Why Marijuana Consumers Should VOTE “NO” on Arizona’s Prop. 205.
(This is the Full Explanation, the Summary is Here.)
Prop. 205 is Arizona’s 2016 Marijuana Regulation Initiative.
We want Arizona Voters to understand exactly why Arizona’s Marijuana Activists and Arizona’s Marijuana Consumers are planning to VOTE NO on Arizona’s Prop. 205!
Arizona’s Prop. 205 does more HARM than good for Arizona because:
1) Prop. 205 has the potential to DESTROY Arizona’s MEDICAL Marijuana Program!
Prop. 205 takes the Arizona Medical Marijuana Program away from the AZDHS (Arizona Department of Health Services) and gives it to the new “Department of Marijuana Licenses and Control.”
That new “Department of Marijuana Licenses and Control” would be run, in part, by the existing MEDICAL MARIJUANA DISPENSARY OWNERS!
Allowing the people who make the MONEY to also make the RULES is a serious CONFLICT OF INTEREST!
If the Arizona Medical Marijuana Dispensary Owners control the Arizona Medical Marijuana Program, it could result in Medical Marijuana Patient rights’ being sacrificed in order to generate more profits for the Medical Marijuana Dispensary Owners!
While Arizona’s Medical Marijuana Program is far from perfect, more than 90,000+ seriously ill Medical Marijuana Patients depend on the Arizona Medical Marijuana Program to keep them safe!
2) Prop. 205 has no meaningful Marijuana Decriminalization, which means that most of the FELONY penalties remain in place for low-level Marijuana offenses!
For example, Prop. 205 allows Adults to legally Grow SIX (6) Marijuana Plants.. If an adult breaks the law either by growing SEVEN (7) or more Marijuana plants or by growing Marijuana Plants in a City that has BANNED Marijuana growing, they would then be charged with at least a CLASS 4 FELONY, which likely includes a Mandatory PRISON Sentence!
As another prime example, Prop. 205 allows adults to legally Possess 5 Grams of “Marijuana Concentrates“, such as Hash, Wax, Shatter, Budder, Live Resin, Rosin, etc… If an Adult breaks the law and possesses MORE THAN 5 GRAMS of “Marijuana Concentrates“, they’ll be charged with a CLASS 4 FELONY for “Possession of Narcotics”, which likely includes a Mandatory PRISON Sentence!
As yet another example, Prop. 205 says that any person who Possesses ANY amount of Marijuana “For Sale” or for “Re-Sale” is guilty of at least a Class 4 FELONY! In Arizona, you don’t need to ACTUALLY sell any Marijuana in order to be charged with “Possession of Marijuana For Sale.” In other words, Police can easily allege that your 1 Ounce of “Legal” Marijuana was Possessed “For Sale” if they have ANY reason to believe that you could/might/possibly sell the Marijuana to someone else…
(Even re-selling LEGAL, store-bought Marijuana to another consenting Adult is considered a FELONY under Prop. 205!)
The Sponsors of Prop. 205 want us all to believe that Marijuana is somehow SAFE enough to sell to all adults in a retail setting, but still DANGEROUS enough to justify sending adults to PRISON for breaking the Marijuana laws… WE AREN’T BUYING IT!
Should people be punished if they break the Marijuana law? YES!
Should people be given a life-altering FELONY and possibly sent to PRISON with MURDERS and RAPISTS, simply for breaking the Marijuana law? NO WAY!
So in the end, why wasn’t “Marijuana Decriminalization” included in Prop. 205? After all, no other State has EVER tried to “Legalize Marijuana” prior to Decriminalizing Marijuana first.
The sad truth is, Prop. 205 does NOT include “Marijuana Decriminalization” because Marijuana FELONIES keep the retail price of Marijuana higher and drive more customers to the Retail Dispensaries, which clearly benefits the Arizona Medical Marijuana Dispensaries who are paying for Prop. 205….
3) Prop. 205 has the potential to DESTROY Arizona’s Smoke Shops!
