Posts Tagged ‘New Hampshire’
New Hampshire Senate To Hold Medical Marijuana Hearings Thursday
CONCORD, NH — A committee in the New Hampshire Senate will hear testimony Thursday on a bill that, if passed, would allow the Granite State to join the rest of their New England neighbors in allowing the medical use of marijuana.
Testimony on House Bill 573 will be heard by the Senate Committee on Health, Education & Human Services. The hearings begin at 1:00 pm on April 11, in Room 100 of the State House in Concord. The public is welcome to attend and submit testimony.
Senate Republican Leader Jeb Bradley has said the bill is likely to see some changes in the Senate, but he believes there is enough support for it to pass. The bill has already passed in the House, who voted in favor of the bill by a veto-proof 286-64 margin.
Sponsored by Rep. Donna Schlachman (D-Exeter), HB 573 would allow qualifying patients to cultivate up to three mature plants or obtain cannabis from one of five non-profit, state-regulated alternative treatment centers.
Under the bill, registered medical marijuana patients from other states would not be allowed to purchase marijuana at dispensaries, but will be able to bring up to two ounces of medical marijuana into the state. All states bordering New Hampshire allow medical marijuana.
The bill will next be considered by the Senate, which passed similar legislation in 2009 and 2012. Gov. Hassan previously expressed support for making medical marijuana legal in the Granite State.
“This overwhelming vote comes as a great relief to patients who have been waiting years to legally follow their doctors’ advice,” said Matt Simon, a New Hampshire-based legislative analyst for the Marijuana Policy Project. “Patients should not have to live in fear of arrest in the ‘Live Free or Die’ state, and it’s a great relief for them to see such strong, bipartisan support from the House.”
A Granite State Poll conducted earlier in February found that 79% of New Hampshire adults support allowing doctors to recommend marijuana for patients suffering from serious illnesses.
Gov. Maggie Hassan has expressed support for passing medical marijuana legislation. A similar medical marijuana bill that passed with bipartisan support last session was vetoed by then-governor John Lynch.
Legislative Chambers Move Measures To Decriminalize Marijuana In Hawaii, Maryland, New Hampshire, and New Jersey
y Paul Armentano, NORML Deputy DirectorMarch 22, 2013
Legislative chambers in four states — Hawaii, Maryland, New Hampshire, and New Jersey — have passed measures to reclassify minor marijuana offenses as non-criminal violations, punishable by a fine only — no arrest, no jail, and no criminal record.
In Hawaii, Senate lawmakers this month unanimously passed Senate Bill 472, which reclassifies marijuana possession offenses from a criminal misdemeanor (punishable by up to 30 days in jail and a $1,000 fine) to an infraction. On Thursday, March 14, members of the House Judiciary Committee voted in favor of a revised version of this proposal (SB 472, HD1). This revised version caps fine-only penalties at no more than $100 for violations by those age 18 or older involving 20 grams or less of cannabis. Senate Bill 472 now before the House Finance Committee, where it has yet to be scheduled for a hearing. If passed by the House Finance Committee, the measure would still need to be voted by the full House and then it would return to the Senate before going to the Governor’s desk. You can read NORML’s testimony in support of this measure here. Hawaii voters who wish to learn more about this effort can visit NORML’s ‘Take Action Center’ here or visit the ACLU of Hawaii here.
Maryland lawmakers this week passed Senate Bill 297 by a vote of 30 to 16. The bill now goes before House lawmakers for further consideration. This is the first time in recent memory that a chamber of the Maryland legislature has voted to significantly reduce penalties for the non-medical use of cannabis. Presently, the possession of ten grams of cannabis or less is classified as a criminal misdemeanor,publishable by up to 90 days in jail and a $500 fine. Senate Bill 297 makes minor marijuana offenses a fine-only, non-criminal infraction, punishable by a maximum fine of $100. Members of the House Judiciary Committee will hear SB 297 on Thursday, March 28, at 1pm. NORML will be testifying at this hearing. Maryland residents are urged to get involved in supporting SB 297 by clicking here.
