Drug War Chronicle, Issue #1188 -- 5/26/23 Table of Content plus lead article... Yea for Minnesota!

[Bobbie Sellers]

Drug War Chronicle, Issue #1188 -- 5/26/23
Phillip S. Smith, Editor, ***@drcnet.org
https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/1188

A Publication of StoptheDrugWar.org
David Borden, Executive Director, ***@drcnet.org
"Raising Awareness of the Consequences of Drug Prohibition"

Table of Contents:

1. MINNESOTA SET TO BECOME 23RD STATE TO LEGALIZE MARIJUANA [FEATURE]
It's all over except for the governor's signature, and he says that will
happen in a "big" ceremony after Memorial Day.
https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2023/may/25/minnesota_set_become_23rd_state

2. WASHINGTON STATE MAKES DRUG POSSESSION A GROSS MISDEMEANOR [FEATURE]
Faced with having no drug possession law at all come July 1, the
legislature came up with a compromise.
https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2023/may/17/washington_state_makes_drug

3. THIS WEEK'S CORRUPT COPS STORIES
A jealous North Carolina deputy cooks up a plot to frame his
ex-girlfriend's new beau, and more.
https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2023/may/17/weeks_corrupt_cops_stories

4. NH SENATE KILLS LEGAL POT BILL, PHILIPPINES DRUG WAR CRITIC ACQUITTED
ON DRUG CHARGE, MORE... (5/12/23)
New Hampshire's governor changes his tune on marijuana legalization, the
Connecticut House approves psilocybin decriminalization, and more.
https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2023/may/12/nh_senate_kills_legal_pot_bill

5. AMSTERDAM BANS OUTDOOR POT SMOKING IN RED LIGHT DISTRICT, AK DRUG
SENTENCING BILL ADVANCES, MORE... (5/15/23)
The House passes a bill to fund research into the
veterinary-drug-turned-fentanyl-supplement Xylazine, a former Filipina
president introduces a medical marijuana bill, and more.
https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2023/may/15/amsterdam_bans_outdoor_pot

6. MN FINAL LEGAL POT VOTES COMING SOON, WA LAWMAKERS COMPROMISE ON DRUG
POSSESSION LAW, MORE... (5/16/23)
A Florida marijuana legalization initiative will get a state Supreme
Court review, Washington's governor signs into law a bill protecting
pot-smoking employees, and more.
https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2023/may/16/mn_final_legal_pot_votes_coming

7. FATAL DRUG OVERDOSES ROSE ONLY SLIGHTLY LAST YEAR, WHITE HOUSE PRODS
NALOXONE MAKERS, MORE... (5/17/23)
Pot isn't the only thing you can buy in some Los Angeles-area pot shops,
overdose deaths appear to have plateaued last year, and more.
https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2023/may/17/fatal_drug_overdoses_rose_only

8. MN LEGAL POT BILL READY FOR FINAL VOTES, SINGAPORE HANGS ANOTHER MAN
FOR MARIJUANA, MORE... (5/18/23)
A major civil and human rights group comes out against one federal
fentanyl bill, bipartisan senators and representatives file another one,
and more.
https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2023/may/18/mn_legal_pot_bill_ready_final

9. MN HOUSE VOTES TO LEGALIZE MARIJUANA, ACT TO RESTORE SNAP BENEFITS TO
DRUG FELONS RE-FILED, MORE... (5/19/23)
Minnesota is one Senate vote away from legalizing marijuana, the RESTORE
Act gets reintroduced, and more.
https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2023/may/19/mn_house_votes_legalize

10. MN SET TO BECOME 23RD LEGAL MARIJUANA STATE, IRAN HANGS THREE MORE
DRUG OFFENDERS, MORE... (5/22/23)
A bill protecting medical marijuana patients advances in Louisiana, a
bill broadening expungement and freeing some pot prisoners advances in
Connecticut, and more.
https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2023/may/22/mn_set_become_23rd_legal

11. MORE THAN 150 GROUPS URGE "NO" VOTE ON HALT ACT, NH LEGAL POT EFFORT
REVIVES, MORE... (5/23/23)
An Oregon bill to mandate fentanyl education in the public schools goes
to the governor, a House committee rejects a Republican's marijuana
legalization amendment, and more.
https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2023/may/23/more_150_groups_urge_no_vote

