Pubdate: Thu, 04 Oct 2012
Source: Boulder Weekly (CO)
Copyright: 2012 Boulder Weekly
Contact:  http://www.boulderweekly.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/57
Author: Timothy Tipton

VOTE NO ON 64

Many longtime cannabis activists in Colorado have come out against 
the language of Amendment 64, for good reason. A64 is being billed as 
"legalization," but it really is not. Steve Fox, a lobbyist for 
D.C.-based Marijuana Policy Project and the main author of A64, 
actually lobbied to have the word "legalization" taken out of the 
ballot title because "legalization would be truly misleading" to the 
voters. A64 is about regulation, control, more laws, and more police 
to enforce those laws. It is not true legalization (removal of 
criminal penalties).

A64 does remove the criminal penalty for one ounce of cannabis. 
However, two ounces is already completely decriminalized in Colorado, 
punishable only by a ticket and $100 fine as a petty offense. So A64 
sets a constitutional standard that is actually lower than what we 
have in statute.

A64 was modeled after HB 10-1284, a bill that was designed to shut 
down 80 percent of existing medical marijuana dispensaries. By 
setting a limit of one ounce as the amount that you could legally buy 
from a retail marijuana store, A64 guarantees the creation of a 
non-confidential registry of marijuana users who want to buy 
commercial marijuana. Section 6 (d) of A64 actually makes it 
constitutional to discriminate against marijuana users by employers, 
schools, hospitals and landlords.

A64 would give the Department of Revenue complete constitutional 
authority to regulate all marijuana in Colorado in any way they want. 
The DOR has already proven corrupt and incompetent in its 
administration of the medical marijuana program. To give them total 
control of cannabis, without any legislative oversight, is truly frightening.

A64 also allows the state to set unlimited taxes on cannabis, without 
a vote of the people. (As a separate constitutional amendment, A64 is 
already "de-Bruced" and supersedes TABOR.) Cannabis was originally 
made illegal in 1937 by a prohibitive tax in the Marijuana Tax Act. 
A64 continues in that prohibitionist tradition by allowing the state 
to use taxes to essentially prohibit marijuana.

Supporters of A64 admit that the language is flawed, but say it is a 
step in the right direction. It is not a step towards legalization, 
it is a step towards guaranteeing that only large corporations will 
be able to produce cannabis in Colorado. In addition, A64 law will 
continue the medical marijuana scenario of "good" pot smokers pitted 
against "bad" pot smokers. The "good" pot smokers will provide the 
funding to create a whole new branch of law enforcement dedicated to 
prosecuting the "bad" pot smokers, e.g., those that don't want to be 
on a registry and be subjected to home inspection. This takes 
cannabis Prohibition to another level, with more authority and 
funding for the police to go after "bad" pot smokers. This is not a 
step towards "legalization."

Don't be fooled by the hype. Read the language and decide that this 
law is not good for Colorado.

Timothy Tipton,

Cannabis Policy Project/via Internet
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom