Step into a Colorado pot dispensary at random, and you'll long for the luxuries of the D.M.V. Metal bars cover windows. Vinyl signs are tacked to walls. Guys in hoodie sweatshirts greet you from behind the counter. Even the act of ordering the product itself is borderline absurd. What grown adult can respectfully walk into a store and ask for an eighth of Green Krack and a nub of Big Buddha Cheese, please? But that experience is changing, thanks to a new breed of entrepreneur in Colorado - young, ambitious and often female - that is trying to reach a more sophisticated clientele in everything from language to packaging to social events. [continues 1000 words]
Dear Stoner: Hey, can you explain what the laws are in Colorado for home cultivation of cannabis for personal consumption? Thanks. MM From Aol.com Dear MM: We've addressed this in bits and pieces over the past few years, but considering you're still on an AOL account, we'll assume you don't keep up with current events. So in a nutshell, here are the state's cultivation laws: Adults can grow up to six plants at home. Three of those plants can be flowering (budding) at one time, while the other three have to remain in what is called "vegetation" - meaning they are still growing in size but haven't started growing flowers. Cannabis is light-sensitive, so converting a plant "in veg" to flowering merely requires switching it from a 24-hour light cycle to one with only twelve hours of light. That means you'll have to keep your three flowering plants separate from your other three. The state hasn't set a maximum number of legal plants for a household, but some cities have. Denver limits home grows to twelve plants total, even if there are more than two adults over 21 living in the house. [continues 299 words]
Eric Holder tendered his resignation last week, though he will stay in office until a successor is chosen for the attorney general position. Given congressional inertia on presidential nominees, he could still fill out Obama's term, so I'm not holding my breath. I'll leave his ultimate legacy to others, but on the subject of cannabis, Holder has a mixed record. While he has never advocated for legalization or decriminalization, he is the first attorney general to publicly question whether the federal government should reevaluate its cannabis laws. [continues 759 words]
Hundreds of Pounds of the Drug, Jewelry and $800,000were Seized From Firms With Colombian Ties. Federal agents seized hundreds of pounds of marijuana, 161 pieces of jewelry and $800,000- including nearly $450,000 stashed in the trunk of a car-from Colorado pot businesses with Colombian ties, according to records obtained Wednesday by The Denver Post. The forfeiture document, in which federal authorities formally seek to confiscate the items, offers the most detailed account yet of the allegations stemming from Denver-area raids executed in November. They were the largest-ever federal raids on the Colorado marijuana industry. [continues 928 words]
It's hard to match Manitou Springs' marijuana detractors for showmanship - Facebook pictures reveal the awesome presence of a donkey accompanying neighborhood canvassers. But the plant's supporters have something up their sleeve, as well, prior to the November vote: the formation of the Manitou Springs Marijuana Council and an inaugural launch event, co-organizer Mike Olson tells the Indy. "Basically, what we're doing the weekend of the Emma Crawford Races, which there'll be thousands of people here, we'll have a festival," says Olson, who otherwise works as a private investigator. "We've got, like, 36 vendors; inside the building, we're going to have dispensaries and informational booths, different things like that. And we'll have a vape lounge setup in the back, where people can test all the different products from all the different vendors that will be there." [continues 297 words]
DENVER (AP) - Marijuana may be legal in Colorado, but you can still be fired for using it. Now, the state's highest court is considering whether workers' off-duty use of medical marijuana is protected under state law. Colorado's Supreme Court on Tuesday heard arguments in a case involving Brandon Coats, a quadriplegic medical marijuana patient who was fired by the Dish Network after failing a drug test in 2010. Coats said he never got high at work. But marijuana's intoxicating chemical, THC, can stay in the system for weeks. [continues 143 words]