12. NH RESIDENTS READY FOR LEGAL WEED, NY SAFE INJECTION SITE BILL
ADVANCES, MORE... (5/24/23)
San Francisco's mayor is ready to roll out a pilot program to arrest
public drug users, yet another federal bill aimed at the fentanyl trade
gets filed, and more.
https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2023/may/24/nh_residents_ready_legal_weed_ny

13. HOUSE PASSES HALT FENTANYL ACT, CA SENATE PASSES PSYCHEDELIC
DECRIMINALIZATION BILL. MORE... (5/25/23)
No more pot smoking on the streets of Amsterdam's red light district, a
bipartisan marijuana legalization bill gets filed in Ohio, and more.
https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2023/may/25/house_passes_halt_fentanyl_act

14. HOUSE PASSAGE OF HALT FENTANYL ACT SLAMMED, DEA JERKS OPIOID
DISTRIBUTOR'S LICENSE, MORE... (5/26/23)
The Louisiana House votes to radically quicken expungements for pot
possession offenses, a Texas medical marijuana bill is dead in the water
in the state Senate, and more.
https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2023/may/26/house_passage_halt_fentanyl_act

(Not subscribed? Visit https://stopthedrugwar.org to sign up today!)

================

1. MINNESOTA SET TO BECOME 23RD STATE TO LEGALIZE MARIJUANA [FEATURE]
https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2023/may/25/minnesota_set_become_23rd_state

With final votes approving the House File 100
(https://www.revisor.mn.gov/bills/bill.php?b=house&f=HF100&ssn=0&y=2023)
marijuana legalization bill in the House and Senate last week, Minnesota
is only a governor's signature away from becoming the 23rd state to
legalize marijuana and the second, after Delaware to do it this year.
And in comments
(https://www.marijuanamoment.net/minnesota-governor-says-hell-sign-marijuana-legalization-bill-next-week-as-state-launches-new-site-for-regulatory-agency/)
after the legislature sent him the bill, Gov. Tim Walz (D) has made it
crystal clear that he will sign the bill into law -- with a "big"
ceremony after Memorial Day.

While licensed adult-use legal marijuana sales are months away,
marijuana will be legal to possess and home cultivate beginning August
1, and expungement provisions of the law also go into effect then.

"When the bill reaches my desk, Minnesota will become the 23rd state in
the nation to legalize adult-use cannabis," Walz said. "It's going to
take a while. We have to put the regime into place. We'll have to make
sure the licensing stands up. And what we've said is -- what you're
going to have certainty about is -- is that you're going to know what
the product you're buying is, there's going to be a regulated, safe
environment and we're going to be able to stand that up," he vowed.

As for phased legalization, with the August date for the end of pot
prohibition and legal commerce beginning after regulators set up a
system, "I think the legislature did a smart thing here," Walz said. "I
think this is what Minnesotans expect. We've seen it in other states
that it worked. We have the advantage of learning from what they did."

The state is moving quickly. The Office of Cannabis Management, which
will be the regulator but which has not even been officially formed yet,
already has its own web site (https://cannabis.state.mn.us). It contains
information for recreational marijuana users, medical marijuana
patients, people who want to get into the industry, and people seeking
information about expungements. "We're going to be working on the
expungements to get people back to where they should have been, and then
we will set up the infrastructure to make sure that we're licensing and
regulating the dispensaries," Walz said.

"We've been working on this for about four years, talking to people in
Vermont and Colorado. We want to make it a smooth transition. But I
think the biggest thing is that, on August 1, just making sure we're not
going to spend precious dollars in our policing focusing on possession
of cannabis, rather than looking at other crimes we should be working
on," he said. "It just takes a little bit of time. We'll implement it.
We'll get it in. And I think this is the direction Minnesota wanted us
to go."

Under the bill (about to become law), people 21 and over will be able to
possess up to two ounces in public as of August 1. They will also be
able to grow up to eight plants at home, four of which can be in
flowering, and they can possess up to two pounds of the fruits of their
harvest at home. People can also transfer up to two ounces without
remuneration to other adults.

Also beginning August 1, certain misdemeanor marijuana records will be
automatically expunged. A new bureaucratic entity, the Cannabis
Expungement Board, will also consider some marijuana felonies for
relief, including potential sentence cuts for those still behind bars.

