Law Michigan MMJ

[momofthegoons]

While I've never really been big on medibles I'm totally against the state deciding for me what's appropriate and what's not. Especially since the state ok'd cigarettes and booze, knowing that kids get their hands on both. Again we need to throw the bastards out, and elect people that work for the people.

I don't know how you feel about it, but I'm real worried with recreational coming into the mix. They way LARA is throwing around rules and regulations at whim, it doesn't bode well. I foresee some serious delays in getting product available for both recreational and medical that don't have caregivers or grow.

 

[Baron23]

we need to throw the bastards out

Hey, that's my line! hahaha

 

[Shredder]

I don't know how you feel about it, but I'm real worried with recreational coming into the mix. They way LARA is throwing around rules and regulations at whim, it doesn't bode well. I foresee some serious delays in getting product available for both recreational and medical that don't have caregivers or grow.

With the governor appointing Lara members, if we want change we have to vote for change. That we voted in medical was great, recreational will be great. But how the rules are administered means the world. In that politicians rule. So let's get pols that help our cause.

I don't have any good advice for those depending on dispensaries, other than maybe hoard your stash, grow your own, find a caregiver, contact your state reps, and vote. I actually felt safer with mj in the 70's. Then you got a possession charge, that is if they just didn't take your stash without charges, no drug testing for jobs, now there's a whole bunch other of bullshit laws to run afoul of. To protect us from what exactly?

 

[momofthegoons]

City of Luna Pier approves medical marijuana facility

In a recent unanimous vote, Luna Pier City Council okayed a city native’s proposal to build the facility on 10-acres previously owned by Mason Consolidated Schools.

The City of Luna Pier may soon be home to an unfamiliar source of revenue: a medical marijuana facility.

In a recent unanimous vote, Luna Pier City Council okayed a city native’s proposal to build the facility on 10-acres previously owned by Mason Consolidated Schools.

The property, located on Madison St. near I-75, is close to the location of the former Luna Pier Elementary School, which closed about 15 years ago.

For the past two decades, the property was leased by the school for a near-nothing cost to the City of Luna Pier’s use as a park, said Supt. Andrew Shaw.

When the property’s lease ended, a West Bloomfield-based information technology (IT) professional, who’s formerly of Luna Pier, jumped at the opportunity.

“I knew the property would be up for sale based on historical knowledge of the city,” said Mason High School graduate Jason “JD” Davison. “I think there’s a way to make this property revenue generating.”

Davison, 36, aims to turn the acreage into a medical marijuana facility composed of a provisioning center and grow and processing center.

A provisioning center essentially is a marijuana dispensary where cannabis products are carried and sold. The product is raised and handled through a separate, but corresponding, grow and processing center which also would be on site.

Beginning in May, Davison presented the idea to city council, followed by presentations held with Mason Consolidated Schools. Both entities agreed to the proposal.


On Aug. 6, Davison signed an agreement with the district to purchase the 10-acre property at $284,000.

Three days later, Luna Pier City council unanimously agreed to allow Davison to build a marijuana facility on the property – a decision that included a vote from his father, Mayor Dave Davison.

Besides voting “yes” on the proposal during city council’s meeting Aug. 9, the mayor was not involved in Davison’s efforts to purchase the property or propose the facility. Davison acted independently when approaching council with the idea, and his father will not be affiliated with the business.


“If I was going to have financial gain at all, I would have abstained from voting,” Mayor Davison said. “I have no financial gain whatsoever.”

The city’s decision to approve the facility was unique for the county – with Bedford, Erie and London Townships and the City of Monroe being among nearby areas that recently opted out of an ordinance allowing these types of facilities.

But the substantial financial gain the business would bring to the city was a significant draw for council.

In licensing fees alone, the dispensary and grow center would bring $25,000 per year in revenue to Luna Pier, according to Mayor Davison. That’s $5,000 per five licenses the facility would be required to obtain annually – without considering the revenue stream from taxes on products sold, among other factors.


The mayor said 50 percent of all revenue from the facility would go toward public safety. That means police, fire and emergency medical service agencies would be among those likely to benefit from the proposed dispensary. The remaining funds would be shared among the city, he said.

“I’ve been very flexible to what the city wants,” Davison said. “If I can inject any bit of (financial) relief, I’ll be happy.”

Despite the indisputable monetary gain, officials still are moving with caution. The business is tiptoeing on new territory – and city officials aim to approach the proposal with sensitivity and concern for the local community.

While medical marijuana historically has been a point of contention for some folks, a statewide discussion on its recreational use may help to ease some potential temperaments.

The issue is set to appear on Michigan’s November ballot, and if it passes, would permit marijuana use for more than just medical relief – a measure that may improve the plant’s stigma overall.

Moving forward, Davison still has many “legal hurdles” to overcome before getting the facility off the ground. That includes discussion with the Luna Pier planning commission, applying to re-zone the property and developing a construction plan.

If he’s successful, he said he hopes to begin building as soon as possible. Until then, he aims to continue proving his commitment and heart to the Luna Pier community.

“I’m not some outsider trying to exploit the city,” Davison said. “I think I have the drive to give this a go.”

 

[momofthegoons]

Michigan advances toward home delivery of medical marijuana

Obtaining marijuana could become as easy as ordering a pizza for medical marijuana patients in Michigan.

A rule proposed by the Bureau of Medical Marihuana Regulation would allow provisioning centers to make home deliveries of marijuana to registered patients through an online ordering system.

The rule is in line with the goal of the state’s emerging medical marijuana industry to provide safe access to patients, especially those who do not live close to a provisioning center, said Andrew Brisbo, director for the Bureau of Medical Marihuana Regulation.

“This isn’t a brand new issue,” Brisbo said. “We heard about it even during the promulgation of the emergency rules.”

