DENVER (AP) — A Colorado plan to crack down on homegrown cannabis is rapidly heading to the governor’s desk after lawmakers changed the bill to give medical marijuana patients more leeway.
‘We’re not respecting patients’ rights as well as pushing the industry forward.’ -Jason Warf , Southern Colorado Cannabis Council
A Senate committee vote 5-0 to set a statewide limit of 12 plants per residential property. That’s down from 99 plants under current law.
The bill was changed to give medical marijuana patients and their caregivers up to 24 plants, if they register with the state and with local authorities. Currently, registration is required only if patients have more than 99 plants.
Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper and lawmakers from both parties have called the cannabis crackdown a top priority as the state awaits word of how the new federal administration plans to treat state-legal marijuana states.
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Of the 28 states that allow medical cannabis, none but Colorado allows patients to have more than 16 plants growing in their homes.
“It is time that we fix this before someone comes in and fixes it for us,” said Greenwood Village Police Chief John Jackson, speaking on behalf of the Colorado Association of Chiefs of Police.
Few testified against the bill, though it would effectively force some patients to shop from commercial cannabis retailers. One of the few who did complained that the measure is driven by the profit implications of forcing people to buy cannabis in stores instead of growing it outside the regulated market.