Yesterday, New Hampshire House members voted 214 to 115 in favor of amended legislation, House Bill 621, that decriminalizes minor marijuana possession offenses. Under present law, the possession of any amount of cannabis is classified as a criminal misdemeanor publishable by up to one-year in jail and a $2,000 fine. This proposal seeks to make minor marijuana offenses (up to one-quarter of one ounce) a fine-only, non-criminal infraction. The vote marks the fourth time in five years that House lawmakers have approved decriminalizing cannabis. More than 50 additional House lawmakers approved the measure this year as opposed to last year. Nevertheless, this measure is anticipated to face resistance in the Senate as well as from newly elected Gov. Maggie Hassan. If you reside in New Hampshire, you can take action in support of HB 621 here.
Assembly Bill 1465, which reduces penalties for the adult possession of up to 15 grams or less of marijuana to a fine-only, non-criminal violation was approved last year by the New Jersey Assembly and awaits action by the Senate. Separate Senate Legislation, Senate Bill 1977, to decriminalize up to 50 grams of marijuana also remains pending. Under present state law, the possessing of up to 50 grams marijuana is punishable by up to 6 months incarceration, a $1,000 fine, and a criminal record. According to survey data compiled in 2011 by Rutgers University, a majority of New Jersey voters support reforming the state’s criminal marijuana laws. Pollsters found that 6 out of 10 voters favored removing criminal penalties for first-time marijuana possession offenders and replacing them with the imposition of a civil fine. Just over half thought there should be no penalties at all. More information about these measures is available here.
To date, fifteen states have reduced marijuana possession to a fine-only offense. In nine of these states — California, Colorado, Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, Nebraska, New York, Oregon, and Rhode Island (beginning April 1, 2013) — the law defines the private, non-medical possession of marijuana by adults as a civil, non-criminal offense. Five additional states — Minnesota, Mississippi, Nevada, North Carolina, and Ohio — treat marijuana possession offenses as a fine-only misdemeanor offense. Alaska imposes no criminal or civil penalty for the private possession of small amounts of marijuana, while Colorado and Washington recently imposed separate legislation legalizing the private possession of marijuana.
Several additional states, including Missouri and Vermont, are considering similar decriminalization measures. Nearly a dozen states are also considering legislation to legalize the adult consumption of marijuana and regulate its retail production and sale. A summary of state-by-state pending marijuana law reform measures is available from NORML’s ‘Take Action Center’ here.
New Hampshire House to Vote on Two Marijuana Bills Wednesday
By Scott Gacek
CONCORD, NH — Two bills, one that would decriminalize the possession of small amounts of marijuana and one that would allow the medical use of marijuana, are scheduled for votes Wednesday on the floor of the New Hampshire House of Representatives.
House Bill 573, introduced by Rep. Donna Schlachman (D-Exeter), would allow seriously ill patients to use medical marijuana if their doctors recommend it. Patients would be able to grow up to three mature marijuana plants in their homes or obtain marijuana through one of five non-profit, state-licensed alternative treatment centers.
Under an amended version of the bill passed by committee earlier this month, registered medical marijuana patients from other states would not be allowed to purchase marijuana at dispensaries, but will still be able to bring up to two ounces of medical marijuana into the state. All states bordering New Hampshire allow medical marijuana.
Gov. Maggie Hassan has expressed support for passing medical marijuana legislation. A similar medical marijuana bill that passed with bipartisan support last session was vetoed by then-governor John Lynch.
The bill was approved earlier this month 14-1 by the House Committee on Health, Human Services, and Elderly Affairs, who recommended the full House vote to pass the bill.
Prior to the vote, Rep. Patrick Culbert (R-Pelham) made an emotional plea to his colleagues, sharing his experience caring for his wife, Judy, as she slowly died of cancer. He recounted how she found relief from her “agonizing” symptoms the sole time she tried using medical marijuana, but did not use it again because she feared being arrested.
“People like Judy shouldn’t have to die like that,” Rep. Culbert said. “She should have died with dignity and she didn’t.”
If it does pass the House, Senator Nancy Stiles, R-Hampton, who chairs the Senate Health Committee, said she believes the measure would ‘‘fare well’’ in the Senate this time around.
Stiles opposed medical marijuana for years, but changed her position after hearing from constituents living with chronic pain that marijuana has given them relief. She voted for the most recent medical marijuana bill in the Senate.