The proposed permanent rules would replace current emergency rules, which do not allow for home delivery. A public hearing on the proposed rules is expected to happen in September and the guidelines put in place by the end of the year.

The home delivery rule would allow an employee of a provisioning center to deliver medical marijuana to no more than three patients in any given trip and limit the quantity delivered to daily or monthly limits. The rules allow for the delivery to a patient, not to caregivers. California, Oregon and Nevada have similar policies.

The employees making home deliveries will fall under the provisioning center’s license and won’t need a separate license like the secure transporters who carry product between facilities.

“It would be a change in the scope of their operation so their specific procedures for home delivery would have to be approved by the department before they engaged in it,” Brisbo said.

The marijuana can’t be left unattended in the vehicle, which must be equipped with GPS tracking so that the provisioning center always knows where the vehicle is.

The provisioning center also must keep a log in the statewide monitoring system indicating when a home delivery left the center, its destination and when it returned. Drivers must keep similar documentation on them while making the delivery.


“It will be indicated that they’re out for delivery and who they’re delivering to,” Brisbo said.

Patients potentially would be able to pay with credit card online or with cash upon delivery.

The home delivery option is “crucial” for some of the patients who qualify for medical marijuana, said Rick Thompson, editor and publisher of the Michigan Cannabis Industries Report.

“The program is targeted to address the medical needs of the most ill citizens in our state,” Thompson said. “If you look at the list of qualifying conditions, some of those illnesses leave you without the ability to drive.”

 

[momofthegoons]

Recreational marijuana heads to Michigan ballot as Proposal 1

LANSING, Mich. – The initiative to decide whether or not to legalize marijuana for recreational use has officially been added to the ballot as Proposal 1.

The proposal was designated its number Thursday by the Redistricting Commission.

The Coalition to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol turned in enough signatures to state election officials last November.

The Board of Canvassers approved those signatures in April.

Lawmakers were given the chance to decide whether to make recreational marijuana legal over the summer, but decided to let the issue go to the ballot.

Voters will have the final say on the issue come November 6.

 

[Shredder]

Yup, get out and vote. Now's the time to get registered. Do it.

 

[momofthegoons]

Here's the proposed recreational marijuana ballot language

The Michigan Secretary of State has released proposed ballot language for the recreational marijuana ballot issue.

The issue will appear on Michigan ballots in the Nov. 6 general election as Proposal 1, and will ask voters if they want to legalize marijuana for recreational use for adults at least 21 years old.

How legalized marijuana would work in Michigan

Here is the proposed ballot language as voters would see it at the polls:

Proposal 18-1

A proposed initiated law to authorize possession, use and cultivation of marijuana products by individuals who are at least 21 years of age and older, and commercial sales of marijuana through state-licensed retailers

This proposal would:

* Allow individuals age 21 and older to purchase, possess and use marijuana and marijuana infused edibles, and grow up to 12 marijuana plants for personal consumption.

* Impose a 10-ounce limit for marijuana kept at residences and require that amounts over 2.5 ounces be secured in locked containers.

* Create a state licensing system for marijuana businesses including growers, processors, transporters, and retailers.

* Allow municipalities to ban or restrict marijuana businesses.

* Permit commercial sales of marijuana and marijuana-infused edibles through state-licensed retailers, subject to a new 10% tax earmarked for schools, roads, and municipalities where marijuana businesses are located.

The issue is appearing on the ballot after the Coalition to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol collected enough signatures and the legislature failed to take action in time.

Josh Hovey, spokesman for the coalition, said the state's Elections Bureau generated fairly straightforward and neutral language overall -- but was critical of some of the details that were left out.

"Our only complaint is that they did not clearly define the strong restrictions that will be in place once the initiative passes," Hovey said. "In addition to allowing local communities to restrict or ban marijuana businesses, consuming in public and driving under the influence would remain strictly illegal. Also, businesses will retain their right to test their employees for marijuana use and ban them from using if they need to do so."

The Board of State Canvassers will decide whether the ballot language passes muster at a meeting Thursday, Sept. 6.

 

[momofthegoons]

How Michigan medical marijuana testing works

A major part of Michigan's new regulations on medical marijuana involve lab testing for safety compliance.

In the past, marijuana testing hasn't been required by the state. Now, it's a new aspect of the medical marijuana industry in Michigan and, no -- testing does not involve anything like puff, puff, pass.

Labs for testing marijuana look exactly like a lab you'd find at a university or research facility: there's an eyewash station, hoods, microscopes and equipment whirring away.

Tests on marijuana and marijuana-derived products determine how potent the product is and how much THC or CBD the product contains. The results will be printed on the package. Testing also is also intended to assure consumers that the product is free of contaminants, most pesticides, mold, fungus, heavy metals and bacteria that could especially hurt sick patients, like E.coli and salmonella.
"The goal is so consumers know what they're buying," said Kris Krane, executive director of 4Front, a medical marijuana industry advisory firm.

PSI Labs -- one of the first labs in Michigan to be licensed -- is discreetly tucked inside an Ann Arbor industrial park. The distinct smell of marijuana isn't detectable outside, but greets you once you walk in the door.

The lab is led by Lev Spivak-Birndorf, a research scientist, and Ben Rosman, an attorney with a background in Michigan medical marijuana law.

It's one of the first labs in Michigan to gain approval for a state license this summer, a critical step in ensuring the new regulated medical marijuana program launches in the state. After Sept. 15, all marijuana products sold at a provisioning center have to be tested at a licensed lab like PSI.



"We can test at multiple points, but the vast majority of testing we're going to do is after the harvest, after it is dried and cured," Rosman said.

Technicians will visit growers to randomly sample their harvest.

In the lab, staff examines buds underneath a microscope to look for pests like spider mites and mold, mildew or fungus -- common friends of marijuana plants. When pests are present, the whole harvest can't be sold for smoking. There can be other uses for the flowers.

