Cannabis Law Group's Medical Marijuana Legal Blog
Orange County medical marijuana dispensary moratorium goes up in smoke
A proposed moratorium on medical marijuana dispensaries in Orange County failed by a single vote on Tuesday as officials and residents await the outcome of the marijuana legalization measure on the November ballot.
The Orange County Register reports county supervisors were frustrated with the lack of rules governing dispensaries and are worried that passage of Proposition 19 could exacerbate the problem. In other words, some supervisors were disappointed that Orange County declined to leap into the legal thicket of creating laws and rules to hamper the legal business of supplying medical marijuana to Southern California Patients.
“This is a huge victory for medical marijuana,” said Los Angeles Attorney Damian Nassiri of the CANNABIS LAW GROUP on his Marijuana News Blog.
The proposed 45-day moratorium needed to be approved by 4 of 5 supervisors — two supervisors voted against, arguing there was no crisis and no need to ban new dispensaries or close dispensaries that were already operating. The fight is far from over: Supervisors ordered staff to come up with a new ordinance by Nov. 9 that would regulated medical marijuana collectives and provide for the possible legalization issue on Nov. 9. So again, we will have local politicians attempting to regulated businesses operating legally under state law. The county estimates 11 dispensaries currently offer medical marijuana to patients.
County Supervisor Shawn Nelson, who voted against the proposed ban, drove straight to the heart of the matter. “It seems like no one starts with well the people voted for it, how do we accommodate it? It’s always the opposite,” Nelson said. “The people voted for it. Therefore how do we exert out will and stop it.”
The CANNABIS LAW GROUP offers experienced and aggressive representation to the medical marijuana industry in Southern California– including growers, dispensaries and collectives, patients and those facing marijuana charges. Call 949-375-4734 for a confidential consultation to discuss your rights.