Thread: Oakland, CA. votes to permit large marijuana farms

Oakland votes to permit large marijuana farms

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Oakland has moved closer to becoming the first city in the United States to authorize wholesale pot cultivation.

The Oakland City Council voted 5-2 with one abstention late Tuesday in favor of a plan to license four production plants where marijuana would be grown, packaged and processed.

The vote came after more than two hours of public comment, with speakers divided between those who opposed the measure — largely on the grounds that it would put small medical marijuana growers out of business — and those who said it would generate millions of dollars for the California city in taxes and sales and create hundreds of jobs.

The plants would not be limited in size — one potential applicant for a license wants to open a plant that would produce over 21,000 pounds of pot a year — but they would be heavily taxed and regulated.

Those vying for one of the four licenses would have to pay $211,000 in annual permit fees, carry $2 million worth of liability insurance and be prepared to devote up to 8% of gross sales to taxes.

Proponents of the measure also touted the possibility of Oakland becoming the U.S. cannabis capital, especially if California voters approve the legalization of recreational marijuana in November.

"Do you want to be the "Silicon Valley of Cannabis?" said Jeff Wilcox, a local businessman who wants to build "AgraMed," a 7.4-acre plant with a bakery, a lab and 100,000 square feet of cultivation space.

But Stephen DeAngelo, executive director of Harborside Health Center, the largest medical marijuana dispensary in the world, said small growers were coming to him terrified that the ordinance would mean the end of their livelihoods.

One of the co-sponsors of the ordinance, Rebecca Kaplan, said it would not take effect until January, giving the council time to come up with a plan for medium-sized growers.

Councilwoman Nancy Nadel said she worried about the quality of the product, wanted environmental protections and questioned why the council was voting on the measure now if it wasn't going to take effect until January.

The measure will go before the council one more time for a final vote, but the outcome isn't expected to change.

http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/201 ... arms_N.htm

Just another Federal Law that is not being enforced.

http://www.legalmatch.com/law-library/a ... -laws.html

What are "Federal" Marijuana Laws?
Federal marijuana laws are the laws that the federal government enacts to criminalize majijuana possession, sale, and cultivation. Each U.S. state also passes their own marijuana laws, but when these laws are in conflict with the federal rules, the federal rules control. Traditionally drug crimes are prosecuted at the state level. But because some states have decriminalized marijuana crimes (such as for medicinal purposes), federal prosecutions for marijuana possession/sale/cultivation are becoming more common.

The distinction is important, because while many states have rather lax laws concerning marijuana use, the Federal Government has some extremely strict penalties, some of which involve decades of jail time.

What Amount of Marijuana Do I Have to Carry to Violate Federal Law?
ANY amount. Unlike many states, the federal law does not qualify possession by amount. Possession of any amount of marijuana (even a single marijuana cigarette) is punishable by up to a year in jail and a fine of $1,000 on the first offense. The second offense carries a 15-day mandatory sentence, and can be extended for as long as two years in prison. Any possession after that gets a 90-day to three year prison term, and a $5,000 fine. (It should also be noted that distribution of a small amount of marijuana for no money is usually treated as simple possession).

What About Selling Marijuana?
This is where the federal law becomes extremely severe. The sale of anything less than 50 Kilograms of marijuana (which is obviously the majority of cases by far) is punishable by up to 5 years in prison and a whopping $250,000 fine. Selling more than 50 Kilograms is generally something that is relegated to the criminal underworld, but the penalties get exponentially worse:

50-100 Kilos distribution/cultivation: Up to 20 years in prison, with a $1,000,000 fine
100-1000 Kilos distribution/cultivation: Mandatory 5 years, up to 40 years in prison, with a fine of $2,000,000
1000 Kilos+ distribution/cultivation: 10 years to Life in prison, with a $4,000,000 fine
What's more, distribution of anything over 5 grams to a minor (under 21 years of age, not 1, OR within 1,000 feet of a school, housing project, youth center, video arcade, public pool, or playground automatically doubles all the punishments listed above (both jail time and fines).

Surprisingly, the federal government can even administer the death penalty for marijuana sale. This is reserved only for the heads of criminal enterprises that distribute more than 60 metric tons of marijuana OR annually make more than $20,000,000 from marijuana sales, but there have been past attempts to lower this threshold significantly. For instance, in 1994, it was proposed to introduce a mandatory death penalty for the second offense of smuggling only 50 grams of marijuana (the bill did not pass, however).

But I am Licensed By My State to Grow Marijuana for Medicinal Purposes...
Because the Federal Government does not recognize the legality of "medical marijuana," if you are prosecuted under federal law you will not be able to use any defense involving it. This means that even if your state has explicitly authorized you to grow marijuana, federal agents can still arrest you and you can be sentenced according to the guidelines above (and indeed this has happened). So if you grow marijuana legally in your state, you should contact a criminal lawyer about your rights, even if you haven't been arrested. An experienced criminal attorney will be able to explain all the risks in greater detail, as well as the complex interaction of federal and state laws in this issue.

This resolution is in direct conflict with Federal law that would prohibit such activity. Will the feds take Oakland to court to block such efforts?

They had better put electric fences around those farms---with barbed wire----and armed guards. Bur don't expect the Oakland residents to pay for any of it.

Legally grown American pot would take the money away from the Mexican drug gangs.

As they say, BUY AMERICAN.

Originally Posted by Captainron

They had better put electric fences around those farms---with barbed wire----and armed guards. Bur don't expect the Oakland residents to pay for any of it. 8O

I just saw an interview on TV and the guy said these are indoor grow operations, complete with multi-thousand dollar alarm systems, etc.

. . .Those vying for one of the four licenses would have to pay $211,000 in annual permit fees, carry $2 million worth of liability insurance and be prepared to devote up to 8 percent of gross sales to taxes. . .

"Do you want to be the "Silicon Valley of Cannabis?" said Jeff Wilcox, a local businessman who wants to build "AgraMed," a 7.4-acre plant with a bakery, a lab and 100,000 square feet of cultivation space. . .

Read more: http://www.sacbee.com/2010/07/20/290411 ... z0uLOm0oZc