Colorado court to rule on legality of dismissing employee who smoked legally on his own time Pot may be legal in Colorado, but you can still be fired for using it. Now, the state's highest court is considering whether workers' off-duty use of medical marijuana is protected under state law. Colorado's Supreme Court on Tuesday heard arguments in a case involving Brandon Coats, a quadriplegic medical marijuana patient who was fired by the Dish Network after failing a drug test in 2010. Coats said he never got high at work. But pot's intoxicating chemical, THC, can stay in the system for weeks. [continues 488 words]
DENVER (AP) - Pot may be legal in Colorado, but you can still be fired for using it. Now, the state's highest court is considering whether workers' off-duty medical marijuana use is protected under an obscure state law. Colorado's Supreme Court on Tuesday heard arguments in a case involving Brandon Coats, a quadriplegic medical marijuana patient who was fired by the Dish Network after failing a drug test in 2010, even though the company did not allege that he was impaired on the job. [continues 321 words]
Colorado embarks on a new era for its legal recreational marijuana industry Wednesday, when two major changes will affect the industry's makeup. The first is the entrance of newcomers to the industry. Colorado regulators gave people who already owned a licensed medical-marijuana business a nine-month head start in opening recreational pot shops. Wednesday is the first day people who didn't previously own a medical-marijuana store can get into the recreational industry. Tuesday, the Colorado Marijuana Enforcement Division said it has issued licenses to 46 stores, 37 marijuana-cultivation facilities and 13 marijuana-infused products makers that allow them to start operating Wednesday. [continues 122 words]
Even Justices Scratching Heads Over Rights to Use Pot, Rights of Employers A Colorado Supreme Court hearing that will have major implications for marijuana and the workplace ended Tuesday with the state's most esteemed justices mostly scratching their heads. The debate topic was this: If it isn't illegal to use medical marijuana, does that make it a "lawful" activity for which employers can't fire you? How the justices answer that question will, for the first time, define whether employers must tolerate medical-marijuana use by their employees and will set whether medical-marijuana patients have any job protection for their cannabis use. The outcome also has implications for recreational marijuana use, which presents similar questions. [continues 754 words]
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (AP) A marijuana giveaway for veterans attracted about 1,000 people to a Colorado hotel. The "Grow 4 Vets" giveaway in Colorado Springs aimed to bring cannabis-based treatments to veterans with service-related conditions as an alternative to pain medications. The Gazette reports that veterans were given a bag of items that included cannabis oil, an edible chocolate bar and seeds to grow plants. Marijuana activists have tried unsuccessfully to have post-traumatic stress disorder added to the Colorado list of medical conditions that qualify for joining the medical marijuana registry. Now that pot is legal for all adults over 21, organizers are free to give away marijuana. A similar event was held last weekend in Denver. [end]
COLORADO SPRINGS (AP) - A marijuana giveaway for veterans attracted about 1,000 people to a Colorado hotel. The Operation Grow 4 Vets giveaway in Colorado Springs aimed to bring cannabis-based treatments to veterans with service-related conditions as an alternative to pain medications. The veterans were given a bag of items that included cannabis oil, an edible-marijuana chocolate bar, and seeds to grow plants. Marijuana activists have tried unsuccessfully to have post-traumatic stress disorder added to the Colorado list of medical conditions that qualify for joining the medical marijuana registry. Now that pot is legal for all adults over 21, organizers are free to give away marijuana. [continues 77 words]
A marijuana giveaway for veterans attracted about 1,000 people to a Colorado hotel. The "Grow 4 Vets" giveaway in Colorado Springs aimed to bring cannabis-based treatments to veterans with service-related conditions as an alternative to pain medications, The Gazette reported. Veterans were given cannabis oil, an edible chocolate bar and seeds to grow plants. Marijuana activists have tried unsuccessfully to have post-traumatic stress disorder added to the Colorado list of medical conditions that qualify for joining the medical marijuana registry. Now that pot is legal for adults over 21, organizers are free to give away marijuana. A similar event was held last weekend in Denver. [end]
