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May 05
0

Connecticut Senate passes Medical Marijuana Bill

By | Colorado Medical Marijuana Law, Medical Marijuana Law, Medical Marijuana Technology | No Comments

Reuters 5/5/2012 11:16:26 AM ET By Mary Ellen Godin

HARTFORD, Connecticut (Reuters) – The Connecticut Senate passed a bill on Saturday legalizing marijuana use for medical purposes with tight restrictions aimed at avoiding problems that have plagued some of the 16 other states where pot is now legal.

After nearly 10 hours of debate, the Senate voted 21-13 in favor of the measure, which already cleared the House.

Democratic Governor Dannel Malloy was expected to sign the bill. Once he does, Connecticut will join 16 other states and the District of Columbia in allowing use of marijuana to treat sick patients.

Connecticut’s legislation calls for tight regulation of the plant, a move advocates say is aimed at avoiding problems that have plagued some of the other states, include disagreements with the federal government.

Under the bill, patients and their caregivers must register with the Department of Consumer Protection. In addition, their doctors must certify there is a medical need for marijuana to be dispensed, including such debilitating conditions as cancer, glaucoma, HIV, AIDS, Parkinson’s disease, multiple sclerosis or epilepsy. And, medical marijuana would be dispensed only by pharmacists with a special license.

(Editing by Barbara Goldberg and Eric Beech)

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Apr 18
0

Economists say U.S. would save billions if pot was legal

By | General Medical Marijuana Information, Medical Marijuana Law | No Comments

MSN Now Wednesday, April 18, 10:45 am :

Where there’s pot, there’s gold. So conclude more than 300 economists who say that the government — if it got out of the business of enforcing marijuana laws — could save a whopping $7.7 billion annually. Harvard economist Jeffrey Miron also figures there’s another $6 billion to be mined each year by taxing the drug at rates similar to booze and tobacco. The economists, who have signed a petition, don’t exactly go as far as Miron in suggesting pot be legalized but maintain that it’s high time, so to speak, for an “open and honest debate.”

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Apr 04
0

Lawmakers In 5 States Tell Feds To Back Off Medical Marijuana

By | Colorado Medical Marijuana Law, General Medical Marijuana Information, Medical Marijuana Law, News | No Comments

Posted: 04/ 2/2012 4:26 pm by

WASHINGTON — Elected lawmakers in five states have a message for the federal government: Don’t interfere with state medical marijuana laws.

In an open letter to the federal government, lawmakers from both sides of the political aisle called on the government to stop using scarce law enforcement resources on taking pot away from medical marijuana patients.

“States with medical marijuana laws have chosen to embrace an approach that is based on science, reason, and compassion. We are lawmakers from these states,” the lawmakers explained in their letter.

“Our state medical marijuana laws differ from one another in their details, such as which patients qualify for medical use; how much marijuana patients may possess; whether patients and caregivers may grow marijuana; and whether regulated entities may grow and sell marijuana to patients. Each of our laws, however, is motivated by a desire to protect seriously ill patients from criminal penalties under state law.”

The letter — signed by Assemblyman Tom Ammiano (D-Calif.), Sen. Jeanne Kohl-Welles (D-Wash.), Rep. Antonio Maestas (D-N.M.), Sen. Cisco McSorley (D-N.M.), Assemblyman Chris Norby (R-Calif.), Rep. Deborah Sanderson (R-Maine) and Sen. Pat Steadman (D-Colo.) — comes directly on the heels of a federal raid in the heart of California’s pot legalization movement: medical marijuana training school Oaksterdam University in downtown Oakland, where U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration officials on Monday blocked off doors with yellow tape and carried off trash bags full of unknown substances to a nearby van. An IRS spokeswoman could not comment on the raid except to say the agents had a federal search warrant.

The lawmakers called on President Obama to live up to his campaign promise to leave the regulation of medical marijuana to the states, adding raids would only “force patients underground” into the illegal drug market.

