Blog

ASA’s California Weekly Roundup is your way to stay on top of medical cannabis news, events, action alerts, court support, and more.

ALERT: LIVE TONIGHT at 8:00 PM – “Medicine for Real: Taxation”
California lawmakers want to tax medical cannabis like a vice. What does that mean? What can you do? Let’s talk tonight. Log onto Google+ or YouTube a little before 8:00 PM tonight.

There are only 14 days left until the California Citizen Lobby Day. Get registered today so that we can make appointments for you at you Assembly and Senate offices! 

Get all the news, events, action alerts, & more...

• News 
• Events 
• Take Action Now  
  
• Court Support 
• ASA Website Spotlight  
• Chapter & Affiliate Meetings 

NEWS      

National

Feds Drop Case Against Influential Medical Marijuana Dispensary

Victory - Feds Drop Another Medical Cannabis Lawsuit

Is the Federal War on Medical Marijuana Over?

Seniors and marijuana

Going Green: Pot Growers’ Worries About Pesticide Use Bloom

California

California cities, counties warming to new marijuana laws

California's gearing up to rein in medical marijuana

Landlords could prohibit tenants from smoking medical marijuana under bill OKd by Assembly

Media Campaign Pushing Support For California Marijuana Farmers

California voters getting chance to fully legalize marijuana

Local

Oakland Museum rolls out major marijuana exhibition (Oakland)

Oakland looks to bring pot industry out of shadows, raise revenue (Oakland)

Group pushes to get marijuana regulation on ballot (Calaveras County)

Calaveras County releases new draft of urgency marijuana ordinance (Calaveras County)

Howard Jarvis tax group takes up Upland’s marijuana battle (Upland)

Marin County board OKs medical marijuana dispensary plan (Marin County)

California chef brings cannabis to fine dining (Los Angeles)

Venice Marijuana Dispensary Goes Up in Smoke (Los Angeles)

Medical marijuana sales generate sales tax revenue for Bakersfield, Kern County (Central Valley)

California medical marijuana chief to visit Arcata (Arcata)

Garden Grove Residents Just Say No to Lifting of Pot Dispensary Ban (Garden Grove)

Marijuana Cultivation Discussion at Roseville City Council Meeting (Roseville)

PUBLIC MEETINGS & EVENTS 

May 9, 2016 - Senate Appropriations Committee Hearing on SB 1462 (Sacramento)

10:00 AM in room 4203 in the State Capitol Building in downtown Sacramento, CA. The committee will vote on SB 1462 (Huff), which will authorize the use of an oral swab to test drivers for cannabis use. ASA opposes the bill because the swab is untested and does not measure impairment. Contact the committee members in advance to oppose the bill. You may watch the hearing live online.

May 9, 0216 - “Medicine for Real: Taxation” (Online)

8:00 PM online at https://plus.google.com/events/c71nvd6c190hrdbus895ghot6ts ASA California Director Don Duncan talks about taxing and regulating medical cannabis like medicine, not a vice. Cities, counties and the state are stacking taxes on medical cannabis patients and the industry. Talk about what that means and what you can do. Log on early to get signed in the Google+ for this live interactive event. You can watch live without installing software on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r6SGgUpNHFs

May 9, 2016 - Bureau of Medical Marijuana Regulation Informational Sessions (Los Angeles)

1:30 and 3:15 PM at Junipero Serra Building, 320 W. Fourth St, Los Angeles, CA 90013. The Chief of the Bureau of Medical Marijuana Regulation, Lori Ajax, and staff will be in Los Angeles to provide information to the public about the Bureau and the regulatory process.  All members of the public are invited to participate in these informational sessions.  Please arrive early for registration purposes. Email [email protected] for more information.

May 10, 2016 - Berkeley City Council Meeting (Berkeley)

7:00 PM at the School District Board Room, 1231 Addison Street, Berkeley, CA. Enter on University Ave. The City Council will consider applications for new dispensaries. Arrive early to complete a public speakers card.

May 11, 2016 – Assembly Appropriations Committee Hearing on AB 1575, AB 2243, and AB 2385 (Sacramento)

9:00 AM in room 4202 of the State Capitol Building in downtown Sacramento, CA. The committee will vote on AB 1575 (Bonta), a clean up bill for the MMRSA. ASA supports this necessary bill. The committee will vote on AB 2243 (Wood), which imposes additional taxes on licensed medical cannabis distributors. ASA opposes this bill. The committee will also vote on AB 2385 (Jones-Sawyer), which will exempt dispensaries in Los Angeles from the requirement to obtain a local license to operate. ASA has no position on this bill at this time. You can email the committee members in advance at http://apro.assembly.ca.gov/ You can watch the hearing live at http://www.calchannel.com/live-webcast/

May 11, 2016 - Senate Governance and Finances Committee Hearing on AB 821 (Sacramento)

9:30 AM in room 112 of the State Capitol Building in downtown Sacramento, CA. The committee will vote on AB 821 (Gipson), which will allow the BOE to waive the 10% penalty for cash payments by dispensaries until January 1, 2022. ASA supports this bill. You can contact the committee members in advance at http://sgf.senate.ca.gov/

May 21-22, 2016 - Cannabis Entrepreneur Summit (Online)

Join ASA California Director Don Duncan and medical cannabis industry experts for this free online forum. Get all the details online.

