JUNEAU — Pictures of blown-up homes, pot-infused candy and a dire warning that weed edibles will kill children weren’t enough to ignite support for a Fairbanks senator’s amendment to ban marijuana concentrates in 2017.

Republican Sen. Pete Kelly’s attempt to criminalize marijuana concentrates when the two-year constitutional protection for Ballot Measure 2 expires fell flat on the Senate floor Monday, with many fellow Republicans and urban Democrats concerned the ban was an overreaction that undermined voter intent.

Theresa Collins, left, and Jami Hicks are two of the four business partners behind Pot Luck Events.

Marijuana is in legal limbo in Alaska. Multiple bills in the Legislature will determine everything from permits to penalties, and in the meantime municipalities are scrambling find rules that protect the public, but also make room for an emerging industry. A new business in Anchorage is taking its first tentative steps forward navigating the shifting legal landscape.

Inside a brand new private marijuana club air purifiers whir. The room is huge, with a stage at one end, lounge chairs in another, and high ceilings.

An Alaska marijuana club owned by a former TV reporter was raided on Friday, authorities say. 

Last September, KTVA reporter Charlo Greene quit her job in a brazen fashion that many of us would like to duplicate: revealing herself to be the owner of the club she was doing the segment on.

She then exited following the now infamous statement: "Fuck it, I quit." On Friday, police in Anchorage raided the Cannabis Club that Greene—aka Charlene Egbe—owns, seizing marijuana and impounding two vehicles. Egbe described the scene to KTVA: 

ANCHORAGE – 

It’s hard to go wrong with a simple brownie recipe.

Chelsea Deming says she grew up in the kitchen. When she got together with her boyfriend, Derek Herre, she began adding one more special ingredient to her recipes — marijuana.

“He realized that would be a good way for him to medicate without having to smoke,” Deming said.

Herre has Crohn’s disease and has been a medical marijuana cardholder for nearly five years.

“This definitely helps with my inflammation, my nausea,” Herre explained.

Deming bakes for him and now does the same for other medical users. They call their business “Baked Alaska” and word is quickly spreading through social media.

Here’s how it works:

• Cannabis as a controlled substance: The new bill would undo the work done to remove cannabis as a controlled substance. It also proposes adding cannabis back to the controlled substance list and would create situations where the controlled substances laws would not apply. As pointed out in Dr. Tim Hinterberger’s email, SB30 in its current form “would completely remove marijuana from the Alaska Controlled Substance Act.”

JUNEAU — After a far-ranging discussion about the dangers of driving a four-wheeler while high or hosting pot parties on a sternwheeler, a Department of Law official attempted to comfort senators by saying the sky has not, in fact, fallen since marijuana possession became legal under state law.

Deputy Attorney General Richard Svobodny told the Senate Finance Committee that Ballot Measure 2 going into law hasn’t dramatically changed things in Alaska and many concerns raised by the committee, like driving while high, are addressed by existing laws. And concerns about commercial marijuana, like pot parties, will be addressed through regulations.

JUNEAU, Alaska - Lawmakers discussed Wednesday who would sit on a new marijuana board and what it might cost the state, during a first hearing on a bill that would create a new regulatory body.

Gov. Bill Walker introduced companion bills in the House and Senate to create a five-member marijuana board that would share staff and resources with the state's Alcoholic Beverage Control Board. It was discussed Wednesday in the House Labor and Commerce Committee.

The board would include a member each from the public safety and health sectors; one from a rural area; one or two from the marijuana industry; and one or two from the general public.

Established cannabis companies looking to expand into new markets could find a major opening in Alaska if a recent legislative proposal becomes law.

The measure – introduced in the state Legislature last week – would ban applicants seeking recreational cannabis licenses from accepting investments by third parties. That stipulation could give established companies a big edge over small startups and individual entrepreneurs, according to some observers, as licenses applicants would more or less need to be entirely self-funded.

The emerging legal marijuana economy will see explosive growth in the coming years. Insurers should be prepared to adopt policies that spell out coverage for legally grown marijuana plants and medical marijuana property. The cannabis industry is expected to grow to nearly $15 billion over the next four years. In states where manufacture, sale and use is legal for recreational purposes, legalization will have a profound impact on not only personal lines insurance, but also commercial coverage, workers’ comp, product liability, healthcare insurance and more.

The Alaska Cannabis Growers Association disagrees with the proposed 10 mg limit for edibles. This creates many problems for the consumer. When ingesting such a small amount of THC, there are a few things that could potentially be considered a problem.  For the average consumer, the small dose of 10mg is not likely to create a noticeable “psychoactive” or pain relieving effect.  For the first time user, this is a good amount to begin with, but for anyone that medicates, this is entirely too small. A medical patient may consume, in one dose, anywhere from 100 mg – 500 mg (sometime more) to obtain pain relief.