The president as a candidate promised to maintain a hands-off approach toward pot clinics that adhere to state law. At a 2007 town hall meeting in Manchester, N.H., Obama said raiding patients who use marijuana for medicinal purposes “makes no sense.” At another town hall in Nashua, N.H., he said the Justice Department’s prosecution of medical marijuana users was “not a good use of our resources.” Yet the number of Justice Department raids on marijuana dispensaries has continued to rise.

Read the full letter here:

Over the last two decades, 16 states and the District of Columbia have chosen to depart from federal policy and chart their own course on the issue of medical marijuana, as states are entitlir doctors’ medical advice or risking arrest and prosecution. They have stopped using their scarce law enforcement resources to punish patients and those who care for them and have instead spent considerable resources and time crafting programs that will provide patients with safe and regulated access to medical marijuana.States with medical marijuana laws have chosen to embrace an approach that is based on science, reason, and compassion. We are lawmakers from these states.

Our state medical marijuana laws differ from one another in their details, such as which patients qualify for medical use; how much marijuana patients may possess; whether patients and caregivers may grow marijuana; and whether regulated entities may grow and sell marijuana to patients. Each of our laws, however, is motivated by a desire to protect seriously ill patients from criminal penalties under state law; to provide a safe and reliable source of medical marijuana; and to balance and protect the needs of local communities and other residents in the state. The laws were drafted with considered thoughtfulness and care, and are thoroughly consistent with the American tradition of using the states as laboratories for public policy innovation and experimentation.

Unfortunately, these laws face a mounting level of federal hostility and confusing mixed messages from the Obama Administration, the Department of Justice, and the various United States Attorneys. In 2008, then candidate Obama stated that as President, he would not use the federal government to circumvent state laws on the issue of medical marijuana. This promise was followed up in 2009 by President Obama with a Department of Justice memo from former Deputy Attorney General David W. Ogden stating that federal resources should not generally be focused “on individuals whose actions are in clear and unambiguous compliance with existing state laws providing for the medical use of marijuana.” This provided welcome guidance for state legislators and administrators and encouraged us to move forward with drafting and passing responsible regulatory legislation.

Nonetheless, the United States Attorneys in several states with medical marijuana laws have chosen a different course. They have explicitly threatened that federal investigative and prosecutorial resources “will continue to be directed” towards the manufacture and distribution of medical marijuana, even if such activities are permitted under state law. These threats have generally been timed to influence pending legislation or encourage the abandonment of state and local regulatory programs. They contradict President Obama’s campaign promise and policy his first year in office and serve to push medical marijuana activity back into the illicit market.

Most disturbing is that a few United States Attorneys warn that state employees who implement the laws and regulations of our states are not immune from criminal prosecution under the federal Controlled Substances Act. They do so notwithstanding the fact that no provision exists within the Controlled Substances Act that makes it a crime for a state employee to enforce regulations that help a state define conduct that is legal under its own state laws.

Hundreds of state and municipal employees are currently involved in the licensing and regulation of medical marijuana producers and providers in New Mexico, Colorado, Maine, and California, and have been for years. The federal government has never threatened, much less prosecuted, any of these employees. Indeed, the federal government has not, to our knowledge, prosecuted state employees for performing their ministerial duties under state law in modern history. It defies logic and precedent that the federal government would start prosecuting state employees now.

Recognizing the lack of any real harm to state employees, a number of states have moved forward. New Jersey Governor Chris Christie drew on his own experience as a former United States Attorney in deciding that New Jersey state workers were not realistically at risk of federal prosecution in his decision to move forward implementing New Jersey’s medical marijuana program. Rhode Island, Vermont, Arizona, and the District of Columbia are also in the process of implementing their state laws.

Nonetheless, the suggestion that state employees are at risk is have a destructive and chilling impact. Washington Governor Christine Gregoire vetoed legislation to regulate medical marijuana in her state and Delaware Governor Jack Markell suspended implementation of his state’s regulatory program after receiving warnings from the United States Attorneys in their states about state employees. Additionally, a number of localities in California ended or suspended regulatory programs after receiving similar threats to their workers.