Boulder - The number of students disciplined for marijuana and other drug violations at the University of Colorado was cut in half between 2012 and 2013, according to newly released crime statistics. Christina Gonzales, dean of students, attributes the decline from 1,145 to 588 to a number of factors, including the Office of Student Conduct's decision to relax enforcement of the university marijuana policy. The Office of Student Conduct is a campus administrative office that enforces the university's student code of conduct, while CU's police department enforces local, state and federal laws on and near the campus. [continues 124 words]
Licensing Delays Could Keep All 21 Recreational Marijuana Shops Closed for Wednesday's Kickoff. Aurora - Talk about a soft opening. The city of Aurora is going live with recreational marijuana sales for the first time Wednesday. But of the 21 businesses that received licenses to peddle pot in the city, there may not be any that actually will open their doors on the monumental day. Because Aurora didn't have medical marijuana sales, it had to wait until Oct. 1 of this year to allow recreational sales and create regulations from scratch. But after taking more than a year to finalize those guidelines, Aurora then had a tight time frame to license businesses, which has played a big factor in the expected low opening-day numbers. [continues 911 words]
New York Times columnist Maureen Dowd took some serious shit earlier this year for a piece she wrote about her scary experience in a Denver hotel room after an overdose of cannabis edibles. She was mocked for being stupid, for not reading the packaging, for not waiting long enough before eating more. And of being sanctimonious and selfrighteous about it, too. I thought she did us all a big favor. She's hardly the first person who's ever had a negative edible experience - come on, it might have even happened to you. And by honestly telling her own story, she showed that even a top-shelf national newspaper columnist who isn't careful with cannabis edibles can have a bad night. Despite spending a few hours curled in terror, she mentioned that she supported legalization, and the harshest chastisement she had was that the packaging content could be improved, something that Colorado is currently reevaluating in response to Dowd's column and other experiences like hers. [continues 761 words]
Dear Stoner: My outdoor garden is finishing soon. What is the best way to store herb, and how long will it stay fresh? The Hemp Herm Dear H.H.: The most important thing is learning how to cure your buds properly. It's a detailed, scientific process, but the general idea is to let them dry out in an open, breezy space until they feel crisp to the touch on the outside, but before the stems are brittle enough to snap off. Next, put them in airtight containers, opening them every 24 hours or so to "burp" the remaining moisture that is slowly releasing from the buds. Continue the process until you've hit about 55 percent relative humidity (that's on the dry end). [continues 350 words]
Spreading the high Altitude Organic Medicine (523 S. Tejon St., altitudeorganic.com) hit a bit of setback two years ago, when it was forced by Colorado's U.S. Attorney to move because its west-side location was too close to Buena Vista Elementary School. But now the downtown dispensary is ready to expand its goods across the city. "I can't exactly disclose the locations, but we are opening up two more retails," says manager Jessica Young, noting that plans include locations on Platte Avenue and North Academy Boulevard that would go public in December or January. [continues 389 words]
The Wheat Ridge City Council Tables a New Moratorium for More Discussion. Wheat Ridge - It was standing room only Monday night at Wheat Ridge council chambers as hundreds of residents packed an overflow room, waited in hallways and stood against back walls to hear what the city plans to do about the local marijuana industry. Many had shown up after hearing false rumors about a potential marijuana growhouse on 38th Avenue and Miller Street. The location met all zoning requirements but drew the ire of residents because it would have been in a high-traffic area frequented by students. [continues 309 words]
Hundreds of military veterans received free marijuana during a special giveaway in Denver designed to show that pot can help ease their pain. Members of Operation Grow4Vets said the Saturday event aimed to offer veterans an alternative to prescription drugs to help with anxiety, pain and other problems. The organization also says it gave out 400 bags of marijuana-infused products at the Denver Cannabis Giveaway. But pot critics questioned whether the event was safe. Colorado this year rejected marijuana as a treatment for posttraumatic stress disorder, so the condition is not on the list of ailments for which doctors can recommend medical marijuana. But it is legal in the state to give away pot for free. [end]
