While no general cannabis legalization bills have been introduced this session, several bills that would scale back the war on drugs, enhance cannabis legal defenses, and expand direly needed access for medical cannabis patients have been submitted this year.
Official rules on the deadlines: (See also http://www.leg.state.mn.us/leg/deadlines.aspx )
1. The March 20th deadline is for committees to act favorably on bills in the house of origin.
2. The March 27th deadline is for committees to act favorably on bills, or companions of bills, that met the first deadline in the other house.
3. When a committee in either house acts favorably on a bill after a deadline established in the concurrent resolution, the bill must be referred in the Senate to the Committee on Rules and Administration and in the House of Representatives to the Committee on Rules and Legislative Administration for disposition.
Either rules committee, when reporting a bill referred to the committee under this rule, may waive application of the rule to subsequent actions on that bill by other committees.
Seasoned Capitol veterans know that anything can turn up in omnibus bills which combine several bills into large packages. For example a pretty wide-open industrial hemp program was passed by the MN House in an agricultural omnibus bill several years ago. Even if we don't have luck getting any bill to pass a deadline, good language - or bad - can always wind up in the omnibus bills.
CONTACT INFO: House Members & Senate Members . More contacts for the Legislature. Find your district from your home address here.
Bills that need to be acted upon in either house before Friday, March 20th:
HF 542 / SF 404 - Necessity defense court recognition for cases involving natural herbs of the genus Cannabis authorization
- http://www.house.leg.state.mn.us/bills/billnum.asp?billnumber=hf542
- Committee Chair Rep. Cornish needs to be contacted to add this bills to his committee's agenda.
- http://www.house.leg.state.mn.us/bills/billnum.asp?billnumber=sf404
- Committee Chair Sen. Latz needs to be contacted to add this bills to his committee's agenda.
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HF 994 / SF 773 Controlled substance crimes addressed by lowering threshold amounts, eliminating minimum sentences, expanding nonviolent controlled substance offender conditional release program, making stay of adjudication law for low-level offenders mandatory, and directing savings from changes to be used for treatment and educational programs; and money appropriated.
- http://www.house.leg.state.mn.us/bills/billnum.asp?billnumber=hf994
- Committee Chair Rep. Cornish needs to be contacted to add this bills to his committee's agenda.
- http://www.house.leg.state.mn.us/bills/billnum.asp?billnumber=sf773
- Senate Judiciary Committee Chair Sen. Latz needs to be contacted to add this to his committee's agenda.
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HF 1141 / SF 545 - Chronic and intractable pain added as qualifying medical condition in the medical cannabis registry program.
- http://www.house.leg.state.mn.us/bills/billnum.asp?billnumber=hf1141
- House Health Committee Chair Rep. Mack needs to be contacted to add this to her committee's agenda.
- http://www.house.leg.state.mn.us/bills/billnum.asp?billnumber=sf545
- Senate Health Committee Chair Sen. Sheran needs to be contacted to add this to her committee's agenda.
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SF 600 - No knock search and arrest provisions modification.
- https://www.revisor.mn.gov/bills/bill.php?b=Senate&f=SF0600&ssn=0&y=2015
- Senate Judiciary Committee Chair Sen. Latz needs to be contacted to add this to his committee's agenda.
- This bill needs a House author to carry the bill.
Bills that were acted upon in one house and need to be scheduled in the other by Friday, March 27th:
HF 415 / SF 385 - Forfeiture laws modified on use of proceeds from the sale of forfeited property, required reports and financing, and how policies are adopted.
- http://www.house.leg.state.mn.us/bills/billnum.asp?billnumber=hf415
- Committee Chair Rep. Cornish needs to be contacted to add this bills to his committee's agenda.
- http://www.house.leg.state.mn.us/bills/billnum.asp?billnumber=sf385
- Committee Chair Sen. Latz needs to be contacted to add this to his committee's agenda.
Bills of interest that have already met both deadlines:
HF 683 / SF 618 - Industrial hemp industry development provided for and regulated, industrial hemp research authorized, rulemaking required, possession of industrial hemp defense provided, Marijuana and Wild Hemp definitions modified, and money appropriated. (Note that State Rep. Mary Franson (R) already got attacked by prohibitionists in her primary for supporting industrial hemp, and Sen. Bill Ingebrigtsen (R) supported this attack.)
- http://www.house.leg.state.mn.us/bills/billnum.asp?billnumber=hf683
- http://www.house.leg.state.mn.us/bills/billnum.asp?billnumber=sf618
Bills of interest that need to be monitored (might be good, might be bad):
SF 1382 - Controlled substance crimes provisions modifications (no House companion):
HF 1482 / SF 1771 - Medical Cannabis Therapeutic Research Act (marijuana) program provisions modifications
- http://www.house.leg.state.mn.us/bills/billnum.asp?billnumber=hf1482
- http://www.house.leg.state.mn.us/bills/billnum.asp?billnumber=sf1771