We, the undersigned state legislators, call on state and local officials to not be intimidated by these empty federal threats. Our state medical marijuana programs should be implemented and move forward. Our work, and the will of our voters, should see the light of day.

We call on the federal government not to interfere with our ability to control and regulate how medical marijuana is grown and distributed. Let us seek clarity rather than chaos. Don’t force patients underground, to fuel the illegal drug market.

And finally, we call on President Obama to recommit to the principles and policy on which he campaigned and asserted his first year in office. Please respect our state laws. And don’t use our employees as pawns in your zealous and misguided war on medical marijuana.

Assemblymember Tom Ammiano (D-CA)

Senator Jeanne Kohl-Welles (D-WA)

Representative Antonio Maestas (D-NM)

Senator Cisco McSorley (D-NM)

Assemblymember Chris Norby (R-CA)

Representative Deborah Sanderson (R-ME)

Senator Pat Steadman (D-CO)

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Apr 02
0

US Attorney Continues Medical Marijuana Crackdown

By | Colorado Medical Marijuana Law | No Comments
5:37 PM, Mar 23, 2012 Written by: Chris Vanderveen

BOULDER – Colorado’s top federal prosecutor has made good on his promise to continue his crackdown on the state’s medical marijuana industry.

On Friday, US Attorney John Walsh sent letters to the owners of 25 medical marijuana dispensaries telling them they had a month and a half to either shut down or face the possibility of prosecution and property seizure. All, he said, are located within 1,000 feet of a school.

Two months ago, Walsh sent out similar warnings to 23 dispensaries.

“I would say to any medical marijuana dispensary owner whose facility is within a thousand feet of a school that they will be receiving this letter,” he told 9NEWS in January.

Friday’s round of warnings, according to a news release put out by his office, represents a “second phase of an initiative to close all marijuana stores within 1,000 feet of schools.”

The letters, according to the release, formally notify “them that action will be taken to seize and forfeit their property if they do not discontinue the sale and/or distribution of marijuana within 45 days from today.”

Walsh was unavailable for comment on Friday.

This all comes at a time when the Boulder County District Attorney is continuing to ask Walsh to halt the ongoing crackdown.

Last week, Boulder County DA Stan Garnett wrote a letter to Walsh asking the feds to focus their resources elsewhere.

“The people of Boulder County,” he wrote, “do not need Washington, D.C. or the federal government dictating how far dispensaries should be from schools.”

He added that prosecution of dispensary owners acting within the confines of state law serves “no practical purpose.”

This week, Walsh responded with his own letter to Garnett which said that he respectfully disagrees with the state prosecutor’s opinion.

“I believe that enforcing federal law to protect our children and young people from drug abuse is not only a legitimate use of federal resources, but a core responsibility for me and this office,” Walsh wrote.

Garnett said on Friday that he will hold firm with his position.

“I think there are other laws that could be enforced that would actually help us with public safety and not just be symbolic window dressing which this seems to be to me,” he said.

Marijuana, medical or not, remains illegal under federal law. In 2000, Colorado voters approved the limited use of medical marijuana.

(KUSA-TV © 2012 Multimedia Holdings Corporation)

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Mar 21
0

Marijuana training proposal clears CO Senate

By | General Medical Marijuana Information | No Comments
12:59 PM, Mar 21, 2012

DENVER (AP) – A marijuana proposal aimed at training people who work in medical marijuana businesses has cleared the Colorado Senate.

The Senate voted 24-11 Wednesday in favor of a “responsible medical marijuana vendor” designation.

The optional designation would allow pot shops to train employees in state marijuana regulation and how to spot fake marijuana cards.

In exchange, the businesses could get a break if they run afoul of state regulations. A similar designation already exists for the alcohol industry.

The marijuana industry backed the measure. It now heads to the House.

