COLO. POT DISPENSARIES WELCOME STATE REGULATION

DENVER - Colorado lawmakers have an unlikely ally in their first
attempt to curb the state's booming medical marijuana industry:
owners of the some of the shops that sell pot.

Many dispensary owners say they're on board with regulations if they
give them uniform guidelines and avert a more severe crackdown like
one approved this week in Los Angeles. Hundreds of Los Angeles pot
shops face closure after the City Council voted Tuesday to cap the
number of dispensaries in the city at 70.

The Colorado proposal - which a legislative committee approved 6-1
Wednesday - would make it more difficult for recreational pot users
to become legal medical marijuana patients. It would bar doctors from
working out of dispensaries, make it illegal for them to offer
discounts to patients who agree to use a designated dispensary, and
require follow-up doctor visits.

Most of the 150 people at the hearing opposed the bill. Many of them
worry it will cost them hundreds of dollars on top of the $90 annual
fee they pay to register as a medical marijuana user.

William Chengelis said he can't get his regular Veterans
Administration doctors to sign off on medical marijuana and said
buying pot illegally and paying the $100 fine would be cheaper than
paying a private doctor for follow-up visits.

"I cannot afford this bill," Chengelis told lawmakers.

In response, the committee backed allowing the state to waive the $90
fee for those who can't afford it. Sponsor Sen. Chris Romer,
D-Denver, said he would also see if there was a way to allow
dispensaries to reimburse veterans for doctor visits.

While some advocates see any regulations as a violation of the
medical marijuana law passed by voters in 2000, many dispensaries say
they welcome the certainty that more regulation would provide.

"We're saying we really can't operate without any rules," said Matt
Brown, a medical marijuana patient and leader of a coalition of about
150 dispensaries and over 1,000 patients.

Erik Santos, who operates a dispensary out of an office building in a
trendy part of Denver's downtown section, thinks it makes sense to
limit large marijuana growers to industrial areas and keep
dispensaries out of residential areas. He wants lawmakers to pass
laws now before even more dispensaries open up and prevent those with
possible criminal ties from giving the industry a bad name.

Another bill still in the works could set up more regulations on
dispensaries and suppliers.

Colorado cities are also looking to lawmakers to pass regulations.
Hundreds of dispensaries have popped up across the state - in empty
storefronts, office buildings and even a historic movie theater.

Some cities have passed moratoriums on pot shops as they figure out
how to regulate them and wait for more guidance from the state. The
Denver suburb of Centennial voted to ban dispensaries and close a
shop that had already opened, but a court blocked that move.

"Everyone is waiting to see what happens this (legislative) session,"
said Mark Radtke, a lobbyist for the Colorado Municipal League.

Colorado already has some rules in place for medical marijuana
dispensaries, including prohibiting dispensaries within 1,000 feet of
schools, day cares and other dispensaries. Felons convicted within
the last five years would be barred from running shops. Dispensary
owners would have to be licensed, pass a criminal background check
and pay a $2,000 application fee along with $3,000 a year to renew licenses.

The rules are set to take effect March 1, although they could change
depending on what state lawmakers to decide to do.

Fear that dispensaries would attract crime has been raised by those
concerned about the growth of dispensaries. But police in Denver are
discounting that.

Police say medical marijuana dispensaries were robbed or burglarized
at a lower rate than liquor stores or even banks last year. A memo
reported by The Denver Post on Wednesday says they were hit at about
the same rate as pharmacies.