BEGIN:VCALENDAR
VERSION:2.0
X-WR-CALNAME:www.indybay.org
PRODID:-//indybay/ical// v1.0//EN
BEGIN:VEVENT
UID:Indybay-18765414
SEQUENCE:18883296
CREATED:20141211T233300Z
DESCRIPTION:At the last meeting on Dec. 10, members of the Cannabis Advocates Alliance 
 discussed and signed copies of the following letter:\n\nCAA Letter to Board 
 of Supervisors\n\nCannabis Advocates 
 Alliance\nwww.cannabisadvocatesalliance.org\nDecember, 2014\n\nBoard of 
 Supervisors\nCounty of Santa Cruz\n701 Ocean Street\nSanta Cruz, CA 
 95060\n\nRe: Participation in County Medical Cannabis Ordinance 
 Changes\n\nDear Supervisor:\n\nI am writing as a member of the newly formed 
 Cannabis Advocates Alliance (CAA).\n\nWe share the Board of Supervisors' 
 concerns regarding environmental violations and nuisance complaints that 
 affect quality of life in this County. However, we seek more effective, 
 more sensible, and more just solutions than those we believe are currently 
 being considered by the Board. \n\nAmong other things, we are requesting: 
 1) that local patients be given a greater voice in re-drafting the County 
 cannabis ordinances; 2) that the County draft clearer and more 
 environmentally-friendly paths to compliance for patient-cultivators, and 
 3) that in re-drafting the existing ordinances the County preserve the 
 minimal diversity of choice required for patients to have proper access to 
 quality cannabis medicine.\n\nTo further these goals, and prevent unfair 
 penalization of patients, we are asking the County to postpone modifying 
 the current cannabis ordinances by at least 90 days or more, to make the 
 process more transparent and participatory, and for the County to more 
 fairly represent patients and their needs.\n\nA Significantly Improved 
 Third Party Compliance Program is Key to the Solution\n\nWe encourage a far 
 more developed, uniform and rigorous 3rd-party compliance program aimed not 
 only at the quality of the cannabis itself, but also at making patient 
 growers comply with environmental law. Among other things, the County 
 should maintain an index of all legitimate patient growers and subject them 
 to similar standards as those of licensing requirements that exist for 
 every other agricultural product produced in this County. The intended 
 effect would be to better empower the County to keep track of growers 
 rather than force them underground, which is less environmentally 
 conscious.\n\nCannabis Patients Require A Minimum Degree of Access to and 
 Diversity of Medicine\n\nAllowing only three grow sites per dispensary, 
 abolishing collective gardening rights, and making other forms of 
 distribution illegal, such as mobile delivery, destroys the current 
 diversity that County patients currently enjoy. Restricting the spectrum of 
 choices of medicine available decreases the likelihood that these patients 
 will have the type and quality of medicine needed to address their 
 particular ailments.\n\nLimiting Grows to Ag and Commercial Ag Areas 
 Penalizes Compliant Patient Providers\n\nRequiring all non-personal grows 
 to be in Commercial Agriculture and Agriculture zones will unfairly abolish 
 the protections of limited immunity for most Santa Cruz cannabis patients, 
 patient-providers, and collective patient growers. This will leave most of 
 the patients and patient-providers to bear the brunt of the County’s 
 enforcement divisions, while giving only a handful of growers the 
 protections of State law.  Rather than arbitrarily revoking limited 
 immunity for local patient growers, the County must protect patients and 
 patient-providers who cultivate in a safe and sustainable manner.\n\nWhile 
 the foregoing is an overview of our proposals, there is far more detail 
 that the County must consider. It is imperative that local cannabis 
 patients participate in the development of these regulations.\n\nWe thus 
 ask that the County: 1) continue the hearings for modifying the current 
 Santa Cruz Medical Cannabis Ordinances for at least another 90 days ; 2) 
 agree to hold regular, announced meetings sufficient to include and 
 consider more evidence, solutions, and dialogue; and 3) seriously revisit 
 the County’s current approach and consider significantly more proactive 
 and progressive solutions.\n\nI thank you for your time today,\n\nName: 
 ___________________________________________\n\nSignature: 
 ________________________________________\n\n*****************\n\nCannabis 
 Advocates Alliance \n\nContact us at: 
 \nhttp://cannabisadvocatesalliance.org/\ncannabisadvocatesalliance@gmail.com 
 \nhttps://www.facebook.com/cadvocatesalliance 
 \nhttps://twitter.com/SaveSantaCruz \n 
 https://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2014/12/11/18765414.php
SUMMARY:Cannabis Advocates Alliance meeting
LOCATION:Louden Nelson Community Center, room #5 \n301 Center Street, Santa Cruz
URL:https://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2014/12/11/18765414.php
DTSTART:20141218T030000Z
DTEND:20141218T050000Z
END:VEVENT
END:VCALENDAR