ARIZONA: VOTERS MAY REVISIT MEDICAL MARIJUANA INITIATIVE

The state Senate Judiciary Committee voted yesterday to
place "parts of" an amended Proposition 200 which
legalized the medical use of marijuana back on the
ballot in 1998. Tucson ARIZONA DAILY STAR reports that
"(a)t issue is whether voters meant to allow physicians to
prescribe only marijuana or, as the initiative reads, all
Schedule I drugs, including PCP, heroin and LSD." The
committee also approved a measure (HB 2518) that would ban
the medical use of any Schedule I drugs until they received
approval from the Food and Drug Administration. PRO AND
CON: State Sen. Pete Rios (D) said, "I think the people of
the state of Arizona have spoken on this issue once before.
Whether we concur with them is not the issue. It seems to
me we are questioning what they did the first time around."
However, state Sen. Ruth Solomon (D) said, "It will make
sure the will of the people is followed." DAILY STAR notes
that committee Chair John Kaites (R) "said voters may never
actually see the second coming of Proposition 200" because
he is working on a compromise that would further amend the
two measures (McKinnon, 3/26).