Ron Strider
Well-Known Member
The Massachusetts State Senate and House of Representatives are a week beyond their self-imposed deadline of last Friday, June 30, to send a compromise bill to Governor Charles D. Baker Jr. to repeal and replace the voter-passed recreational marijuana law.
A six-member bipartisan conference committee continues working toward crafting a compromise bill. However, there were signs earlier this week of increasing tensions between the Democrat-controlled House and the Democrat-controlled Senate.
On Wednesday, July 5, House Speaker Robert A. DeLeo (D-Winthrop) suspended House-Senate negotiations on the bill. He said that efforts to create a compromise on the state’s budget had stalled.
“To remove any distractions, and because of the number of critical things that hinge on our budget—particularly programs that care for the neediest among us—I have asked that the House members of the marijuana conference committee suspend negotiations until the budget is complete,” Mr. DeLeo said in a statement Wednesday.
In response, Senate President Stanley C. Rosenberg (D-Amherst) said negotiations could continue on both the revised marijuana bill and the state budget.
“The Senate has not and will not link the budget and marijuana negotiations,” Mr. Rosenberg said in a statement Wednesday. “The Senate is fully committed to continuing negotiations on both the budget and marijuana legislation simultaneously.”
Voters statewide approved the cannabis law in November by 1.8 million votes. It allows adults to carry up to one ounce of marijuana and grow up to 12 pot plants per household. Retail marijuana stores could begin opening during the second half of next year. However, municipal governments have the authority to ban or limit such businesses without first seeking voter approval.
The House bill, approved June 21, would raise the tax on retail marijuana sales from 12 percent to 28 percent.
The bill’s other provisions included strict background checks and fingerprinting for owners and employees of licensed marijuana-related businesses. The bill would create two new enforcement agencies to establish standards for testing, packaging and labeling marijuana products, including edible ones, for safety.
The Senate voted on June 22 in favor of its version of a bill that leaves intact the voter-approved 10 percent tax and 2 percent local option tax, as well as the requirement of a local referendum to ban retail marijuana establishments in a city or town. Additionally, it retained the 2012 ballot initiative to allow medical marijuana.
“As the conference committee continues deliberations on the recreational marijuana bills passed in the House and Senate, my focus remains on making sure the interests and concerns of Cape Cod, Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket are heard loud and clear,” said Senator Julian A. Cyr (D-Truro), who represents Mashpee in the Cape and Islands State Senate District, in an e-mail yesterday.
“I’ve heard from constituents on all sides of the issue and expect that will continue until a bill is sent to the Governor’s desk,” Sen. Cyr stated. “I think it’s important to respect the will of the voters while also ensuring responsible and effective implementation of the law. Opportunities to advance public health and safety should certainly be on the table, as well as doing what we can to eliminate the black market.
“I am proud,” the senator stated, “to have secured an amendment in the Senate bill opening the market to craft cultivation; a critical component of the fledgling recreational marijuana industry that will decrease the influence of the black market and safeguard against corporate interests driven by the bottom line.”
News Moderator: Ron Strider 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: State Legislature Stalls On Revising Marijuana Law | Mashpee News | capenews.net
Author: Shutterstock
Contact: Contact Us | Site | capenews.net
Photo Credit: Colin Young
Website: capenews.net | powered by The Enterprise
A six-member bipartisan conference committee continues working toward crafting a compromise bill. However, there were signs earlier this week of increasing tensions between the Democrat-controlled House and the Democrat-controlled Senate.
On Wednesday, July 5, House Speaker Robert A. DeLeo (D-Winthrop) suspended House-Senate negotiations on the bill. He said that efforts to create a compromise on the state’s budget had stalled.
“To remove any distractions, and because of the number of critical things that hinge on our budget—particularly programs that care for the neediest among us—I have asked that the House members of the marijuana conference committee suspend negotiations until the budget is complete,” Mr. DeLeo said in a statement Wednesday.
In response, Senate President Stanley C. Rosenberg (D-Amherst) said negotiations could continue on both the revised marijuana bill and the state budget.
“The Senate has not and will not link the budget and marijuana negotiations,” Mr. Rosenberg said in a statement Wednesday. “The Senate is fully committed to continuing negotiations on both the budget and marijuana legislation simultaneously.”
Voters statewide approved the cannabis law in November by 1.8 million votes. It allows adults to carry up to one ounce of marijuana and grow up to 12 pot plants per household. Retail marijuana stores could begin opening during the second half of next year. However, municipal governments have the authority to ban or limit such businesses without first seeking voter approval.
The House bill, approved June 21, would raise the tax on retail marijuana sales from 12 percent to 28 percent.
The bill’s other provisions included strict background checks and fingerprinting for owners and employees of licensed marijuana-related businesses. The bill would create two new enforcement agencies to establish standards for testing, packaging and labeling marijuana products, including edible ones, for safety.
The Senate voted on June 22 in favor of its version of a bill that leaves intact the voter-approved 10 percent tax and 2 percent local option tax, as well as the requirement of a local referendum to ban retail marijuana establishments in a city or town. Additionally, it retained the 2012 ballot initiative to allow medical marijuana.
“As the conference committee continues deliberations on the recreational marijuana bills passed in the House and Senate, my focus remains on making sure the interests and concerns of Cape Cod, Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket are heard loud and clear,” said Senator Julian A. Cyr (D-Truro), who represents Mashpee in the Cape and Islands State Senate District, in an e-mail yesterday.
“I’ve heard from constituents on all sides of the issue and expect that will continue until a bill is sent to the Governor’s desk,” Sen. Cyr stated. “I think it’s important to respect the will of the voters while also ensuring responsible and effective implementation of the law. Opportunities to advance public health and safety should certainly be on the table, as well as doing what we can to eliminate the black market.
“I am proud,” the senator stated, “to have secured an amendment in the Senate bill opening the market to craft cultivation; a critical component of the fledgling recreational marijuana industry that will decrease the influence of the black market and safeguard against corporate interests driven by the bottom line.”
News Moderator: Ron Strider 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: State Legislature Stalls On Revising Marijuana Law | Mashpee News | capenews.net
Author: Shutterstock
Contact: Contact Us | Site | capenews.net
Photo Credit: Colin Young
Website: capenews.net | powered by The Enterprise
