California legislators fail constituents

Published: June 6, 2011

Last week was the 2011 crossover deadline in the California Legislature, meaning all bills that didn’t pass out of the chamber they began in (the Assembly or Senate) by Friday are dead for the year. The deadline meant a flurry of legislative activity, including chamber votes taken on four marijuana policy-related bills. Unfortunately, the results were not what we were hoping for.

The Assembly voted on two bills – AB 1017 and AB 1300. AB 1017, sponsored by Assemblymember Tom Ammiano, would have changed the penalty for marijuana cultivation from an automatic felony (if convicted) to a wobbler, giving prosecutors and judges the option to lower the charge to a misdemeanor if they felt the situation warranted it. Unfortunately, this common sense and modest proposal failed 24 - 36. A motion to reconsider was granted, meaning the bill is still alive. The Assembly can revisit this bill come January 2012.  

The Assembly also voted on AB 1300, a bill sponsored by Assemblymember Bob Blumenfield (D). In its original form, MPP and other allied organizations supported this bill because it clearly stated that dispensing marijuana was allowed under state law. However, the bill was gutted and that clear protection was removed, leaving intact only the language allowing localities the option to tell collectives when, where, and how they can operate. This bill passed the Assembly 71 - 1.

A couple of marijuana policy bills were pending in the Senate last week as well: SB 847 and SB 129. SB 847, a bill introduced by Sen. Lou Correa that would require at least 600 feet between any collective and a residential area, unless the locality chooses to have a more permissive zoning law, unfortunately passed the Senate and is on its way to the Assembly. More disappointing is the fate of SB 129.

SB 129, a bill that would have clearly protected the employment rights of medical marijuana patients in California, was not even given a vote. A similar bill was passed by the California Legislature in 2008, but vetoed by then Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Despite the unfortunate results, I’d like to thank each and every one of you who took action and reached out to your legislators on behalf of sane marijuana policy. MPP, along with other allied organizations, will continue to fight for more explicit patient rights, as well as for a more rational approach to marijuana policy than the current destructive prohibition.