Pubdate: Fri, 27 Feb 2015
Source: Fairbanks Daily News-Miner (AK)
Copyright: 2015 Associated Press
Contact:  http://newsminer.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/764

DC LEADERS LEGALIZE POT DESPITE THREATS FROM CONGRESS

WASHINGTON (AP) - Defying threats from Congress, the District of 
Columbia legalized possession of marijuana for recreational purposes 
on Thursday, becoming the first place east of the Mississippi River 
with legal pot.

The new law took effect at 12:01 a.m., despite last-minute maneuvers 
by Republican leaders in Congress and threats that city leaders could 
face prison time. Democratic Mayor Muriel Bowser, who took office in 
January, said it was her duty to implement the initiative city voters 
approved overwhelmingly in November.

"This is a major milestone on the road to ending marijuana 
prohibition in the United States," said Robert Capecchi of the 
Marijuana Policy Project, which advocates for legalization. "If the 
president can brew and drink beer in the White House, adults should 
be allowed to grow and consume a less harmful substance in their houses."

Possession of up to 2 ounces of pot for use at home is now legal, and 
people are also permitted to grow up to three mature plants. Smoking 
marijuana in public remains illegal, as does buying or selling the drug.

On Tuesday, Alaska also implemented a voter initiative legalizing the 
private use, sharing and cultivation of recreational pot, but 
lawmakers there won't implement the next phase - creating a regulated 
market where legal marijuana can be sold and taxed - until 2016 at least.

The District's initiative, approved by 65 percent of the voters in 
November, only addressed personal possession, not taxation or 
regulation, and District leaders acknowledge that Congress blocked 
any effort to implement a legal marijuana market. But they believe 
Congress acted too late to stop legalization for private use.

Rep. Jason Chaffetz, a Utah Republican who chairs the House Oversight 
Committee, urged Bowser in a letter late Tuesday to reconsider. He 
said that the mayor and any other district employees who spend money 
or time implementing any aspect of the initiative could face prison 
time for violating federal law.

"The penalties are severe, and we're serious about this. Nobody's 
wishing or wanting that to happen, but the law is clear," Chaffetz told the AP.

Bowser responded sharply even as she tried to ratchet down the conflict.

"Bullying the District of Columbia is not what his constituents 
expect, nor do ours," Bowser said. "We do disagree on a matter of 
law. There are reasonable ways to resolve that without us threatening 
him or he us."

It would be up to the Justice Department, not Congress, to prosecute 
District officials, and that scenario appears unlikely. However, 
Congress could sue the city, and House Republicans also could 
retaliate by pulling federal funding for city programs.

Rep. Mark Meadows, a Republican from North Carolina, co-signed the 
letter to Bowser late Tuesday, which warned that by spending money to 
change pot laws, District officials would violate the Anti-Deficiency 
Act, which prohibits spending of unappropriated federal dollars. The 
oversight committee also demanded to see all District documents 
detailing money spent and time put in by city employees to implement 
the initiative.

No one has ever been convicted of violating the Anti-Deficiency Act, 
although city and federal workers and agencies have been punished 
administratively for violations.

Jamie Raskin, a constitutional law professor at American University, 
characterized the threat of criminal prosecution as "a lot of huffing 
and puffing on Capitol Hill."

"The real power Congress has is the power of the purse," said Raskin, 
who also serves as a Democratic state senator in Maryland. "They can 
exact their retribution financially against the District."

Congress hasn't struck down a specific city law in 25 years. Instead, 
members often add language to critical pieces of federal legislation 
to undo city policies they don't like. The language on pot was 
included in a spending bill President Barack Obama signed to keep the 
government running.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom