SUPES VOTE TO ASK THOMPSON TO SUPPORT LEGALIZING, TAXING POT

In a 4-0 decision, with Supervisor Jimmy Smith abstaining, the
Humboldt County Board of Supervisors voted Tuesday to send a letter
to U.S. Rep. Mike Thompson (D-St. Helena) in support of legalizing marijuana.

The letter, which Supervisor Roger Rodoni proposed to the board,
states, in part, "(U.S. Rep.) Thompson, the Humboldt County Board of
Supervisors requests your support in helping to initiate legislation
which will legalize, regulate, and tax marijuana."

In response to a request for comment, Thompson's office provided a
previous position statement in which he stated, "the likelihood of
passing a bill that legalizes all marijuana is a real long shot at this time."

In a phone conversation, Rodoni said he would not have been able to
pen the letter, or even raise the topic, when he first came to
office. He said the issue was an elephant in the room no one wanted
to recognize.

But, he said, "Times have changed."

Rodoni said he didn't anticipate the board's receptive vote.

"I was prepared to consider it a furthering of the conversation," he
said, adding that he was pleasantly surprised by the support.

Timing was the key issue, Supervisor Jill Geist said in a phone
interview. She cited a similar letter endorsed by the Mendocino
County Board of Supervisors last month.

Both letters signal a shift within Northern California constituencies
that have lived with legalized medicinal marijuana for more than 10
years, she said.

"Communities are ready to take a look at what is and is not working,"
Geist said.

During board comments on the issue, Geist said the letter is not
implicit support for illegal activity.

"We are duty-bound to make sure that we are upholding the law," she said.

Geist later said support of local law enforcement is important and
clarifying the discrepancies between federal and state law would
assist them in performing their job. "We support them 100 percent," she said.

Numerous attempts to contact local and federal law enforcement for
comments yielded no response.

Most public comments at the meeting were in support of the measure,
but Fred Green of Redway made clear his distaste for the drug. Citing
family problems with addiction, Green said, "I can't think of
anything dumber -- anything dumber than opening that door."

During the meeting, Supervisor John Woolley said the potential
revenue from regulating and taxing marijuana could be used to tackle
drug problems such as methamphetamine abuse.

The California branch of the National Organization for the Reform of
Marijuana Law recently released a study that estimates legalized and
taxed marijuana could yield $1.5 billion to $2.5 billion annually for
California's coffers.

Smith said he abstained from voting because of conflicts with his
position on the American Cancer Society board, as well as his
concerns about the juvenile justice system.

When Geist was asked whether she thought the request by the board
would have any impact at the federal level, she said, "I respect that
in the grand priorities of the nation, this isn't going to be a high one."