Spliff Twister
New Member
Hi Friends,
A whirlwind has struck the medical marijuana community in the Inland Empire. There is so much going on that it is becoming a blur as events continually swirl around us. In this email I am going to bring you up to date on what is happening with the current BIG TWO ñ the Riverside County ordinance and the Palm Springs ordinance.
Both ordinances attempt to regulate dispensaries and coops and treat them as distinctly different. Both ordinances have their good points and their bad points and they are not the same in each ordinance. They are certainly not everything that we want, but there are parts that we do want.
It was not our idea to have ordinances regulating dispensaries and coops. Moratoriums have been written and passed by the county and various cities and we never asked them to do it. Since we couldnít stop them, the best we could do is to try and be involved as much as possible in the process of creating the new ordinances that replace the outright bans. This is a polite way of saying weíre working on damage control.
THE RIVERSIDE COUNTY ORDINANCE
After the Planning Commission meeting on Wednesday, where the new ordinance was approved and sent to the Riverside Co. Board of Supervisors, a reporter asked me how I felt about the new ordinance. I replied, ìOn a scale of one to ten, I would say a six.î
There are definitely problems with the ordinance. It requires that in order for a patient to utilize a dispensary or be a member of a coop, they must have a state identification card. You donít have to have a card to be a patient, to possess or even cultivate marijuana, but the ordinance requires that if you want to join a coop or make purchases at a dispensary, you must obtain one. Worse ñ it means that patients outside the county cannot utilize these services if there county does not issue the state card. This is horrid, but the Planning Members stated that the problems of the patients in Countyís that do not issue cards, is not their problem.
Another major problem is that a conditional use permit is required to open a dispensary or start a coop. The reason that is a problem is that a
CUP can easily cost $13,000 or more.
There are some good points though. Number one is that small coops with six or fewer members are not covered by the ordinance and donít need a CUP, donít need ID cards or any other of its myriad requirements. Members of coops with six or fewer members would only need to fulfill the requirements for being a patient under state law.
Another good point is that although it does not allow smoking at dispensaries and coops, it does allow vaporization and edibles. Kind of a positive nod to getting patients to stop smoking and start vaporizing ñ not a bad idea.
The ordinance only takes effect in the UNINCORPORATED areas of Riverside County. If you live in a city like Temecula, Riverside or Indio, you are not covered by it. You are covered by whatever ordinance your city has or does not have.
The revised ordinance with the changes in it will not be available until some time next week. If you want to see a copy of it, you will be able to view it on our website, <Marijuana Anti-Prohibition Project>www.marijuananews.org or if you send me an email, I will send it to you as soon as I receive a copy.
The most IMPORTANT thing to realize is that the ordinance is still not law. It must still go before the Riverside County Board of Supervisors and will do so on Tuesday, Sept. 26. Although the Board may pass it as currently written, they can certainly change it and probably will depending on what input they get between now and Sept. 26 and quite possibly what happens at the meeting on Sept. 26.
What does that mean? It means YOU need to be at this meeting on Tuesday, Sept. 26 and let the Board know you want an ordinance fair to patients and workable for Riverside County.
So what do you write to the Board or say? What I would suggest is that you tell them you support the ordinance and, if you feel there is room for improvement, then tell them what it is - like make the CUP cheaper or the ordinance shouldnít apply to coops of ten people or less or whatever you feel would improve the ordinance. Of course if you think the ordinance is acceptable the way it is written, then tell them that.
The Board of Supervisors meeting will be on Tuesday, September 26. I have been told it will begin at 1:30 p.m. I will be sending out at least one more email before the meeting, so if there are any changes in time, it will be a prominent part of the email.
The Board meets in Riverside at 4080 Lemon Street in the first floor Council Chambers. If you chose to make a presentation, it is limited to three minutes. You could extend it an additional three minutes if someone else signs up and gives you their time.
Needless to say this is a critical meeting that will determine the road that patients will have to travel in Riverside County. Once again YOU can make the difference. Will you?
THE PALM SPRINGS ORDINANCE
This ordinance has become a vehicle for
demonstrating why Libertarians have a point.
I have watched my visions of compassion and common sense for the Palm Springs ordinance descend into a morass of complex regulations that have little concern for the welfare of patients and a disdain for the intent of both Proposition 215 and SB 420. If you want to see it, send me an email asking me for it and I will email it to you.
