Source: Sam Ford, WJLA
We’re Now Collecting Signatures From DC Voters to Put Our Initiative on November’s General Election Ballot
It’s On!
On April 23, the DC Board of Elections issued the DC Cannabis Campaign the official circulating petitions for Voter Initiative #71. The campaign has until 5pm, July 7, to collect 22,373 valid signatures from registered DC voters.
If you are interested in helping the campaign, please email Volunteer@DCMJ.org
Join the DC Cannabis Campaign at the Funk Parade!
The DC Cannabis Campaign will be taking part in the Funk Parade on Saturday, May 3. We’re bringing our “Sinsemilla Soundsystem” to the parade and we’d like to include your favorite tracks on the playlist. Please take a moment and fill out the form below so we can include some of your favorite music!
Be sure to ‘Like’ the Funk Parade on Facebook to stay up to date on what will be one of best parades of 2014!
DC-MD-VA Cannabis Coalition to Host Inaugural Awards Event
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NEWS ADVISORY |
CONTACT: Adam Eidinger 202-744-2671 |
DC-MD-VA Cannabis Coalition to Host Inaugural Awards Event
“After Prohibition: Investigating What Comes Next for the Economy, Public Safety, and America’s Families”
WASHINGTON, DC – The newly formed DC-MD-VA Cannabis Coalition (DMVCC) will host an evening awards event Thursday, April 17, that brings together concerned citizens, policy reform advocates, and legislators to celebrate recent successes on cannabis reforms in the Mid-Atlantic region. The DMVCC will present “vanguard” awards recognizing the contributions of three individuals who have been instrumental in reforming marijuana laws locally. Among the award recipients is DC Councilmember Tommy Wells. Keynote speaker, author and journalist Doug Fine, will round out the evening with a rollicking and inspiring presentation culled from his years of investigative research into the policies, economics, and sustainability of cannabis and hemp.
WHO: Councilmember Tommy Wells, The DC Cannabis Campaign, Virginia NORML, and Maryland NORML
WHAT: DC-MD-VA Cannabis Coalition Inaugural Awards Event
WHEN: 7:30 pm, Thursday, April 17, 2014
WHERE: Busboys and Poets (5th and K), 1025 5th St. NW, Washington, DC
WHY: To change the DMV region’s outdated marijuana laws
“It takes a lot of courage to change marijuana laws in America, and we need to honor elected officials who have taken bold steps,” says Adam Eidinger, Chair of the DC Cannabis Campaign. “We will award DC Councilmember Tommy Wells for his work on ending marijuana arrests. His decriminalization law prevents thousands of District resident from needlessly being arrested for small amounts of marijuana.” Introduced in July 2013, the law was passed by the DC Council in early March and was transmitted to Congress in April. Wells’ decriminalization of marijuana legislation makes possession of up to one ounce of marijuana a $25 fine instead of an arrest and has spurred the entire region to look at their marijuana laws.
About the keynote speaker: After 40 years and more than $1 trillion in taxpayer money, the end of cannabis prohibition is near. According to Gallup, 58 percent of Americans now favor marijuana legalization, and an increasing number of states are pressuring the federal government to follow their lead as America’s longest war winds down. Bestselling investigative journalist Doug Fine, author of Too High to Fail and Hemp Bound, will tell stories and present images from the front lines in North America, South America, and Europe.
About the DC Cannabis Campaign: Organized in 2013, the DC Cannabis Campaign is composed of residents who are working to change out-dated marijuana laws in the District of Columbia. The campaign submitted a ballot initiative in January to the DC Board of Elections and will soon be collecting signatures to place Initiative 71 on November’s general election ballot. The voter initiative will allow District residents to grow up to three mature plants in their homes and possess up to two ounces of marijuana without fear of arrest or fine.
Tickets to the awards event can be purchased here.
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Formulation of the short title, summary statement, and legislative text for Initiative No. 71, the “Legalization of Possession of Marijuana for Personal Use Act of 2014.”
On Friday, April 5, 2014, the DC Board of Elections published their formulation of the short title, summary statement, and legislative text for Initiative No. 71, the “Legalization of Possession of Marijuana for Personal Use Act of 2014.” Up next, the campaign will soon receive petitions that will need to be signed by nearly 25,000 registered DC voters in order to be on general election ballot on November 4.
You can download the official ballot initiative text here, here, or read it online here.
Please volunteer & donate to the campaign!
Join the DC Cannabis Consumers Association
Photo Credit: Team Muriel
Now that thousands of seeds have been planted throughout the District of Columbia, it’s time to share in the bounty. For the ridiculous price of only $420.00, you can join the District’s newest association. Your exclusive membership will entitle you to a gifted ounce every month throughout the year grown by the District’s most reputable growers.
The DC Cannabis Consumers Association will share locally grown cannabis buds & seeds, exchange gardening tips, and help grow DC’s green thumb into one of the largest in the world. Talk about thumbs up!
Membership is open to DC residents 21 years of age with green thumbs who have paid the $420 membership fee. You’ll receive expert classes on the entire life cycle of indoor cannabis gardening; from growing, harvesting, bud tending, to the curing of your cannabis.
For the introductory price of $420, you will get:
— One ounce every month
— Free indica, saliva, hybrid, and autoflowering seeds every month
— Access to the District’s finest grow-ops
— Access to Private Smoking Lounges
— Recipes for Tinctures & Edibles
— Extraction Techniques
— Cloning How-to’s
— Pest & Odor Eradication Tips
— Referral Bonus Buds
and so much more!
The time to join the DC Cannabis Consumers Association is now! After April 20, 2015, the membership fees will rise to $4,200 in order to keep out any people who didn’t vote for Initiative 71. Don’t delay, join today!
