IMPLEMENT OUR MEDICAL POT LAWS

Now that neighboring Yolo and El Dorado Counties are both developing
plans to implement the state-mandated medical marijuana ID card
program, it's time for Sacramento County to follow suit. It makes no
sense that patients in neighboring counties will be afforded more
rights, under state law, than patients living in the state capital.

The ID card protects patients and caregivers from being falsely
arrested and frees up valuable public safety resources. The ID card
program will greatly assist law enforcement in distinguishing
patients with legitimate medical marijuana recommendations from those
who are using false or counterfeit documentation.

Counties have a legal responsibility to implement the program, as a
requirement of Senate Bill 420, passed into law in 2003 and upheld by
a San Diego Superior Court ruling in December 2006. Voter support for
safe and legal access to medical marijuana has only grown stronger
since the passage of the Compassionate Use Act in 1996.

Today, three out of four Californians support implementation of our
medical marijuana laws.

- - Jonathan Estrada

Sacramento