Tuesday, January 29, 2013

All Things A64 with Jessica LeRoux - January 28, 2013

Printed here, as received, with the expressed permission of Jessica LeRoux. Please do not copy without her permission.


 Hey Now, 
... Today's news interrupted by this message from our sponsor!....
I hope you all have printed & posted the flyer for the festive superbowl party packs... you absolutely must get me your Party pack orders at least 48 hours before your regular delivery day... if you arent sure when that is drop what you are doing and call me right now at 303 922 3661 and here is the flyer again if you missed it last monday (if you didnt read last monday's catch up news, go back and read that too, it has all the links to all the bills re marijuana posted in the legislature so far in 2013...) print it, post it, sell the hell outta it! 

and this is important... 
Children's Caucus regarding Marijuana impacts... Tomorrow at Noon, Colorado Capitol, senate committee room 356... please try to attend and provide a voice of reason, especially if you are a cannabis committed parent with super achieving kids!  Thanks to newly elected Vicki Marble of Aspen for the heads up on this important event!

Ok back to the politics you all love to tune in and read about! and for the record I love you almost all like BFF's, but I still do want some of you to step up your sales! Most of you are still stellar... 

This Task force is so caught up in regulating some aspects of A64 to death, that they are overlooking major stumbling blocks... #1 they want to punt on regulating Hemp until 2014, but if Sen Schwartz's hemp bill passes this year, before recreational grows are licensed and operating and there is no attention paid to zoning and distances pollen can travel, all we will have in Colorado is Hemp... I've read 64 a few times, so how is a DA chairperson of a subgroup that recommends limiting the plant count per household, no matter how many adults live there... and limiting the stored product of the 6 plant home grow to 2-3 "a few" ounces per household as well. Cause that is not the language of the new law, and the last I checked the state (tax payers, that is me & you) doesnt have money to throw down the drain on guaranteed loser court cases.... more issues in A-64 workgroups for wednesday... nonmedical roadside blood draws... read as: roll up your sleeve of your parka to your armpit, its 1am, its 17 degrees out, and this officer is gonna do a complicated intervenal procedure on you out here on the side of an icey two lane highway with headlights coming at you, cause he doesnt want to spray your diseased pothead blood all over his cruiser, why is he worried about spraying your blood? #1 because he isnt worried about you, you druggy dirtbag... #2 because he's a cop not a phlebotomist... your choice. The concerned lazy parent community demanding a childproof resealable (re-child-proofed) plastic packaging... (y'all know my compostable committed ass aint going for that, you can parent your kid out of eating what they should not, but you can not out parent a massive plastic landfill's impact on the next generation and beyond, are we truly "concerned about the kids" or simply too lazy to turn off the TV and talk to our spawn and lay down the law about family underage impairment rules). Lastly... A-64 Advertising presentation today wants to ban all commercial advertising outside of retail shops state wide (no print ads, no radio, no tv, no sponsoring events or teams, no internet ads) and restrict in shop marketing/branding to no product claims, no comparison statements, no health claims, no frequent shopper programs, no coupons, no discounts, no samples or cross marketing... limit any allowed print advertising to publications solely distributed at bars, and make all print adds black & white only with text but no characters or images, and no product claims.... The "rational" was that 64 only allows possession of cannabis, and was not intended to compel the state to allow the industry to expand its user base or frequency of use through marketing techniques... but not all the Workgroups are this bad... some reasonable people with unexpected provenance proving the maxim that some of the times you get shown the light in the strangest of places if you look at it right! 
read more and learn what I know now! 
before we get too deep into the A-64 stuff here is the latest stuff from the MMED website... some of this is good news! 
Next MMED Rule Making Stakeholder Forum 

Friday,  February 15thMMED Headquarters 
455 Sherman Street, Suite 390 
Denver, CO 80203
9:00 AM - Noon



Compliance Tip: Medical Marijuana business staff must be able to provide information from Point of Sale (POS), Video or any other mandated system to MMED investigators or any law enforcement officer at any time of operation. Business owners will be held accountable for failure to meet compliance standards.

