Vote Smart's Synopsis:

Vote to pass a bill that authorizes licensed retailers to sell marijuana to medical and retail markets.

Highlights:

• Requires the Department of Health to establish a “medical marijuana registry” by July 1, 2015, which authorizes registered individuals to grow up to 6 marijuana plants for medical use and purchase the following amounts of marijuana (Secs. 16, 18 & 21):
• 3 ounces of useable marijuana;
• 48 ounces of marijuana-infused product in solid form;
• 216 ounces of marijuana-infused product in liquid form; or 
• 21 grams of marijuana concentrates.  

• Authorizes a health care professional to register a “qualifying patient” or “designated provider” on the medical marijuana registry and specify the individual’s recommended amount of marijuana, marijuana products, or marijuana plants (Secs. 16 & 21).

• Defines “qualifying patient” as an individual who has been diagnosed by a health care professional as having a “terminal or debilitating medical condition” and who meets certain other criteria, including, but not limited to, the following criteria (Sec. 16).
• The individual has been advised by the diagnosing health care professional that he or she may benefit from the use of medical marijuana; and
• The individual has been entered into the medical marijuana registry.

• Defines “designated provider” as an individual who either is the parent or guardian of a qualifying patient under 18 years of age or is the designee of a qualifying patient to be his or her provider, and meets the following requirements (Sec. 16):
• The individual is at least 21 years of age;
• The individual is registered as a designated provider for only 1 patient to whom they provide medical marijuana; and
• The individual is prohibited from consuming marijuana obtained on behalf of their designated patient.

• Authorizes a health care professional to recommend up to 8 ounces of marijuana or 15 marijuana plants to meet a patient’s medical needs (Sec. 18). 

• Establishes a “medical marijuana endorsement” which authorizes a licensed marijuana retailer to sell marijuana and marijuana products to qualifying patients over the age of 18 and designated providers (Secs. 6 & 8).

• Specifies that a licensed retailer with a medical marijuana endorsement is authorized to sell marijuana to both retaill and medical markets, or solely to medical markets (Sec. 8). 

• Specifies that the Liquor Control Board is renamed as the “Liquor and Cannabis Board” (Sec. 1).  

• Requires the Liquor and Cannabis Board to determine guidelines about the retail of marijuana, including, but limited to, the following guidelines (Sec. 5):
• A guideline for the square footage that can be used to grow medical marijuana;
• A guideline for the tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) to cannabidiol (CBD) ratio that qualifies marijuana as medicinal; and
• A guideline to prefer medical marijuana retailers when distributing licenses. 

• Authorizes a marijuana retailer to identify the strains, varieties, tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and cannabidiol (CBD) ratio, and concentrations of available marijuana products when assisting qualified patients and designated providers (Sec. 7).

• Exempts the following sales of marijuana and marijuana products containing 0.3 percent or less THC concentration from the state sales tax (Sec. 12):
• Sales by a medical marijuana retailer, beginning July 1, 2015; and
• Sales by a “collective garden,” until September 1, 2015.

• Authorizes up to 4 qualifying patients and designated providers to form a cooperative to produce and process marijuana for the medical use of the cooperative members or for medical research, if the cooperative meets the following requirements (Sec. 25):
• The cooperative is registered with the Liquor and Cannabis Board;
• The cooperative members all hold valid registration cards;
• The cooperative is located at the home of a cooperative member; and
• The cooperative observes a 15 day waiting period between a former member leaving and new member joining the cooperative.

• Repeals the authorization for qualifying patients to participate in “collective gardens” for the purpose of producing, processing, transporting, and delivering cannabis for medical use, beginning September 1, 2015 (Sec. 40).

Full Bill Text