(Copyright 2012 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

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Mar 13
0

Cannabis Science, Inc. Begins Pre-Production of Groundbreaking Cannabis Television Documentary

By | General Medical Marijuana Information | No Comments

March 13, 2012, 11:29 a.m. EDT Image

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo., Mar 13, 2012 (BUSINESS WIRE) — Cannabis Science, Inc. CBIS -16.10% , a pioneering U.S. biotech company developing pharmaceutical cannabis (marijuana) products, is excited to be embarking on a medical marijuana documentary project. Pre-production of this groundbreaking educational film is currently underway.

Many documentaries about marijuana have been made, typically focusing on getting high or the medicinal effects and benefits. Cannabis Science will be first documentary to focus on the science behind medicinal cannabis, including untangling the history of marijuana’s reputation, the improvement it can bring to people’s daily lives, and what breakthroughs could be on the horizon for this emerging industry.

Modern science supports a long list of illnesses that cannabis can treat: Multiple Sclerosis, Cancer, Arthritis, HIV/Aids, Asthma, Alzheimer’s Disease, Anti-aging, Auto Immune Disease, brain trauma (closed head injury), Crohn’s Disease, chronic pain management, Diabetes, digestive illnesses, Gastro Intestinal Reflux Disease (GERD), high blood pressure, Glaucoma, Influenza, Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus (MRSA), Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Tourette Syndrome, and Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS), etc. The science gives a foundation for understanding the broad spectrum of benefits that can be achieved by increasing the cannabinoid activity in people suffering from so many illnesses.

Part of the science that will be explored are the various forms marijuana can take as a medication, including edibles, pills, liquids, and strips that dissolve on the tongue. The documentary will investigate how these forms are processed in the body and can reverse or minimized the effects of disease. Cannabis Science is first and foremost a “patient orientated company.” Therefore, patients will be interviewed, giving the audience a glimpse at the real, positive benefits the medicine provides for those with chronic illness, as opposed to the prevailing and false belief that marijuana is addictive and even harmful.

Other documentaries showcase marijuana culture, likening it to the popular view of the 1960s and marijuana use running rampant among the hippie population. Cannabis Science’s documentary, however, will show cannabis in a positive light and demonstrate that what has been, and is, taught by prohibitionists is false, and ignores modern science, history, and the voice of patients. The documentary will also focus on the co-founders of Cannabis Science, how the company is working to target critical illnesses, conducting much needed research, and is developing cannabis-based medications. The audience will hear the views of doctors who have discovered for themselves through treating patients the amazing benefits that cannabis based medicines can provide for their patients.

While the main focus of the documentary is not political, learning the truth about the science of cannabinoids will educate the public on the damage caused by prohibition. Patients whose circumstances could have drastically improved and who could have reduced the severity of their illnesses much earlier from medical marijuana will be interviewed. The film will explore the reasons behind the delay in world governments opening up to the idea that medical marijuana is a beneficial reality.

About Cannabis Science, Inc.

Cannabis Science, Inc. is at the forefront of pharmaceutical grade medical marijuana research and development. The second formulations will address the needs of patients choosing to use concentrated cannabis extracts to treat their ailments. Eventually, all Americans will have access to a safe and effective FDA approved medicine regardless of which state they live in. To maintain that marijuana is a dangerous, addictive drug with no medical value is scientifically absurd. Cannabis medicines, with no effective lethal dose, are far safer than aspirin, acetaminophen, and most other OTC drugs that kill thousands of Americans every year.

The Company works with world authorities on phytocannabinoid science targeting critical illnesses, and adheres to scientific methodologies to develop, produce and commercialize phytocannabinoid-based pharmaceutical products. In sum, we are dedicated to the creation of cannabis-based medicines, both with and without psychoactive properties, to treat disease and the symptoms of disease, as well as for general health maintenance.

Forward Looking Statements

This Press Release includes forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Act of 1934. A statement containing works such as “anticipate,” “seek,” intend,” “believe,” “plan,” “estimate,” “expect,” “project,” “plan,” or similar phrases may be deemed “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Some or all of the events or results anticipated by these forward-looking statements may not occur. Factors that could cause or contribute to such differences include the future U.S. and global economies, the impact of competition, and the Company’s reliance on existing regulations regarding the use and development of cannabis-based drugs. Cannabis Science, Inc. does not undertake any duty nor does it intend to update the results of these forward-looking statements.

SOURCE: Cannabis Science, Inc.

Mar 09
0

Colorado Poised to Regulate Marijuana for Adult Use While Feds Cling to Prohibition

By | Colorado Medical Marijuana Law, General Medical Marijuana Information, Medical Marijuana Law, News | No Comments

Posted: 02/27/2012 7:34 pm

by Art Way

Today the Colorado Secretary of State announced that a marijuana legalization initiative has qualified for the 2012 ballot, ensuring voters will have a chance to make history this November by ending marijuana prohibition in the state. Proponents of the Campaign to Regulate Marijuana like Alcohol are emboldened by recent polls indicating that a slight majority of Colorado voters support the legal regulation of marijuana for adult use.

The campaign initially fell 2,400 valid signatures short, triggering a 15-day “cure period” allowed under state law to gather the additional signatures needed to qualify. The campaign kicked into high gear and obtained another 14,000 total signatures, surpassing their own goal of 9,000. Moreover, the volunteer efforts during the cure period netted more signatures than the paid effort — a good sign of strong grassroots support in the state.

The Campaign to Regulate Marijuana like Alcohol — now known as Amendment 64 – would eliminate criminal penalties statewide for adults who possess up to one ounce of marijuana. It also encourages the Department of Revenue or local jurisdictions to devise a system of regulation and taxation for the production, distribution and retail sale of marijuana to adults.

Nationally, public support for making marijuana legal has shifted dramatically in the last two decades, especially in the last few years. For the first time, a recent Gallup poll has found that 50 percent of Americans support making marijuana legal, with only 46 percent opposed. Majorities of men, 18 to 29-year-olds, 30 to 49-year-olds, liberals, moderates, Independents, Democrats, and voters in Western, Midwestern and Eastern states now support legalizing marijuana.

Yet, over the past year, the federal government has relentlessly attacked the implementation of medical marijuana regulatory systems in many of the 16 states that allow for the medical use of marijuana. In fact, on this very day, as the Secretary of State announced the qualification of the non-medical initiative, 23 medical marijuana dispensary owners were forced to shut their doors.

The specifics of Amendment 64 have been designed with this reality in mind. It is not a mandate to implement a legal regulatory approach in every Colorado jurisdiction, but it does open the door for the Department of Revenue to do so. If voters decide to legalize marijuana this November, lessons learned from regulating the medical marijuana industry will provide valuable insights. The Colorado Department of Revenue will know better than any agency in the country how to implement a legal regulatory framework that is as fed-proof as possible.

The amendment is a moderate approach to marijuana legalization, as it places limits on possession and does not allow for public use. It is also important to note that the proposal does not impact current traffic and workplace safety laws. But by simply allowing adults to possess up to one ounce of marijuana, the proposed law will compel law enforcement and Colorado’s judiciary system to redirect their resources to combat serious crime. This is the essence of legalization.

Amendment 64 puts forth the question of whether this widely-used commodity can be regulated in ways that enhance public safety, public health and the state’s bottom line. It begs whether we should continue to spend upwards of $80 million as a state to prohibit a substance that can bring in up to $40 million annually — a gross savings of $120 million. Ultimately, it drives home the point that prohibition is more harmful than the drug itself.

Prohibitionists often cite the “gateway theory” — yet the science simply does not support it. To say that teenage marijuana use leads to hard drug use and addiction is like saying riding a tricycle as a toddler leads to higher incidents of fatal bike accidents for pre-teens. There is a correlation, but no proof of causation. In fact, the evidence shows that most people who try marijuana as a teen don’t become habitual marijuana users, let alone users of other “hard” drugs.