The Colorado Board of Health's recent action on its medical-marijuana caregiver rules was confusing and regrettable, creating more questions than solutions. First, the board unfortunately rejected a proposal that would have capped the number of patients for caregivers at 10. Creating a reasonable cap would have provided greater oversight of the caregiver system, which law enforcement officials say has been a source of illegal diversion of pot to the black market. Large caregiver growing operations can pose health and safety risks, too, especially in residential areas. [continues 205 words]
Should Jefferson County Allow Retail Marijuana Stores in Unincorporated Parts of the County? The question isn't whether marijuana will be sold and consumed in Jefferson County. That is happening and will continue. The question is whether Jefferson County will start taking real steps to shut down the black market and begin to reap the benefits of legal marijuana sales. Marijuana has been bought and sold in Jefferson County for decades; it's just happened in the shadows. It's been sold by people who don't care who they sell to, and who have no stake in anything other than making the next sale. They don't care if they sell to your kid or the person next door. Everyone's a potential customer. [continues 556 words]
Should Jefferson County Allow Retail Marijuana Stores in Unincorporated Parts of the County? The Jefferson County Marijuana Task Force spent three months listening to testimony, reviewing studies and examining evidence related to prohibiting or permitting licensed marijuana establishment in unincorporated Jefferson County. The task force found compelling evidence that it would not be in the best interest of Jefferson County or its citizens to allow marijuana establishments. Although the circumstantial evidence was significant, it is important to note that Colorado's experience with legalizing recreational marijuana is relatively new and some data is lacking. [continues 504 words]
A loophole built into Colorado's marijuana system has allowed thousands of pounds of pot to go untaxed and has cost the state millions of dollars that should have gone to a school construction fund. In 2012, Colorado voters overwhelmingly approved Amendment 64, which, among other things, promised that the first $40 million in excise tax revenue would be dedicated every year for the state school construction fund. But this year, only about $10 million is expected to be raised thanks to a rule that allows marijuana retailers to avoid paying the tax in a one-time transfer of wholesale pot. [continues 750 words]
DENVER- Tired of Cheech & Chong pot jokes and ominous antidrug campaigns, the marijuana industry and activists are starting an ad blitz in Colorado aimed at promoting moderation and the safe consumption of pot. To get their message across, they are skewering some of the old Drug War-era ads that focused on the fears of marijuana, including the famous "This is your brain on drugs" fried-egg ad from the 1980s. They are planning posters, brochures, billboards and magazine ads, advising people to use the drug responsibly and warning tourists and first-timers about the potential to get sick from accidentally eating too much medical-grade pot. [continues 552 words]
Dear Stoner: I am 68 and do not use any doctor-prescribed drugs. It's my opinion that if you do, you have started down the wrong path. Now, I have not smoked marijuana since the early 1970s; I didn't like the taste and smell. But recently I have developed a mutually beneficial relationship with a young woman. Do you know of a type of weed that could be a substitute, or somewhat of a substitute, for Viagra? Dave the Dude [continues 378 words]
Council nixes pot vote Last week, Colorado Springs City Council voted 6 to 3 to kill an ordinance that would have allowed locals to vote in April on whether the city should accept recreational-marijuana stores. The idea was brought months ago by local advocacy group Every Vote Counts, but Councilor Jill Gaebler was left as the sole proponent after group members did not appear at subsequent meetings, including last Tuesday's, when Gaebler joined Councilors Jan Martin and Helen Collins as the only votes in favor of referral. [continues 371 words]
DENVER (AP) - Tired of Cheech & Chong pot jokes and ominous anti-drug campaigns, the marijuana industry and activists are starting an ad blitz in Colorado aimed at promoting moderation and the safe consumption of pot. To get their message across, they are skewering some of the old Drug War era ads that focused on the fears of marijuana, including the famous "This is your brain on drugs" fried-egg ad from the 1980s. They are planning posters, brochures, billboards and magazine ads to caution consumers to use the drug responsibly and warn tourists and first timers about the potential to get sick from accidentally eating too much medical grade pot. [continues 328 words]