The legal marijuana commerce is expected to take between a year and 18
months to get up and running with licenses issued and sales underway by
then. Existing medical marijuana dispensaries will be able to get
combination licenses to compete in the adult use market as of March 1, 2025.

Cities and counties cannot ban legal marijuana businesses, but they can
impose "reasonable" regulations. They can also chose to operate their
own dispensaries, like a state liquor store.

Retail marijuana sales will be taxed at 16.875 percent, which adds a 10
percent pot tax to the state's 6.875 percent sales tax. Four-fifths of
marijuana tax and fee revenue will go to the state's general fund, with
some funds earmarked for grants to marijuana businesses and drug
treatment efforts. The other 20 percent will go to local governments.

The law will also allow onsite consumption for special events, as well
as marijuana delivery services.

The new law will attempt to address equity concerns by scoring
applicants higher if they live in low-income neighborhoods, have
marijuana convictions or family members with them, or are military
veterans with less than an honorable discharge because of a
marijuana-related offense.

The National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML) is
liking what it is seeing in the Land of 10,000 Lakes.

"The majority of Minnesota voters support repealing marijuana
prohibition and replacing this failed policy with legalization and
regulation," NORML's Deputy Director Paul Armentano said
(https://norml.org/blog/2023/05/20/minnesota-lawmakers-advance-adult-use-legalization-bill-to-governors-desk/).
"Passage of this legislation is the result of years of grassroots
activism by consumers and stakeholders, including Minnesota NORML. In
fact, the impetus for the formation of Minnesota NORML was based upon a
police raid and resulting marijuana arrest. These sorts of destructive
actions are now poised to come to an end in Minnesota."

And perhaps that can be a lesson to the state's prohibitionist neighbors
in the Dakotas, Iowa, and Wisconsin.

================ ...
___________________

It's time to correct the mistake:
Truth:the Anti-drugwar
<http://www.briancbennett.com>

Cops say legalize drugs--find out why:
<http://www.leap.cc>
Stoners are people too:
<http://www.cannabisconsumers.org>
___________________

bliss -- Cacao Powered... (-SF4ever at DSLExtreme dot com)

[Bobbie Sellers]

On 5/26/23 20:10, Bobbie Sellers wrote:

Followup to should have been set to talk.politics.drugs
Sorry for the extra post
bliss