Then the flowers are broken down, dissolved in liquid and tested for potency, pesticides and heavy metals. Michigan has banned the use of a number of common pesticides in medical marijuana.

"No one was testing to air their dirty laundry before," Spivak-Birndorf said. "Because it's expensive and essentially tells people, 'I'm using this pesticide or that pesticide.' So this will be really good to help eliminate some of the common pesticides that are used."

The lab has to give its approval to the quality of the flowers before they can be sold for smoking, or sent to a processor to be turned into oils or other extracts.

With marijuana extracts and concentrates -- like vape fluid -- the oils and liquids are tested for potency and for residual solvents that were used in the extraction process.

"It would come back to us again to test for solvents, and then to double check if anything has been concentrated to unsafe levels," Rosman said.

Oils can then be used to make edibles -- which are also tested to make sure they have been dosed correctly. That's easier said than done, as lab technicians have to determine what's in the edible in order to break it down for analysis.

Cookies, brownies, gummies and hard candies are smashed into pieces with a mallet -- not your standard piece of lab equipment -- and then dissolved into a liquid. Edibles are tested primarily for THC potency. The results are ultimately printed on the packaging.

Though medical marijuana has been legal since 2008 in the state, it has not been regulated as an industry until now. The first businesses in the state were approved for licenses this summer, and officials are requiring all product sold after Sept. 15 to be grown, tested, processed and sold by a business with a license.

To date, 16 businesses have been approved for licenses and 10 have been issued, according to the state's licensing bureau.

The launch of the licensed industry in Michigan could experience similar growing pains to the industry in California, where testing labs have served as an initial pinch point for the flow of product from growers to shops, said Kris Krane, a medical marijuana industry expert.

In California, officials required all products that were sold to be tested at a licensed lab -- which has created a massive backlog for products as there are only three labs qualified to do so, Krane said.

"It's a problem that will fix itself," Krane said, explaining that businesses are still being licensed and is just a sign of growing pains for the industry.

As Michigan officials prepare to institute a similar deadline Sept. 15, Krane said: "You're very likely to see Michigan experience something similar."

 

[Baron23]

How Michigan medical marijuana testing works

A major part of Michigan's new regulations on medical marijuana involve lab testing for safety compliance.

In the past, marijuana testing hasn't been required by the state. Now, it's a new aspect of the medical marijuana industry in Michigan and, no -- testing does not involve anything like puff, puff, pass.

Labs for testing marijuana look exactly like a lab you'd find at a university or research facility: there's an eyewash station, hoods, microscopes and equipment whirring away.

Tests on marijuana and marijuana-derived products determine how potent the product is and how much THC or CBD the product contains. The results will be printed on the package. Testing also is also intended to assure consumers that the product is free of contaminants, most pesticides, mold, fungus, heavy metals and bacteria that could especially hurt sick patients, like E.coli and salmonella.
"The goal is so consumers know what they're buying," said Kris Krane, executive director of 4Front, a medical marijuana industry advisory firm.

PSI Labs -- one of the first labs in Michigan to be licensed -- is discreetly tucked inside an Ann Arbor industrial park. The distinct smell of marijuana isn't detectable outside, but greets you once you walk in the door.

The lab is led by Lev Spivak-Birndorf, a research scientist, and Ben Rosman, an attorney with a background in Michigan medical marijuana law.

It's one of the first labs in Michigan to gain approval for a state license this summer, a critical step in ensuring the new regulated medical marijuana program launches in the state. After Sept. 15, all marijuana products sold at a provisioning center have to be tested at a licensed lab like PSI.



"We can test at multiple points, but the vast majority of testing we're going to do is after the harvest, after it is dried and cured," Rosman said.

Technicians will visit growers to randomly sample their harvest.

In the lab, staff examines buds underneath a microscope to look for pests like spider mites and mold, mildew or fungus -- common friends of marijuana plants. When pests are present, the whole harvest can't be sold for smoking. There can be other uses for the flowers.

Then the flowers are broken down, dissolved in liquid and tested for potency, pesticides and heavy metals. Michigan has banned the use of a number of common pesticides in medical marijuana.

"No one was testing to air their dirty laundry before," Spivak-Birndorf said. "Because it's expensive and essentially tells people, 'I'm using this pesticide or that pesticide.' So this will be really good to help eliminate some of the common pesticides that are used."

The lab has to give its approval to the quality of the flowers before they can be sold for smoking, or sent to a processor to be turned into oils or other extracts.

With marijuana extracts and concentrates -- like vape fluid -- the oils and liquids are tested for potency and for residual solvents that were used in the extraction process.

"It would come back to us again to test for solvents, and then to double check if anything has been concentrated to unsafe levels," Rosman said.

Oils can then be used to make edibles -- which are also tested to make sure they have been dosed correctly. That's easier said than done, as lab technicians have to determine what's in the edible in order to break it down for analysis.

Cookies, brownies, gummies and hard candies are smashed into pieces with a mallet -- not your standard piece of lab equipment -- and then dissolved into a liquid. Edibles are tested primarily for THC potency. The results are ultimately printed on the packaging.

Though medical marijuana has been legal since 2008 in the state, it has not been regulated as an industry until now. The first businesses in the state were approved for licenses this summer, and officials are requiring all product sold after Sept. 15 to be grown, tested, processed and sold by a business with a license.

To date, 16 businesses have been approved for licenses and 10 have been issued, according to the state's licensing bureau.

The launch of the licensed industry in Michigan could experience similar growing pains to the industry in California, where testing labs have served as an initial pinch point for the flow of product from growers to shops, said Kris Krane, a medical marijuana industry expert.

In California, officials required all products that were sold to be tested at a licensed lab -- which has created a massive backlog for products as there are only three labs qualified to do so, Krane said.

"It's a problem that will fix itself," Krane said, explaining that businesses are still being licensed and is just a sign of growing pains for the industry.

As Michigan officials prepare to institute a similar deadline Sept. 15, Krane said: "You're very likely to see Michigan experience something similar."

Testing is good. It drives up prices because of test costs and costs to grow compliant flower....but to me its well worth it.

 

[Baron23]

What will recreational cannabis look like in Michigan?

Michigan voters will decide on November 6 whether or not recreational cannabis will be legal. Currently, observers from both the Republican and Democratic side expect the measure to pass.

In order to get recreational cannabis on the ballot, 252,523 valid signatures were requires. This was surpassed with more than 277,300 valid signatures confirmed in April.

But what will recreational cannabis look like in Michigan if the vote passes?

Michigan’s Marijuana Legalization Initiative, otherwise referred to as Proposal 1, would allow adults aged 21 and older to possess and purchase cannabis.

Mark Clark, an attorney in Northern Michigan who specializes in cannabis at Traverse Legal in Traverse City, believes that the recreational market won’t look very different from when medical marijuana was legal before the state cracked down on dispensaries.

Clark so believes that most of the businesses who currently sell medical marijuana products will switch to recreational cannabis. He also said expects that when recreational cannabis is made legal in Northern Michigan that some localities will embrace the change, allowing for production and sales while other localities will ban or limit sales and use of the plant within their jurisdiction.

“We’re really to the point where education is going to convince the majority of the people that there aren’t harmful side effects that the critics have claimed,” said Clark.

The retail sales of cannabis will have a 10 percent excise tax which will be largely disbursed to local governments as well as Michigan’s kindergarten-through-12th-grade-education system. Residents will be allowed to grow up to 12 plants in their own home if their local government allows it.

 

[momofthegoons]

Certain medical marijuana businesses will be allowed to operate after Sept. 15

Certain kinds of medical marijuana businesses will be allowed to operate without a state license after regulator's Sept. 15 deadline, according to Bureau of Medical Marihuana Regulation Director Andrew Brisbo.

Brisbo made the announcement at the Monday, Sept. 10, meeting of the state licensing board, where 27 licenses were up for consideration.

At last month's meeting of the state licensing board, Brisbo was adamant that Sept. 15 would be a hard deadline for medical marijuana businesses to obtain a state license in order to continue to operate.

In his comments Monday, Brisbo changed his stance on the ability of the newly licensed industry to support itself.

"We have been aware of the feedback and hearing the concerns of everyone that's related to the industry, as well as patients as to access," Brisbo said. "We focus on two things here at LARA -- access to patients and providing an opportunity for businesses to grow. So we want to create an environment where those two things can happen."

Brisbo said he's heard concerns from businesses and patients about the impact that the state's hard Sept. 15 deadline could have on the medical marijuana industry in the state.

There are approximately 297,210 medical marijuana patients in the state, and 43,824 licensed caregivers in Michigan, according to state data. Each caregiver can supply up to 5 patients with medicine.

By that math, about 80,000 patients in Michigan would not legally be able to access medical marijuana from a caregiver. Brisbo did not know the exact number of patients not served by a caregiver.

The state licensing board has been slow to issue new licenses to medical marijuana businesses as hefty applications and heavy scrutiny during background checks of both criminal and financial records have burdened regulators.

To date, 10 licenses have been issued by the state out of 37 that have been approved by the state board.

State officials are taking steps to improve the licensing process. Monday the board agreed to allow BMMR staff to provide them with a recommendation on license applications.

More details on which businesses would be allowed to continue to operate temporarily without a new state license will be available Tuesday, Brisbo said, declining to answer any additional questions about his announcement to reporters after the meeting.

Brisbo said emergency rules would be signed by Gov. Rick Snyder to allow the extension for businesses that fit a certain scope of operations.

 

[momofthegoons]

98 Michigan medical marijuana dispensaries will have to shut down

LANSING – Some medical marijuana dispensaries will get to stay open until Dec. 15, under new emergency rules adopted by the state Tuesday, while others will have to close.

According to the new rules, about 108 medical marijuana dispensaries that have been operating while they’re waiting for the Medical Marijuana Licensing Board to consider their application for a license will get to stay open until December. These are the dispensaries where owners got their initial applications in by Feb. 15, got approval from the communities where they are operating and submitted the second step of the application process by June 15.

Another 98 dispensaries that submitted initial applications by Feb. 15, but didn’t submit the second step of the application in a timely manner or at all, will get cease and desist orders next week and must shut down. If they continue operating, the owners risk not being able to get a license at all.

A list of the 98 dispensaries will be released by the state later this month. In March, the state sent cease and desist letters to more than 200 dispensaries that were operating, but didn't submit applications for licenses, ordering them to shut down.

And yet another emergency rule will require marijuana business owners who have been approved for a license to pay the $48,000 regulatory assessment within 10 days or be forced to shut down until they come up with the money. Currently, 37 marijuana business owners have been approved for licenses, but only 10 have paid their regulatory assessments and are up and running. Of those, 16 were approved last month and 21 were approved on Monday.


The move is meant to separate out the dispensaries who are serious about getting a license and those who just want to operate with little state oversight.

The rules come as the state is trying to transition from the medical marijuana market devised after voters legalized weed for medical use in 2008 to an industry that is regulated and taxed by the state. The old market was made up of caregivers who could grow up to 12 plants for each of five patients as well as themselves. There was little, if any, state oversight of the caregiver-model of medical marijuana.

The new regulated market is much more expensive for business owners and creates five classes of licenses for growers, processors, testing facilities, transporters and dispensaries. Once licensed, the owners have to come up with the regulatory assessment, pay city fees, get their products tested under a more stringent set of state guidelines, and pay a 3 percent tax on the gross receipts of the dispensary as well as the 6 percent sales tax.

“We’re trying to move the process along,” said Andrew Brisbo, executive director of the Bureau of Medical Marijuana Regulation.

The new Dec. 15 deadline is the third time the department has extended the deadline for dispensaries to get a license or shut down. While Brisbo was adamant last month that a Sept. 15 deadline wasn’t going to be pushed again, the department relented after hearing from a group of lawmakers, officials in Ann Arbor and Lansing, and several organizations that were worried about losing access to medical marijuana if many of the dispensaries around the state had to close.

“This extension focuses on ensuring access,” Brisbo said.

The state has received 702 license applications since Dec. 15, including 401 applicants who have submitted full applications, and the review and licensing process has been slow and tedious. Preliminary approval has been given to 72 applicants, while 53 have been denied. And 37 full licenses have been awarded while eight have been denied. The state’s regulatory assessment, which covers the cost to administer and enforce the medical marijuana market, will increase from $48,000 to $66,000 on Oct. 1. Those costs are spread over the state departments of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, Attorney General, Michigan State Police, Treasury and Health and Human Services.

Michigan voters approved legalizing medical marijuana in 2008 and will consider legalizing weed for recreational use on Nov. 6. If it gets approved by voters, the licensing of recreational marijuana businesses will be the responsibility of LARA, not the politically-appointed board that hands out licenses for medical marijuana businesses.

 

[Baron23]

And yet another emergency rule will require marijuana business owners who have been approved for a license to pay the $48,000 regulatory assessment within 10 days or be forced to shut down until they come up with the money.

The move is meant to separate out the dispensaries who are serious about getting a license and those who just want to operate with little state oversight.

No, this move shows what government is and always has been about...taking money from citizens to redistribute in order to perpetuate their careers.

No name calling today, @momofthegoons ...but I can hear the cursing from your house in MI all the way here in MD. LOL

 

[Shredder]

It sounds like the state is acting like the mafia extorting money for protection, and punishing those that can't pay on time.

Please let's vote for progressives, it's our lives they're playing games with. If conservatives retain control, we're in for more of this crap.

 

[momofthegoons]

Swear to god.... our cannabis laws in this state are starting to get like our weather.... changes by the hour..... But this is good news.

Michigan judge stops state from closing 98 medical pot businesses

Michigan Court of Claims Judge Stephen Borrello issued an injunction Thursday against the state’s new medical marijuana rules that would have resulted in the closure of 98 medical marijuana facilities in Michigan.

Borrello's brief ruling ordered the state to extend the deadline to Dec. 15 for all facilities temporarily operating under emergency rules and stop "treating temporarily operating medical marijuana businesses differently based on whether the business filed a Step 2 application more than 90 days in the past."

The state on Tuesday issued emergency rules that barred some temporarily operating facilities from doing business after Saturday if those businesses had not filed a final, secondary application by June 15.

The injunction — issued in response to a claim filed by attorney Denise Pollicella on behalf of Montrowe LLC — came as some medical marijuana provisioning centers pleaded with the state to reconsider its new emergency rules that would force their shutdown. They argued that municipal delays prevented their filing of applications by June 15.

Lansing Mayor Andy Schor wrote Gov. Rick Snyder Wednesday, asking him to issue new emergency rules because the city had yet to issue the forms local dispensaries need to submit a complete application to the state.

“As such, many temporarily operating businesses throughout our communities and the state will be forced to shutter, leaving many employees jobless and many medical marihuana patients without reliable access to the substance that provides them palliative relief from their debilitating medical conditions,” Schor wrote.

In a statement issued prior to the judge's ruling, a Snyder spokeswoman said the governor appreciated Schor’s input, “but does not plan to issue a new emergency rule at this time." The Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs said it was reviewing Borrello's order.


Hundreds of existing provisioning centers were given a break earlier this year when the state issued emergency rules allowing them to continue operating while seeking a state license. The window was meant to ensure patient access to medical marijuana during the licensing period.

Businesses that filed a pre-qualification application by Feb. 15 could continue operating without a license through June 15 under the initial rules. That deadline later was pushed to Sept. 15, then Dec. 15 — but with some caveats.

Only those businesses that had filed an initial application by February and a final, secondary application by June 15 would be able to continue operating past Saturday. The extension meant that about 108 applicants could continue operating.

Prior to the judge's ruling, another 98 medical marijuana businesses would have been issued cease-and-desist letters by the state if they continued operating without a license past Saturday.

In her motion for an injunction, Pollicella said Montrowe LLC, a Jackson area dispensary, would have to divest $500,000 worth of product by Sept. 16 to comply with the rules. The company, which filed its secondary application on Aug. 16, said the state's retroactive rules requiring the application to be filed prior to June 15 violated its due process and would lead to irreparable harm.

"The only rationale for the implementation of this rule is for it to be an attempt to close as many facilities as possible in one action," Pollicella wrote.

Provisioning centers earlier Thursday also argued that the state did not clarify the role the June 15 deadline would play in future emergency rules. Even if it did, many applications submitted before that day would have been incomplete as some cities had not yet started issuing required forms that confirmed local ordinance and zoning approvals, said Paula Givens, a cannabis lawyer representing several provisioning centers.

Detroit and Flint didn’t have ordinances on the books at the time so they couldn’t sign attestation forms indicating otherwise, Givens said. Lansing had adopted a local ordinance by June 15, but has yet to issue any of the local approval forms referred to as Attestation I.

Many applicants were led to believe they couldn't apply without those forms because their applications would be incomplete, Givens said.

“If I had known that they didn’t care about complete applications, all of my clients would have filed an incomplete application,” she said.

Applicants were able to submit an incomplete application prior to June 15 and file the attestation later, said David Harns, a spokesman for the Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs.

The allowance is listed in a May 3 bulletin from the agency that says those applying for state operating licenses should turn in applications that are “as complete as possible.”

