As Legislature prepares to pass the baton on marijuana

Speaking in a conference room within the Alaska State Capitol, James Barrett reached into a pocket and pulled out two $1 bills.

Waving them, he drew the attention of lawmakers who leaned back in their leather chairs and listened to him with new attention.

“When we dial it down to cost per Alaskan, it’s less than two bucks,” he said waving the bills.

Barrett was speaking in favor of the establishment of the Alaska Marijuana Control Board on Friday, and after he spoke, it sailed through the Alaska Senate Finance Committee. A day later, it passed the full Senate with unanimous approval.

Worried that lawmakers may not act, advocates for medical marijuana could take their campaign to Nebraska voters next year, and a new state law could make their job easier.

Supporters said they've started gathering signatures to place the issue on the November 2016 ballot. Despite significant hurdles, activists from the Omaha chapter of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws said the new petitioning law will make a difference.

"It's still a mighty task, but this helps us tremendously," said Bryan Boganowski, the founder of Omaha NORML.

Bill Maher announced a petition on his show to make 4/20 a national holiday.  And to make it sound like another classic national holiday, Maher read from a book titled, ‘Twas the Night Before 4/20.

Share this page, then sign Bill's petition here:  Change.org.   Let the world know we want a 420 Holiday.

The 2015 Cannabis Cup is happening now and enthusiasts from all across the country have flocked to Colorado for the big day. And this year’s Cup should be one of the biggest, wildest and most talked-about cannabis celebrations of all time. 303 caught up with Dan Skye, Editor-In-Chief of High Times magazine and the man behind the Cannabis Cup, to talk about all things Colorado, weed, and 4/20. Here are ten pieces of knowledge you should definitely have before heading out to party this year.

It has been linked to deaths across the country and left others critically ill.

Now New York Governor Andrew Cuomo has issued a state health alert that the synthetic marijuana product known as 'Spice' is sweeping the city, and that 160 people have been hospitalized in nine days after using the drug.

Over 120 of those people were admitted to Emergency Rooms in the same week.

The cannabinoid, also commonly called 'K2' or 'Mojo', is predominantly abused by teenagers and typically sold over-the-counter as incense or potpourri. 

State health alert: New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said Friday that 'Spice', also known as 'K2' or 'Mojo', is sweeping the city, with 160 people admitted to hospital in the nine days from April 8, 120 of them in one week

Demanding the FDA to make determinations regarding the safety and efficacy of marijuana is politically unfeasible ["Iowa lawmaker: Medical marijuana is an FDA decision," April 9].

Two pieces of marijuana legislation were heard on the Senate floor Saturday afternoon. A Marijuana Control Board bill moved forward, while a bill clarifying municipal regulations of marijuana was held for reconsideration in the final days of Alaska’s legislative session.

House Bill 123, which would create a Marijuana Control Board, passed unanimously on the Senate floor, 20-0.

Sen. Lesil McGuire, R-Anchorage, said before the vote that the bill was “a responsible step … to respond to the voter initiative.”

Related: 

Despite the city's ban on sales, you really can get recreational marijuana in Colorado Springs. You just need to join the right club.

Private cannabis clubs got their start in Colorado Springs, which banned recreational marijuana sales after Amendment 64 legalized them in 2012.

Denver doesn't have such clubs; it has recreational pot stores galore.

And Colorado Springs residents can drive a few miles to Manitou Springs and choose their favorite flavors at Emerald Fields or Maggie's Farm retail outlets.

But public consumption of marijuana isn't allowed anywhere in Colorado.

For the second year in a row, the U.S. Cannabis Cup — the largest event in High Times magazine’s portfolio — kicked off Saturday at the Denver Mart with speakers and vendors from throughout the country, and plenty of free marijuana.

The Medical Cannabis Act is on the State Government Committee's April 21 calendar

State Sen. Mike Folmer, R-Lebanon County, shakes hands with marijuana activists on the steps of the Pennsylvania Capitol in Harrisburg during a September 2014 medical marijuana rally. Folmer's Medical Cannabis Act, or Senate Bill 3, was introduced in the Senate in January. (Mark Walters - York Daily Record/Sunday News)

A bill that would legalize some form of medical marijuana in Pennsylvania will be considered by the Senate State Government Committee on Tuesday, according to the committee's calendar.