May 23, 2016 –ASA’s California Citizen Lobby Day 2016 (Sacramento)

8:00 AM Registration and Breakfast, 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM Lobby Day at the Hyatt Regency, 1209 L St, Sacramento, CA 95814. Registration is now open! Join us for the state’s largest medical cannabis lobby day. Special guest speakers, training, briefing materials, and more. ASA will make appointments for you to meet with your state lawmakers when you register. $40 requested donation. No one turned away for lack of funds. Click here to get more information and register today.

May 23, 2016 – ASA’s California Citizen Lobby Day VIP Reception (Sacramento)

7:00 PM at the Hyatt Regency, 1209 L St, Sacramento, CA 95814. Network and celebrate with elected officials, lobby day participants, and special guests. Complimentary hors d'oeuvres and a cash bar. $20 suggested donation, free for lobby day participants. Click here to get more information.

TAKE ACTION NOW 

Oppose AB 2740 in CA (California)

A new bill in the California Assembly will make criminal out of legal medical cannabis patients. AB 2740 (Low) will "make it an offense for a person who has 5 ng/ml or more of delta 9-tetrahydrocannabinol in his or her blood to drive a vehicle." A nanogram (ng) is one billionth of a gram, making the legal limit for driving with THC in your blood absurdly low. This standard is not based on any science. There is no reason to believe that drivers with this arbitrarily low limit of THC in their blood are impaired in any way. Legal medical cannabis patients who use medicine on a regular basis will always have 5 ng/ml in their blood. This bill makes law-abiding medical cannabis patients into criminals - but does nothing to improve public safety.

Oppose SB 987 in CA (California)

California Senator Mike McGuire (D-Healdsburg) has introduced SB 987, a bill that will assess an additional 15% excise tax on medical cannabis in the state.  The new tax will be in addition to the ordinary state sales tax and any local tax patients already pay for their doctor-recommend medicine. SB 987 imposes an unnecessary and unfair burden on medical cannabis patients. Sign this petition to tell lawmakers not to impose additional taxes on legal medical cannabis in California right now.

Download and Share the California Citizen Lobby Day Poster (California)

Help us spread the word about the state’s largest medical cannabis lobby day on Monday, May 23, in Sacramento. Download this 8.5x11 inch color poster (.pdf file, 3.9 MB) and print one or more copies to share. Ask if you can put one up at your local patients’ collective, doctor’s office, or other public place. Do you want fliers to pass out, too? Email [email protected] to have some mailed right away. 

COURT SUPPORT 

What is Court Support and how do I get involved? 

May 11, 2016 – Court Support for Shelby Lucero (Sacramento)

8:30 AM at Sacramento Superior Court, 720 9th Street, Sacramento, CA 95814. Trail setting hearing. Dress in an appropriate manner and obey all courtroom rules to best help the defendant. 

Find more information and additional listings on The Human Solution Calendar: http://www.thsintl.org/calendar

ASA WEBSITE SPOTLIGHT 

California Citizen Lobby Day 2016

Join Americans for Safe Access (ASA), the nation’s leading medical cannabis patients’ advocacy organization, for our annual California Citizen Lobby Day on Monday, May 23, in Sacramento. You will be part of the state's largest medical cannabis lobby day - with more than 300 patients, advocates, providers, industry works, and other stakeholders. This is your chance to talk face-to-face with lawmakers and regulators about patients' rights, taxation, and commercial regulation. Special guest speakers include: Lori Ajax, Chief of the Bureau of Medical Marijuana Regulation; An-Chi Tsou, Senior Policy Advisor at the Bureau of Medical Marijuana Regulation; Steph Sherer, Executive Director of Americans for Safe Access; Don Duncan, California Director of Americans for Safe Access.

Have something to share?

The “California Weekly Roundup” is a once-a-week email for ASA Members and Friends that focuses on relevant news and important updates, action alerts, meetings and special events. Send items for the California Weekly Roundup to [email protected] before 12:00 PM on Friday to be included in Monday's distribution.