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Medical marijuana a billion-dollar industry

However, this does not resolve the basic problem of marijuana use. Certain parts of the law will not go into effect until 2018, but California residents can begin growing up to six marijuana plants for personal use effective immediately.

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But marijuana remains illegal at the federal level and even medical sellers aren’t totally in the clear as a result.

Most experts didn’t expect any of the bill’s tax provisions to kick in for another year, when a new 15 percent excise tax is slated to take effect. He said he’s sympathetic to Prop. 64’s drafters, having found himself in a similar spot before: “I made a more expensive mistake as a staffer on the Joint Congressional Committee on Taxation”.

Californias decision to legalize marijuana was touted as a victory for those who had argued that the state needed a system to decriminalize, regulate and tax it. They already have enormous influence on state laws and regulations and could try to set up small dispensaries and make marijuana another one of their products. Trump supporters undoubtedly include people who support marijuana legalization. But taxes on medical marijuana have ceased with 14 months to go before a single legal recreational sale occurs.

David A. Couch, attorney at law from Little Rock, Arkansas, created the Arkansas Medical Marijuana Amendment and passionately saw it through until the day it passed.

No such restrictions are in the City of Pensacola Planning Board recommendation. If marijuana is being prescribed as a treatment for glaucoma, then the FDA could require that clinical trials be run, based on its own strict parameters, to demonstrate that this is indeed the case. Further, the industry is also needed to subsidize the supply of medical marijuana to ensure those who truly need a higher-quality product can obtain it.

As for federal highways, such as Interstate 5, as long as the highway is in California and the weed is in a closed container that is stored away, federal authorities will most likely defer to the California Highway Patrol for enforcement as they have in other states.

Attorney Norbert Frost, chairman of the Vallejo Chamber of Commerce board of directors, said that anecdotally, local employers are hoping state officials will iron some of the wrinkles out of the new law. It would allow for medical marijuana dispensaries in zoning areas designated as retail-commercial, or C-1. “As strapped for cash as local jurisdictions are, it’s not surprising they are doing so”. He pointed to Colorado, the first state to legalize recreational marijuana, noting its governor has been “wishy-washy” about the change. There is now a moratorium on recreational sales while the City Council weighs rules on those operations.

The idea that marijuana is a “gateway drug” that leads to harder drugs like heroin is grossly overstated.

“For some people it will have an impact but they are already paying the sales tax now so and very few people complain about it”, Meredith said. LaMalfa won with nearly 60 percent of the vote.

Legal pot won big at the ballot box last week. Voter response has put added pressure on federal authorities to ease longstanding rules that classify marijuana as a dangerously addictive drug with no medical benefits.

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Throughout the Amendment Two campaign, opponents raised concerns about marijuana candy and the number or location of dispensaries. A cultivator tax will also apply to marijuana beginning on that date. Although there’s not yet much information available, the department has established a location on its website to communicate with the public about the ongoing process. “It wouldn’t make sense to reduce revenue when the whole point of the tax structure is to fund programs”, he said.

Some fear incoming Trump administration could crack down on medical marijuana