Additionally, “anybody that asked about” the admissibility of an incomplete application was told that the attestation form was not immediately required with the application, Harns said.

“Many applicants across the state had, in fact, done that by the June 15 deadline and therefore are eligible to remain open after the September 15 deadline passes,” Harns said in an email prior to the judge's ruling.

Lawyers representing medical marijuana patients have been mindful of deadlines, Givens said, but “aren’t in the business of filing incomplete work.”

“What you have is a state agency giving an advantage to people who ring them up and ask,” Givens said. “If that was the policy, why didn’t they tell that to everyone?”

 

[Baron23]

Swear to god.... our cannabis laws in this state are starting to get like our weather.... changes by the hour..... But this is good news.

Michigan judge stops state from closing 98 medical pot businesses

Michigan Court of Claims Judge Stephen Borrello issued an injunction Thursday against the state’s new medical marijuana rules that would have resulted in the closure of 98 medical marijuana facilities in Michigan.

Borrello's brief ruling ordered the state to extend the deadline to Dec. 15 for all facilities temporarily operating under emergency rules and stop "treating temporarily operating medical marijuana businesses differently based on whether the business filed a Step 2 application more than 90 days in the past."

The state on Tuesday issued emergency rules that barred some temporarily operating facilities from doing business after Saturday if those businesses had not filed a final, secondary application by June 15.

The injunction — issued in response to a claim filed by attorney Denise Pollicella on behalf of Montrowe LLC — came as some medical marijuana provisioning centers pleaded with the state to reconsider its new emergency rules that would force their shutdown. They argued that municipal delays prevented their filing of applications by June 15.

Lansing Mayor Andy Schor wrote Gov. Rick Snyder Wednesday, asking him to issue new emergency rules because the city had yet to issue the forms local dispensaries need to submit a complete application to the state.

“As such, many temporarily operating businesses throughout our communities and the state will be forced to shutter, leaving many employees jobless and many medical marihuana patients without reliable access to the substance that provides them palliative relief from their debilitating medical conditions,” Schor wrote.

In a statement issued prior to the judge's ruling, a Snyder spokeswoman said the governor appreciated Schor’s input, “but does not plan to issue a new emergency rule at this time." The Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs said it was reviewing Borrello's order.


Hundreds of existing provisioning centers were given a break earlier this year when the state issued emergency rules allowing them to continue operating while seeking a state license. The window was meant to ensure patient access to medical marijuana during the licensing period.

Businesses that filed a pre-qualification application by Feb. 15 could continue operating without a license through June 15 under the initial rules. That deadline later was pushed to Sept. 15, then Dec. 15 — but with some caveats.

Only those businesses that had filed an initial application by February and a final, secondary application by June 15 would be able to continue operating past Saturday. The extension meant that about 108 applicants could continue operating.

Prior to the judge's ruling, another 98 medical marijuana businesses would have been issued cease-and-desist letters by the state if they continued operating without a license past Saturday.

In her motion for an injunction, Pollicella said Montrowe LLC, a Jackson area dispensary, would have to divest $500,000 worth of product by Sept. 16 to comply with the rules. The company, which filed its secondary application on Aug. 16, said the state's retroactive rules requiring the application to be filed prior to June 15 violated its due process and would lead to irreparable harm.

"The only rationale for the implementation of this rule is for it to be an attempt to close as many facilities as possible in one action," Pollicella wrote.

Provisioning centers earlier Thursday also argued that the state did not clarify the role the June 15 deadline would play in future emergency rules. Even if it did, many applications submitted before that day would have been incomplete as some cities had not yet started issuing required forms that confirmed local ordinance and zoning approvals, said Paula Givens, a cannabis lawyer representing several provisioning centers.

Detroit and Flint didn’t have ordinances on the books at the time so they couldn’t sign attestation forms indicating otherwise, Givens said. Lansing had adopted a local ordinance by June 15, but has yet to issue any of the local approval forms referred to as Attestation I.

Many applicants were led to believe they couldn't apply without those forms because their applications would be incomplete, Givens said.

“If I had known that they didn’t care about complete applications, all of my clients would have filed an incomplete application,” she said.

Applicants were able to submit an incomplete application prior to June 15 and file the attestation later, said David Harns, a spokesman for the Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs.

The allowance is listed in a May 3 bulletin from the agency that says those applying for state operating licenses should turn in applications that are “as complete as possible.”

Additionally, “anybody that asked about” the admissibility of an incomplete application was told that the attestation form was not immediately required with the application, Harns said.

“Many applicants across the state had, in fact, done that by the June 15 deadline and therefore are eligible to remain open after the September 15 deadline passes,” Harns said in an email prior to the judge's ruling.

Lawyers representing medical marijuana patients have been mindful of deadlines, Givens said, but “aren’t in the business of filing incomplete work.”

“What you have is a state agency giving an advantage to people who ring them up and ask,” Givens said. “If that was the policy, why didn’t they tell that to everyone?”

Wow, he's up..no, he's down, no he's up again....wait, no...he's....whatever! LOL

 

[momofthegoons]

Students organize first-ever cannabis science symposium at University of Michigan

ANN ARBOR - For the first time ever, world-class scientists, researchers and physicians will gather at the University of Michigan to discuss the future of cannabis and "separate fact from fiction" in a science symposium.

The event is open to the public and will take place Saturday, Sept. 29, at 10 a.m. at the Ross School of Business' Robertson Auditorium.

The science symposium was organized by Green Wolverine, a student organization focused on discovering opportunities for success in the cannabis field and researching legal business activities in the multi-billion-dollar industry.

Adam Rosenberg, a business student at Ross, founded Green Wolverine in early 2017 during his sophomore year.

