Pot tourism in Colorado? Marijuana regulators OK idea
DENVER (AP) — Marijuana tourism is on the way to Colorado, under a recommendation made Tuesday by a state task force to regulate the drug made legal by voters last year.
But Colorado should erect signs in airports and borders telling visitors they can't take pot home, the task force recommended.
Colorado's marijuana task force was assembled to suggest regulations for pot after voters chose to flout federal drug law and allow its use without a doctor's recommendation. Made up of lawmakers, law enforcement authorities and marijuana activists, the task force agreed Tuesday that the constitutional amendment on marijuana simply says that adults over 21 can use the drug, not just Colorado residents. If lawmakers agree with the recommendation, tourists would be free to buy and smoke marijuana.
"Imposing a residency requirement would almost certainly create a black market for recreational marijuana in the state," said Rep. Dan Pabon, a Denver Democrat who sits on the task force.
Tourists could see purchasing caps though, possibly as low as an eighth of an ounce per transaction.
Afraid that marijuana tourism could open the door for traffickers to load up and take it across state borders for illegal sale, task force members agreed that non-residents should be able to buy only limited amounts, though a specific amount wasn't set.
"Marijuana purchased in Colorado must stay in Colorado," Pabon warned.
"We could attract greater federal scrutiny and displeasure of our neighbors," if marijuana flows across state lines, he said.
Task force members were less successful agreeing to recommendations on marijuana growing and public use. Colorado's marijuana law allows home growing but requires plants to be in a locked, secure location out of public view. The task force couldn't agree whether a "locked" and "secure" location would mean a backyard surrounded by a fence, or whether an enclosure such as a shed or greenhouse should be mandatory.
One of the task force's most vocal marijuana critics, Greenwood Village Police Chief John Jackson, worried that backyard pot gardens would need more than a chain-link fence to keep kids out.
Not all task force members agreed. User advocate Meg Sanders said the covering requirement wouldn't be fair to rural Coloradans.
"I think it goes too far in restricting what people can do on their own private property," Sanders said.
Public use also prompted a dispute that wasn't resolved Tuesday. Jackson and others wanted to ban marijuana use on publicly visible patios, porches and backyard. Marijuana activists chafed.
"So I can drink a beer on my porch? But I can't smoke a joint?" asked marijuana advocate Christian Sederberg.
State Sen. Cheri Jahn, D-Wheat Ridge, said lawmakers would hesitate to regulate something legal people do on private property. What about backyard grills that send the smell of hamburgers into the nose of a neighbor who's vegetarian?, she asked.
"I don't know how far we want to go telling people what they can't do on their own porches," she said.
The porch marijuana question was left unsettled. Task force members also put off a decision on proposals from Jackson to exempt law enforcement from maintaining marijuana and marijuana plants seized during criminal investigations.
Potency and labeling recommendations for commercial marijuana will also be discussed later.
The task force has until Feb. 28 to recommend marijuana regulations, which will ultimately be set by the state Legislature and the Department of Revenue, the agency which oversees gambling and alcohol and will also regulate recreational pot.
But Colorado should erect signs in airports and borders telling visitors they can't take pot home, the task force recommended.
Colorado's marijuana task force was assembled to suggest regulations for pot after voters chose to flout federal drug law and allow its use without a doctor's recommendation. Made up of lawmakers, law enforcement authorities and marijuana activists, the task force agreed Tuesday that the constitutional amendment on marijuana simply says that adults over 21 can use the drug, not just Colorado residents. If lawmakers agree with the recommendation, tourists would be free to buy and smoke marijuana.
"Imposing a residency requirement would almost certainly create a black market for recreational marijuana in the state," said Rep. Dan Pabon, a Denver Democrat who sits on the task force.
Tourists could see purchasing caps though, possibly as low as an eighth of an ounce per transaction.
Afraid that marijuana tourism could open the door for traffickers to load up and take it across state borders for illegal sale, task force members agreed that non-residents should be able to buy only limited amounts, though a specific amount wasn't set.
"Marijuana purchased in Colorado must stay in Colorado," Pabon warned.
"We could attract greater federal scrutiny and displeasure of our neighbors," if marijuana flows across state lines, he said.
Task force members were less successful agreeing to recommendations on marijuana growing and public use. Colorado's marijuana law allows home growing but requires plants to be in a locked, secure location out of public view. The task force couldn't agree whether a "locked" and "secure" location would mean a backyard surrounded by a fence, or whether an enclosure such as a shed or greenhouse should be mandatory.
One of the task force's most vocal marijuana critics, Greenwood Village Police Chief John Jackson, worried that backyard pot gardens would need more than a chain-link fence to keep kids out.
Not all task force members agreed. User advocate Meg Sanders said the covering requirement wouldn't be fair to rural Coloradans.