A Granite State Poll conducted earlier in February found that 79% of New Hampshire adults support allowing doctors to recommend marijuana for patients suffering from serious illnesses.
Eighteen states and the District of Columbia, including all other New England states, allow patients with qualifying conditions to use medical marijuana with recommendations from their physicians.
The second bill scheduled for a vote Wednesday is House Bill 621, would significantly reduce marijuana possession penalties in New Hampshire.
The bill, if passed, would make minor marijuana offenses a fine-only, non-criminal infraction. Under the bill, possession of less than one ounce of marijuana will result in a fine of up to $100.
Last year, the House of Representatives narrowly passed a similar proposal. However, the measure failed to receive Senate support because it was opposed by ex-Gov. John Lynch. The Senate voted without debate to kill the bill, which had passed the House by only one vote.
Elsewhere in New England, marijuana possession has been decriminalized in Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island. Vermont is also considering a marijuana decriminalization bill this year.
Earlier this year, New Hampshire became one of the first states to introduce a bill that would have legalized marijuana for adults. That bill, HB 337,would have entirely removed marijuana from the New Hampshire criminal code as of January 1, 2014.
That bill was was defeated in the House without any debate last week.
New Hampshire Lawmakers to Hold Medical Marijuana Hearings Today
CONCORD, NH – The House Committee on Health, Human Services, and Elderly Affairs is will hold a hearing today on a bill that would allow patients with serious illnesses to obtain and use medical marijuana if their doctors recommend it.
The hearing is scheduled for 10 a.m. EST in Rooms 205-207 of the Legislative Office Building (33 N. State St.).
A coalition of over a dozen state lawmakers are backing the legislation, House Bill 573, for the physician authorized use and cultivation of marijuana by qualified patients.
Under the bill introduced by State Rep. Donna Schlachman (D-Exeter), patients with certain debilitating medical conditions would be able to grow up to four marijuana plants in their homes or obtain marijuana through one of five state-licensed alternative treatment centers.
Gov. Maggie Hassan has expressed support for passing medical marijuana legislation. A similar medical marijuana bill that passed with bipartisan support last session was vetoed by then-Gov. John Lynch.
According to The Concord Monitor newspaper, “the next (medical marijuana) bill is likely to become law.”
A University of New Hampshire statewide telephone poll of 581 adults revealed that 79 percent of New Hampshire residents favor allowing doctors to authorize specified amounts of marijuana for patients suffering from serious illnesses.
New Hampshire Medical Marijuana Hearing Thursday
By NORML
CONCORD, NH — Legislation that seeks to allow for the physician-authorized use of cannabis has been introduced in New Hampshire, and is scheduled for a committee hearing on Thursday.
A coalition of over a dozen state lawmakers are backing legislation, House Bill 573, for the physician authorized use and cultivation of marijuana by qualified patients.
Introduced by State Rep. Donna Schlachman (D-Exeter), H.B. 573 would allow seriously ill patients to use medical marijuana if their doctors recommend it. Patients would be able to grow up to four marijuana plants in their homes or obtain marijuana through one of five state-licensed alternative treatment centers.
House Bill 573 is before the House Committee on Health, Human Services, and Elderly Affairs. It is scheduled to be heard on Thursday, February 21 at 10 a.m. ET in Rooms 205-207 of the Legislative Office Building in Concord.
Members of the House and Senate last year approved similar legislation to allow for the use and home cultivation of cannabis by qualified patients. That measure was vetoed by then-Gov. John Lynch.
Newly elected Democrat Gov. Maggie Hassan supports the legal use of cannabis therapy. The governor as recently reaffirmed her support to the media. According to The Concord Monitor newspaper, “the next (medical marijuana) bill is likely to become law.”
A University of New Hampshire statewide telephone poll of 581 adults revealed that 79 percent of New Hampshire residents favor allowing doctors to authorize specified amounts of marijuana for patients suffering from serious illnesses.
New Hampshire has three different marijuana related bills for state legislators to consider this session, including two bills concerning recreational cannabis use and one allowing for medical marijuana in that state.
