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Colorado House Approves 16-Plant Home Pot Limit


bobandtorey

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DENVER – Colorado is moving to curb the nation’s most generous marijuana allowance for medical patients growing their own plants.

The state House gave preliminary approval Friday to a bill limiting marijuana patients to 16 plants in their homes, down from 99.

 

The measure aims to make it harder to grow pot outside the taxed and regulated commercial pot system.

Colorado regulators have tried for years to stop people from growing large amounts of pot without state taxation or oversight. But because Colorado’s constitution gives people the right to grow as much pot as their doctors recommend, the state has had a hard time making that happen.

“We need to close this loophole,” said Rep. KC Becker, a Boulder Democrat and sponsor of the bill.

This year’s effort would say that marijuana patients can’t have more than 16 plants in a residential property. The change would force those patients to either move to an industrial or agricultural area, or shop at a dispensary.

Of the 28 states with legal medical marijuana, none but Colorado currently allows more than 16 pot plants per home.

Many Colorado jurisdictions including Denver already have per-home plant limits, usually at 12. But the lack of a statewide limit makes it difficult for police to distinguish between legitimate patients and fronts for black-market weed, bill supporters argued Friday.

“The time has come for us ... to give law enforcement the guidance they need,” said Rep. Cole Wist, a Centennial Republican and another bill sponsor.

Marijuana patients have been flooding lawmakers with complaints about the bill, which was introduced just last week. The first hearing on the measure lasted until near midnight.

Lawmakers softened the bill by raising its original limit from 12 plants to 16 plants, and by saying that patients caught with too much pot in the house would face a petty offense, and felony charges only later.

But those changes weren’t enough for some Democrats, who argued in vain that it shouldn’t be a felony until the third offense to have too much pot in the home. They argued that the limits won’t hurt criminal drug operations, which could simply grow their plants in areas that aren’t zoned residential.

“A lot of patients are on fixed incomes. They’re ill,” said Rep. Adrienne Benavidez, D-Commerce City. “Cartels have the money to go rent warehouses.”

The resistance effort even brought one lawmaker to tears. Rep. Steve Lebsock, D-Thornton, held a stack of patient letters and said the change would hurt people who can’t afford to shop in dispensaries.

“We’re throwing patients in jail!” Lebsock cried.

But Republicans sided with other Democrats to prevail on an unrecorded voice vote. The bill faces one more formal vote next week before heading to the Senate, where its prospects are strong.

A companion bill – to give law enforcement more money to sniff out illegal pot growers – is awaiting a House vote Monday.

Gov. John Hickenlooper backs the plant crackdown and has called on lawmakers to send him a statewide limit.

https://durangoherald.com/articles/142151-colorado-house-approves-16-plant-home-pot-limit?wallit_nosession=1

 

 

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Like, there is already a limit of 6 plants(3 mature) per patient in Colorado.  Generally working similar to here in that a caregiver can be assigned plant count.

 

But, A physician can recommend a red card and assign extra plants IF you only use edibles etc.  Generally I see increases up to max 20 plants.  But this only qualifies under an Affirmative defense.

 

They want to cap the patient or caregiver total to 16 per house. A caregiver will be restricted to 36 plants total(unless a patient has a higher plant count from physician) and any plant count above 16 must be done in a commercial setting and subject to such laws etc.

 

Also, they are giving like full local control on home growing. Allowing restrictions, inspections and licensing etc.

 

The issue actually was that 'caregivers had unlimited patients and would get 20 people to get way increased plant counts so they could grow thousands of plants. ;-)

 

Heres the bill:

 

http://leg.colorado.gov/sites/default/files/documents/2017A/bills/2017A_1220_eng.pdf

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Also,.... definition of plant because clones and small plants do not count towards limit. That does make a difference.

 

 

(II) "PLANT" MEANS ANY PLANT OF THE GENUS CANNABIS IN A

 CULTIVATING CONTAINER THAT IS MORE THAN EIGHT INCHES WIDE BY

 EIGHT INCHES HIGH OR A FLOWERING CANNABIS PLANT REGARDLESS OF ITS

 SIZE.

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Just so people know,...   this iswhat scares me more than anything else in Michigan and I  have warned people for years it would take one half sentence to do it,... and they try for it every session so far:

 

"...AND COMPLY WITH ALL LOCAL LAWS, REGULATIONS, AND ZONING AND USE RESTRICTIONS."

 

Scary shite.

 

Poor Colorado, they were the land of milk and honey, now its just rough arse granola.

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Then you have to bribe the inspector because he has the sledge hammer that can bring your whole world crashing down. He has the 'tape measure' checking for an 8 inch plant. He has the ability to say whether a plant is flowering or not. He has the ability to say if your grow is secure. Basically, you are kissing his arse every Thursday. 

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Just so people know,...   this iswhat scares me more than anything else in Michigan and I  have warned people for years it would take one half sentence to do it,... and they try for it every session so far:

 

"...AND COMPLY WITH ALL LOCAL LAWS, REGULATIONS, AND ZONING AND USE RESTRICTIONS."

 

Scary shite.

 

Poor Colorado, they were the land of milk and honey, now its just rough arse granola.

Yeah if they inact that in michigan, you would only be able to grow in a few areas or they would put some insane ristrictions/fees that make it almost not even worth it to grow under the law. 

seriously this place is the most anti weed place that has weed legalized I have ever been. aa is little different but It just doesn't have that culture as much as other states. I guess it's all the people that work jobs that drug test.

gm drug tests, dow chemical drug tests. ect...

liquor stores on every corner ha. 

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