Marijuana prohibition, under the current system, is the primary gateway into the criminal justice system for our youth. After seventy-five years of sensationalized rhetoric, typified by “Reefer Madness” and its progeny, law enforcement and educators have lost credibility in the eyes of our youth. We should ask the same question as our allies in Washington state, where voters will also decide whether to legalize marijuana this November: “Isn’t it time for a new approach?”

Art Way is Colorado Manager for the Drug Policy Alliance.

Feb 16
0

Medical Marijuana Banking Bill Dies in Committee

By | Colorado Medical Marijuana Law, General Medical Marijuana Information, Medical Marijuana Law | No Comments

DENVER – An effort to help Colorado’s hundreds of medical marijuana businesses get bank accounts failed on Tuesday evening.

Banks won’t do business with the industry because it would be considered money laundering since marijuana is a controlled substance under federal law.

State Senate Bill 75 would have allowed dispensaries and patients to join financial co-ops, which would run just like credit unions.

The bill died in the Senate Finance Committee by a 5-2 vote on Tuesday evening.

Those in the medical pot business say it would have kept them from dealing in cash, which they argue is dangerous.

“[Dispensaries] are already selling medical marijuana now, they are sometimes forced to have cash on hand and that can just make them more of a target for criminals,” Brian Vicente, who runs the marijuana advocacy group Sensible Colorado, said.

The banking industry came out in opposition to SB 75, warning that the federal government would certainly step in to shut down any co-op serving the medical marijuana industry.

“So that’s the greatest threat this institution would face,” Jenifer Waller, with the Colorado Bankers Association, said. “Another challenge would be just having access to the payment system, being able to issue checks and do wire transfers.”

Waller says institutions need federal insurance to access payment systems, which means the co-ops created by SB 75 might have effectively been reduced to little more than vaults for holding deposits.

Some in the medical marijuana industry would welcome having a co-op targeted by federal law enforcement as a reason to get the issue into court.

Sen. Pat Steadman (D-Denver) says he hoped that wouldn’t happen, but added “with this issue, that court case is lurking around every corner.”

Steadman sponsored SB 75 along with Rep. Tom Massey (R-Poncha Springs.)

At a Tuesday hearing, medical marijuana patients said they also feel vulnerable paying in cash, but that many dispensaries won’t take anything else because they don’t have business bank accounts.

Several lawmakers experessed concern about the feasibility of establishing the co-ops under federal regulations.

(KUSA-TV © 2012 Multimedia Holdings Corporation)

Feb 16
0

Colorado House bill allowing study of hemp’s soil-cleaning potential has panel’s backing Read more: Colorado House bill allowing study of hemp’s soil-cleaning potential has panel’s backing

By | General Medical Marijuana Information | No Comments

By John Ingold
The Denver Post

 A bill to study the benefits of growing industrial hemp cleared its first hurdle in the state legislature Monday.

The bill, from state Rep. Wes McKinley, D-Cokedale, received unanimous support in the House Local Government Committee despite questions about whether it would create a showdown with the federal government, which considers it illegal to grow hemp. The study, which would be funded with private money, would look at whether industrial hemp is effective at sucking pollutants from the soil, as some research suggests it might be.

“We simply don’t have the data,” said Erik Hunter, a Ph.D. candidate at the Colorado School of Mines who studies using plants to clean soils — a process known as phytoremediation. “We would be creating a new body of data.”

Hunter noted that hemp was planted at the Chernobyl nuclear-disaster site in the hopes of cleaning radiation from the ground. On that premise — and on the potential for other uses of hemp for food, textiles and fuel — lawmakers were intrigued.

“This is fascinating to me,” Rep. Pete Lee, D-Colorado Springs, remarked.

But concerns arose over whether Colorado’s hemp study would be a federally illegal conspiracy. The Drug Enforcement Administration considers hemp and marijuana — hemp’s plant-family twin — to be one and the same, and the cultivation of either without DEA permission is a felony under federal law. Hemp activists argue that it is virtually impossible to get high from hemp.

