Pubdate: Wed, 07 Aug 2013
Source: Herald, The (Everett, WA)
Copyright: 2013 The Daily Herald Co.
Contact:  http://www.heraldnet.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/190
Author: Sharon Salyer

POT HEARINGS AIR CONCERNS

Steep Tax Difference Between Recreational, Medical a Continuing Issue

Washington received national attention last fall when voters approved 
an initiative to legalize, regulate and tax marijuana for adults.

Now officials are deciding how this new industry will be regulated.

At a public hearing on this Tuesday in Everett, some people asked how 
the state could have one system for medical marijuana and another 
system - with separate rules - for recreational marijuana.

And with recreational marijuana being taxed - and medical marijuana 
not - it could mean a steep difference in prices.

The new statewide system is expected to begin next year, legalizing 
recreational pot sales to adults. It will tax marijuana when it's 
harvested, shipped to distributors and sold at state-licensed stores.

The concern is the taxes could make it more expensive than marijuana 
sold in medical dispensaries or in illegal street sales.

"You'll compete against them," said Shawn Scoleri, general manager of 
Canna RX, a medical marijuana dispensary in Seattle's Fremont neighborhood.

Sharon Foster heads the state's Liquor Control Board, which is 
overseeing the enforcement of the state's marijuana legalization. 
During Tuesday's meeting, she acknowledged that it's an issue that 
keeps getting raised as the state moves closer to legalization.

The Liquor Control Board is working with two other state agencies, 
the departments of health and revenue, to try to come up with 
recommendations to the Legislature on how to resolve the taxing 
issue, she said.

The hearing at a conference room at Comcast Arena on Tuesday is the 
first of five around the state to discuss the proposed rules. The 
state is scheduled in six weeks to begin accepting applications to 
grow, distribute or sell marijuana. Many questions remain to be 
resolved, as many of two dozen people who spoke at Tuesday's hearing 
were eager to point out.

There were questions over how to find insurance, how marijuana 
entrepreneurs could legally bank their money, and what actions the 
federal government, with laws on the books making marijuana illegal, 
might take to legally challenge the state's marijuana law.

"Anything we would say about federal law would be speculation," 
Foster said, noting that the board is simply charged with 
implementing the new state law.

"There is a problem not having a clearer signal from the feds," said 
Chris Marr, a member of the liquor control board.

Loren Simmonds, mayor pro-tem of Lynnwood, wondered if the city has 
to provide a license to operate a marijuana business if it didn't 
meet the requirement to be at least 1,000 feet from schools and 
parks. Foster told him no.

Gloria Rivera, a Lynnwood planner, wondered if the city could 
prohibit marijuana business entirely.

Liquor board staff, recalling terminology used during Prohibition, 
said that the state initiative does not allow for "dry" areas, but 
the city can regulate marijuana through its zoning.

Jason Bess, from Lynnwood, said he came to Tuesday's hearing to get 
more information on the production, processing and licensing of 
marijuana businesses. He said he plans to start a business growing the crop.

"This is a new era for the country," he said. "In five years, every 
single state will have marijuana."

Matt Barron, from Everett, said that the state will decide how many 
marijuana licenses to approve, and who gets them.

"This is like a lottery," he said. "Who's lucky enough to get a 
license? I want to be prepared."
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom