Contents:

Message from the CA Director - Support SB 1262 in California

California News

• Pot growers face charges -- in state where pot is legal (National)
• U.S. Says Legal Marijuana Growers Can't Use Federal Irrigation Water (National)
• Experts Debate Use of Cannabis to Control Seizures (National)
• Calif. law would require cops to return seized pot if charges are dropped (California)
• John Vasconcellos, longtime Silicon Valley lawmaker, dies at 82  (California)
• Medical Marijuana Opponents File for an Initiative (Santa Monica)
• Medical marijuana measure qualifies for June 2015 ballot (Riverside)
• Editorial: Riverside again ground zero in medical pot fight (Riverside)
• A Balanced Plan for Medical Cannabis Regulation in San Jose (San Jose)
• San Jose City Council to Vote on Medical Marijuana Rules (San Jose)
• Cannaroma: The Werc Shop Unveils Terpene-Enhanced Product Line (Pasadena)
• County’s marijuana eradication/suppression program (San Bernardino County)
• LA Pot Politics Spreads Statewide (Los Angeles)
• Santa Cruz County mulls marijuana dispensary tax (Santa Cruz)
• Teen arraigned in deadly pot dispensary robbery (San Diego)
• Yabba dabba do(n't): An uncertain future and a legal gray area shade the growing trend of cannabis concentrates (San Luis Obispo)

Events

• Wednesday, May 28, 2014 – Sacramento County Board of Supervisors Meeting (Sacramento)
• Saturday, May 31, 2014 – ASA Spring Membership Drive Ends (Nationwide)
• Monday, August 4, 2014 – CA Citizen Lobby Day (Sacramento)

Court Support

• Friday, May 30, 2014 – Court Support for Tavi Gonzales (Rancho Cucamonga)

Take Action

• Support SB 1262 in California
• Join Americans for Safe Access (ASA)

ASA Website Spotlight

• Joining a Movement

ASA Chapter & Affiliate Meetings

• Tuesday, May 27, 2014 - San Diego ASA (North County)
• Thursday, May 29, 2014 - Sacramento ASA (Sacramento)

Read more

There are two bills on the Governor’s desk that will severely limit safe access to medical cannabis in California. Americans for Safe Access (ASA) is calling on supporters to contact Governor Jerry Brown today and ask him to veto SB 847 and AB 1300 to protect local access in our communities.

Can you take a few minutes right now to call or email Governor Brown? ASA’s online action center makes it easy!


Senator Lou Correa’s (D-Santa Ana) SB 847 requires that medical cannabis cooperatives and collectives be located at least 600 feet from any residential zone or use. This will force patients’ associations to the outskirts of most cities – if they can find a location at all! Assemblymember Bob Blumenfield’s (D-Van Nuys) AB 1300 explicitly authorizes cities and counties to ban cooperatives and collectives. That means access can be eliminated in some communities altogether! That is not what voters intended when they adopted Proposition 215 in 1996, calling on lawmakers “to implement a plan to provide for the safe and affordable distribution of marijuana to all patients in medical need of marijuana.”

These bills passed through the legislature easily. If we do not make a good show of opposition at the Governor’s office, he will sign SB 847 and AB 1300 into law. Research conducted by ASA and years of experience in implementing our state law show that sensible regulations reduce crime and complaints around cooperatives and collectives. Tell Governor Brown we can work with lawmakers to adopt better laws than these.

Please act today. The bills could be signed at any minute! Thank you for helping.

The California Assembly Committee on Local Government will vote on a bill that will make it much more difficult to establish a legal medical cannabis patients’ cooperative or collective on Tuesday, June 29. Senator Lou Correa’s (D-Santa Ana) SB 847 will require that all cooperatives and collectives be located at least 600 feet from residential zones or use – effectively excluding vast portions of most California cities. This would be on top of the existing requirement that facilities be located 600 feet from schools.

We need to stop this bad bill before it reaches the Assembly floor. Americans for Safe Access (ASA) is calling on medical cannabis patients and supporters to oppose SB 847 today. ASA's Online Action Center makes it easy to find your state Assemblymember and send a message right now.

SB 847 is burdensome. It is already hard enough for patients to organize and operate legal cooperatives and collectives. This new rule may make it almost impossible in some cities. Most medical cannabis patients rely on cooperatives and collectives for access to medicine, so onerous restrictions like this serve to choke off safe access. That is not what voters intended when they approved Proposition 215 calling on lawmakers “to implement a plan to provide for the safe and affordable distribution of marijuana to all patients in medical need of marijuana.”

SB 847 is unnecessary. Research conducted by ASA and more than fifteen years of experience with medical cannabis in California have taught us that sensible local regulations reduce crime and complaints. We do not need to usurp local control on medical cannabis. Instead, legislators should be cooperating with local government and other stake holders to adopt state laws that facilitate safe, reliable, and legal access to medicine.

Email your California Assemblymember today and ask him or her to vote no on SB 847.

Thank you for helping!