"I think it goes too far in restricting what people can do on their own private property," Sanders said.
Public use also prompted a dispute that wasn't resolved Tuesday. Jackson and others wanted to ban marijuana use on publicly visible patios, porches and backyard. Marijuana activists chafed.
"So I can drink a beer on my porch? But I can't smoke a joint?" asked marijuana advocate Christian Sederberg.
State Sen. Cheri Jahn, D-Wheat Ridge, said lawmakers would hesitate to regulate something legal people do on private property. What about backyard grills that send the smell of hamburgers into the nose of a neighbor who's vegetarian?, she asked.
"I don't know how far we want to go telling people what they can't do on their own porches," she said.
The porch marijuana question was left unsettled. Task force members also put off a decision on proposals from Jackson to exempt law enforcement from maintaining marijuana and marijuana plants seized during criminal investigations.
Potency and labeling recommendations for commercial marijuana will also be discussed later.
The task force has until Feb. 28 to recommend marijuana regulations, which will ultimately be set by the state Legislature and the Department of Revenue, the agency which oversees gambling and alcohol and will also regulate recreational pot.
If it's legal in the state I don't understand why Colorado would care where the purchaser resides permanently. Seems to me it's very similar to fireworks laws that vary from state to state. I can go into Washington and buy whatever I want and then make the decision to bring it back to Oregon if I so choose. That is of no concern to the state of Washington though, at that point it's an Oregon issue.
Well until the President removes Marijuana from it's present location on the Federal Drug Schedual people will go where they can do what they want. Colorado is the Nevada of Weed now. People fly from all over to Gamble and enjoy the Legal Prositution in Nevada and they will do the same in Washington and Colorado to enjoy Weed and they will spend a lot of money doing it. Just make the Taxes reasonable so the price is about what Medical costs and it will work just fine. Washington is going to tax it at 25% at three stages driving the cost up. They are also considering a 25% tax on Medical Marijuana when they do not Tax Medicine. I am glad Oregon waited so Wash and Co. can make all the expensive mistakes thatt we can learn from.
@swede760I'm glad that two states in our nation are debating issues such as potency and labeling recommendations for commercial marijuana.
I support liberty and the right of private enterprise. It's interesting to see how many "conservatives" hate the idea of allowing people to operate a business or enjoy themselves without Big Government yanking them around and legislating morality.
Condemning marijuana while advocating the right to have weapons for "sport" purposes is an ideological paradox. I don't feel like I have a right to tell you you can't sell or smoke pot (as long as you're not harming people) anymore than I have a right to tell you that you don't have a need for exploding targets or high-capacity AR-15 magazines.
Stand for liberty.
@Playanekes It's the same ideological paradox of outlawing firearms and legalizing cannabis. You sound like a Libertarian to me Playanekes.
I want to see cheech and chongs house but i thick there in cali.
This is just silly.How will they enforce such a absurdity? Unless you are taking a pound of it out of the state?
@noneofyourbizzness We already gave away pretty much every right we had to free air travel after 9/11 so the TSA can keep us safe, so, well, there's that.
Burns me up Oregon didn't have first dibs on the "legal" pot tourism business. Although our medical program has been a pretty big draw for years now.
Nobody is travelling to Colorado simply to smoke weed.
@trololol Maybe not from the west coast...
Sounds like something a pothead would think up.  Maybe the drug cartels will operate like Walmart and sell the pot at deep discounts so as to run the other dealers out of business.  Then they will control the market and prices will go much higher.  Kind of like Washington's voter's plan to reduce the cost of booze by kicking the state out of selling it.  I can see it now.  People will come from all over to  buy their pot and it will all be confiscated when they get home.  Definitely a pothead's brainstorm.
@Shadow
There are all Nanny Statist issues.
@Shadow I'm sure the cartels want to compete with legal businesses.  They probably love filing their business licenses and tax forms.
@Shadow Sounds like you've been smoking something a lot heavier than weed.
Coming to washington next?
Rocky Mountain High Coloradooooooooooooo....
Woohoo get high on mountains.
As a Colorado transplant I feel right at home in Washington State, but I miss dear old Coloradoooooo....
When I left it was a Red state, but I guess they started drinking the blue koolaid and smoking the bud.
So sad!
@The Resistance Thank all the emigrating Californians.
@TreeWizard What, the 20,000 of them?
@TreeWizard @The Resistance ---- we had bumper stickers saying "Don't Californicate Colorado". To late now.
Or old ignorant people dying off.
@trololol Don't worry, there are more than enough young ignorant people to make up for them.
@trololol Nope. Am right.
What? You can't take it with you? Better leave all the other Colorado souveniers there also!
heck yeah, screw copenhagen