Photos from the “Evening of Comedy” Fundraiser
A big thank you to everyone who joined us last night to support the DC Cannabis Campaign!
The DC Cannabis Campaign will be organizing more fundraisers throughout 2014 to support the passage of the ballot initiative. Signup for the DC Cannabis Campaign’s email list on the right side of this page to stay informed about upcoming events.
@DCMJ2014 @ECroydon @bigalgoodwin @ryschutt @larsloving @JRivasComedy & they have caviar!!! http://t.co/cTxhjAOfBf pic.twitter.com/WZByvKpuV8
— haywood turnipseed (@woodyseed) March 16, 2014
Stream starts live at 8:45.. 'Til then enjoy the sounds!!! @ECroydon @DCMJ2014 … http://t.co/cTxhjAOfBf pic.twitter.com/VSO95TOWkz
— haywood turnipseed (@woodyseed) March 16, 2014
DC Board of Elections Approves Ballot Initiative Language
Today we received word from the DC Board of Elections that our ballot initiative has been approved!
SO WHAT IS NEXT? According to Section 1002 of the DC Elections Laws, the Board of Elections now has up to 20 calendar days to create a summary of the initiative, a short title of the initiative, and amend the initiative to conform to any laws that were passed since we submitted the initiative back in January. Once completed, the Board of Elections has 5 more days to notify the DC Cannabis Campaign of any changes and then submit the finalized ballot initiative to the DC Register for publication. Finally, once published in the DC Register, the public has 10 days to challenge the summary, short title, or the legislative form of the ballot initiative. After the expiration of the challenge period, the Board of Elections will issue the DC Cannabis Campaign the nominating petitions, and we’ll have until July 7 to collect more than 25,000 valid signatures from DC voters.
We hope the Board of Elections will work quickly to finalize the ballot initiative so we can start collecting signatures as soon as possible!
Here’s the approval letter from the DC Board of Elections:
Press Release: DC Cannabis Campaign Calls On Mayor Gray To Issue Moratorium On Marijuana Arrests
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PRESS RELEASE |
CONTACT: Adam Eidinger 202-744-2671 |
DC Cannabis Campaign Calls On Mayor Gray To Issue Moratorium On Marijuana Arrests
Congressional Review May Take Three Months and DC Residents Should Not Continue To Be Arrested
WASHINGTON, DC – Today, the DC City Council passed the “Marijuana Possession Decriminalization Amendment Act of 2014” (B20-0409). This historic legislation will reduce the criminal penalties associated with the possession of less than one ounce of marijuana in the District of Columbia. Instead of facing arrest and potential jail time, citizens will have their marijuana and paraphernalia confiscated and will be issued a $25 ticket. Citizens caught smoking marijuana in public, possessing more than one ounce, or selling marijuana will still face criminal penalties and possible jail time.
After damning reports issued by the American Civil Liberties Union of the National Capital Area and the Washington Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights and Urban Affairs showed that the District of Columbia leads America in the racial disparities for marijuana arrests, Councilmembers Tommy Wells and Marion Barry introduced “Simple Possession of Small Quantities of Marijuana Decriminalization Act of 2013” on July 9, 2013. The legislation originally called for civil fines of $100 for possession and consumption of marijuana in public instead of arrest. At the first public hearing on October 23, 2013, witnesses suggested that the legislation be amended to reduce the civil fines to $25, similar to the current fine for the possession of an open container of alcohol in Washington, DC. At the second hearing on October 24, 2013, the Mayor’s office brought up their belief that the public consumption should remain illegal. To address these concerns, the legislation was further amended to keep the $100 fine for the public consumption of marijuana and make the fine $25 for the possession of marijuana. Lastly, in early February 2014, at the urging of Mayor Vincent Gray and Police Chief Cathy Lanier, the legislation was further amended by DC Council Chairman Phil Mendelson to remove the $100 civil fine and keep criminal penalties in place for the public consumption of marijuana.
“While we support the dramatic reduction in penalties associated with marijuana possession, this legislation will still allow the police to continue to hassle and arrest District residents who choose to smoke marijuana,” says Adam Eidinger, Chairman of the DC Cannabis Campaign, a political committee working on a District ballot imitative that will further reduce criminal penalties associated with marijuana possession and cultivation of marijuana. “We are organizing so voters have a say on whether marijuana should be fully legal this November.”
“Mayor Gray should issue a moratorium on arrests for the possession of marijuana while the legislation is under Congressional Review. How many more DC residents need to be arrested while we wait for Congress?” asks Eidinger. “This is a Home Rule issue now and the Mayor needs to side with the people.”
The DC Cannabis Campaign is currently waiting for the DC Board of Elections to approve the campaign’s ballot initiative language. Upon approval, the campaign will need to obtain more than 25,000 valid signatures from registered DC voters by July 7 in order to put the initiative on the general election ballot in November.
For more information about the DC Cannabis Campaign, visit www.DCMJ.org.
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Washington Post: Advocates press for marijuana legalization measure on D.C. ballot
The District should set aside the warnings of its attorney general and let voters decide whether they want to legalize marijuana possession in the nation’s capital, advocates for the measure argued Tuesday before the D.C. Board of Elections.
The band of marijuana advocates is seeking to make the District one of the first East Coast cities to legalize marijuana possession. If it successfully gets the measure on the November ballot, legalization has a strong chance of being approved, according to a recent Washington Post poll, and it could hasten the arrival in Washington of a debate that has simmered mostly in Western states.
SOURCE: Aaron C. Davis, Washington Post
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