POT LAW CREATING A CONFUSING CLOUD

In 1996, when voters approved Proposition 215, the medical marijuana
initiative, most Californians did not envision what's playing out in
Arcata.

As reported in a Sacramento Bee story that appeared on our front page
Monday, this Humboldt County town has become the legal pot capital of
the country.

Hundreds of medical marijuana growers supply dozens of cooperatives
that dispense the drug. It has become the financial mainstay of a
community where logging and fishing once dominated.

Voters did not expect to open the door for "pot docs." These are
physicians who charge as much as $250 per evaluation before handing
over a recommendation that allows a patient to grow and use pot legally.

While some patients are sick and use pot to relieve suffering, clearly
others are seeking a legal way to get stoned.

Voters did not anticipate the rise of medical marijuana grow houses
and with them home invasion robberies.

Voters had no way of predicting that local councils and boards would
outlaw pot dispensaries, leaving patients unclear on where they can
legally obtain marijuana, even with a bonafide need and a physician's
prescription.

Today, 13 years after the initiative passed and more than a year after
Attorney General Jerry Brown issued new guidelines on how to interpret
and enforce the Compassionate Use Act, confusion abounds.

The initiative legalized marijuana use for patients who suffered from
a variety of illnesses including AIDS, chronic pain, arthritis and
"any other illness for which marijuana provides relief."

That last phrase opened the door to everything from the common cold to
a hangnail, and profiteers have marched through it.

The attorney general's guidelines say people can't sell it for a
profit, but that doesn't prevent physicians from making millions
issuing marijuana recommendations and dispensaries from amassing
sizable fortunes selling pot over the counter.

It does not prevent the Oakland City Council from approving an
ordinance that charges that city's pot dispensaries $18 in tax for
every $1,000 of medical marijuana sold.

The current confusing state of our marijuana laws stymies law
enforcement, corrupts the medical profession and confounds elected
officials. Are pot dispensaries legitimate businesses that can be
taxed or not?

The way the proposition was drafted makes it difficult for lawmakers
to regulate this budding industry (excuse the pun). It also makes it
difficult to amend the law without going back to the voters.

It's time to do that. The public in California faces three
options:

- - Legalize marijuana, then regulate it and tax it;

- - Tighten up and clarify Proposition 215; or

- - Repeal the proposition.