Post by Bobbie Sellers
Drug War Chronicle, Issue #1188 -- 5/26/23
https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/1188
A Publication of StoptheDrugWar.org
"Raising Awareness of the Consequences of Drug Prohibition"
1. MINNESOTA SET TO BECOME 23RD STATE TO LEGALIZE MARIJUANA [FEATURE]
It's all over except for the governor's signature, and he says that will
happen in a "big" ceremony after Memorial Day.
https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2023/may/25/minnesota_set_become_23rd_state
2. WASHINGTON STATE MAKES DRUG POSSESSION A GROSS MISDEMEANOR [FEATURE]
Faced with having no drug possession law at all come July 1, the
legislature came up with a compromise.
https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2023/may/17/washington_state_makes_drug
3. THIS WEEK'S CORRUPT COPS STORIES
A jealous North Carolina deputy cooks up a plot to frame his
ex-girlfriend's new beau, and more.
https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2023/may/17/weeks_corrupt_cops_stories
4. NH SENATE KILLS LEGAL POT BILL, PHILIPPINES DRUG WAR CRITIC ACQUITTED
ON DRUG CHARGE, MORE... (5/12/23)
New Hampshire's governor changes his tune on marijuana legalization, the
Connecticut House approves psilocybin decriminalization, and more.
https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2023/may/12/nh_senate_kills_legal_pot_bill
5. AMSTERDAM BANS OUTDOOR POT SMOKING IN RED LIGHT DISTRICT, AK DRUG
SENTENCING BILL ADVANCES, MORE... (5/15/23)
The House passes a bill to fund research into the
veterinary-drug-turned-fentanyl-supplement Xylazine, a former Filipina
president introduces a medical marijuana bill, and more.
https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2023/may/15/amsterdam_bans_outdoor_pot
6. MN FINAL LEGAL POT VOTES COMING SOON, WA LAWMAKERS COMPROMISE ON DRUG
POSSESSION LAW, MORE... (5/16/23)
A Florida marijuana legalization initiative will get a state Supreme
Court review, Washington's governor signs into law a bill protecting
pot-smoking employees, and more.
https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2023/may/16/mn_final_legal_pot_votes_coming
7. FATAL DRUG OVERDOSES ROSE ONLY SLIGHTLY LAST YEAR, WHITE HOUSE PRODS
NALOXONE MAKERS, MORE... (5/17/23)
Pot isn't the only thing you can buy in some Los Angeles-area pot shops,
overdose deaths appear to have plateaued last year, and more.
https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2023/may/17/fatal_drug_overdoses_rose_only
8. MN LEGAL POT BILL READY FOR FINAL VOTES, SINGAPORE HANGS ANOTHER MAN
FOR MARIJUANA, MORE... (5/18/23)
A major civil and human rights group comes out against one federal
fentanyl bill, bipartisan senators and representatives file another one,
and more.
https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2023/may/18/mn_legal_pot_bill_ready_final
9. MN HOUSE VOTES TO LEGALIZE MARIJUANA, ACT TO RESTORE SNAP BENEFITS TO
DRUG FELONS RE-FILED, MORE... (5/19/23)
Minnesota is one Senate vote away from legalizing marijuana, the RESTORE
Act gets reintroduced, and more.
https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2023/may/19/mn_house_votes_legalize
10. MN SET TO BECOME 23RD LEGAL MARIJUANA STATE, IRAN HANGS THREE MORE
DRUG OFFENDERS, MORE... (5/22/23)
A bill protecting medical marijuana patients advances in Louisiana, a
bill broadening expungement and freeing some pot prisoners advances in
Connecticut, and more.
https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2023/may/22/mn_set_become_23rd_legal
11. MORE THAN 150 GROUPS URGE "NO" VOTE ON HALT ACT, NH LEGAL POT EFFORT
REVIVES, MORE... (5/23/23)
An Oregon bill to mandate fentanyl education in the public schools goes
to the governor, a House committee rejects a Republican's marijuana
legalization amendment, and more.
https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2023/may/23/more_150_groups_urge_no_vote
12. NH RESIDENTS READY FOR LEGAL WEED, NY SAFE INJECTION SITE BILL
ADVANCES, MORE... (5/24/23)
San Francisco's mayor is ready to roll out a pilot program to arrest
public drug users, yet another federal bill aimed at the fentanyl trade
gets filed, and more.
https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2023/may/24/nh_residents_ready_legal_weed_ny
13. HOUSE PASSES HALT FENTANYL ACT, CA SENATE PASSES PSYCHEDELIC
DECRIMINALIZATION BILL. MORE... (5/25/23)
No more pot smoking on the streets of Amsterdam's red light district, a
bipartisan marijuana legalization bill gets filed in Ohio, and more.
https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2023/may/25/house_passes_halt_fentanyl_act
14. HOUSE PASSAGE OF HALT FENTANYL ACT SLAMMED, DEA JERKS OPIOID
DISTRIBUTOR'S LICENSE, MORE... (5/26/23)
The Louisiana House votes to radically quicken expungements for pot
possession offenses, a Texas medical marijuana bill is dead in the water
in the state Senate, and more.
https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2023/may/26/house_passage_halt_fentanyl_act
(Not subscribed? Visit https://stopthedrugwar.org to sign up today!)
================
1. MINNESOTA SET TO BECOME 23RD STATE TO LEGALIZE MARIJUANA [FEATURE]
https://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2023/may/25/minnesota_set_become_23rd_state
With final votes approving the House File 100
(https://www.revisor.mn.gov/bills/bill.php?b=house&f=HF100&ssn=0&y=2023)
marijuana legalization bill in the House and Senate last week, Minnesota
is only a governor's signature away from becoming the 23rd state to
legalize marijuana and the second, after Delaware to do it this year.
