Las Vegas, NV: Attendees at the 81st annual United States Conference of
Mayors voted this week in favor of a resolution urging the federal government to stop interfering
in the affairs of states that have legalized the use of cannabis. Mayors from
some 200 US cities nationwide participated in the vote.
The measure resolves, "[S]tates and localities should be able to set whatever marijuana policies work best to improve the public safety and health of their communities," and calls for amending the federal Controlled Substances Act "to explicitly allow states to set their own marijuana policies without federal interference." It further calls on the Obama administration "to reexamine the priorities of federal agencies to prevent the expenditure of resources on actions that undermine the duly enacted marijuana laws of states."
Mayors Bob Filner (San Diego, CA), Mike McGinn (Seattle, WA), Jean Quan (Oakland, CA), Steve Hogan (Aurora, CO), Marilyn Strickland (Tacoma, WA), Tom Bates (Berkeley, CA), Stephen Cassidy (San Leandro, CA), and Matthew Ryan (Binghamton, NY) submitted the resolution, which was approved unanimously.
The US Conference of Mayors had previously adopted a resolution at its 75th annual meeting declaring the war on drugs a "failure" and calling for a "health-centered reorientation of drug policy" that provides "cities, counties and states the flexibility they need to find the most effective way" to deal with drug control.
For more information, please contact NORML Communications Director Erik Altieri at (202) 483-5500 or visit: http://www.marijuanamajority.com.
The measure resolves, "[S]tates and localities should be able to set whatever marijuana policies work best to improve the public safety and health of their communities," and calls for amending the federal Controlled Substances Act "to explicitly allow states to set their own marijuana policies without federal interference." It further calls on the Obama administration "to reexamine the priorities of federal agencies to prevent the expenditure of resources on actions that undermine the duly enacted marijuana laws of states."
Mayors Bob Filner (San Diego, CA), Mike McGinn (Seattle, WA), Jean Quan (Oakland, CA), Steve Hogan (Aurora, CO), Marilyn Strickland (Tacoma, WA), Tom Bates (Berkeley, CA), Stephen Cassidy (San Leandro, CA), and Matthew Ryan (Binghamton, NY) submitted the resolution, which was approved unanimously.
The US Conference of Mayors had previously adopted a resolution at its 75th annual meeting declaring the war on drugs a "failure" and calling for a "health-centered reorientation of drug policy" that provides "cities, counties and states the flexibility they need to find the most effective way" to deal with drug control.
For more information, please contact NORML Communications Director Erik Altieri at (202) 483-5500 or visit: http://www.marijuanamajority.com.