Pubdate: Wed, 16 Sep 2015
Source: Argus Leader (Sioux Falls, SD)
Copyright: 2015 Argus Leader
Contact:  http://www.argusleader.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/842
Author: Dana Ferguson

INVITATION TO MARIJUANA FACILITIES GETS MIXED REACTIONS

Governor, Some Legislators Are Choosing Not to Attend

Days after a South Dakota tribe sent letters inviting state lawmakers 
to tour its marijuana cultivation and distribution facilities next 
month, some remain uncertain about how they'll RSVP.

In a copy of the letter, Flandreau Santee Sioux Tribal President 
Anthony Reider says lawmakers are welcome to tour the facilities and 
attend a Q & A session next month about the "realities of marijuana 
in Indian Country" and "the benefits of medical marijuana."

Rep. Leslie Heinemann, R-Flandreau, said Tuesday that he hasn't 
decided yet whether he'll attend. Heinemann represents the tribe as 
part of the 8th district.

"I respect their sovereign right, but I don't agree with their 
decision," Heinemann said of the tribe's choice to grow and sell the 
drug. "I do believe the community as a whole doesn't support that decision."

Heinemann said he plans to meet with the tribal chairman to discuss 
constituents' concerns about the facilities. He said the tribe's 
chairman would have to assure him that the tribe is taking the 
community's worries seriously before he'd consider attending.

"That would be my deciding factor," he said.

Eric Hagen, CEO of Monarch America, a Colorado-based company 
consulting with the tribe on its marijuana venture, said the event is 
designed to put lawmakers at ease about the tribe's growing and 
selling efforts.

"The main reason for the meeting is to be as transparent as possible 
with the state," Hagen said. "It's a good starting point to ensure to 
the state that the tribe is taking every measure possible to secure this side."

Rep. Matthew Wollmann, R-Flandreau, who also represents the district, 
said he wasn't sure he could attend the event due to scheduling 
issues, but he appreciated the tribe's effort to include legislators 
in the process.

"I think it's a good move on their part to reach out to us," Wollmann 
said. "And it's important for us to see it firsthand, to be able to 
see it through their eyes and in their shoes."

Tribal president: 'Media frenzy fraught with misinformation'

In the letter, Reider writes that since the tribe legalized marijuana 
in June "there has been a media frenzy fraught with misinformation 
and speculation."

Reider didn't immediately respond to voice messages requesting comment Tuesday.

Other legislators had already decided Tuesday whether they planned to 
take the tour.

State Sen. Scott Parsley, D-Madison, who also represents the tribe as 
part of the 8th district, said Tuesday that he plans to attend the 
event in his district to better understand what the tribe is doing. 
He said the growth and sales that occur on the reservation could 
spill out into the rest of the district.

"I want to know what's going on in my district and there might be 
issues that come out of this that affect people outside the tribe," 
Parsley said.

Rep. Jim Bolin, R-Canton, said he received the invitation, which he 
called "very nice and cordial," but he doesn't plan to take the tour.

"I have a long-standing opposition to the legalization of marijuana," 
Bolin said. "It's highly unlikely that I would change my mind on this 
particular subject."

Gov. Dennis Daugaard also received an invitation last week, but won't 
attend, his spokesman Tony Venhuizen said.

"The governor believes that the legalization of marijuana, in any 
part of South Dakota, is a damaging step and he opposes it," Venhuizen said.

Among those left off the invite list was South Dakota Attorney 
General Marty Jackley. Jackley has said non-tribal members found on 
the reservation with marijuana as well as tribe members found off the 
reservation with the drug would be subject to legal action.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom