State & Local Legislatures

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                                                                                                 

OCTOBER 26, 2009

N.H. Patients Make Final Plea for Medical Marijuana Law in Tuesday Press Conference

CONTACT: Matt Simon, New Hampshire Coalition for Common Sense Marijuana Policy… (603) 391-7450

CONCORD— One day prior to the final vote on HB 648, patients and advocates will hold a Tuesday morning press conference urging legislators to end the uncertainty and pass this bill into law when they vote Oct. 28.

Additionally, half-page newspaper ads have been slated to run Tuesday in the Concord Monitor and the New Hampshire Union-Leader urging support for the override.

HB 648 passed the House and Senate June 24, but was subsequently vetoed by Gov. John Lynch.  If it becomes law, New Hampshire would become the 14th state to protect seriously ill patients from arrest for using medical marijuana if their doctor recommends it.

WHAT: Press conference urging legislators to pass the medical marijuana bill into law

WHO: Advocates scheduled to participate include: ?                              

Rep. Evalyn Merrick, prime sponsor of HB 648

Barbara Filleul, a cancer survivor from Concord

Dennis Acton, a cancer survivor from Fremont

Former state Sen. Burt Cohen, a survivor of Hepatitis-C

Matt Simon, executive director for the N.H. Coalition for Common Sense Marijuana Policy

WHEN: Tuesday, October 27, 10 a.m.

WHERE: Legislative Office Building lobby, Concord, N.H.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE           

OCTOBER 22, 2009

U.S. Attorney’s Announcement Brings New Hope for Medical Marijuana Bill in New Hampshire

Medical marijuana vote Oct. 28; poll shows 71% support

CONTACT: Matt Simon, NH Coalition for Common Sense Marijuana Policy…………………(603) 391-7450

CONCORD – Patients and their advocates received new hope Tuesday in their effort to pass a medical marijuana bill in New Hampshire.  The U.S. attorney for New Hampshire, John Kacavas, announced that his department will not prosecute seriously ill patients who use marijuana to relieve their suffering.

The statement from Kacavas came one day after the Obama administration issued guidelines to federal prosecutors and the DEA directing them not to expend limited resources prosecuting medical marijuana patients in states where doctors may legally recommend the drug.  Kacavas went a step further, telling reporters his office would not prosecute patients for possessing marijuana regardless of whether HB 648 passes or fails. 

When the bill was debated earlier this year, many legislators expressed concern that a New Hampshire law could not protect patients from federal prosecutions.  In light of Kacavas’ announcement, advocates say it is now clear that patients have nothing to fear from federal agents in New Hampshire.

“It’s great to hear that I’m safe from the federal authorities,” said 24-year old Clayton Holton, a Somersworth resident who suffers from muscular dystrophy and lost his ability to walk at age 10.  “Unfortunately, if HB 648 doesn’t pass, I’ll still have to live in fear of New Hampshire state and local police.”

A 2008 Mason-Dixon poll showed that 71% of New Hampshire voters support allowing seriously and terminally ill patients access to medical marijuana for personal use if their doctors recommend it.

Matt Simon, executive director for the NH Coalition for Common Sense Marijuana Policy, praised the announcement from Kacavas but pointed out that of the more than 800,000 marijuana arrests that take place each year in the US, 99% are made by state and local law enforcement officers.  “If legislators want to see some of New Hampshire’s most vulnerable citizens receive protection from arrest, there is no good reason left for them to vote against HB 648,” he said.

Cancer survivor Dennis Acton, a Fremont resident, also cheered the new development.  “It’s great to see the federal government finally acknowledging that states should be free to determine their own policies,” he said.  “Now it’s clear that the responsibility of changing this law rests with our own state legislature, and nobody else.”

The bill is scheduled for a final vote in the House and Senate Oct. 28.  Two-thirds majorities will be necessary to override Gov. John Lynch’s veto and pass the bill into law.  When the bill passed June 24, the House vote was 232-108 (68%) and the Senate vote was 14-10, only two votes short of the override threshold.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                                                               
OCTOBER 22, 2009

Patients Call for Medical Marijuana Bill in Light of New Federal Policy

Obama Announcement Clears Way for Massachusetts to Protect Patients; 81% of Voters in Favor

CONTACT: Bruce Mirken, MPP director of communications …………… 415-585-6404 or 202-215-4205

BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS — The Obama administration’s directive to federal prosecutors not to prosecute medical marijuana activities that are in accord with state laws gives new impetus to the drive to pass a medical marijuana bill in Massachusetts, patients who have benefited from marijuana said today. Pending legislation, HB 2160 would make Massachusetts the 14^th state with such a law. The bill is largely modeled on the successful medical marijuana law in Rhode Island, which has been in force since 2006.

         “I’m excited about this news from the Obama administration, which shows that the government is now willing to acknowledge that marijuana has legitimate medical uses,” said Marcy Duda of Ware, who suffers from chronic pain and debilitating nerve damage due to brain surgery. “I hope this sends a signal to our legislators that there is no reason not to move ahead with legislation to help seriously ill patients. I’ve tried prescription painkillers that are very addictive and just knock me out. Medical marijuana helps me get by.”

         A Suffolk University poll released in September found that 81 percent of Massachusetts voters support medical marijuana legislation. Full poll results are available at http://www.suffolk.edu/research/38128.html

         “Hopefully this will help reduce the needless stigma associated with medical marijuana use,” said Don from the South Shore, who suffers from a rare condition called cyclic vomiting syndrome and who asked that his full name not be used for fear of legal consequences. “It’s not about an excuse to use an illegal drug, it’s about people with cancer, pain, or other illnesses who don’t respond to other available medications. I suffered for years before I had any idea about medical marijuana. I’ve considered moving to Rhode Island so I could have safe access to my medicine and never have to miss work while bedridden with nausea and vomiting.”

         With more than 29,000 members and 100,000 e-mail subscribers nationwide, the Marijuana Policy Project is the largest marijuana policy reform organization in the United States. MPP believes that the best way to minimize the harm associated with marijuana is to regulate marijuana in a manner similar to alcohol. For more information, please visit http://MarijuanaPolicy.org.

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[Courtesy of MPP] 

Dear friends:

Do you think these ads are too hot for TV? New York City's ABC, Fox, and CBS affiliates do — they've rejected them.

  

These stations have no problem airing lewd and violent commercials selling products like video games and reality shows, but they're rejecting ads asking the New York Legislature to allow seriously ill patients to use medical marijuana (something that 76% of New Yorkers support). What's wrong here?

We have a real shot at making New York the 14th medical marijuana state and the third to have state-licensed medical marijuana dispensaries. But before the legislature returns for a special session, they need to hear our message.

Don't let big media bureaucrats stand in the way of justice and compassion. Please join me in ensuring that as many New Yorkers as possible view these compelling ads by donating to the ad buy today.

Fortunately, many other stations have approved the ads. Let's show ABC, FOX, and CBS that their rejections have simply inspired supporters nationwide to light up the rest of the airwaves with these ads.

The ads are starting to air today, and any money you generously donate in response to this message will go straight into the purchase of more airtime. I invite you to give what you can today — $10, $25, $50, or more — to spread these ads across the airwaves.

The last time TV stations rejected one of our ads, it turned into a massive national news story. The same could happen this time with these ads.  By donating to the ad campaign today, you can be part of making a big media splash that puts voters face-to-face with the patients they have the chance to protect from arrest, while at the same time exposing the outrageous hypocrisy shown by some stations in rejecting the ads.

If you donate in response to this message, I'll make sure to send you a personal message in a few weeks to show you exactly how your investment in this special project paid off.

Thank you for considering this timely request.

Sincerely,

Rob Kampia
Executive Director
Marijuana Policy Project
Washington, D.C.

P.S. As I've mentioned in previous alerts, a major philanthropist has committed to match the first $2.35 million that MPP can raise from the rest of the planet in 2009. This means that your donation today will be doubled.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE   
SEPTEMBER 16, 2009    

TV Ads Air, Pleading for Medical Marijuana Law Despite Rejection by CBS, ABC, Fox
Spots Debut in Key NY Districts as Local Polls Show Strong Support

CONTACT: Bruce Mirken, MPP director of communications ............... 415-585-6404 or 202-215-4205

ALBANY, NEW YORK -- Two new TV ads featuring patients who have benefited from medical marijuana began airing today in media markets covering key New York Senate districts. Rejected by ABC, CBS and Fox, the spots will nevertheless air on WNBC in New York City and on cable outlets around the state, including the New York City, Buffalo and Rochester metropolitan areas, Westchester and Rockland counties and the rest of the Lower Hudson Valley, Watertown, Oswego, and Ogdensburg.

     Local polls in these districts show overwhelming, bipartisan support for medical marijuana legislation. For example, Mason-Dixon polls conducted Sept. 1-3 in Senate Districts 12 (Queens), 48 (Watertown, Oswego), and 58 (Buffalo and nearby areas) showed support for the legislation running at 72 percent, 69 percent, and 74 percent, respectively. Full results of these and earlier district polls on the medical marijuana bill are at mpp.org/nypolls2009. A separate set of polls from 2007 is at http://www.mpp.org/nypoll2007.

     One of the spots features Conservative Party member Joel Peacock of Buffalo, who suffers from chronic pain as the result of a serious accident. In the ad, he describes running out of his prescription medication while on a work assignment in the south after Hurricane Katrina and being given marijuana by a client. "It took away the pain," Peacock says in the ad. "It took away the nausea. I didn't have stomach cramps. I slept. It just did everything my medicine doesn't do. Please, ask your senator to have compassion."

     Both spots, sponsored by the Marijuana Policy Project and New Yorkers for Compassionate Care, can be viewed at mpp.org/NYTVads. In nearly all areas, the ads are customized to name the specific state senator who voters should contact (in New York City and Orange County, the configuration of Senate districts and TV markets made this impractical).

     Kevin Smith, M.D., of Saugerties, who appears in the second spot and who suffers severe pain from a genetic disorder known as ankylosing spondilitis, was angered by the stations' rejection of the ads. "As a patient whose well-being would be dramatically improved by the medical marijuana bill, I am appalled that these TV stations won't even let us tell our stories to their viewers," Smith said. "These stations are out of touch with the public, 76 percent of whom support protecting patients."

 

     With more than 27,000 members and 100,000 e-mail subscribers nationwide, the Marijuana Policy Project is the largest marijuana policy reform organization in the United States. MPP believes that the best way to minimize the harm associated with marijuana is to regulate marijuana in a manner similar to alcohol. For more information, please visit http://MarijuanaPolicy.org.

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

JUNE 18, 2009

Committee Approves Revised Medical Marijuana Bill

Legislators Worked to Address Governor Lynch's Concerns, Eliminate Possibilities for Diversion

CONTACT: Matt Simon, NH Coalition for Common Sense Marijuana Policy, (603) 391-7450

CONCORD, NEW HAMPSHIRE — All seven legislators who were tasked with crafting a compromise on the medical marijuana bill signed off on the revised version today. A vote to approve the new language is expected June 24 in the House and Senate, after which the bill will proceed to Gov. John Lynch's desk.

     This special seven-member "committee of conference," chaired by House Health, Human Services, and Elderly Affairs Committee Chairwoman Rep. Cindy Rosenwald (D-Nashua), was formed to address eight specific concerns that were expressed by Lynch. The bill had passed both Houses in slightly different forms and was scheduled for final approval in the House when Lynch's office reportedly informed Rosenwald that the bill would be vetoed if passed in its original form.