My biggest concern is the hostility exhibited by the ordinance to coops. At the first meeting of the Committee charged with aiding in the drafting of the ordinance, the number six had come up as the appropriate number to cap out the maximum number of people in small residential coops. Then at the last meeting, this was removed so that only people living at the residence could grow and that no one else could be a member.
In addition to being a cruel blow to patients, it is just plain wrong ñ legally, ethically and rationally. Hereís why.
The Second Court of Appeals in a recent ruling stated that the creation of medical marijuana patient coops and collectives was the state's "initial" responseî to the requirements of Prop. 215 that the state help patients obtain their medicine. It took 8 years for the state to do even this, but in any case the state, through SB 420, is encouraging the formation of patient coops and collectives as a means for patients to obtain this medicine. Government should do whatever it can to facilitate the formation of
coops - especially small residential coops.
Residential coops are the cheapest and most expedient way for patients to obtain medicinal marijuana. They will cost at least 75% less tha the type of large scale coop envisioned in the ordinance with its rental costs, employee costs, complying with the provisions of the ordinance costs and so on. If we are to reduce the need for patients to deal with dispensaries and to also reduce the need for patients to obtain their medicinal marijuana from unregulated sources (some people call them criminals) then small residential coops are the only viable method. Far from trying to restrict them or just not even allow them, the city of Palm Springs should encourage them by specifically exempting them from this new ordinance in the same way it exempts individual patients.
In addition to banning the coops, the PS Ordinance requires coops/collectives to be a ìbona fide non-profitî adding additional layers of complexity for patients who want to form coops and collectives.
SB 420 states that is the intent of the legislature to ìenhance the access of patients and caregivers to medical marijuana though collective, cooperative cultivation projects.î The PS Ordinance places impediments to the formation of coops/collectives and outright bans small residential coops. State law says they can exist and I am not sure if Palm Springs can ban them or set up a regulation process so complex and cumbersome that it all but makes their formation impossible.
If Palm Springs goes ahead and passes the ordinance as written, our only alternative may be to file a lawsuit.
I canít believe I am even writing this. I honestly felt that Palm Springs was a compassionate, progressive city that understood the allowing of medical marijuana under state law was just one of the ways in which California leads the nation in providing for the health and welfare of its citizens. I believed that Palm Springs was ahead of the curve of California in caring for its citizens and would develop an ordinance that truly made this medicine available safely and affordably. This ordinance has decimated those beliefs.
Does Palm Springs really want to consign the majority of patients to paying outrageous prices at dispensaries or to non-legal suppliers? With its fights over development and traffic and tourism and homelessness, it seems that our elected officials are losing touch with why they wanted to be on the city council in the first place. I guess we shouldnít be surprised by the incongruous twists that the Dispensary/Coop ordinance has undergone, but patients can rightfully be disappointed and feel betrayed.
However, hope springs eternal within the human breast and there is still a chance for reason and redemption. This Thursday, September 21 at 4 p.m. in the large meeting room at Palm Springs City Hall, 3200 E. Tahquitz Canyon Way (corner of El Cielo and Tahquitz Canyon) the Palm Springs Medical Marijuana Task Force will have one last meeting before the ordinance will be submitted to the City Council. It is still possible that we can convince them to recognize the importance of small residential coops, but to do so takes YOU.
YOU need to be at this meeting too. Another MEETING? Thatís right ñ like I said at the beginning of this letter ìa whirlwind has struckî and there is so much happening. This is YOUR chance to participate in shaping the future of our community. I ask you once again - will you?
Lanny
P.S. There is one good piece of news in our neck of the woods. Imperial County will become the fourth county in Southern California to start issuing the state mandated mmj ID cards.
As of Monday, Sept. 4th the cards are available for $58 ($29 for Medi-Cal recipients) through the Dept. of Public Health in El Centro. As far as I know, the Imperial County card is the least>expensive in the state. If you live in Imperial County, I strongly urge you to get the card. Hereís how to contact them.