DENVER (AP) - Tired of Cheech & Chong pot jokes and ominous antidrug campaigns, the marijuana industry and activists are starting an ad blitz in Colorado aimed at promoting moderation and the safe consumption of pot. To get their message across, they are skewering some of the old Drug War-era ads that focused on the fears of marijuana, including the famous "This is your brain on drugs" fried-egg ad from the 1980s. They are planning posters, brochures, billboards and magazine ads to caution consumers to use the drug responsibly and warn tourists and first-timers about the potential to get sick from accidentally eating too much medical-grade pot. [continues 255 words]
ZoomBookmarkSharePrintListenTranslate Marijuana advocates, frustrated with what they say are ineffective statebacked ad campaigns to promote responsible pot use, unveiled their own Wednesday. The first ad in the campaign, on a billboard atWest Eighth Avenue and Federal Boulevard in Denver, shows a red-haired woman sitting on a hotel-room bed with her face in her hands. "Don't let a candy bar ruin your vacation," the billboard says. "With edibles, start low and go slow." The message is a not-atall-veiled jab at New York Times columnist Maureen Dowd, who had just such an edibles-induced moment while visiting Colorado. [continues 100 words]
The state health board rejects a caregiver cap but says parents got the marijuana oil against the law. The Colorado Board of Health on Tuesday rejected a proposal to cap the number of patients that medical-marijuana caregivers can serve. Photos by Craig F. Walker, The Denver Post Lonnie and Sandy Phillips on Tuesday address the media at Arnold& Porter LLP in Denver, where they announced a suit against four ammunition sellers. Their daughter, Jessica Ghawi, was killed in the theater massacre. [continues 385 words]
The case was as sad and as tragic as we've seen in metro Denver in recent memory. A man, supposedly stoned on marijuana-infused candy, flipped out and killed his wife with a gunshot to the head while their three children were in their Observatory Park house. Or so the story goes. Yet, recent court testimony from cops was that Richard Kirk had "low" THC levels, a psychoactive ingredient in marijuana, when tested five hours after the shooting. How in the world does that square with a guy who was said to be hallucinating and subsequently asked his 7year-old son to kill him? [continues 1475 words]
No One Wants to Roll Out the Idea Until Assurances Are Made. Despite 11th-hour success at pressing Colorado legislators to pass a measure that would allow the marijuana industry to create the world's first pot-banking cooperative, no one has officially attempted to create one. Even with the flurry of international publicity that swirled last spring around the groundbreaking effort-one that theoretically would allow pot businesses to band together and form their own banking entity - there has been lukewarm interest in giving it a try without first knowing it's not a useless effort. [continues 756 words]
When CannaSearch job fair debuted in Denver in March, just a few months after legal recreational marijuana sales began in Colorado, organizers were overwhelmed by more than 1,200 job seekers, many from out of state. When the second CannaSearch takes over event space Mile High Station on Tuesday-with employers offering more than 500 positions in Colorado's still-growing marijuana industry-it will be an expanded event that hopes to better serve applicants and businesses alike. In addition to the larger digs, food trucks will be on site for lunch. And the job fair, running 9 a.m.-4 p.m. and free for job seekers, is bookended by ticketed events: an executive breakfast from 7:30-9 a.m. ($50) and an evening reception from 6-9 p.m ($15). [continues 108 words]
Dear Stoner: What is the alphabet soup that follows marijuana around? I know THC is what gets me high, but what about CBD, CBN, THCV, CBA, CBS, ESPN and all of the other things in pot? What do they do? Confused in Commerce City Dear Confused: You might have a few of the names wrong, but we'll help you out as best we can. CBD is shorthand for cannabidiol, one of the other major chemical compounds aside from THC that is found in pot. CBD has a lot of good things going for it. It doesn't really get you high, but it has anti-inflammatory properties, can help reduce the effects of THC for people who don't want to get stoned but need the medical benefit, and it also has some very strong anti-seizure properties - which is why it has become such a popular medication for children suffering from severe epileptic conditions. People are now also using high-CBD strains developed in Israel to help treat arthritis, liver inflammation and heart diseases. [continues 313 words]
