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| MCLR Proponents are joined by Sac NORML at the California State House |
In previous elections Patient Advocacy Network has
refrained from involvement in past California statewide marijuana legalization
efforts, mainly because those failed initiatives lacked protection for patients
and clarity with respect to collective guidelines.
However, there became a sense of urgency leading
up to the Riverside Decision and it became clear that a statewide voter
initiative was needed sooner than later to protect the spirit and intent of the
Compassionate Use Act. A
strong contingency of cannabis advocates also wants legal hemp and adult
recreational use.
SaveCannabis.org
recognized that previous attempts to move cannabis legalization forward in
California lacked transparency.
Despite multiple attempts, no California cannabis initiative has passed
the voters since Prop. 215, in 1996.
Many of these initiatives
were drafted behind closed doors without stakeholder input. SaveCannabis.org did something
different; they formed to start an open-source document for any member of the
group to provide input on what California’s cannabis legalization initiative
should look like; membership to the group is open. What transpired was a document of agreed upon ideas by some
1,200 people with input from over 800 people including: patients, providers,
cultivators, advocates, community leaders, concerned citizens, doctors and
lawyers.
PAN President Degé Coutee and SaveCannabis.org
co-founder Dave Hodges reached out to as many stakeholders as possible to
provide input in time to file an initiative for the 2014 California General
Election. They worked together to
edit provisions together to prepare the document for final legal review before
submitting it to the Secretary of State.
Coutee states, “These are the best cannabis
guidelines for Californians: patients, consumers, cultivators, and concerned
citizens. We are pleased to be
involved.” Degé Coutee is one of
four proponents of the of the Marijuana Control, Legalization and Revenue Act
of 2014 along with John Lee, Bob Bowerman and Dave Hodges. The full text of the initiative can be
found at: http://www.marijuanacontrollegalizationrevenueact.com/what/the-language-full-text/
Proponents expect to get a title and summary from
the CA Attorney General in a few days and can begin gathering signatures
immediately. Supporters need
504,760 valid signatures in 150 days in order to qualify for the November 2014
election ballot. PAN is taking
donations for the campaign through its 501h election. All donations are anonymous and tax-deductible. All contributions will be used to print
petitions and pay for signature gathering efforts. Contributions directly to the campaign can be made at: http://panorg.blogspot.com/ -- click the
“Legalize Cannabis Campaign” donate button; mail a check to P.O. Box 93845, Los
Angeles, CA, 90093 or call (323) 334-5282.