Currently, possession of any amount can net you a year in jail and a $2,000 fine. Cultivation falls under sales and possession with intent to sell in that state and is based on weight. Anything over an ounce (roots, leaves, stalks and all) will get you seven years in prison and $100,000 in fines.
House Bill 492
CLICK HERE TO READ THE ENTIRE NEW HAMPSHIRE HOUSE BILL 0492.
This basically follows the same regulation-similar-to-alcohol-based model set in the Colorado constitution as well as a proposed bill before Hawaii legislators currently. If passed, the law would make possession of up to an ounce of marijuana as well as personal cultivation of up to six plants (three in flower) legal for people 21 and up. The state would also regulate medical marijuana grows and recreational shops that would sell to anyone 21 and up with only an ID. Private sales remain illegal, but you can give away up to an ounce of ganja to someone at a time.
The bill also contains a somewhat controversial line that originated in Colorado’s Amendment 64 that driving under the influence of marijuana would remain illegal. And unlike the state’s proposed medical laws (see below), it doesn’t necessarily make marijuana use a protected right and you can still be fired from your job for consuming in your free time if your boss sucks like that.
House Bill 0337
CLICK HERE TO READ THE ENTIRE NEW HAMPSHIRE HOUSE BILL 0337.
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| markwarden.com |
| New Hampshire state Rep. Mark Warden. |
HB 0337 simply removes criminal penalties for marijuana, marijuana hash, and paraphernalia use and possession in New Hampshire outright.
Read that again. It would remove the criminal penalties for marijuana in New Hampshire. That includes everything from possession and use to removing it from the definitions of eavesdropping and wiretapping when it comes to organized crime. It also gives control of marijuana regulation to the state, but never outlines what that model would look like, unlike the much more robust House Bill 492. An email to the bill sponsor, state Rep. Mark Warden (R-Manchester), was not immediately returned.
House Bill 573
CLICK HERE TO READ THE ENTIRE NEW HAMPSHIRE HOUSE BILL 573.
The state’s proposed medical marijuana bill, HB 573, would allow possession of up to two ounces for patients suffering from a list of medical conditions, including: Cancer, glaucoma, HIV/AIDS, hepatitis C, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, muscular dystrophy, Crohn’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease and multiple sclerosis. Patients with other debilitating medical conditions can also apply, so long as they meet certain requirements like persistent nausea or chronic pain.
Medical cannabis would only be cultivated by state-regulated dispensaries, dubbed “alternative treatment centers” in the bill’s language. Cannabis would essentially have to be organic-grown, and chemical pesticides are banned outright.
The bill could also be one of the first times that interstate transportation of medical marijuana is made legal (or at least, quasi-legal). Not only does the bill create reciprocity for medical marijuana cardholders from other states, it allows New Hampshire grow facilities to accept seedlings and seeds from other states where medical marijuana is legal. It also eliminates any penalties for growers from other states transferring marijuana for that reason to New Hampshire. No money can exchange hands, though. It all has to be donations.
Importantly, the bill has somewhat progressive language that other states (like Colorado) lack. Namely: the law would prohibit denying medical marijuana patients any of their state rights, including civil penalties and occupational and professional licenses. The latter two apply to everything from doctors and nurses to teachers and daycare center owners. It also protects patients from being fired simply because of their medical marijuana patient status, unless it is a federal job in which case there’s little state law can do.
Source: http://www.tokeofthetown.com/2013/01/new_hampshire_considering_three_marijuana-related.php
Several States Considering Legislation To Legalize Adult Cannabis Consumption
Washington, DC: Lawmakers in several states are anticipated to debate legislative measures this year that seek to legalize and regulate the adult use and retail distribution of marijuana.
To date, lawmakers in six states - Hawaii, Maine, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania,Rhode Island, and Vermont - have either pre-filed or introduced legislation to legalize marijuana consumption for adults.
On Friday, members of Hawaii’s House Judiciary Committee will hear testimony regarding House Bill 699, which seeks to tax and regulate the commercial production, sale, and use of cannabis by those persons age 21 or older. House Chairman, Rep. Joseph Souki, is sponsoring the measure. Nearly six out of ten Hawaii voters believe that cannabis should be “taxed, regulated, and legalized for adults,” according to a statewide poll published earlier this month. Only 39 percent of respondents opposed the idea. You can read NORML’s written testimony to the committee here.
