Marijuana legal today

WASILLA — New marijuana laws take effect today, slightly more than four months after voters approved Ballot Measure 2 by a more-than six percent margin.

While local government officials have questioned whether the legalization measure takes effect today or the day after tomorrow, most law enforcement agencies, including the Anchorage Police Department, appeared ready to treat today as legalization day.

The legislature has not yet passed a law addressing the subject, meaning that, for now, the original tenets of Ballot Measure 2 remain in effect. They are:

• Marijuana smokers must be 21 years old.

• Possession is limited to one ounce of marijuana.

• Marijuana growing for personal use is limited to six adult plants (three may be flowering). Larger-scale growing operations may prove legal in the future, but for now remain off-limits under the law.

• Marijuana may not be sold in Alaska. However, it is legal to transfer amounts up to one ounce between adults for free.

• Up to one ounce of marijuana may be transported in a sealed container from place to place. As with alcohol, local ordinances take precedence over state options.

• In Palmer, public smoking is effectively banned by a years-old referendum against public smoking. The marijuana ban passed there by a relatively narrow margin.

• The Wasilla City Council was set to consider a ban on concentrate manufacture inside city limits at a 6 p.m. meeting yesterday, as well as a set of laws targeted at reducing nuisances, including smoking near property lines. Results were not available as of press time.

• The Houston City Council had not yet addressed the matter legislatively, meaning the Ballot Measure 2 language remained in effect.

Even as legalization takes effect, measures designed to revise certain sections of previously existing law, or the section passed by voters in November worked through the Legislature.

SB 30 has ballooned from a nine-page document providing a legal defense framework for marijuana possession in Alaskan courts into an 88-page document removing marijuana from the controlled substance schedules. It was scheduled for a 9 a.m. hearing today before the Senate Finance committee, after moving out of the Senate Judiciary committee Friday evening.

SB 60, introduced Monday by Gov. Bill Walker’s office, would create a Marijuana Control Board, in effect separating marijuana enforcement issues from alcohol enforcement issues.

On the House of Representatives’ side, three measures aim to tackle the issue.

HB 59 would delay the legalization of concentrates of marijuana until November, to address certain aspects of concentrate use found to be problematic in other states. A hearing was set for 3 p.m. Thursday before the House Committee on Health and Social Services.

HB 75 was set for an 8 a.m. hearing today before the House Community and Regional Affairs committee. The measure would bring language in the bill into line with language elsewhere by changing the words “local government” to “municipality.” The issue could also change the footing of the Mat-Su Borough government on the issue relative to cities. The borough has sought additional power to coordinate marijuana regulation within its boundaries among the various cities.

HB 79 received a delayed hearing before the judiciary committee at 1 p.m. Monday, with another hearing scheduled for 1 p.m. Thursday. The measure limits concentrate manufacture to one solvent: vegetable glycine.

Contact Brian O’Connor at 352-2269 or brian.oconnor@frontiersman.com, or on Twitter @reporterbriano.