Pubdate: Tue, 22 Jan 2013
Source: Seattle Times (WA)
Copyright: 2013 Associated Press
Contact:  http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/409
Author: Mike Baker, Associated Press
Page: B1

STRICT POT CONTROLS NEEDED, STATE SAYS

Feds Will Take Action Unless Rules Strong

Liquor Control Board Seeking Advice on Regs

OLYMPIA, Wash. (AP)- Washington state officials are looking to build 
a strictly regulated marijuana system that could forestall federal 
concerns about how the drug will be handled once it's available for 
public purchase.

Rick Garza of the Washington Liquor Control Board said Monday he 
expects the federal government will try to take action if 
Washington's system has loose controls. He said it's important for 
Washington to have a strong regulatory structure, such as how 
participants in the system are licensed and how the product is 
handled from growth to the point of sale.

"The feds are going to tighten the rope if they feel like it's not 
strictly regulated," Garza said. "The more tightly regulated it is, 
they are likely to give us a little more room."

One of the biggest issues the state is looking to manage is how much 
marijuana will be grown under the new system. Garza said it's 
important for officials to properly project consumption rates so the 
state is growing the right amount of product for in-state users and 
not having any extra supply that could spill into other states that 
haven't legalized marijuana.

Garza's comments came a day before Gov. Jay Inslee was set to meet 
with the U.S. Department of Justice to discuss the marijuana law. 
Washington voters approved the marijuana law in November, but Justice 
Department officials have not indicated whether they will allow 
Washington and Colorado to create legal marijuana markets, since the 
drug is illegal under federal law.

Alison Holcomb, who helped lead Washington's marijuana initiative, 
said the measure was written with the expectation that the system 
would be intensely scrutinized. She said it makes sense for the 
federal government to wait and see what the rules look like and what 
checks and balances are in place. She thinks federal officials will 
be more willing to allow legal pot to exist if they know it 
complements federal law enforcement efforts.

"From a public safety standpoint, they are going to look hard at what 
the outcomes are: Is it compromising public safety, or is it actually 
improving public safety?"

Holcomb said the initiative was drafted with a conservative approach 
that would be a small step into the legal pot world.

"We want to be held accountable," Holcomb said. "We want this to be 
watched to see if it's a workable alternative to marijuana prohibition."

Washington's Liquor Control Board, which has been regulating alcohol 
for 78 years, is in the process of soliciting advice from experts to 
help it determine how the state should grow, process, sell and 
regulate marijuana.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom