when exactly is california voting?
- Thread starter crz20
- Start date
dirtnap411
Well-Known Member
Next vote takes place in November
Antny420
Well-Known Member
Marijuana legalization backers hand in initiative petitions
Posted by Fred Rhoades NORML90210.org
Supporters of legalized marijuana announced today that they have gathered about 700,000 signatures for their initiative, virtually guaranteeing voters will see it on the November ballot.
They plan to turn in the petitions today to elections officials in some of the state's major counties, including Los Angeles. Supporters need 433,971 valid signatures to qualify the measure.
The measure’s main proponent, Richard Lee, a highly successful Oakland marijuana entrepreneur, bankrolled a professional signature-gathering effort that was bolstered by volunteers from the state’s hundreds of medical marijuana dispensaries.
“This is a historic first step toward ending cannabis prohibition,” Lee said. “I’ve always believed that cannabis should be taxed and regulated and that our current laws aren’t working.”
The initiative, known as the Regulate, Control and Tax Cannabis Act, would make it legal for anyone 21 and older to possess an ounce of marijuana and grow plants in an area no larger than 25 square feet for personal use. It would also allow cities and counties to permit marijuana to be grown and sold, and to impose taxes on marijuana production and sales.
Four marijuana legalization initiatives have been proposed, but Lee’s is the only one that appears to have the financial support to make the ballot.
Lee's firm, one of the state's most successful marijuana businesses, has spent more than $1 million on the measure and hired professional consultants to run the campaign. Lee owns half a dozen mostly pot-related businesses in Oakland, including Coffeeshop Blue Sky, a medical marijuana dispensary, and Oaksterdam University, which offers classes on marijuana.
Polls have shown growing support nationwide for legalization. In California, a majority favors it. A Field Poll taken last April found that 56% of voters in the state and 60% in Los Angeles County want to make pot legal and tax it. That margin, though, is not enough to assure victory.
The political climate has turned conservative in this non-presidential election year. Some prominent marijuana legalization advocates have questioned whether 2010 was the right year to test whether Californians would again break new ground on drug legalization, as they did in 1996 when they approved marijuana for medical use.
If passed, the initiative would put the state in conflict with federal law. The Obama administration last year announced it would not prosecute medical marijuana dispensaries that adhere to California's laws, but it has adamantly opposed efforts to legalize marijuana for recreational use.
http://norml90210.org/marijuana-legalization-backers-hand-in-initiative-petitions
Antny420
Well-Known Member
Tax Cannabis 2010 Initiative Headed for November Ballot
Posted January 28th, 2010 by canorml_admin
California voters will have the opportunity to vote for marijuana reform this November. The Tax and Regulate Cannabis Initiative or "TC2010" (www.taxcannabis2010.org), sponsored by Richard Lee of Oaksterdam University, has submitted more than enough signatures to qualify for the ballot.
The initiative would decriminalize marijuana at the state level, while giving local county and city governments the power to legalize, tax and regulate production and sales if they see fit. In particular, the initiative would make it legal for adults 21 and older to possess one ounce of marijuana in the privacy of their homes and to cultivate up to 25 square feet of garden space for personal use. It would prohibit possession on school grounds, use in public, smoking while minors are present, or providing to anyone under 21, as well as driving under the influence.
Current medical marijuana laws would not be affected, so patients could still grow and possess as much as necessary for their medical needs. Local governments (state or county) would be able to regulate, license, and authorize commercial cultivation, sale, and transport for adults over 21.
The initiative is a partial legalization measure since it would not legalize at the state level. It would remain a felony to sell, cultivate, transport, or possess marijuana for sale everywhere except where local governments decided otherwise. Thus it could become entirely legal to produce and sell a ton of marijuana in one city, while remaining a felony to transport it through the next city. Additional state legislation would be required to establish a uniform, state-regulated legalization regime in California, such as the legalization bill proposed by Assemblyman Tom Ammiano.
Fortunately, the initiative has a clause allowing the legislature to pass additional laws to further the purpose of the act. Should TC 2010 pass, Ammiano believes that the legislature will be eager to pass a bill like his own in order to establish statewide regulation and taxation of marijuana.
Passage of TC 2010 would be a historic boost to marijuana reform, marking the first-ever voter approval of legal adult use of marijuana By treating users as legal citizens, it would undercut the rationale for drug testing and other forms of discrimination against marijuana users. It would also greatly reduce the threat of arrests, since the odor of marijuana would no longer be a justification for police searches of one's home. Its ultimate impact on marijuana arrests is unclear, since this would depend on how many cities and counties legalized production and sales.
