Local advocates of medical cannabis consider placing initiative on ballot – again – after it lost in the 2012 elections.
Monday, December 16, 2013 – Imperial Beach resident Marcus Boyd, who helped author and champion Proposition S to change medical marijuana regulation in IB, intends to begin a new effort soon to allow a dispensary to open in IB, he told Patch.
Boyd said he intends to speak at a city council meeting Wednesday to invite city officials to discuss the matter but if the Imperial Beach City Council doesn’t support a change to current law a ballot initiative will be sought.
“We have decided that we understand the issue is contentious for those who refuse to educate themselves on the medical need so we have decided to swallow the desire to provide equitable and fair access to just provide any access,” he said.
The effort comes after voters shot down Proposition S in 2012 with 4,122 (58 percent) no votes to 2,926 (41 percent) yes votes.
Special care was given to address concerns people showed with the 2012 ballot measure, Boyd said.
“The allowance to use on site is going to be removed, we’re going to limit the dispensary to city of IB residents only,” he said.
A rule to allow people to smoke marijuana at the dispensary was removed, hours of operation reduced and the possibility that dispensaries could open near the beach was also removed.
And unlike in 2012 when a pro Prop S group received funding from across the region to become the best funded political group in Imperial Beach, a group of about 30 local residents will push the ballot measure, not outside groups.
“It will be Imperial Beach only. There won’t be outside consultants,” Boyd said, though paid signature gatherers may be used to do targeted signature gathering.
A petition to put the Compassionate Access Ordinance of Imperial Beach on the ballot may be filed with City Clerk Jacqueline Hald by the end of the week. About 1,000 signatures, or 10 percent of Imperial Beach registered voters, would be needed to place it on the ballot.
Supporters of medical marijuana regulation will rely on the list of people who signed the petition in 2012 to sign again so the campaign won’t have to go door-to-door.
“We have no other choice,” he said. “At this point I get people at my desk on a regular basis asking me how to find it. This is kind of bad.”