McKinley’s bill would not require the state to seek DEA permission, which is difficult to obtain.

Lawmakers on the committee questioned whether the bill would authorize illegal activity and whether banks — which have been reluctant to deal with medical-marijuana dispensaries because of federal laws — would be willing to hold the money for the study. “(Would this be a) 10th Amendment charge up the hill?” asked Rep. David Balmer, R-Centennial, referencing the constitutional states’ rights provision?

While hemp activists at the hearing described it as a legal gray area, McKinley said lawmakers shouldn’t worry too much about the federal response.

“We’re not growing it; we’re studying it,” McKinley said in a rhetorical distinction that drew laughter from fellow lawmakers. McKinley said the study would be small and would seek to grow hemp on only a handful of well-secured, well-regulated acres.

House Bill 1099 still has a long way to go before becoming law. Its next stop is the House Appropriations Committee.

John Ingold: 303-954-1068 or jingold@denverpost.com

Feb 08
0

Hemp bill in Colorado legislature risks more headaches with feds

By | Colorado Medical Marijuana Law, General Medical Marijuana Information, Medical Marijuana Law, News | No Comments

2/2/2012 The Denver Post by John Ingold:

With a deadline looming at the end of this month in the most dramatic federal-state showdown yet in Colorado over marijuana, a state lawmaker has proposed a bill that would raise another cannabis clash.

Rep. Wes McKinley, D-Walsh, has introduced a bill to study using the growing of industrial hemp to clean polluted soil, a process known as phytoremediation. McKinley said there is some evidence that hemp plants can suck toxic substances out of the ground.

“There’s not a whole lot known about it,” he said. “So, this is a pilot program to study it.”

Growing hemp, though, is illegal under federal law without approval from the Drug Enforcement Administration, which rarely grants permission. Hemp and marijuana are taxonomically identical versions of cannabis plants.

Although hemp advocates argue that hemp and marijuana are the same in the way that Pomeranians and St. Bernards are, a DEA spokeswoman said the growing of any cannabis plant without DEA approval is a felony.

“State law provides no immunity to private persons or state officials who violate federal law,” DEA spokeswoman Dawn Dearden wrote in an e-mail.

That, however, doesn’t ruffle McKinley. His bill — which is co-sponsored by House Agriculture Committee chairman Rep. Jerry Sonnenberg, R-Sterling — wouldn’t even require researchers to seek federal approval before putting plants in the ground.

“If we worried about what the feds were going to do, we wouldn’t get anything done,” McKinley said. “We just have to go do it ourselves and see what happens.”

Colorado is already in something of a stare-down with the federal government over the state’s medical-marijuana laws. Last month, federal prosecutors sent letters to 23 dispensaries operating in compliance with state law but within 1,000 feet of a school. The dispensaries were given until Feb. 27 to close or face federal criminal or civil punishment.

Hemp advocates have long extolled the virtue of the plant as an agricultural product.

Unlike marijuana, hemp contains very little THC, the chemical that creates marijuana’s high. But, because of the federal prohibitions, all hemp products currently in the U.S. — from hemp clothing to hemp rope to hemp seeds in granola — come from imported sources.

Tom Murphy, the national outreach director for Vote Hemp, said he knows of no one growing industrial hemp legally in the United States.

David West — who, as head of the now-defunct Hawaii Industrial Hemp Research Project, was one of the few people ever to receive DEA approval to grow cannabis — said the process to obtain a license is prohibitively difficult.

“They want to grow it out there?” West said when told of McKinley’s bill. “There’s a fat chance that’s going to happen.”

John Ingold: 303-954-1068 or jingold@denverpost.com

Read more: Hemp bill in Colorado legislature risks more headaches with feds – The Denver Post http://www.denverpost.com/search/ci_19873580#ixzz1loXGSdlR
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