Senate Bill 643, AssemblyBill 266 and Assembly Bill 243 might be unconstitutional

Pasadena, CA — A medical marijuana collective operator says that the Medical Marijuana Regulation and Safety Act, signed into law in California last month violates the state's constitution. The collective operator is bringing this claim in a California court.

The law was signed on October 9, 2015 by Governor Jerry Brown and serves as a framework for cannabis production, transportation, and sale of the substance in California. Brown believes the law as a comprehensive plan will successfully regulate the industry.

Lawmakers who are responsible for drafting the act say that it will provide a worker and safety standards, protect patient access, establish security, and provide a licensing structure for the industry. The bipartisan group believes that the act will infuse the industry with necessary local and state control.

David Armstrong, the collective operator, claims that the act violates the constitution because it contradicts a voter initiative from 1996. The initiative, called the Compassionate Use Act, legalized physician-recommended medical marijuana without voter approval.

Armstrong's complaint argues that federal law preempts the act in prohibiting possession of marijuana for any purpose. Armstrong made that claim, seemingly at odds with his job, to prevent federal complications should the state law stand, his attorney said.

Armstrong also has a number of other objections to the act and its restrictions on the industry. He disagrees with the restrictions the act places on the amounts of medical marijuana a patient's primary caregiver can grow for medicinal use, limits on the number of patients to whom a doctor can recommend cannabis to, and many more.

Armstrong says, "The law essentially changes everything operators do. It's going to require the state government's OK to participate in this activity at all, and it's going to be up to the state's discretion to determine who's allowed to distribute."

Armstrong hired attorney Nicholas Emanuel to represent him; Emanuel said of his client, "He is not anti-regulation, in fact, he favors it. He believes the act is 'not the most effective way to do things since it is completely illegal under federal law.

In an industry where a professional can run into legal complications without even knowing it is essential to be aware of every law that could affect ones business and follow them to the letter. George Boyadjian, CEO of 420 College commented, "We had a good, workable system in place with the Attorney General Guidelines. The trouble was that hardly any industry professionals followed them with the necessary diligence. We've been educating people in the cannabis industry about the ever-changing guidelines for some time. We've had some people question the value of our seminars because they thought that simply having access to the information would translate to an understanding of it. We're finding that this is far from the truth."

Armstrong added, "To develop a coherent and realistic policy we need to have all levels of government working together, rather than this sort of patchwork regulation that we have now."

420 College, one of the industry leaders since 2009, have been providing seminars and workshops focused on best business practices, client services, cultivation, and the latest developments in cannabis laws, will be hosting a seminar in San Diego November 7 & 8 to go over the Attorney General Guidelines, Senate Bill 643, Assembly Bill 266 and Assembly Bill 243with attorney William McPike and other industry professionals.

Media contact:
Name: George Boyadjian
Company: 420 College
Website: http://420college.org
Email: [email protected]
Phone: (855) 420-8255