"I founded Green Wolverine to create a credible platform for students to learn about the cannabis industry and network with like-minded peers," Rosenberg told A4 via email. "The Ross student club attained 184 members within the first year, and the organization has grown to six chapters in four states as a nonprofit corporation. In addition, the scope of our educational focus has broadened beyond business opportunities to include policy and science."

A member of faculty at University of Michigan, speaker at the symposium and advisor to Green Wolverine, Dr. Gus Rosania, told us via email, "The FDA recently approved Epidiolex, the first cannabis derived prescription drug, so this can now be considered main stream pharmaceutical sciences. It is something we need to be teaching our students and that our healthcare providers need to be aware of.

"Yet, the ability for us to do research in this area is still very restricted, because of cannabis's legal status -- not only is it still a Schedule 1 substance under federal law (no approved medical use), but Michigan's medicinal marijuana laws ironically do not cover medical cannabis research. So the scientific knowledge is still very limited although the medical use is widespread."

University of Michigan School of Nursing senior Juan Aguirre, who serves as Green Wolverine's medical research committee chair, says he feels there is a need for cannabis science to be added to the curriculum in medical and nursing schools.

"I completed hundreds of clinical hours on various units at UM's hospital, where I noticed a serious knowledge deficit among healthcare professionals regarding cannabis science and cannabis use," he wrote via email. "This is an enormous problem given the fact that nearly 220,000 Michiganders possess a medical marihuana card, making Michigan the second largest medical cannabis patient population in the country.

"Unfortunately for card holders, U.S. medical and nursing schools fail to provide a comprehensive teaching of the endocannabinoid system (ECS) or cannabis science. Michigan is expected to legalize adult use cannabis on November 6, 2018, which will hopefully make public health education regarding cannabis use a number one priority for our state's government."

The symposium has been made possible by a collaboration with the University of Michigan College of Pharmacy and the School of Nursing.

Topics include treating PTSD and sleep disorders, the role of cannabis in pain management, industry improvements to research, development and testing of the full spectrum of products derived from cannabis.

Speakers include:

• Dr. Marilyn Huestis, Ph.D. -- Former chief of chemistry and drug metabolism at NIDA’s Intramural Research Program.
• Dr. Daniele Piomelli, Pharm.D., Ph.D. -- Director, Institute for the Study of Cannabis; Professor, anatomy and neurobiology at University of California-Irvine School of Medicine; Louise Turner Arnold Chair in Neurosciences.
• Dr. Sue Sisley, M.D. -- Site principal investigator for the only FDA-approved randomized controlled trial examining safety/efficacy of whole plant marijuana in combat veterans with treatment-resistant PTSD.
• Stephen Goldner, J.D. -- FDA/NIH advisor; co-inventor of a liquid form of methadone.
• Dr. Mark Ilgen, Ph.D. -- Director, University of Michigan Addiction Treatment Services; Professor, Department of Psychiatry.
• Dr. Daniel Clauw, M.D. -- University of Michigan professor, anesthesiology; Professor, medicine (rheumatology); Professor, psychiatry.
• Dr. Gus Rosania, Ph.D. -- University of Michigan professor, pharmaceutical sciences.
• Dr. Audra Stinchcomb, Ph.D. -- University of Maryland professor, pharmaceutical sciences.
• Debra Kimless, M.D. -- Cannabis medical advisor at Pure Green.
• Evangelos Litinas, M.D. -- Chief medical officer at Om of Medicine.

Register to attend and watch the livestream here.

 

[Baron23]

Now if they combine MJ delivery with pizza and Doritos delivery, they may well be on to something! LOL


Home delivery for medical marijuana? Michigan regulators consider it

It may not have a 30-minute guarantee, but medical marijuana patients may be able to get home delivery of their weed later this year.

The Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs held a public hearing Monday on proposed rules governing medical marijuana. The biggest change in the rules is allowing for home delivery of cannabis for people with medical marijuana cards.

It’s an issue that has been contemplated by state regulators for months. “Now that the (Bureau of Medical Marijuana Regulation ) has had enough time to research the issue, we’ve decided that it is a benefit for the state’s patients and it can be done in a safe manner,” said David Harns, spokesman for LARA.

Home delivery will become an option for licensed dispensaries as soon as permanent rules are approved by a legislative commission and put in place by LARA later this year and after it approves each dispensary's plans for the service. Those plans must include proof that employees meet state requirements.

Travis Copenhaver, a Royal Oak lawyer who has several marijuana dispensary clients, said the rule change is a smart one.

“In California, home delivery is booming,” he said. “It’s just another opportunity for businesses to create new and exciting ways to operate. A lot of dispensaries are going to take advantage of it, especially the ones who are targeting other areas of the state that are harder to get to.”

Jerry Millen, who is awaiting a license for a dispensary in Walled Lake, said he broached the subject with the bureau earlier this year, especially as a way to help disabled patients at dispensaries.

“People who are disabled can’t get out of their car and we can’t do curbside service,” he said. “So delivery is the way to go. If you find a place that has what you need and it’s 45 minutes away and they’re willing to deliver to you, it’s a great idea.

“This is going to help people who can’t get out or people who are apprehensive about going into a (dispensary)."

As an employee of the dispensary, delivery workers will have to go through a background check before being allowed to work for the facility. They will be able to deliver up to 2.5 ounces of medical marijuana a day to registered patients and up to 10 ounces of pot per month. They won’t be able to make more than three deliveries per trip and their vehicles must be equipped with navigational systems so the dispensaries can keep track of where they are during deliveries.

Because of the small amounts of marijuana being delivered, the service won't fall under the secure transport license designation. That license covers transportation of large amounts of marijuana from grow facilities to dispensaries for sale.

The dispensary will be able to accept online orders and payments from qualified patients or accept cash payment upon delivery.