Ok lets review where the A-64 task force is at right now... 
THank Goodness for Martin Luther King Jr we had a holiday on monday and I could focus on doing the thing I love, making edibles! but on Tuesday the 22nd the General Task Force met to review the recommendation template and attempt to clarify as well as move forward the recommendation process. here is a link to Tuesday's power point presentation... http://www.colorado.gov/cs/Satellite?blobcol=urldata&blobheader=application%2Fpdf&blobkey=id&blobtable=MungoBlobs&blobwhere=1251847772587&ssbinary=true

there were four meetings (of which I attended three) on Wednesday, and for the record I truly put my ASS on the line to bring you these reports... cause when the truck broke down I handed my personal car keys off to Robert and made my way from Evans & Federal to the Capitol by bike to attend three meetings in one day! For the record as somebody who did not support nor vote for 64, I have sincerely put my time and energy on the line to make this amendment actually work for those who merely voted for it! I rode from Evans & Feds to The MMED three times in 2 days! 

and after busting my hump to be on time for the Criminal Enforcement subworkgroup meeting at 9am sharp wednesday Chairperson Larry Abrahamson was 1/2 hour late... kinda good though as it gave the 5 members of the public some time to chat up the 3 committee members present. See my notes below about the violations of sunshine laws*  This meeting was again very discouraging when we see the disregard much less distain for the new law expressed by the enforcement community... Sorry boys but the voters (who pay your salary, last I checked) want you to respect and enforce a new set of values that reflect our changing priorities as we expand our understanding of the so called drug war. This group addressed a whopping 9 templates they were preparing for the next Criminal Workgroup on Wednesday the 30th 
Wednesday, January 30, 2013, 9:00 a.m. to Noon, Location: 710 Kipling Street (Re/Max Building) Suite 308, Third floor conference room Denver, Colorado 80215
the templates were for 
a. create legislative guideline for limits on total plant count for home grows (want easily defined system for cops who cant count when the fingers on both hands are used up) * also want to prevent homes being rented as simply grows not used as a residence. 
b. create legislative restriction on the weight/inventory which can be stored per household and for how long, based on the product of the 6 plant residential grow. 
c. Vending machines, recommend prohibiting them, push issue to regulatory 
d. E warrant to speed up the process of drawing blood from a person who refused to undergo the needle into a 10-15 minute process... 
e. zero tolerance of blood THC for minors
f. non-criminal intervention for reducing youth use... read as drug urine test for minors before they can get their drivers license... 
g. permission/training for police officers to draw blood on the side of the road. 
h. create legislation to deny LEO's responsibility for storage and maintenance of live plants during an investigation of a commercial grow. 
i. Create legislation to prevent LEO's from having to store and or return "contraband" marijuana when it is surrendered when a suspect is booked into jail for a non-cannabis related crime. 
no amount of voices of reason about constitutionality would deter them from their ideal implementation plan... they dont like this law and want to strip the rights out of it before they loose "control". these guys are kinda butt hurt that local control will be wresting control of the social clubs issue away from them, and are unlikely to let the whole issue slip through their fingers... they have expensive tastes (every officer in Greenwood has a CF-19 Panasonic tablet computer and mobile wifi hotspot anywhere they go) and only squeezing money from stoners through any means possible seems to satisfy their unslaked thirst for more toys at the taxpayers expense... 


* sunshine concerns: examples of Colorado's A-64 task force at work....
On Wed, Jan 23, 2013 at 5:52 AM, Jessica LeRoux - 
Cheesecake Lady <lady@twirlinghippy.com> wrote:
I have in my notes that the subworkgroup on Criminal issues is meeting on wednesday morning at 9am in the MMED offices, I do not see this meeting on your website this morning, it will need to be posted by 9am at the latest to prevent violation of CO sunshine laws.
Thank you.
Jessica LeRoux

On Jan 24, 2013, at 9:29 AM, Amendment64, DOR wrote:
Dear Ms. LeRoux,
The only subcommittee meetings on Criminal Issues the morning of Wednesday, January 23, 2013, took place from 8 am to 10 am at the Colorado Department of Transportation. This meeting was posted on the Amendment 64 website on Tuesday, January 22nd.
Terminology/Definitions Subcommittee
Wednesday, January 23, 2013
8:00 am to 10:00 am
Location: Colorado Department of Transportation
4201 E. Arkansas Avenue
Denver, Colorado 80222
Room TBD
Respectfully,
*note this is unsigned... 
Office of the Executive Director
Colorado Department of Revenue
1375 Sherman Street Room 409 | Capitol Annex | Denver, CO 80261

not true, 
I was at the meeting at the MMED offices from 9 am to noon yesterday with Larry Abrahamson, Ed Wood, Marco Vasquez, and John Jackson with Lauren Davis on the phone... along with 5 members of the public... I have my notes from the 9 templates the subgroup discussed if you need minutes to post from the meeting in order to catch up on your legal obligations... Please make clear to all members of the task force how important it is that the process remain within the boundaries of Colorado Sunshine laws in order not to derail all of the task force's hard work. 
Jessica LeRoux 
the mid-day meeting was Tax/Civil law & funding workgroup, here is a link to their tax presentation... http://www.colorado.gov/cs/Satellite?blobcol=urldata&blobheader=application%2Fpdf&blobkey=id&blobtable=MungoBlobs&blobwhere=1251848022941&ssbinary=true
there wasnt anything nearly as controversial this week as last... mostly a discussion of the 280 E money laundering laws and their implications and a state proposal to decouple state taxes from federal to allow business deductions for businesses now legal in our state.  the excise tax was debated and determined to be subject to tabor laws.... and that raising the cash to put the tax on the ballot this november was a risky investment as there is a 55% chance it will not pass... also there was some continued discussion of when an employer can restrict the use of cannabis by the off duty employee, and a decent minority report on the topic from Kim Ryan. 

Last and ass busting-liest was the Consumer safety workgroup presentation on Advertising and Marketing... absolutely draconian offering from employees of the Governors office.... here is the print out of their proposal:

 I cant imagine why these things seem needed when we have had very little backdraft to the past 4 years of Medical where the state allowed color print ads and signage was determined locally...  NOt to mention that comparative claims are any business's 1st amendment right, cause corporations are people right, remember?  and how can we have uniform packaging for all infused products if one set is required to make medical/health claims, and the other set is forbidden from doing so.... I think what the MIPs would like is one reasonable uniform  statewide standard for graphics, labeling and warnings that will apply to both products being sold medically and those intended for recreational use... otherwise the potential for error is increased, along with the costs... and the concept that retailers should be banned from selling t-shirts, hats,  pipes and posters is beyond nuts,(hot dogs and candy bars I understand, but sundries?!?) 


due to double stacked scheduling I had to miss the subworkgroup on Child Criminal law on Thursday to fight the lobbyists on the VI issue, but I have the materials and notes of a trusted colleague to share with you... as well as info presented to this group... These folks are a discouraging bunch, and the ringleaders were sitting behind me cackling with glee during wednesday's advertising emasculation presentation... the most alarming portion was the insane packaging proposed... 

 this is the actual  proposal, projected costs of the "required" packaging are estimated at $5.00 per unit (some folks speculate they could be re-used, but I would prefer not to capitulate to those who would save our children by building and leaving for them to deal with a plastic filled landfill. Additionally given the way a majority of our retail partners insist on Doubling the wholesale cost of MIPs products, adding $5 on my end, would potentially add $10 to the consumer's cost making pretty much every edible an extreme luxury rather than a reasonable responsible adult indulgence... basically some lazy parents want to punish approximately 100 state approved manufacturers of infused products for an average of less than 5 cases of hospitalization per year due to poor parenting choices. 