The numbers are compelling. As Americans seek more relief from pain and companies come up with ever-stronger drugs to ease discomfort, so do mortality rates rise for the growing number of patients who use opioid pain relievers. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that 46 people a day die from opioid overdoses. More people - - 16,000 or so - die from opioid misuse than from any illegal drugs in any given year. Opioids, psychoactive chemicals that resemble morphine or other opiates in their pharmacological effects, are among the oldest medicines mankind has used. [continues 756 words]
U.S. Rep. Jared Polis, D-Colo., has strong words for Colorado's Don't Be a Lab Rat campaign, which encourages teens to reconsider marijuana use via oversized rat cage installations and strongly worded commercial messaging. "It's a bizarre, ill-fated campaign," Polis said Wednesday. "I think they need to go back to the drawing board on that one." The lab-rat campaign's cages and messaging were met with mixed reactions when they debuted in August. But the state looks at the campaign as a success. [continues 172 words]
Recent surveys of where pot smokers in Colorado acquire marijuana are proving to be a bit of a downer. One of the more appealing aspects of legalizing private use of small amounts of marijuana was reducing the need for an underground drug black market, with its accompanying criminal aspect. However, information made public recently by the Marijuana Policy Group estimates that some 40 percent of pot smokers here still buy through illegal means because of the high cost of legal pot. [continues 333 words]
If two votes are good ... Though Palmer Lake voters rejected recreational-marijuana stores in April, 538 to 481, residents will get another crack at the issue this November. Two cracks actually, as two questions will deal with the plant. The first would allow retail sales, with limitations on the number of stores; the inclusion of a "good neighbor" plan; restrictions on hours and locations as decided by a committee made up of supporters and opponents; a special 6-percent sales tax; and the creation of a Palmer Lake emergency account that all related monies would fund. [continues 364 words]
In July, for the first time in Colorado's legal marijuana market, recreational cannabis outsold medical pot, according to the state's Department of Revenue. Customers purchased more than $29.7 million of recreational marijuana in July-up from $24.7 million in June. Medical marijuana patients spent more than $28.9 million on marijuana in July-comparable to June's $28.6 million. The numbers point toward Colorado's medical sales potentially leveling out as receational sales continue to rise with more and more shops open for retail sale. The pot taxes, too, are starting to build up. Since Jan. 1, Colorado has brought in more than $37.5 million in taxes, licenses and fees for recreational and medical marijuana. [end]
A week before the state health department considers new limits on medical marijuana growers, a panel of lawmakers and regulators on Monday debated whether the number of plants those growers can raise also should be curbed. The Use of Recreational Marijuana Sales Tax Revenues Interim Study Committee declined to endorse a proposed bill relating to new limits. It's deemed a "gray market" of untaxed commerce by some but difficult to tweak because it is enshrined in the state constitution. [continues 186 words]
Colorado's health department is taking the right steps to pass a rule that would limit medical marijuana caregivers from serving more than 10 patients at a time, but that number is being criticized in an unreasonable emotional debate. Current rules allow for caregivers to serve more than 10 patients if they obtain a waiver. The rule change would provide greater oversight of the caregiver system, which law enforcement officials say can be a source of illegal diversion to the black market. [continues 377 words]
Denver is wise to finally plug the hole in marijuana enforcement that has allowed people to do dangerous butane hash oil extraction at their homes and has led to dozens of explosions across the state. Mayor Michael Hancock's administration is asking the City Council to approve an ordinance that would prohibit the hazardous solvent-based extraction method everywhere but in a licensed facility. People can still use water-based or food-based extraction methods at home. Denver's ban would follow similar legislation in other cities, including Centennial, Greenwood Village, Cortez and Telluride. [continues 89 words]