According to a January 2013 New Hampshire poll conducted by the firm Public Policy Polling, 53 percent of respondents favor “changing (state) law to regulate and tax marijuana similarly to alcohol.” Only 37 percent of respondents opposed the plan.
In Vermont, a 2012 survey of respondents in 148 Vermont cities throughout the state reported that one out of two Vermonters support legalization.
On Election Day, 55 percent of voters in Colorado and Washington approved citizens’ ballot initiatives legalizing the adult consumption of marijuana and authorizing the state to license individuals to commercially produce and sell it.
Nationally, nearly six out of ten Americans support legalizing cannabis, according to a just released Public Policy Polling automated telephone survey of 1,325 voters, commissioned by the Marijuana Policy Project.
“Calling for an end to marijuana prohibition is no longer a political liability; it is a political opportunity,” said NORML Deputy Director Paul Armentano. “Never in modern history has there been greater public support for ending the nation’s nearly century-long experiment with cannabis prohibition and replacing it with a system of legalization and regulation. Politicians who are seeking to amend this failed policy are aligning themselves with the majority. Those who do not are siding with an ever decreasing minority of their constituents.”
For more information, please contact Allen St. Pierre, NORML Executive Director, at (202) 483-5500 or Paul Armentano, NORML Deputy Director, at: paul@norml.org. Summaries of these legislative measures and of other marijuana law reform bills are available here:http://www.capwiz.com/norml2/issues/.
Source: http://norml.org/news/2013/01/31/several-states-considering-legislation-to-legalize-adult-cannabis-consumption
Marijuana Legalization Bill Introduced in New Hampshire
by Erik Altieri
A group of five bipartisan lawmakers have introduced legislation to make New Hampshire the third state to legalize and regulate the adult use of marijuana.
House Bill 492 legalizes the possession of up to an ounce or less of marijuana and the private cultivation of a limited number of marijuana plants for adults 21 years of age and older. HB 492 would also allow for licensed commercial cultivation and sale of marijuana. Full text of this measure can be read here.
Polling conducted in January of 2013 by Public Policy Polling reported that 53% of New Hampshire voters support changing state law to regulate and tax marijuana similarly to alcohol, only 37% were opposed.
Including New Hampshire, there is now a total of six states considering legislation to fully legalize marijuana. It is imperative that your elected officials hear from you in support of this measure. If you live in one of the six states (Hawaii, Maine, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Vermont) considering the legalization of marijuana for all adults, you can click on the appropriate link below and go directly to your state’s action alert. You can also click here to see if your state is considering any legislation pertaining to marijuana law reform.
Tell Your Elected Officials to Support Marijuana Legalization!
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Jury nullifies its first felony marijuana case
A major victory is scored for jury nullification with the acquittal of felony marijuana charges – and it’s all thanks to a “straight-laced little old lady” juror and participant of the Free State Project
BARNSTEAD, NH — Doug Darrell beat the odds and walked home from his trial as a free man on Friday, a major win for the state’s new jury nullification law. Facing felony drug cultivation charges for growing marijuana plants behind his house, the 59-year-old Rastafarian saw all of the charges against him dropped after jurors in his trial successfully convinced their peers to nullify the case on the grounds that Darrell was simply trying to obey the customs of his religion.
“Many of us wondered what kind of precedent this would set,” said juror and FSP participant Cathleen Converse in an exclusive interview with Free Talk Live. “But after chewing on all of the possibilities and re-reading the definition of nullification, we all decided that the only fair thing to do was to vote with our consciences and acquit the defendant of all charges.”
Doug Darrell never had any run-ins with the law until 2009, when a National Guard helicopter flying below legal altitude while looking for drugs noticed that Darrell was growing marijuana in the back yard of his Barnstead home. Though the sighting could legally have been considered an invasion of privacy, federal drug authorities were notified anyway. Shortly thereafter, Darrell’s home was raided and the Rastafarian found himself staring down the barrel of a police assault rifle and facing multiple counts of felony possession of marijuana.
Darrell was offered several plea deals, including a final one that offered no jail time or fine in exchange for a guilty plea, but he refused to accept them on the grounds that doing so would be a sacrament of his religion.