Prop. 205 is paid for by a group of Arizona Medical Marijuana Dispensary owners who want to have a Monopoly on the “Marijuana Accessories” Market!
Prop. 205 says that “Marijuana Accessories” are:
“ANY PRODUCT THAT IS USED, INTENDED FOR USE OR DESIGNED FOR USE FOR INGESTING, INHALING OR OTHERWISE INTRODUCING MARIJUANA INTO THE HUMAN BODY.” (In other words, Pipes, bongs, bubblers, vaporizers, Dabbing equipment, etc. will all be considered “Marijuana Accessories.”)
Prop. 205 creates a new “Department of Marijuana Licenses and Control” and says that this new “Department of Marijuana Licenses and Control” must enact rules and regulations for ANY businesses that THEY BELIEVE are selling “Marijuana Accessories.”
(The catch is, the new “Department of Marijuana Licenses and Control” decides whether your business is selling “Marijuana Accessories” or not!)
This new “Department of Marijuana Licenses and Control” would be run, in part, by the Arizona Medical Marijuana Dispensary owners.
Arizona’s Smoke Shops are VERY worried that the new “Department of Marijuana Licenses and Control” will say that ONLY the “Marijuana Retail Dispensaries” can sell “Marijuana Accessories” to adults!!
If that happens and a Smoke Shop doesn’t have a “Marijuana Retail Dispensary License”, the Smoke Shop could then be shut down by the “Department of Marijuana Licenses and Control” for selling “Marijuana Accessories” without a license.
(Not surprisingly, ONLY the existing Arizona Medical Marijuana Dispensaries are guaranteed to get any of the new “Marijuana Retail Dispensary Licenses”.)
Obviously, it goes without saying that the Medical Marijuana Dispensary Owners paying for Prop. 205 have a serious financial interest in pushing for regulations that would ensure that they’re the ONLY ones who can sell “Marijuana Accessories.”
To make things worse, Prop. 205 makes the new “Department of Marijuana Licenses and Control” an official Law Enforcement agency! This will allow the “Department of Marijuana Licenses and Control” to shut down Smoke Shops who try and compete with Dispensaries by selling “Tobacco Accessories” instead.
As a business who will likely be accused of selling “Marijuana Accessories”, Smoke Shops have good reason to be concerned!
Prop. 205 also allows CITIES or COUNTIES to make new regulations for “any businesses who sell “Marijuana Accessories.”
Under Prop. 205, any City or County could easily pass an Ordinance to say: “Marijuana Accessories can only be sold on the premises of a Licensed Marijuana Retailer in this Locality.”
In that example, Smoke Shops would be destroyed unless they get a Marijuana Retailer License, which can’t happen unless they already own a MEDICAL Marijuana Dispensary…
Allowing Arizona’s SMOKE SHOPS to be DESTROYED is bad for Businesses and Marijuana Consumers alike!
4) Prop. 205 only includes “FAKE” Marijuana Grow Rights for Adults.
Prop. 205 initially “appears” to say that all adults over the age of 21 can legally grow 6 Marijuana Plants at their residence. UNFORTUNATELY, THAT’S NOT THE ENTIRE STORY.
Prop. 205 does say that adults over the age of 21 can legally grow 6 Marijuana Plants at their residence.
HOWEVER..
Prop. 205 says that any CITY or COUNTY in Arizona can choose to BAN Personal Marijuana Growing throughout the entire City, if the local City Council or County Council decides that Marijuana growing is a “Nuisance” to a “considerable number of people.”
What exactly is a “Nuisance” and what exactly is a “considerable number of people”? Unfortunately, those questions will be answered by a handful of City Council-members who have repeatedly demonstrated that they HATE MARIJUANA!
After the Arizona Medical Marijuana Act was implemented in 2011, we attended virtually every single City Council meeting throughout the State whenever a Medical Marijuana issue was being discussed. We quickly learned that most Arizona City Councils weren’t afraid to admit that they HATE Marijuana and Marijuana Cultivation!
Many of the Arizona Cities and Counties have already made a long list of reasons why they consider Personal Marijuana growing to be a “Nuisance.” In fact, NUMEROUS Cities and Counties in Arizona have already banned MEDICAL Marijuana Growing because they feel it’s a “Nuisance”, despite the fact that those types of BANS are seemingly illegal!
Unfortunately, these City Councils would not actually be required to prove in Court that Marijuana growing ACTUALLY causes a real “Nuisance” in order for them to pass an Ordinance to BAN Marijuana Growing in their City.
A City or County Ordinance to BAN Marijuana Growing would only need to be passed by a majority vote of the HANDFUL of City or County Council-members!
We fully expect that virtually every single City and County in Arizona will choose to exercise their authority to BAN MARIJUANA GROWING under Prop. 205.
We call it “FAKE MARIJUANA GROW RIGHTS.”
Just in case you somehow live in an Arizona City that does allow Marijuana Growing, Prop. 205 also says that a person’s LANDLORD can choose to BAN Marijuana Growing at their home or property.
If a person grows 6 Marijuana Plants at a residence where the Landlord has BANNED Marijuana Growing, Prop. 205 actually makes that a CLASS 1 MISDEMEANOR instead of just making it a violation of the Lease agreement!
This means that a person who grows 6 Marijuana Plants in a residence where the Landlord has BANNED Marijuana Growing, could actually be charged with BOTH a Class 1 Misdemeanor for “Growing Marijuana in a Prohibited Location” AND a Class 4 FELONY for “Illegal Cultivation of Marijuana.”
5) Prop. 205 gives the existing Medical Marijuana Dispensaries a MONOPOLY on the Arizona Marijuana Market!
Prop. 205 says that ONLY the existing Arizona MEDICAL Marijuana Dispensary Owners are guaranteed to receive any of the new Recreational Marijuana Dispensary Licenses, Recreational Marijuana Cultivation Licenses, and Recreational Marijuana Product Manufacturing Licenses!
In this way, Prop. 205 seeks to give the Arizona Medical Marijuana Dispensaries an “Oligopoly” on the entire Arizona Recreational Marijuana Market!!
If the existing Arizona Medical Marijuana Dispensaries are currently having to buy Marijuana illegally in order to keep up with the CURRENT demand of 90,000+ Medical Marijuana Patients, and Prop. 205 ONLY allows the existing Arizona MEDICAL Marijuana Dispensary Owners to sell and grow Recreational Marijuana in Arizona, then obviously those very same Dispensaries won’t be able to supply the demand of an estimated 570,000 Marijuana consumers in Arizona!
Prop. 205 giving the Arizona MEDICAL Marijuana Dispensaries the “Oligopoly” on the entire Arizona Marijuana Market will ultimately cause the Black Market to thrive due to HIGH PRICES, LOW QUALITY, AND LIMITED QUANTITIES!
In Prop. 205, any type of Black Market Marijuana activity is punishable by a FELONY, often times with a Mandatory Minimum PRISON Sentence!
So in the end, Prop. 205 would likely result in even MORE people being arrested and charged with Marijuana FELONIES than ever before!
(That’s why Arizona’s Marijuana Activists refer to Prop. 205 as the “Jail Bait Initiative” and the “Free Cheese in the mousetrap.“)
According to Campaign Finance Reports, the Arizona Medical Marijuana Dispensaries are paying MILLIONS of dollars to get Prop. 205 passed in 2016, and now you know why!
6) Prop. 205 allows your EMPLOYER to FIRE YOU for using Marijuana, even if the Marijuana was used legally at your home!
Prop. 205 says that any adult over the age of 21 can purchase, possess, and use 1 Ounce of Marijuana legally.
However, Prop. 205 also says that your EMPLOYER can choose to FIRE YOU if you test positive for Marijuana, even if you used the Marijuana legally when you were NOT at work!
Does it make sense to allow an adult to consume Marijuana “LEGALLY” at their home on Saturday and then FIRE THEM from their job for testing positive for Marijuana on Monday morning?!? (Marijuana metabolites can remain in the bloodstream for 30 days or more!)