TC 2010 has a couple of controversial provisions that are of concern to California NORML. First, it would disallow marijuana smoking in "any space where minors are present" - a restriction unparalleled for any other drug, including tobacco, which is known to be far more harmful. Not only would this ban parents from smoking in the presence of their own children, but it could well leave them without any legal place to smoke, since the initiative also bans smoking in public or "a public place. By the same token, cops could cite pot smokers at any concert, dinner or event where kids under 21 were present. Violations would be punishable by the current $100 misdemeanor fine.
Secondly, TC 2010 would substantially increase existing penalties for adults giving marijuana to youths aged 18-21. TC 2010 would make it an offense punishable by $1,000 and six months for anyone 21 or over to give or share marijuana with someone aged 18-20, This offense is currently a minor misdemeanor punishable by a maximum $100 fine. So, a 21-year-old could be arrested for sharing a joint with his 20-year old friend, something that isn't presently the case.
Although the legislature would theoretically be able to change these provisions, it is highly doubtful they would do so given voters' approval of TC 2010. Should TC 2010 pass, California NORML would strongly support an initiative to repeal these provisions.
In the meantime, it's vital that TC 2010 do well in the upcoming election so as to keep the momentum of marijuana reform moving. For info, see http://www.taxcannabis.com.
Posted January 28th, 2010 by canorml_admin
California voters will have the opportunity to vote for marijuana reform this November. The Tax and Regulate Cannabis Initiative or "TC2010" (www.taxcannabis2010.org), sponsored by Richard Lee of Oaksterdam University, has submitted more than enough signatures to qualify for the ballot.
The initiative would decriminalize marijuana at the state level, while giving local county and city governments the power to legalize, tax and regulate production and sales if they see fit. In particular, the initiative would make it legal for adults 21 and older to possess one ounce of marijuana in the privacy of their homes and to cultivate up to 25 square feet of garden space for personal use. It would prohibit possession on school grounds, use in public, smoking while minors are present, or providing to anyone under 21, as well as driving under the influence.
Current medical marijuana laws would not be affected, so patients could still grow and possess as much as necessary for their medical needs. Local governments (state or county) would be able to regulate, license, and authorize commercial cultivation, sale, and transport for adults over 21.
The initiative is a partial legalization measure since it would not legalize at the state level. It would remain a felony to sell, cultivate, transport, or possess marijuana for sale everywhere except where local governments decided otherwise. Thus it could become entirely legal to produce and sell a ton of marijuana in one city, while remaining a felony to transport it through the next city. Additional state legislation would be required to establish a uniform, state-regulated legalization regime in California, such as the legalization bill proposed by Assemblyman Tom Ammiano.
Fortunately, the initiative has a clause allowing the legislature to pass additional laws to further the purpose of the act. Should TC 2010 pass, Ammiano believes that the legislature will be eager to pass a bill like his own in order to establish statewide regulation and taxation of marijuana.
Passage of TC 2010 would be a historic boost to marijuana reform, marking the first-ever voter approval of legal adult use of marijuana By treating users as legal citizens, it would undercut the rationale for drug testing and other forms of discrimination against marijuana users. It would also greatly reduce the threat of arrests, since the odor of marijuana would no longer be a justification for police searches of one's home. Its ultimate impact on marijuana arrests is unclear, since this would depend on how many cities and counties legalized production and sales.
TC 2010 has a couple of controversial provisions that are of concern to California NORML. First, it would disallow marijuana smoking in "any space where minors are present" - a restriction unparalleled for any other drug, including tobacco, which is known to be far more harmful. Not only would this ban parents from smoking in the presence of their own children, but it could well leave them without any legal place to smoke, since the initiative also bans smoking in public or "a public place. By the same token, cops could cite pot smokers at any concert, dinner or event where kids under 21 were present. Violations would be punishable by the current $100 misdemeanor fine.
Secondly, TC 2010 would substantially increase existing penalties for adults giving marijuana to youths aged 18-21. TC 2010 would make it an offense punishable by $1,000 and six months for anyone 21 or over to give or share marijuana with someone aged 18-20, This offense is currently a minor misdemeanor punishable by a maximum $100 fine. So, a 21-year-old could be arrested for sharing a joint with his 20-year old friend, something that isn't presently the case.
Although the legislature would theoretically be able to change these provisions, it is highly doubtful they would do so given voters' approval of TC 2010. Should TC 2010 pass, California NORML would strongly support an initiative to repeal these provisions.
In the meantime, it's vital that TC 2010 do well in the upcoming election so as to keep the momentum of marijuana reform moving. For info, see http://www.taxcannabis.com.