Under the policy known as HB 146, the defense has a right to instruct the jury to nullify a guilty verdict if they conscientiously object to the punishment. Darrell’s attorney, Mark Sisti, based his defense around this new rule and, after the trial went to deliberation, persuaded the presiding judge to inform jurors of this power not once but twice. Given the circumstances of Darrell’s case, it took less than six hours for them to reach a unanimous verdict – not guilty on all counts.
“Mr. Darrell is a peaceful man,” said Converse, “he never deals with the darker elements of society and he grows for his own personal religious and medicinal use. I knew that my community would be poorer rather than better off had he been convicted.”
Converse describes herself as a “straight-laced, little old lady” who moved to New Hampshire from South Carolina in June of 2004. In 2003 she joined the Free State Project because she felt that her family’s future “would be better spent among those who don’t think we’re strange for wanting to rely on ourselves, and to work together to bring more liberty into our lives sooner rather than later.”
It’s a groundbreaking win for the participants of the Free State Project who helped get HB 146 signed into law. As an organization, the Free State Project does not back any political candidates nor specific legislation. Founded in 2001 with the intent to attract 20,000 liberty-loving individuals to New Hampshire in order to restore the Constitutional principles of personal responsibility and freedom, members of the Free State Project have quickly grown into the most significant liberty-based activist group in the country.
“So far, over 12,750 participants have pledged to relocate to the state, and more than 1,000 have already moved, over a dozen of which are currently elected members of the New Hampshire House of Representatives,” said Free State Project President Carla Gericke. “Once here, participants are free to pursue their own causes and I’m excited to see that progress is being made.”
Seven More States May Legalize Medical Marijuana In 2012
Currently, 17 states and the District of Columbia have legalized medical marijuana. In the second half of 2012, seven more states will decide, either in the state legislature or via ballot initiatives, whether they will join them in legalizing the use of marijuana, in whole or in part.
Recent polling shows that 3/4 of Americans support the right to use state-sanctioned medical marijuana. Support for full marijuana legalization is at an all-time high of 50%.
1. Illinois – House Bill 0030, the Compassionate Use of Medical Cannabis Pilot Program Act, would legalize medical marijuana on a trial basis. Physicians who diagnose their patients with debilitating conditions could prescribe medical marijuana. Patients, who would have to register with the Department of Health, would be able to possess up to 6 marjiuana plants and up to 2 ounces of usable marijuana. After three years, the Act would expire, meaning that the legislature would have the chance to decide whether to keep it in place.
2. Massachusetts- Two house bills, one to legalize marijuana for adults over 21 and the other to legalize only medical marijuana, failed to pass the state legislature. Bay Staters have gotten to work getting the Massachusetts Medical Marijuana Initiative on the ballot. Their deadline for the 68,911 signatures is right after the July 4 holiday.
3. Missouri – House Bill 1421 would allow Missourians with debilitating conditions to grow up to three marijuana plants with a yield of up to one ounce per plant. It also legalizes medical marijuana dispensaries in the state. It has not yet been voted on.
4. New York – The State Assembly will soon vote on Senate Bill 7283, which would legalize “the possession, manufacture, use, delivery, transfer, transport or administration of marihuana by a certified patient or designated caregiver for a certified medical use”.
5. New Hampshire – Senate Bill 409, authored by Republican Jim Forsythe,legalizes medical marijuana for patients who meet state-mandated criteria. In early June, the bill passed the state legislature, becoming the first medical marijuana bill to pass a Republican-led state senate. However, Gov. Jim Lynch has said he will veto the bill, necessitating further action from its supporters.
6. Ohio – In Ohio, citizens gathered enough signatures to get the Ohio Medical Cannabis Act of 2012 on the ballot in November, which would create a state commission to regulate medical marijuana, functioning much like liquor controlling commissions.
7. Pennsylvania – The state senate will soon vote on SB 1003, which would legalize medical marijuana in the state. The bill may be renamed “The Governor Raymond Shafer Compassionate Use Medical Marijuana Act” in honor of moderate Republican governor Raymond Shafer (1967-1971).
(HT: The Inquisitr)