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Lansing lawmakers made changes in three bills on medical marijuana that drew last-minute support and passed this week -- two at about 4 a.m. Friday, key supporters said.
The changes included adding safeguards to keep marijuana users' records confidential, and spelling out rules on growing medical marijuana legally outdoors.
Longtime opponents of the bills turned supportive or at least neutral, including key Democratic legislators, some marijuana activists and the American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan. Other activists said that, even after the revisions, the bills will restrict access to the drug.
The bills were needed because the state's medical marijuana law was "ill-defined," said state Sen. Steve Bieda, D-Warren.
"I was the chief tire-kicker of these bills" in the state Senate, and "the voice of skepticism" about their original versions during nearly two years of debate, Bieda said.
"For a long time, the pro-marijuana groups and the ACLU were very concerned about privacy issues and by police access to the registry" of state-approved users, as in the original bills, Bieda said.
"When they came back from the House, those concerns had been removed, and I ended up supporting these," he said.
ACLU of Michigan communications director Rana Elmir said Friday that revisions in the bills moved the ACLU's position from opposition "to neutral."
Among their provisions, the four bills will:
- Require that those who transport medical marijuana must do so with the marijuana inaccessible to the driver, such as in the trunk.
- Make doctors do a "complete assessment" of a patient, not just a quick once-over, before signing a prescription for medical marijuana.
- Put ID photos on state registry cards and change the renewal period from every year to every two years.
"These bills aren't perfect, but they're something the medical-marijuana community can live with," added longtime marijuana activist Tim Beck, 61, of Detroit, who testified Aug. 15 in Lansing at hearings for the bills.
Because Michigan's medical marijuana act was passed by a statewide vote of residents, the Legislature needed three-fourths supermajorities to pass the bills, Beck said.
That meant bipartisan cooperation -- unlike the process for much of the other legislation rushed through the lame-duck sessions, he said.
News Hawk- TruthSeekr420 420 MAGAZINE
Source: freep.com
Author: Bill Laitner
Contact: Help | Detroit Free Press | freep.com
Website: Medical marijuana bill changes draw last-minute support | Michigan news | Detroit Free Press | freep.com
The changes included adding safeguards to keep marijuana users' records confidential, and spelling out rules on growing medical marijuana legally outdoors.
Longtime opponents of the bills turned supportive or at least neutral, including key Democratic legislators, some marijuana activists and the American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan. Other activists said that, even after the revisions, the bills will restrict access to the drug.
The bills were needed because the state's medical marijuana law was "ill-defined," said state Sen. Steve Bieda, D-Warren.
"I was the chief tire-kicker of these bills" in the state Senate, and "the voice of skepticism" about their original versions during nearly two years of debate, Bieda said.
"For a long time, the pro-marijuana groups and the ACLU were very concerned about privacy issues and by police access to the registry" of state-approved users, as in the original bills, Bieda said.
"When they came back from the House, those concerns had been removed, and I ended up supporting these," he said.
ACLU of Michigan communications director Rana Elmir said Friday that revisions in the bills moved the ACLU's position from opposition "to neutral."
Among their provisions, the four bills will:
- Require that those who transport medical marijuana must do so with the marijuana inaccessible to the driver, such as in the trunk.
- Make doctors do a "complete assessment" of a patient, not just a quick once-over, before signing a prescription for medical marijuana.
- Put ID photos on state registry cards and change the renewal period from every year to every two years.
"These bills aren't perfect, but they're something the medical-marijuana community can live with," added longtime marijuana activist Tim Beck, 61, of Detroit, who testified Aug. 15 in Lansing at hearings for the bills.
Because Michigan's medical marijuana act was passed by a statewide vote of residents, the Legislature needed three-fourths supermajorities to pass the bills, Beck said.
That meant bipartisan cooperation -- unlike the process for much of the other legislation rushed through the lame-duck sessions, he said.
News Hawk- TruthSeekr420 420 MAGAZINE
Source: freep.com
Author: Bill Laitner
Contact: Help | Detroit Free Press | freep.com
Website: Medical marijuana bill changes draw last-minute support | Michigan news | Detroit Free Press | freep.com
