MARIJUANA BILLS MOVE OUT OF SENATE TO HOUSE -

Faced with a stalemate on an issue most Montanans agree needs
attention, the Montana Senate last week managed to approve two medical
marijuana bills and get them to the House.

House Bill 161, which seeks to repeal the state's medical marijuana
law, was overwhelmingly approved in the House by a 62-37 vote on Feb.
21 and sent on to the Senate. Both of Whitefish's local
representatives, Bill Beck, R-Whitefish, and Derek Skees, R-Kalispell,
voted in favor of HB 161.

The bill, however, had stalled in the Senate until another Whitefish
Republican legislator, Sen. Ryan Zinke, "blasted" it out of the Senate
Judiciary Committee. A 6-6 vote across party lines had effectively
stalled the bill on March 14.

"We needed to do something," Zinke told the Pilot.

HB 161 was approved by 28-22 on April 1. Democratic Gov. Brian
Schweitzer, however, is expected to veto the bill when it reaches his
desk.

The Senate also sent a medical marijuana reform bill to the House.
Zinke said a committee was formed after HB 161 stalled in the Senate
and came up with a reform bill, Senate Bill 423.

The Senate passed SB 423 on March 31 by a 36-14 vote after Zinke
promoted bipartisan support. However, because it was moved to the
House beyond the transmittal time, the bill needed House approval to
suspend the rules. While the House had its repeal bill approved and
ready for the governor, it recognized the importance of also having a
reform bill in place, and the special vote went 100-0 in favor of
accepting SB 423 for a House vote.

HB 161 would repeal an act overwhelmingly approved by Montana voters
in 2004. It also could cost the state about $262,000 next year and
$317,000 in 2013 to arrest and incarcerate drug offenders, the fiscal
note attached to the bill states.

According to an analysis of conviction trends by the Department of
Corrections, drug offenses had increased by an average of 44 per year
from 1995 to 2006 but then declined by an average of 91 per year from
2007 to 2010. The department attributed the 6.5 percent decline in
drug convictions to the state's medical marijuana law.

SB 423 seeks to address concerns of Montana voters that the medical
marijuana act has allowed the growth of an industry that promotes drug
use by people who don't need medical marijuana. With more than 28,000
registered cardholders eligible to use medical marijuana, roughly one
out of every 19 Montana households now have a someone with a card.

SB 423 would require people to see two doctors in order to get a card,
eliminate storefront sales of medical marijuana, and limit caregivers
to supplying medical marijuana to only four cardholders and "without
compensation."

Skees has said he is a supporter of taking the money out of the
medical marijuana industry.

Zinke said the intent of the bill is to "remove bad industry
players."

"The state's medical marijuana law should help critical, chronic
patients, which is what Montanans have compassion for," Zinke said.