WILL NEW POT LAW ERODE SCHOOL DRUG POLICIES?

State education and public safety officials face a cloudy future for
schools' marijuana rules in the month before a new law that
decriminalizes possession of small amounts of the drug takes effect.

Some state education leaders are concerned the voter-approved Question
2 may have unknown consequences for school policies that punish
marijuana possession.

Tom Scott, the executive director of the Massachusetts Association of
School Superintendents, said the measure is silent on how it would
affect existing state laws that give schools the right to suspend or
expel students for marijuana possession, or whether it would undermine
school policies banning the drug.

"That's a concern we have," said Scott, who noted the association
asked for clarification from the state Department of Elementary and
Secondary Education, where attorneys are reviewing the matter, Scott
said.

Scott said schools have the ability to do things differently than
other agencies - for example, schools can conduct locker searches
despite privacy rights - and it's possible the same thinking will
apply to how Question 2 affects schools' marijuana rules.

"We don't know what this will mean for us," said Scott, about the law,
which takes effect Jan. 2.

Question 2, which 65 percent of voters approved last month, would make
possession of an ounce or less of marijuana a civil offense punishable
by no more than a $100 fine for those 18 and older. Younger offenders
would also undergo a drug awareness program and perform some form of
community service.

Possessing an ounce or less of marijuana can't be used to block access
to student financial aid, public housing or any unemployment benefits,
driving a car or serving as a foster or adoptive parent under the measure.

The measure also forbids the state or any of its agencies from
imposing "any form of penalty, sanction or disqualification on an
offender" for possessing a small amount of the drug. But the text of
Question 2 also states that nothing in the measure repeals existing
laws.

Under existing state law, marijuana possession can lead to suspension
or expulsion from school. No school system is required to accept a
student who was expelled under those regulations.

One ounce of marijuana is worth about $600 on the street, according to
Michael O'Keefe, the district attorney for the Cape and Islands.

"The (state's K-12 education department) appears to be concerned about
it," said Glenn Koocher, the executive director of the Massachusetts
Association of School Committees.

"I'd be very surprised if there's a school administration in the state
who's not very concerned about this," he said.

J.C. Considine, a spokesman for the state Department of Elementary and
Secondary Education, said Question 2's text doesn't address schools
and the agency is working with the state's attorney general, the
Executive Office of Public Safety and Security and other officials to
clarify the measure's impact.

"We will issue more detailed guidance on this topic as soon as
possible. In the meantime, we recommend that schools maintain their
usual practices and procedures in regard to disciplinary matters,"
Considine said in an e-mail.

Terrel Harris, spokesman for the Executive Office of Public Safety,
said public safety and the state's K-12 education department are
working together to resolve this issue. He noted they must have an
answer for schools before the law takes effect next month.

"We are continuing to work on the problem," said Harris.

But Middlesex District Attorney Gerry Leone's office says Question 2
won't change schools' ability to control drugs among students, as the
ballot measure doesn't change any existing regulations of marijuana as
a controlled substance, said spokesman Corey Welford.

"The current law regarding that issue remains intact," he
said.

Whitney A. Taylor, treasurer and chairwoman of the Committee for
Sensible Marijuana Policy, which backed Question 2, said the measure
was aimed solely at changing the penalty for possessing small amounts
of marijuana from a criminal to a civil one.

"It is not meant to sit there and undermine school policy," said
Taylor.

She said her organization is working with the Executive Office of
Public Safety as government officials review the measure. But she said
there are no problems with Question 2.

"They're creating problems where there are no problems," said Taylor,
referring to those concerned that Question 2 applies to schools.