MORATORIUM ON NEW MMJ BUSINESSES EXTENDED

El Paso County Extends Interim Rules

A longstanding prohibition on new medical marijuana dispensaries will
continue, despite earlier expectations that the moratorium would be
lifted March 1.

At the earliest, the state moratorium will be lifted April 13, but
could last until Sept. 16, depending on how long it takes for the
Department of Revenue's Medical Marijuana Enforcement Division to
issue new industry regulations.

El Paso County, meanwhile, has again extended its interim land-use
regulations for dispensaries until June 1. The regulations were
adopted in December 2009, and were set to expire next week after
being extended several times. The County Commission voted Thursday to
keep them in place. The rules cover issues such as hours of operation
and location restrictions.

The commission decided to wait to approve permanent zoning and
licensing regulations, pending completion of the state regulations.
The commission also is waiting on a bill in the state Legislature
that could affect the county's licensing policies.

A first draft of the state regulations, required by a ground-breaking
law passed last year, was finalized on Jan. 28 after extensive public
hearings and comment periods. A State Licensing Authority-in this
case, revenue department Deputy Executive Tim Weber-has up to 180
days to consider or alter new rules for dispensaries. Weber can
"modify" the rule proposal as he sees fit, though he can't completely
rewrite them.

For example, he can't remove the most controversial section of the
new rules, which requires all dispensaries to install video
surveillance cameras. But he could reduce or increase the number of
cameras required.

Most dispensaries don't object to most of the proposed regulations,
but the surveillance camera requirement has had them up in arms for months.

Tyler Reimers, owner of Canna Caregivers in Colorado Springs, said
her lawyer will probably file an invasion of privacy lawsuit against
the state after the rules are handed down. She says the video camera
requirement would violate patients' rights, and she worries that many
patients may resort to the black market.

"Anonymity is important to people," said Reimers. "I think the state
runs a real risk pushing a lot of legitimate people back out onto the street."

Reimers estimated it will cost her between $40,000 and $50,000 to
install a camera system.

Colin Stephens, owner of Pain Management Solutions, echoed Reimers' concern.

"What they're trying to do is necessary, but I feel like they're
invading privacy too much in the process," he said. "I've not had a
single patient say they're okay with being recorded."

Dispensary owners have operated in limbo for months while waiting for
the new state regulations. Industry laws vary from county to county
and city to city, and it's not clear just what will be handed down by
the Department of Revenue.

"We don't know what the State Licensing Authority is going to do with
regard to the rules," said Julie Postlethwait, spokeswoman for the
department's Medical Marijuana Enforcement Division. "He could modify
them, he could reject them, he could accept portions of them."

After Weber issues the rules, they'll go the Attorney General's
office for approval, which will take up to 20 days. The rules will be
published for 30 days to give dispensaries time to comply. Then the
moratorium on new dispensaries will be lifted.