And in comments
(https://www.marijuanamoment.net/minnesota-governor-says-hell-sign-marijuana-legalization-bill-next-week-as-state-launches-new-site-for-regulatory-agency/) after the legislature sent him the bill, Gov. Tim Walz (D) has made it crystal clear that he will sign the bill into law -- with a "big" ceremony after Memorial Day.
While licensed adult-use legal marijuana sales are months away,
marijuana will be legal to possess and home cultivate beginning August
1, and expungement provisions of the law also go into effect then.
"When the bill reaches my desk, Minnesota will become the 23rd state in
the nation to legalize adult-use cannabis," Walz said. "It's going to
take a while. We have to put the regime into place. We'll have to make
sure the licensing stands up. And what we've said is -- what you're
going to have certainty about is -- is that you're going to know what
the product you're buying is, there's going to be a regulated, safe
environment and we're going to be able to stand that up," he vowed.
As for phased legalization, with the August date for the end of pot
prohibition and legal commerce beginning after regulators set up a
system, "I think the legislature did a smart thing here," Walz said. "I
think this is what Minnesotans expect. We've seen it in other states
that it worked. We have the advantage of learning from what they did."
The state is moving quickly. The Office of Cannabis Management, which
will be the regulator but which has not even been officially formed yet,
already has its own web site (https://cannabis.state.mn.us). It contains
information for recreational marijuana users, medical marijuana
patients, people who want to get into the industry, and people seeking
information about expungements. "We're going to be working on the
expungements to get people back to where they should have been, and then
we will set up the infrastructure to make sure that we're licensing and
regulating the dispensaries," Walz said.
"We've been working on this for about four years, talking to people in
Vermont and Colorado. We want to make it a smooth transition. But I
think the biggest thing is that, on August 1, just making sure we're not
going to spend precious dollars in our policing focusing on possession
of cannabis, rather than looking at other crimes we should be working
on," he said. "It just takes a little bit of time. We'll implement it.
We'll get it in. And I think this is the direction Minnesota wanted us
to go."
Under the bill (about to become law), people 21 and over will be able to
possess up to two ounces in public as of August 1. They will also be
able to grow up to eight plants at home, four of which can be in
flowering, and they can possess up to two pounds of the fruits of their
harvest at home. People can also transfer up to two ounces without
remuneration to other adults.
Also beginning August 1, certain misdemeanor marijuana records will be
automatically expunged. A new bureaucratic entity, the Cannabis
Expungement Board, will also consider some marijuana felonies for
relief, including potential sentence cuts for those still behind bars.
The legal marijuana commerce is expected to take between a year and 18
months to get up and running with licenses issued and sales underway by
then. Existing medical marijuana dispensaries will be able to get
combination licenses to compete in the adult use market as of March 1, 2025.
Cities and counties cannot ban legal marijuana businesses, but they can
impose "reasonable" regulations. They can also chose to operate their
own dispensaries, like a state liquor store.
Retail marijuana sales will be taxed at 16.875 percent, which adds a 10
percent pot tax to the state's 6.875 percent sales tax. Four-fifths of
marijuana tax and fee revenue will go to the state's general fund, with
some funds earmarked for grants to marijuana businesses and drug
treatment efforts. The other 20 percent will go to local governments.
The law will also allow onsite consumption for special events, as well
as marijuana delivery services.
The new law will attempt to address equity concerns by scoring
applicants higher if they live in low-income neighborhoods, have
marijuana convictions or family members with them, or are military
veterans with less than an honorable discharge because of a
marijuana-related offense.
The National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML) is
liking what it is seeing in the Land of 10,000 Lakes.
"The majority of Minnesota voters support repealing marijuana
prohibition and replacing this failed policy with legalization and
regulation," NORML's Deputy Director Paul Armentano said
(https://norml.org/blog/2023/05/20/minnesota-lawmakers-advance-adult-use-legalization-bill-to-governors-desk/). "Passage of this legislation is the result of years of grassroots activism by consumers and stakeholders, including Minnesota NORML. In fact, the impetus for the formation of Minnesota NORML was based upon a police raid and resulting marijuana arrest. These sorts of destructive actions are now poised to come to an end in Minnesota."
And perhaps that can be a lesson to the state's prohibitionist neighbors
in the Dakotas, Iowa, and Wisconsin.
================  ...
                   ___________________
                  Truth:the Anti-drugwar
            <http://www.briancbennett.com>
               <http://www.leap.cc>
        <http://www.cannabisconsumers.org>
                ___________________
     bliss -- Cacao  Powered... (-SF4ever at DSLExtreme dot com)