Global Ganja Report

Five bills have been introduced this year in Sacramento concerning cannabis and medical marijuana, winning varying degrees of support from activists and the cannabis industry. Most likely to pass is San Francisco Assemblyman Tom Ammiano's Assembly Bill 2312, which would regulate medical marijuana at the state level instead of letting each city and county take differing approaches to interpreting the law. AB 2312 would create a Board of Medical Marijuana Enforcement within the state Department of Consumer Affairs to approve or deny permits for growing, processing, testing, transporting, distributing and selling medical cannabis.

The bill is similar to a proposed ballot measure which failed to win enough signatures, the Medical Marijuana Regulation Control and Taxation Initiative, except that it does not impose a state tax, instead authorizing local taxes. Imposing a state tax requires a two-thirds majority in both houses, which would be nearly impossible to obtain.

Less popular with advocates is Assembly Bill 2365, which would require all medical marijuana patients to get a state identification card and register the address where they are cultivating cannabis. AB 2365 would also amend the state code to require that family courts consider a parent's documented use of prescribed drugs—including medical marijuana (although it is not technically "prescribed")—in child-custody proceedings.

Senate Bill 1506 would make the crime of possessing concentrated cannabis resin—that is, hashish—a misdemeanor. Currently, hashish possession can either be prosecuted as a misdemeanor or a felony. A felony hash possession conviction can land a sentence of 16 months to three years in prison. (Sacramento News & Review, March 22)

Graphic by Herbal Remedies 

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