meanwhile I was across town at the regulatory meeting which started off grim, but ended up revelatory and encouraging thanks to a level headed enforcement agent??? I know this politics sure makes for some strange new relationships, and while we may never be bedfellows, I have never wanted to kiss a cop (for the record completely nonsexually)  more than I did Thursday! 

we had three proposals about potential licensing structures, from Meg & Norton (CBA & MMIG lobbyists)  a presentation on on vertical protectionism and how they want to continue to push their mediocre cannabis from their oversized warehouses rather than embrace the possibility of a regulated free market where the best growers can brand and expand statewide... This is in spite of no longer being tied to patient plant counts which was the original justification for Vertical integration in the 1st place... and overlooks that Vertical Integration encourages diversion rather than preventing it as they claim, because the state has no disposal system and if you cant legally wholesale the product you've invested in growing in CO, you may well try to send it where there is demand (in fact wasnt there a big investigation of MMIG members for suspicion of this very issue last march, say around the time of that "rash" of warehouse fires)... here is a print out of their power point presentation... 

Dan Burmania from Liquor enforcement did a presentation of potential licenses under a liquor model, with a three teired system and separation of financial ownership and interests in conflicting spheres of the industry... this was followed by a discussion of the liquor industry's legal vertical integration model brewpubs, (brewpubs are a etail license which allows for manufacture of a set limited amount of "malt liquor" for onsite sales and consumption, and a percentage of that malt Liquor can be sold to other onsite purveyors) which seemed a preferable model to the straight liquor model... unfortunately the powerpoint is not posted yet. 
and saving the best for last Ron Kazzermill (Sp?) from DOR  had crafted a combined model that allowed for existing vertical integration to continue but not be the sole option and no 70/30 requirement (which essentially means NO forced vertical irritation, eventually some businesses may be able to decouple...)here where the main bullet points 
4 classes of license
Grower (opc) 
retailer (MMC) 
manufacturer (MIPs) 
Testing (labs) 
Vertical integration is an option but not required as currently mandated by MMED, NO  existing Vertical integration will be prohibited either. Nor will future Vertical integration be forbidden... There would be potentially a limit on the number of retailers a grower could invest in (proposed # is 3) to prevent monopoly. 
A dual license (state & local) required with 90 day timeline for conditional state approval... upon formal approval at the local level both (state & local) full licenses to be hand delivered by local authority as from liquor model...  dual license is to be renewed annually, if local requirements not met by the end of the year on the State conditional license the state's conditional license automatically expires, but barring any moral reason for failure the applicant can re-apply. 
this model sets labeling, packaging and advertising requirements "similar to liquor". ** what a refreshingly amendment oriented position!   
sadly this powerpoint is not available yet either, but we hope to see a copy by next week's newsletter. 
If you support the concepts I've roughly lined out here consider sending an email to the task force showing support for this model atdor.amendment64@state.co.us  I am gonna go ahead and encourage you to do just that.... and for the record after these three presentations the Regulatory committee took a straw poll vote on the three models and the sole voters in favor of the existing Vertical Integration model were Meg & Norton... even though Ron's proposal (which got the rest of the work group's votes, including Dan Burmania who presented a differing option)wouldnt take anything away from yhem, they still wanna take flexibility away from others in the industry, and restrict consumer choice, which should tell you everything you need to know about CBA & MMIG's lobbying agenda of putting themselves above the greater good of the industry, they may have fucked us with 1284, but we've learned from that and we wont be fooled again... 
the meeting ended with a straw poll vote on residency both for licensed business owners (yes they will require it) and for consumers (no not as likely, harder to enforce, this was a pleasant surprise!)
and on Friday I attended the reasonable and sane seeming Local Control Workgroup... if all the workgroups were as committed to the letter of the law in A-64 I would be able to sleep at night!  
These guys spent their time on two proposed templates and 3 tenative templates 
the proposed template which passed pretty easily was a set of language about dual licensing. This seems to be a consensus done deal, and I am happy to say that many of the issues that delayed the dual licensing process in medical are being seriously addressed (while others will need attention). 
i heard some interesting feedback to this group that I hope filters up to the main task force such as the Eagle County attorney who said he hears a lot of "dissatisfaction" with vertitcal integration (an opinion some front range OPC lease holders would like to call fabricated, or a result of bad investment) and that the locals have "a lot of small and larger businesses who have not completed the application process" and local authority seeks clarification on when they can just shut those operators down... 
discussion for template of splitting fees between state and local, and the short comings both sides might feel on such a limited budget... Tom Downey of Denver Excise says that despite their higher fees the city of denver is coming in at about 50% of the costs associated with Marijuana enforcement being coverd by the current fees... Boulder M Cook says city council directs that all funding be covered 100% by fees, and their fees now reflect that... all agree taxpayers cant subsidize this industry, must fund its self... per Louis K the application fees are preset but the license fees are not... so the DOR can articulate need to increase fees. tabor prevents a license fee from exceeding funds needed to cover administration of licensing. Big question mark about what is an "operational fee" as mentioned in 64 but never defined... concerns about some regions simply banning to avoid funding fears. template passes to ask for legislative definition of fees, projected costs to local unknown at this time... 
Template proposed and debated about leaving social clubs and all other cannabis related businesses not defined nor forbidden under A-64 to be determined by local control. discussion of legislative repairs needs to transfer control of these issues to regional authorities. Want to control needs and use hearings, zoning, events and parades, security & alarm standards (unlikely to be relinquished) 
revised to be a request for "a bare bones limited framework for statewide marijuana businesses", but leaving nuances to local decision makers. this passes and is being drafted into a template. 
Proposal for local control group to wrest control of the Advertising and marketing issue away from Aaron Peterson and the governors office employee, and take it on... this is defeated without much discussion... and a counterproposal is made to at least write a letter to the consumer safety Work group expressing their concerns and desires for a more flexible plan... again chairman Kevin Bommer denies the request and alleges that the issue will be resolved in the Feb 5th General task force meeting... 
template proposed to address concerns of homes rented soley for grow operations vs residency, desire to have some local input on legality of such arrangements... already under the preview of Criminal Law work group, local will follow issue and offer feedback.... 
my comments to this group addressed the need for the pool of eligible licensees to be larger rather than a restricted number otherwise passing all marijuana enforcement costs (commercial and residential) would be an unfair burden on the few selected to compete with an increased black market. and the lack of uniform profitability across the various niches and for the license fees to be income oriented rather than uniform no matter the business type applying. 