The public comment period for the new rules will remain open until Friday and then be incorporated into a new draft of the rules. The Joint Committee on Administrative Rules, a body made up of 12 state legislators — six from the House of Representatives and six from the state Senate with equal representation from both political parties — has to officially approve the rules before they are enacted.

 

[Baron23]

"The state Medical Marihuana Licensing Board could not have handled setting up and rolling out the medical marijuana facility licensing system in a more ham-fisted manner."

@momofthegoons - thought you might like this opening line of the article! haha Wow, MI state government is apparently trying to make my home state of MD's government look....well, almost competent. haha

Short story, they have punted the licensing deadline down the road again...to Dec 15th

Michigan's medical marijuana gray area gets grayer

The state Medical Marihuana Licensing Board could not have handled setting up and rolling out the medical marijuana facility licensing system in a more ham-fisted manner. It seems as though the whole thing was set up by people who fear marijuana and don't want it to work.

Yet again, the MMLB has had to move the deadline for the end of emergency rules because the state cannot process paperwork for the applications, which had a Feb. 15 deadline. Emergency rules were enacted so that provisioning centers could stay open for patients while the state processed licenses. Those licenses were scheduled to start going to applicants in April, and the deadline for unlicensed facilities to close was June 15. Then it was moved to Sept. 15. Now it's been delayed until Dec. 15, because not enough licenses have been granted for the system to be functional under the rules set up by the MMLB.

Anybody who was paying attention last year when the board started meeting will remember Sept. 15, 2017 as the date that board member Donald Bailey suggested that all provisioning centers be closed in order to be eligible for licenses in the new system. That motion, introduced at the Aug. 21, 2017 meeting, was the beginning of what has become a mind game with business owners.

It didn't pass, but rumors began to circulate regarding whether being open after Sept. 15 would count against you in the licensing process — and the state did nothing to dispel them. This information introduced at the Sept. 12, 2017 meeting is like an indecipherable Zen koan:

"The Department will not shut down facilities; however, continued operation by a facility is a business risk as they may be shut down by law enforcement and continued operation may be a potential impediment to licensure ..."

What's that supposed to mean? It resulted in a bunch of places closing last September with the hopeful intention of reopening later with state licenses. And it's made the black market stronger because the legal market was thrown into a gray area.

Then they kept moving the deadline. Any applicant that was this lame about getting their application materials in to the board, missing deadline after deadline, would be disqualified from getting a license.

Yet the board has gamed applicants from the start. Business owners have been walking around in fear of getting someone on the state board mad and losing their chance at getting a license.

That "someone" on the board is Bailey, a retired state police sergeant who is still fighting against marijuana. He's like one of those Japanese soldiers who were found on remote islands years after World War II ended, still defending their posts because no one told them the war was over. Except Bailey has been told — and still carries on. Several people I've talked to in the past few months just don't want to say anything on the record for publication out of fear of retaliation.

"Don Bailey is like one of those Japanese soldiers who were found on remote islands years after World War II ended, still defending their posts because no one told them the war was over."

He has brought that atmosphere to the five-person board and to their discussions and investigations. The scrutiny of applicants is such that, in the words of one applicant, they consider you a dope dealer "until you prove you're not." Apparently they want to start a new industry with people who don't have any experience with the stuff.

It's probably true that a lot of the people involved in the medical marijuana business have been operating in legal gray areas. They've been forced to by a hostile state government that has only grudgingly in the past year begun to accommodate the state medical marijuana law — from Gov. Rick Snyder on down through Attorney General Bill Schuette to county prosecutors and sheriffs like Jessica Cooper in Oakland County and her henchman Sheriff Michael Bouchard.

The way it's supposed to work is that some medical marijuana caretakers have accidentally grown too much marijuana. They then provide their overages to provisioning centers for patients who don't have caretakers — except these accidental overages aren't accidental at all. This gray market was forced by the state legislature refusing to legitimize the market while the law enforcement arm wreaked havoc wherever there was an accommodating county prosecutor.

People who opened businesses with the sanction of their local community should not have ended up in court defending themselves.

This is the atmosphere that has dogged medical marijuana for a decade. It's shameful. The state misses deadline after deadline while the MMLB digs incessantly into the minutiae of people's lives in order to make sure they haven't been doing the thing that they are getting licenses to do.

The Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, which oversees the medical marijuana program, has been sending out letters to caretakers asking about overages and where they have dispensed them. LARA is also looking into where provisioning centers have been getting their stuff.

It may be about figuring out what the market is, but so far the state has not shown itself to be very friendly toward folks in the medical marijuana system. Some folks just aren't going to answer those questions truthfully.

Rather than bring the black market inside a state regulatory system, state officials have sought to exclude those folks. That means that folks who are kept out are going to continue doing what they know how to do. With the possibility that recreational legalization will pass at the polls on Election Day, it doesn't bode well for a smooth transition.

More confusion?

It's impossible to say that the medical marijuana distribution system has gotten off to a rough start, because it still hasn't started yet. A new set of provisioning center emergency rules was issued by LARA last week. It's not just an extension of what has been — it sets up a number of different status categories for businesses. It's broken up into folks who filed a prequalification on or before Feb. 15 and those who applied after. Then there are subcategories of those groups, including those who filed their secondary application by June 15 and those who have local authorization or not.

Those who applied by Feb. 15 and June 15 and have their local authorization can stay open. You may have noticed some changes at a provisioning center near you. Anybody who does not have all that must close down as of Sept. 15, last Saturday. Those facilities that are still standing will know if they have a license on Dec. 1. Those who don't have a license on Dec. 1 must close by Dec. 15.

Those who receive licenses on Dec. 1 must pay their licensing fees, and they have 30 days to come into full compliance with the regulations of the system. That includes getting products that have been lab-tested and from a licensed grower.

Facilities that have already received licenses can stay in operation, but have to return licenses to the state and wait for the Dec. 1 reset. It's not clear when a next round of licenses will be granted.