Imperial County Dept. of Public Health
935 Broadway
El Centro, CA 92243
(760) 482-4438
Business Hours:
MondayñFriday
9 am-12 pm & 1 pm-4 pm
A whirlwind has struck the medical marijuana community in the Inland Empire. There is so much going on that it is becoming a blur as events continually swirl around us. In this email I am going to bring you up to date on what is happening with the current BIG TWO ñ the Riverside County ordinance and the Palm Springs ordinance.
Both ordinances attempt to regulate dispensaries and coops and treat them as distinctly different. Both ordinances have their good points and their bad points and they are not the same in each ordinance. They are certainly not everything that we want, but there are parts that we do want.
It was not our idea to have ordinances regulating dispensaries and coops. Moratoriums have been written and passed by the county and various cities and we never asked them to do it. Since we couldnít stop them, the best we could do is to try and be involved as much as possible in the process of creating the new ordinances that replace the outright bans. This is a polite way of saying weíre working on damage control.
THE RIVERSIDE COUNTY ORDINANCE
After the Planning Commission meeting on Wednesday, where the new ordinance was approved and sent to the Riverside Co. Board of Supervisors, a reporter asked me how I felt about the new ordinance. I replied, ìOn a scale of one to ten, I would say a six.î
There are definitely problems with the ordinance. It requires that in order for a patient to utilize a dispensary or be a member of a coop, they must have a state identification card. You donít have to have a card to be a patient, to possess or even cultivate marijuana, but the ordinance requires that if you want to join a coop or make purchases at a dispensary, you must obtain one. Worse ñ it means that patients outside the county cannot utilize these services if there county does not issue the state card. This is horrid, but the Planning Members stated that the problems of the patients in Countyís that do not issue cards, is not their problem.
Another major problem is that a conditional use permit is required to open a dispensary or start a coop. The reason that is a problem is that a
CUP can easily cost $13,000 or more.
There are some good points though. Number one is that small coops with six or fewer members are not covered by the ordinance and donít need a CUP, donít need ID cards or any other of its myriad requirements. Members of coops with six or fewer members would only need to fulfill the requirements for being a patient under state law.
Another good point is that although it does not allow smoking at dispensaries and coops, it does allow vaporization and edibles. Kind of a positive nod to getting patients to stop smoking and start vaporizing ñ not a bad idea.
The ordinance only takes effect in the UNINCORPORATED areas of Riverside County. If you live in a city like Temecula, Riverside or Indio, you are not covered by it. You are covered by whatever ordinance your city has or does not have.
The revised ordinance with the changes in it will not be available until some time next week. If you want to see a copy of it, you will be able to view it on our website, <Marijuana Anti-Prohibition Project>www.marijuananews.org or if you send me an email, I will send it to you as soon as I receive a copy.
The most IMPORTANT thing to realize is that the ordinance is still not law. It must still go before the Riverside County Board of Supervisors and will do so on Tuesday, Sept. 26. Although the Board may pass it as currently written, they can certainly change it and probably will depending on what input they get between now and Sept. 26 and quite possibly what happens at the meeting on Sept. 26.
What does that mean? It means YOU need to be at this meeting on Tuesday, Sept. 26 and let the Board know you want an ordinance fair to patients and workable for Riverside County.
So what do you write to the Board or say? What I would suggest is that you tell them you support the ordinance and, if you feel there is room for improvement, then tell them what it is - like make the CUP cheaper or the ordinance shouldnít apply to coops of ten people or less or whatever you feel would improve the ordinance. Of course if you think the ordinance is acceptable the way it is written, then tell them that.
The Board of Supervisors meeting will be on Tuesday, September 26. I have been told it will begin at 1:30 p.m. I will be sending out at least one more email before the meeting, so if there are any changes in time, it will be a prominent part of the email.
The Board meets in Riverside at 4080 Lemon Street in the first floor Council Chambers. If you chose to make a presentation, it is limited to three minutes. You could extend it an additional three minutes if someone else signs up and gives you their time.
Needless to say this is a critical meeting that will determine the road that patients will have to travel in Riverside County. Once again YOU can make the difference. Will you?
THE PALM SPRINGS ORDINANCE
This ordinance has become a vehicle for
demonstrating why Libertarians have a point.
I have watched my visions of compassion and common sense for the Palm Springs ordinance descend into a morass of complex regulations that have little concern for the welfare of patients and a disdain for the intent of both Proposition 215 and SB 420. If you want to see it, send me an email asking me for it and I will email it to you.
