaries and commercial providers, the commercial operations. So that means everyone. That means everyone involved in the process,” Sanchez said. “That means if we were to pass this the commissioner of public health could essentially be dragged out of his office, and held in contempt if we were to pass, and if he were to operate.”
No comments:
Post a Comment