STATE ALLOWS MARIJUANA ID CARD PROGRAM TO RESUME

State officials revived California's medical marijuana identification
card program Monday, saying state employees weren't violating federal
law by issuing pot ID cards.

The state health department shuttered the pilot program 10 days ago,
citing concerns over a recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling.

Last month, the court ruled that people who smoke marijuana because
their doctors recommend it to ease pain or other conditions can be
prosecuted for violating federal drug laws.

The ruling did not strike down laws in California and nine other
states that permit medical cannabis use, but said federal drug laws
take precedence.

In a legal review sought by state Health Director Sandra Shewry,
Attorney General Bill Lockyer said that employees issuing the IDs
could not be prosecuted for aiding or abetting the violation of a crime.

Lockyer's office also said that the information collected from
applicants could be obtained by federal authorities and used to
identify and prosecute medical marijuana users.

Health department spokesman Ken August said he was not aware of
federal agents requesting such information.

Shewry said a new program application would state clearly that
information submitted could be turned over to federal authorities and
that possession of marijuana remains a federal crime.

Complying with a state mandate that lawmakers passed after California
voters approved a medical marijuana law in 1996, the state Health
Department in May launched the pilot pot card program in Amador, Del
Norte and Mendocino counties.