My biggest concern is the hostility exhibited by the ordinance to coops. At the first meeting of the Committee charged with aiding in the drafting of the ordinance, the number six had come up as the appropriate number to cap out the maximum number of people in small residential coops. Then at the last meeting, this was removed so that only people living at the residence could grow and that no one else could be a member.
In addition to being a cruel blow to patients, it is just plain wrong ñ legally, ethically and rationally. Hereís why.
The Second Court of Appeals in a recent ruling stated that the creation of medical marijuana patient coops and collectives was the state's "initial" responseî to the requirements of Prop. 215 that the state help patients obtain their medicine. It took 8 years for the state to do even this, but in any case the state, through SB 420, is encouraging the formation of patient coops and collectives as a means for patients to obtain this medicine. Government should do whatever it can to facilitate the formation of
coops - especially small residential coops.
Residential coops are the cheapest and most expedient way for patients to obtain medicinal marijuana. They will cost at least 75% less tha the type of large scale coop envisioned in the ordinance with its rental costs, employee costs, complying with the provisions of the ordinance costs and so on. If we are to reduce the need for patients to deal with dispensaries and to also reduce the need for patients to obtain their medicinal marijuana from unregulated sources (some people call them criminals) then small residential coops are the only viable method. Far from trying to restrict them or just not even allow them, the city of Palm Springs should encourage them by specifically exempting them from this new ordinance in the same way it exempts individual patients.
In addition to banning the coops, the PS Ordinance requires coops/collectives to be a ìbona fide non-profitî adding additional layers of complexity for patients who want to form coops and collectives.
SB 420 states that is the intent of the legislature to ìenhance the access of patients and caregivers to medical marijuana though collective, cooperative cultivation projects.î The PS Ordinance places impediments to the formation of coops/collectives and outright bans small residential coops. State law says they can exist and I am not sure if Palm Springs can ban them or set up a regulation process so complex and cumbersome that it all but makes their formation impossible.
If Palm Springs goes ahead and passes the ordinance as written, our only alternative may be to file a lawsuit.
I canít believe I am even writing this. I honestly felt that Palm Springs was a compassionate, progressive city that understood the allowing of medical marijuana under state law was just one of the ways in which California leads the nation in providing for the health and welfare of its citizens. I believed that Palm Springs was ahead of the curve of California in caring for its citizens and would develop an ordinance that truly made this medicine available safely and affordably. This ordinance has decimated those beliefs.
Does Palm Springs really want to consign the majority of patients to paying outrageous prices at dispensaries or to non-legal suppliers? With its fights over development and traffic and tourism and homelessness, it seems that our elected officials are losing touch with why they wanted to be on the city council in the first place. I guess we shouldnít be surprised by the incongruous twists that the Dispensary/Coop ordinance has undergone, but patients can rightfully be disappointed and feel betrayed.
However, hope springs eternal within the human breast and there is still a chance for reason and redemption. This Thursday, September 21 at 4 p.m. in the large meeting room at Palm Springs City Hall, 3200 E. Tahquitz Canyon Way (corner of El Cielo and Tahquitz Canyon) the Palm Springs Medical Marijuana Task Force will have one last meeting before the ordinance will be submitted to the City Council. It is still possible that we can convince them to recognize the importance of small residential coops, but to do so takes YOU.
YOU need to be at this meeting too. Another MEETING? Thatís right ñ like I said at the beginning of this letter ìa whirlwind has struckî and there is so much happening. This is YOUR chance to participate in shaping the future of our community. I ask you once again - will you?
Lanny
P.S. There is one good piece of news in our neck of the woods. Imperial County will become the fourth county in Southern California to start issuing the state mandated mmj ID cards.
As of Monday, Sept. 4th the cards are available for $58 ($29 for Medi-Cal recipients) through the Dept. of Public Health in El Centro. As far as I know, the Imperial County card is the least>expensive in the state. If you live in Imperial County, I strongly urge you to get the card. Hereís how to contact them.
Imperial County Dept. of Public Health
935 Broadway
El Centro, CA 92243
(760) 482-4438
Business Hours:
MondayñFriday
9 am-12 pm & 1 pm-4 pm
