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Voter Landslide Creates Cannabis Regulation Ordinance PDF Print E-mail
Written by Chris Conrad   
City Measure Z rejects Drug War, changes marijuana policy, mandates law enforcement tolerance, and calls for legal, taxed and regulated sales to adults
    Oakland voters made an historic turn of the page against Bush’s Drug War Nov. 6, when more than 65% cast votes to tolerate private adult sales, cultivation and possession of cannabis and allow regulated sales with on-site consumption as soon as possible.
    Measure Z, the Oakland Cannabis Regulation and Revenue Ordinance, officially sets a new city policy to seek to authorize local businesses to engage in and collect taxes on marijuana sales to adults as soon as possible. Since that cannot be done without changes in state law, the policy also put the city on record as supporting such a change. A provision calling on the city’s paid lobbyist to work for such a change may not be enforceable, however, other sections have already taken effect.
    Primary among these is making the investigation and enforcement of all private adult marijuana offenses — including sales and cultivation — the City’s lowest law enforcement priority. Proponents predict that this policy will save tax money, redirect law enforcement toward solving serious crimes, and deter street sales by providing cannabis consumers with safe and regulated outlets.
    Opponents had argued that while they also support changing state law, the full potential of the ordinance to reduce street sales and generate revenue cannot be realized without changes in state and federal laws that they consider to be unlikely, at best.
    People familiar with a similar situation in Europe know this is not quite true. Holland, for example, has the same international constraints as the US and its national government has never legalized marijuana sales. Instead, local communities have taken responsibility for regulating age limits and collecting taxes.
    Adults who enter a “coffeeshop” and inquire receive a menu of marijuana products; youth who enter are shown the door. Cannabis coffeeshops do not list cannabis among their wares when accounting taxable revenue, but they dutifully log retail sales and pay required taxes. City inspectors visit regularly to ensure that the outlets are clean, do not serve minors, and do not harbor “hard” drugs like cocaine, meth or heroin.
    The Dutch approach, since copied in Germany, Switzerland, England and other nations, not only works to prevent police from wasting time going after cannabis consumers, it allows the local government to get the full benefit of the tax revenue.
    The Oakland ordinance takes a similar tact by requiring that sales must be private (indoors with controlled access) and involve adults only. Hence, street dealing and sales to minors remain subject to arrest.
    During the campaign, opponents argued that this leaves the bulk of urban sellers unprotected, but that is one of the campaign goals, to create incentives to get marijuana off the streets in return for sellers creating a safe and private network of locations where adults can obtain the herb.
    The Yes on Z campaign was sponsored by the Oakland Civil Liberties Alliance with major funding from the Marijuana Policy Project based in Washington DC, and Drug Policy Alliance Network’s Oakland office. While cities including Berkeley, Seattle and San Francisco also make marijuana use low police priority, this is the first ordinance to include cultivation and sales, and groups around the country are planning to emulate it.
 
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