Whew typers cramps! this week's news reflects about 20 hours of meeting attendance, 2-3 hours on a bike, $15 in parking fees, plus $10 in gas for the days I had a car to use, and 11 hours of typing spread over the past 2 days... I hope you understand when i say that everything I am sending you here is my copy written intellectual property and you must have my express consent to reuse or share any portion of the information contained herein. 
Soon you will be able to access all archived newsletter that we can still access, (approximately 50 to 60 back issues) at a pay per use site, so you can go back and see which of my many cassandra complex generating predictions have come true over the years! 

Here is a round up of some other stories from around the web that concern cannabis ... 

on the upside reform of cannabis laws is working... on the downside some of the old guard see A-64 as an opportunity to criminalize a whole new set of behaviors in order to refill their profit cages... Colo. prison population declines sharplywww.durangoherald.comColorado closed the brand-new Colorado State Penitentiary II last year and now needs to shut down more prisons as the population shrinks.



here is somebody else's take on these meetings... 


C'mon guys, be cool... 

Gonna have to follow this one... 

is it because of the savory nuts and Kinship bars? I dunno but they cant be hurting! 

My mother would have said... Greedy greedy never get, you dont know your manners yet... and she would have meant the US government, which denies rescheduling, and holds patents on medical cannabis at the same time! 

