Cannabis Defense Coalition

SB 5073 amendments stir massive concern

UPDATE February 9, 2011 -- The medical cannabis bill was introduced as SB 5073. On February 9, the Senate Health and Long-Term Care Committee adopted several amendments to the bill, most of them bad.

The amendments can be found here. Once the PDF loads, scroll down on the left to SB 5073. You'll see the "striker" which replaces the bill entirely, and seven adopted amendments. The striker, proposed by committee chair Senator Karen Keiser (360-786-7664, [email protected]), includes many changes:

â?˘Unlicensed collective grows would be limited to 3 participating patients, down from 25.
â?˘Removes section relating to employment protection.
â?˘Modifies housing protections to allow prohibitions against *smoking* of cannabis.
â?˘Department of Agriculture's role in testing and inspection is limited and private laboratory testing is authorized.
â?˘Requires patients to pay retail sales tax on medical cannabis, in addition to the B&O taxes dispensers and producers would pay.
â?˘Requires license suspension if licensee is in default of a federally- or state-guaranteed student loan.
â?˘Removes civil penalties for law enforcement who illegally access and distribute information from the state-run patient registry.
â?˘Modifies the state preemption to allow local governments to adopt licensing requirements and taxes on medical cannabis.
â?˘Modifies the "interim protections" section to apply to dispensaries that have incorporated by May 1, 2011.
Senator Mike Carrell (360-786-7654, [email protected]) offered several amendments which were adopted:

â?˘Housing protections don't apply if the housing program contains a component prohibiting the use of drugs or alcohol.
â?˘Tested samples of cannabis that are under .3% THC must be destroyed or sold to hemp product manufacturers.
â?˘Health care professionals may only authorize the use of medical cannabis if they have completed a physical examination of the patient, informed the patient of other options, and first attempted measures to treat the terminal or debilitating condition that do not involve the medical use of cannabis. Health care professionals must monitor patients on a quarterly basis and file quarterly reports with the Department of Health regarding number of patients they have authorized to use medical cannabis. DOH is authorized to determine if the amount of authorizations is "innappropriate." Such a determination would constitute a finding of unprofessional conduct against a health care professional.
Senator Randi Becker (360-786-7602, [email protected]) gutted the arrest protection provision of the bill:

â?˘Arrest protection is provided only for patients who have "voluntarily" registered with the state.
Senator Conway (360-786-7656, [email protected]) removed state preemption from the bill

â?˘Removes state preemption in the field of medical cannabis law. Specifically authorizes local governments to adopt zoning requirements, licensing requirements and taxes on medical cannabis businesses.
Though the amended version hasn't made it online yet, the bill may be seen here.