Pubdate: Thu, 29 Jan 2015
Source: Fairbanks Daily News-Miner (AK)
Copyright: 2015 Associated Press
Contact:  http://newsminer.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/764

ALASKA MARIJUANA BILLS PUT ON HOLD FOR REWRITE

JUNEAU, Alaska (AP) - Bills that would decriminalize small amounts of 
marijuana have been put on hold while lawmakers wait for a new draft 
that better reflects the intent of voters.

During a joint session of the House and Senate Judiciary committees 
Wednesday, Rep. Gabrielle LeDoux, R-Anchorage, said the bills, 
versions of which were introduced in both the House and Senate, are 
being rewritten. The bills were intended to legalize 1 ounce or less 
of marijuana for adults 21 and older.

But they raised concerns from marijuana legalization supporters and 
the state's public defender agency. They said the method proposed for 
decriminalizing the drug didn't match what voters asked for in 
approving an initiative that would legalize recreational use of pot.

Amy Saltzman, a legislative staff member working on the bill, said 
lawmakers still want to pass a version of the bill by Feb. 24, when 
the marijuana initiative is set to take effect.

Sen. Lesil McGuire, R-Anchorage, and chairwoman of the Senate 
Judiciary Committee, has said that legislators are looking at 
creating a new marijuana control board to help draft some of the 
marijuana regulations, an option provided in the initiative.

Cindy Franklin, executive director of the state's Alcoholic Beverage 
Control Board, said during the hearing that a hybrid approach, where 
such a board shared administrative staff and resources with the ABC 
board, was supported by Gov. Bill Walker in a December meeting.

If a marijuana board is intended to deal with enforcement, which the 
ABC board does, Franklin said it should be created in this first 
decriminalization bill, not in a commercialization bill planned for 
later in the session. The initiative did not give the board the 
ability to enforce regulations.

In the meantime, Franklin said the ABC board is considering using its 
emergency rulemaking process to create a regulation defining what a 
public place is, to make it clear where marijuana is prohibited.

Supporters of marijuana legalization also testified at Wednesday's 
hearing and raised their concerns about the old draft of the bill.

Karen O'Keefe from the Marijuana Policy Project, which supported the 
ballot measure legalizing marijuana, said she appreciated that it was 
being rewritten.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom