Two bad bills in Michigan

Published: May 20, 2011

Email your elected officials now!

Michigan voters made it clear that they support medical marijuana when they overwhelmingly passed the 2008 initiative that was spearheaded by MPP’s campaign committee. But since then, legislators in Lansing have proposed several bills that would undermine that law. Two recently introduced bills stand out as examples.

A keystone of the Michigan medical marijuana law is patient privacy, but last week Senator Darwin Booher introduced SB 377, which would require the names of cardholders to be sent to the Department of State Police and delete privacy protections. The law already allows police to verify patients’ ID cards, so this bill needlessly jeopardizes privacy and treats them like criminal suspects.

Equally outrageously, yesterday Representative George Darany introduced HB 4661, which would make it a felony to cultivate marijuana within 500 feet of a school, daycare center, or church. Rep. Darany says his intent is to prohibit “marijuana clinics” from being located next to these establishments, but as written, the bill would apply to patients or their caregivers, even if they are growing in their own homes!

Please send your legislators an email reminding them Michigan voters have spoken, and patients and their caregivers are not criminals. It’ll take you less than a minute.