CITY IMPOSES STAY ON MEDICAL MARIJUANA SHOPS

The Choteau City Council on July 20 put a temporary six-month
moratorium on medical marijuana shops into effect for the city -
agreeing that the Montana Legislature needs to take action to clarify
how municipalities should regulate the new businesses.

The City Council held a public hearing on the proposed ordinance and
heard from only a couple of citizens - who asked questions rather
than expressed support or opposition to the proposed ordinance - and
from Sheriff Keith VanSetten who outlined some of his concerns about
Montana's voter-approved medical marijuana laws.

The ordinance imposes a temporary moratorium on the "registering,
licensing, opening and operating of any establishments that acquire,
possess, cultivate, manufacture, deliver, transfer, transport or
distribute marijuana for medical use." Further, the new law directs
the city to study the proposed new zoning and ordinances needed to
eventually regulate medical marijuana dispensaries.

The new law does not prevent medical marijuana-card holders from
having six plants for personal use in their homes.

Mayor Jay Dunckel, who opened the hearing, said, "The Legislature has
to identify what the communities need to do." Right now, he said,
every town in Montana going different directions on regulations.

VanSetten said anyone who wants to be a medical marijuana "caregiver"
has to apply to the state for a license, undergo a background check,
and have their own medical marijuana card. Caregivers can then grow
marijuana plants to provide medical marijuana to clients through
their medical marijuana dispensaries.

But, VanSetten said, the state law does not provide enough specifics
to adequately regulate the businesses from a law enforcement or
medical standpoint.

"The way the law is written right now it's a big mess," he said.

Specifically, the state law doesn't address quality control, doesn't
allow for checks and balances on sales, and has not established safe,
medical levels of the product.

Further, he said, marijuana is still classified by the federal
government as an illegal drug.

VanSetten said he doesn't believe that a person who is, for example,
suffering from cancer, should be denied the use of medical marijuana,
but he doesn't like seeing 16-year-old kids possessing cards. He said
he even heard that the youngest card holder in the state is a
2-year-old toddler.

Dunckel said the city needs direction before it begins implementing
new zoning ordinances for medical marijuana dispensaries. If the city
takes action now, before the Legislature meets in January, it may
have to re-do any actions to comply with new state law. It makes more
sense, he said, to put a moratorium into effect now and see what the
Legislature does next year.

The council voted unanimously to put the moratorium into place,
effective immediately.

Later in the meeting, a Choteau man who came in after the hearing was
concluded, said in the public comment portion of the meeting that he
came to hear whether the moratorium would affect him as a card
holder. Rod Britt told the council that he debated long and hard
before seeking a card to treat his medical concerns. He said he
thinks Choteau has a big marijuana use problem among the kids and a
huge prescription drug problem as well.

Dunckel told Britt that the moratorium will not affect any individual
card holders who are still allowed to grow up to six plants in their
homes for their exclusive use.

City Attorney Bill Bieler drafted the moratorium resolution, basing
it on wording used in other small communities and tailoring it to
Choteau's needs. The town of Dutton has passed a similar ordinance.

In other action, the council:

.Approved a $.50 per hour pay increase for the city's eight full-time
hourly employees and two salaried administrative employees, effective
July 1. The increase raises the lowest paid worker's hourly rate to
$11.20 and bumps the highest paid hourly worker's rate up to $14.95.
Under this plan, the city finance officer will earn $41,040 and the
public works director will earn $42,000. The percentage pay raise
varies by employee from a low of 2.6 percent to a high of 4.6
percent. Longevity pay raises were also given to two employees.

The wage increases will raise the city's direct wage/salary expense
from $324,186 last fiscal year to $336,587 this fiscal year or a 3.8
percent increase.

The council froze the stipends for council members and the mayor and
the city fire chief at the same level as last year. The mayor
receives a stipend of $600 per month; individual council members
receive stipends of $150 per month; and the fire chief receives a
stipend of $75 per month.

.Raised rental fees for the Choteau Pavilion. The new fees, effective
July 21, are: $100 per day, Monday through Thursday; $150 per day,
Friday, Saturday and Sunday; $40 per day for the kitchen only (for
caterers); and $5 per table for off-site table rentals. The new fees
also include a refundable security deposit of $250 and a $25 deposit
for the use of the city's coffee pots.

The rental fees are for a 24-hour period. If additional time is
required for set-up or clean-up, the rental fee will reflect that
time as well, unless the event is a fundraiser being held by a
community organization, for which the additional fees will be waived.

The new rate structure is designed to bring the rental fees closer to
what is needed to cover the costs of operating the pavilion. Any
additional donations for the pavilion received from those who rent
the facility will go into a special account earmarked for building
improvements.

.Authorized the mayor to approve work directives and change orders on
the city's sewer renovation project from the general contractor,
Williams Civil Division Inc. of Bozeman, for individual changes up to
$5,000 each or up to a project total of $25,000.

.Approved a Revolving Loan Fund application from John and Ruth
Jensen, doing business as Gorder-Jensen Funeral Home, P.L.L.C., for a
$20,000 loan for renovation and working capital needed in their
purchase of the Choteau funeral home. The loan will be repaid over
seven years at 5 percent interest. The RLF Committee reviewed the
application and recommended council approval.

.Discussed a request from Larry and Deb Renteria, proprietors of
Teton Electric, L.L.C., for the city to vacate a portion of Fourth
Street Southeast. In making the request, the Renterias said they are
considering selling some of the lots in Tracts E, F, G, H, I and J in
the Hirschberg Addition and would like to see the portion of Fourth
Street Southeast (which is undeveloped) between the railroad tracks abandoned.

Curtis, whose family owns land on the other side of the railroad
tracks, requested that the undeveloped road not be abandoned because
it would provide legal access to the Curtis property.

After some discussion, the Renterias withdrew their abandonment
request and the city agreed to develop the road as a benefit to both
landowners.

.Tabled action on a request for a home occupation permit from Jody
and Lisa Peters to operate Outlaw Design, a manufacturing business,
from their garage at 719 Second St. N.E. Their application said they
would be doing welding, fabrication and painting in the garage and
shipping their product out to customers. The Council tabled action
until they receive information from the owners on how they will
comply with occupational health and safety standards for fabricating
and painting, particularly in regard to fumes emissions, ventilation
and disposal of solvents.

.Reviewed the city judge's report for June, showing 11 cases
completed and $1,310 in fines and fees collected, of which $885 was
disbursed to the city general fund.

.Reviewed law enforcement reports for April and May and noted that
the city's law enforcement contract with Teton County will be renewed
without a rate increase for the 2010-11 fiscal year.