     Since then, the bill has been rewritten to address all eight concerns. Most significantly, the new bill will not permit patients or their caregivers to cultivate their own marijuana plants, as patients are permitted to do in all 13 states that currently protect medical marijuana patients from arrest. Instead, the amended bill would allow for the creation of up to three nonprofit "compassion centers," which could legally cultivate medical marijuana and dispense it to patients.

     Rather than creating a new model from scratch, the committee of conference produced a bill similar to legislation that passed in Rhode Island Tuesday. That state's bill, which adds compassion centers to its already existing medical marijuana program, will become law now that legislators overrode Gov. Donald Carcieri's veto, 67-0 in the Rhode Island House and 35-3 in the Senate. New Hampshire’s bill is much more restrictive than Rhode Island's law, which also allows patients and their caregivers to cultivate medical marijuana.

     Advocates were confident that the amendment would remove all reasonable objections to HB 648.

     "As amended, HB 648 would create the most tightly crafted medical marijuana law in the country," said Matt Simon, executive director for the New Hampshire Coalition for Common Sense Marijuana Policy. "Some legislators voted against the bill initially because they felt that distribution of medical marijuana should be tightly controlled. If these legislators truly believe patients should not have to live in fear of being arrested by New Hampshire police, they should be willing to support this version of the bill."

     In the coming week, advocates will present legislators with a document – available online at www.mpp.org/states/new-hampshire/hb-648-has-been-amended-to.html – detailing the committee's changes and specifies how all eight of the governor's concerns have been addressed.

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE   
JUNE 16, 2009

Rhode Island to License Medical Marijuana Dispensaries in Move Hailed as Historic
Legislature Overrides Veto; Rhode Island Is First State to Expand an Existing Medical Marijuana Law to Permit Dispensaries

CONTACT: Bruce Mirken, MPP director of communications ............... 415-585-6404 or 202-215-4205

PROVIDENCE, RHODE ISLAND -- In a historic first, Rhode Island legislators today made their state the first ever to expand an existing medical marijuana law to allow for state-licensed compassion centers to grow and distribute marijuana to registered patients. Legislators easily overrode the veto issued by Gov. Donald Carcieri with override votes of 68-0 in the House and 35-3 in the Senate.

     Rhode Island's medical marijuana law, like most such state laws, did not set up a formal distribution system, but simply allowed patients to grow a limited quantity of medical marijuana for their own use or designate a caregiver to grow it for them. In March, New Mexico became the first state to grant a state license to a medical marijuana producer, pursuant to legislation passed last year.

     "We are seeing a historic shift to allowing state-licensed, regulated medical marijuana production and distribution," said Karen O'Keefe, director of state policies for the Marijuana Policy Project in Washington, D.C. "Combining regulated distribution with provisions for patients to grow a limited quantity for themselves is the best way to assure safe access for patients, with solid safeguards to prevent abuse." States where medical marijuana bills that include a dispensary provision are under consideration include Delaware, Illinois, Iowa, New Hampshire, New Jersey, North Carolina and Pennsylvania, and a similar ballot initiative is now being circulated in Arizona. This November, Maine voters will vote on a ballot initiative to add dispensaries to the state's medical marijuana law.

     "During the Bush administration, the Drug Enforcement Administration raided medical marijuana patients and caregivers in California, leaving states hesitant to set up state-regulated distribution," said MPP director of government relations Aaron Houston. "Now that the Obama administration has announced a policy change, state legislators seem to feel safer adopting a sensible, regulated system of medical marijuana distribution that avoids the mistakes of California, where dispensaries sprang up with no rules. This is a historic step forward."

     With more than 27,000 members and 100,000 e-mail subscribers nationwide, the Marijuana Policy Project is the largest marijuana policy reform organization in the United States. MPP believes that the best way to minimize the harm associated with marijuana is to regulate marijuana in a manner similar to alcohol. For more information, please visit http://MarijuanaPolicy.org.

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