Denver District Attorney Mitch Morrissey was right to criticize a gang task force for setting up a potentially dangerous drug bust in the middle of the afternoon in a well-used city park. In fact, the operation did turn violent, with the suspect drawing a .380-caliber semi-automatic pistol when uniformed officers arrived. Joseph Valverde was then shot dead by an officer. It's unfortunate that this suspected drug trafficker lost his life, but the incident could have been worse. What if the gunfire that erupted in a parking lot near Overland Pond Park had strayed and hit other people who were merely enjoying the park or riding on the nearby bike trail? [continues 77 words]
City Could Ban Home Use of Gas-Based Hash Oil Extraction Denver officials are moving to ban the amateur use of a risky hash oil extraction process that has resulted this year in dozens of home explosions statewide. A new proposal backed by Mayor Michael Hancock's administration would ban the home use of solvent-based hash oil extraction. It involves highly flammable compressed gasses, typically butane, in the extraction of oil from marijuana. An additional risk is that some users stock up on those gases in their homes. [continues 550 words]
I grew up in a family with Democratic blood, and reform begins to look as disingenuous as saying fracking fluid is safe because he once sipped some. I've voted on that side of the fence more often than not. Though I've been registered as an On the other side, we have Bob Beauprez. Given independent for the last decade or so, I voted for his positions on almost everything, I couldn't vote for John Hickenlooper as governor of Colorado four this Republican candidate for governor under any circumstances. years ago. Hickenlooper's eight-year tenure as mayor of Denver had been impressive, and I was eager to see what he could accomplish as governor. That's when his past came crashing into the present. With Colorado ground-zero for the fracking debate, former geologist Hickenlooper has consistently made decisions that tend to line up with oil and gas interests and, in many people's eyes, against citizens and municipalities. [continues 752 words]
Dear Stoner: I'm considering growing herb for the first time this winter in my basement. Should I do a hydroponic or a soil setup? Bobby Plantaseed Dear Bobby: Hydroponic was the wave of the future in the '90s - especially in High Times, where high-tech setups were all the rage. And with good reason: You can get some great yields from hydro setups, and aside from the initial layout, they're relatively maintenance-free. There are great hydro grows out there, too: One of our good friends absolutely kills it with Sour Diesel in his. [continues 354 words]
For-Profit Firms Barred From Leading State Research For-profit companies will not be eligible to lead ground-breaking state-funded medical marijuana studies, under the terms of the grant program released Wednesday. In the official request for applications, the state Department of Public Health and Environment specifies that institutions eligible to apply as primary recipients for the grants include only "not-for profit organizations, health care organizations, governmental entities and higher education institutions." Applicants do not have to be based in Colorado to apply. For-profit firms will be allowed as subcontractors on grant proposals. [continues 168 words]
Rules, Rules Everywhere On Tuesday, the Colorado Department of Revenue held a public-comment hearing regarding proposed changes to its medical- and recreational-marijuana code. As it came after our deadline, we can only tell you what the department was scheduled to consider prior to our paper going to press. See future columns for updates. Regarding MMJ centers: Fees for the three tiers of licenses would be slashed from $3,750 to $3,000 for centers with 1 to 300 patients; from $8,750 to $7,000 for those with 301 to 500 patients; and from $14,000 to $11,000 for those with 501 or more patients. [continues 352 words]
Families Have Moved to Colorado to Obtain Marijuana Oil for Their Children WHO Have Seizures. Dozens of families who moved to Colorado to treat their severely disabled children with a special kind of marijuana could lose access to the treatment under new rules proposed by the state health department. The proposed rules would stop medical marijuana caregivers from serving more than 10 patients at a time. Current rules allow for caregivers to serve more if they obtain a waiver. Only four of Colorado's 2,896 caregivers currently serve more than 10 patients, according to state figures. The caregiver who said he serves the most patients, a Boulder County man named Jason Cranford, has nearly 90. [continues 728 words]
Inside Colorado