Most of us would probably agree that an Employee should NOT be FIRED simply for using Marijuana legally in the privacy of their own home if Marijuana is made legal in Arizona.
Making Marijuana “Legal”, but allowing your Employer to FIRE YOU for using it responsibly in your own home, is completely contradictory to the whole purpose of making Marijuana legal.
7) Prop. 205 creates a new Marijuana POLICE Agency in Arizona, while leaving the harsh FELONY Penalties in place for most Marijuana Offenses!
Prop. 205 says that the new Marijuana Department will also become a Marijuana Police department.
This will ultimately result in even MORE Marijuana Consumers being arrested on FELONY Marijuana charges than ever before!
Creating a new “Marijuana Police” completely contradicts the whole point of us Legalizing Marijuana in order to allow Law Enforcement to focus on REAL CRIME..
8) Prop. 205 does not define what a “Marijuana Plant” actually is.
Despite our demands, the authors of Prop. 205 have refused to define what a “Marijuana Plant” actually is.
Is a “Marijuana Seed” considered to be a “Marijuana Plant” under Prop. 205?
Is a “Marijuana Cutting” considered to be a “Marijuana Plant” under Prop. 205?
If the Police break 10 branches off of a large “Marijuana Plant,” is that considered to be 1 “Marijuana Plant” (Legal) or is that considered to be 11 “Marijuana Plants” (Illegal) under Prop. 205?
Unfortunately, Law Enforcement will be answering these questions for us, because the authors of Prop. 205 decided that defining a “Marijuana Plant” was unnecessary…
9) Prop. 205 does almost NOTHING to take Marijuana out of the hands of Drug Dealers who sell Marijuana (and often dangerous drugs) illegally.
Under Prop. 205, Arizona’s Drug Dealers will continue to have a serious financial incentive to sell Marijuana illegally on the Black Market because the Street Value and the Retail Value of Marijuana will remain artificially high.
The incentive for Drug Dealers to continue selling Marijuana in Arizona is because of the insane PROFITS that they make selling Marijuana for up-to $400/Ounce!
The only reason why Drug Dealers are able to sell Marijuana for $400/Ounce in Arizona is because the Penalty for selling Marijuana in Arizona is a FELONY, often times with a MANDATORY Prison sentence! That high level of RISK equates to a high PROFIT margin for the Drug Dealer who sells the Marijuana.
Since Prop. 205 keeps all of the FELONY Penalties in place for anyone who is accused of selling Marijuana illegally, the street value and the retail value of Marijuana will remain artificially high. This creates a serious financial incentive for DRUG DEALERS to continue selling Marijuana illegally in Arizona!
Sadly, even if a Drug Dealer wanted to follow the law by getting a Marijuana Dispensary License, Prop. 205 likely doesn’t allow him to get a Marijuana Dispensary License unless he already owns an existing Arizona MEDICAL Marijuana Dispensary! (#OligopolyProblems)
Prop. 205 ONLY guarantees that the existing Arizona Medical Marijuana Dispensaries will receive any of the new Recreational Marijuana Business Licenses.
So long as “John Doe” wants to sell Marijuana in Arizona, but he’s unable to get a Recreational Marijuana Dispensary License under Prop. 205 because he doesn’t already own a Medical Marijuana Dispensary, it stands to reason that Black Market Marijuana dealers like “John Doe” will continue to exist in Arizona.
Sadly, Prop. 205 does NOT eliminate Black Market Marijuana Sales or take Marijuana out of the hands of Drug Dealers.
10) Prop. 205 also fails to adequately address FIREARMS PROTECTIONS, DUI PROTECTIONS, PARENTAL PROTECTIONS, RAID AND SEARCH PROTECTIONS, LOSS OF RIGHTS PROTECTIONS, POST CONVICTION RELIEF, etc.
In other words, Prop. 205 fails to include ANY meaningful Marijuana Consumer protections!
