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BILL WOULD OUTLAW MEDICAL MARIJUANA BARS, CLUBS

A bill that would outlaw medical marijuana clubs and bars would resolve some Livingston County officials' concerns about how such facilities would fit into their communities. 

But the proposal would only address one of many questions raised by the Michigan Medical Marihuana Act, including how medical marijuana can be dispensed, local officials said. 

The act was made law in 2008, when voters approved a ballot initiative to allow patients with debilitating illnesses to grow and possess marijuana for medicinal purposes. 

In late August, state Rep.  Rick Jones, R-Grand Ledge, introduced House Bill 6394, which would prohibit organizing or operating a "marijuana club" or a "marijuana bar."

The bill defines a marijuana club as a membership-fee organization in which people smoke marijuana in a private place. 

It defines a marijuana bar as any structure or land where people pay a fee to smoke marijuana. 

Jones' bill would exclude hospice operations, nursing homes and locations where marijuana is legally dispensed under the medical marijuana act. 

His proposal calls for misdemeanor penalties of up to 90 days in prison, a fine of $500 or both, for violations. 

The bill is one of at least seven pending in the Legislature that would create new rules for people who use medical marijuana and their caregivers. 

Jones said the purpose of his bill is to prevent people from leaving the clubs or bars and driving home under the influence of marijuana. 

Livingston County communities continue to debate whether they need to adjust their zoning rules to comply with the medical marijuana law. 

At least six county communities have tackled the issue, including Green Oak Township, Brighton Township, Hartland Township, Brighton, Howell and Pinckney. 

The Green Oak Township Planning Commission on Thursday will consider recommending minor zoning-ordinance changes that would incorporate state-approved medical marijuana use, possession and growth into the township's rules for building uses. 

Jones' bill doesn't address what constitutes a legal dispensary, or how or where medical marijuana can be distributed, said Bob Moran, chairman of the Green Oak Township Planning Commission. 

Moran said the commission's goal is to protect the rights of approved users and caregivers, but to prohibit related businesses that might operate outside the 2008 law. 

"We didn't feel as though you could put a prohibition on private clubs and bars.  As long is it's above board, there would not be an issue," Moran said. 

Hartland Township last month passed a six-month moratorium on all permits, licenses and approvals related to either the sale or dispensation of medical marijuana. 

Hartland officials, meanwhile, are studying how to implement the law's rules in the community, said Township Manager James Wickman. 

Wickman said the 2008 ballot initiative didn't make clear how those permitted to use medical marijuana can legally obtain it, and how it can legally be distributed to approved users. 

Applying all of the above concerns to local zoning rules is a considerable challenge, Wickman said. 

"It either needs to be clear or they need to provide the direction on how to carry it out.  That's lacking," Wickman said. 

The city of Brighton also passed a six-month moratorium on the sale and dispensation of medical marijuana for the same reasons. 

Jones said he proposed his bill after police raided the Green Leaf University Smokers Club in Williamstown Township just outside Williamston in Ingham County, described as a dispensary and compassion club for patients, in May. 

Police didn't seize any of the drugs at the club itself, but arrested the owner on drug charges after finding 150 pounds of marijuana at his Okemos home - far more than allowed in the 2008 law. 

"I immediately knew that something had to be done.  They were just getting people high and putting them right back on the road," Jones said. 

If that logic were valid, Michigan should close all parking lots outside Michigan's watering holes to prevent drunken driving, said Greg Francisco, president and founder of the Michigan Medical Marijuana Association. 

Francisco said there is no evidence of a rash of car accidents fueled by motorists under the influence of marijuana. 

If anything, drivers under the influence of marijuana slow down and overcompensate for their actions, Francisco added. 

"We're not seeing this epidemic of mayhem on the roads from stoned drivers.  It's totally manufactured," he said. 

"We do have a right to peacefully assemble.  We are legal, law-abiding people engaged in legal activities, and we do have the right to meet as a group, as a community," Francisco added. 

Jones countered that the intent of the law was to allow for marijuana to be used as a medicine in homes of people permitted by the state to use it, not in organized social settings.