THe fight back begins, be on your toes, be responsible on the road, and alert your patients and friends to maintain a legal vehicle in every way to prevent being used as a propaganda statistic. ColoradoLegislature: Vote No on HB 13-1114, the 5 nanogram limit for THC drivingwww.change.orgColorado currently has an over 90% conviction rate for people charged with driving under the influence of Cannabis. Senator King and Representative...

it is his business if he wants to be a day dream believer, but I shall wait and see, dont wanna have my chain yanked again!

more insight from the WA front... good luck from one of CO's littlest guys... 

listen up... the oxycontin addict who wrecked two cars while high and appeared drunk with alcohol on his breath and was given a ride home by cops and never saw the inside of a jail cell wants to tell you why it is so important you remain a criminal for your marijuana use... Kennedy is a well known recovering pill-head who's all pissed off because he can't smoke without thinking about pills (which isn't abnormal for addicts of his type.) So he's trying to package this as a "mental health issue" so he won't feel personally threatened anymore. This is the group that Dr Thurstone of the A-64 taskforce is on the national board of directors of... hmmmm? 

This article appears to be written in 1937 (possibly by Harry Anslinger) for all that the author (cant use the word journalist to describe this speculative fluff) has learned about actual Cannabis use in Colorado ( an opportunity that is easily met with either 1st hand research or asking a small cross section of voters). You cant sell home grown cannabis to a retail medical marijuana center, and under A-64 you cant sell it to a private individual either...This so called news is shameful aggit-prop to get the unhappy trophy wives of cherry creek worked up about the post divorce phase when they might actually have to face the fact that the reason Hubby was sneaking off to get high is that they are desiccated harpies with facelifts who never know how to enjoy everything that hard work has bought them. For Shame Denver Post, why not just run an add for these authors saying the words GET ALIMONY $$$ in big type instead...
http://www.denverpost.com/opinion/ci_22445228/parenting-and-pot-divorce-lawyers-perspective-marijuana-legalization

Great News from the north side! one of my very favorite clients Botanacare in Northglenn has re-opened after months of local wrangling... The Hackett sisters have met every obstacle thrown in their way with flying colors, one of very few to survive the scrutiny in Adams county. Please stop by to show some love and support to the women who have put so much time and energy back into the entire Medical community even while they faced local persecution. get off I-25 and go to 11450 Cherokee st.... These are the exact kind of people valid medical patients should be showing support for. Tell them the Hippy sent you over... Oh and might i mention they have a full stock of fresh Twirling Hippy Confections edibles in store now at great prices...

$ALES, savings, deals, value!!! 

damn straight, we always try to hook you up every week... 
this time round if you order by 7pm on monday the 28th you can have $10 off any order of 35 units of any items mix and match plus free delivery!! whooo hoooo  This is the final Week for Hot Toddy Cheesecakes, as well as the end of Peppermint Peace if you want to stock up on either of those flavors before we journey into the next flavors for Valentines day... I will be sending some pix later this week when I test the new heart shaped molds for medicated chocolate medallions... Apple Crisp at 275 Mg for $9 wholesale just keeps kicking ass momentum wise, maybe the snowy weather in the high country is helping, who can say? We also have seen a huge increase in sales of the Kinship bars into 2013 so I would like to thank you all. I set a goal for this new year of adding one new client each week, and so far so good, welcome aboard new retail partners, we are very grateful to have you on team cheesecake. And this newsletter will seem normal to you after a year or two of drinking the company kool-aid! If you know an honest owner operator who would be a good fit for our family please send em my way and if they say you reefered them we will give you $15 off your next order, after they order from us... 

Thanks again for reading the THC industry weekly, we appreciate all those of you who show support for all the free added value work we offer the entire industry by being so kind as to offer our delicious award winning and effective edibles to your patients! the rest of you can support me by buying and asking for our brand at your favorite MMC. Keep your red card active in 2013 please! 

Jessica LeRoux
Twirling Hippy Confections
2145 W Evans Denver CO
303 922 3661 - you really can call me to talk about the news you read, But I might call you back at some odd random late hour since I am working so hard all day every day to bring you all the news that matter to mmj, in addition to around 30 different handmade edibles choices !!! (and to think there are people who use cannabis as an excuse to be lazy!) 

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