canorml.org

SACRAMENTO May 13-Legislation to exempt medical marijuana smoking devices from the state paraphernalia law has been introduced by Assemblyman Marco Firebaugh (D- LA). The measure, which was incorporated into a gutted bill, AB 1534, passed the Assembly Public Safety Committee last week.

Supporters say the bill is needed to protect medical use of marijuana by legal patients under Prop. 215. Under current California law it is illegal to sell or manufacture (though not to possess) any device for consumption of marijuana. Included are devices for medical use. In the wake of Prop. 215, various products have been developed that offer benefits to medical marijuana patients. Among them are smokeless vaporizers, which deliver medically active cannabis vapors without harmful smoke toxins, as demonstrated in recent studies commissioned by California NORML and MAPS (http://www.canorml.org/healthfacts/vaporizerstudy2.html).

"These products should be classified as medical devices, not drug paraphernalia, argues California NORML Coordinator Dale Gieringer in support of AB 1534. "This bill would advance Prop. 215's intent to assure "safe access" to medical marijuana." Supporters hope that AB 1534 will protect medical cannabis devices from federal as well as state prosecution. The former has become a major concern in the wake of the Justice Department's recent crackdown on marijuana pipes, dubbed "Operation Pipe Dreams." The U.S. Controlled Substances Act (Sec. 863 f(1)) has a provision allowing states and localities to exempt products from anti-paraphernalia laws. By designating medical cannabis devices as legal products, California may therefore be able to head off a federal crackdown.