TX Medi-Pot bill now pending

Discussion in 'Activism' started by EarthWorm, Feb 4, 2009.

  1. EarthWorm

    EarthWorm Member

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    Please do your part by passing this on everywhere!!! This is Texas'
    4th attempt. Not enough people knew about the others to get behind them
    and get them passed.


    January 6, 2009

    Medical marijuana bill introduced

    A bill has been introduced that would allow seriously ill patients to
    raise a medical necessity defense to charges of possessing marijuana
    for medical use. This legislation was introduced during the 2007
    legislative session, however, despite the fact that a 2004 poll showed
    75% of Texans support medical marijuana, the bill died in committee.

    Please send your state legislators an e-mail today letting them know
    that you hope to see more of an effort made during the 2009 session to
    provide medical marijuana patients with the protection they need.

    You can also help support HB 164 by submitting a letter to the editor of any Texas newspaper, online or via U.S. mail.

    HB 164 would permit physicians to make written or oral recommendations
    that, in the physician's medical opinion, the potential benefits of
    marijuana would likely outweigh the health risks for a particular
    patient. If arrested for possession of marijuana, a patient with a
    recommendation from his or her physician would be able to assert an
    affirmative defense to charges arising from his or her medical use of
    marijuana. If a court accepts the affirmative defense, it would mean
    that a patient could avoid jail time and fines. The bill would not,
    however, protect patients from the initial arrest.

    This bill is authored by a long-tiime champion for our cause, Elliot Naishtat. Please take a minute to send him an e-mail thanking him for his efforts and encouraging him not to ever stop. It's real easy. Just go to his web page at:
    http://www.house.state.tx.us/members/email.php?dist=49&rep=elliott.naishtat

    "Our side" has two major problems- lack of action and lack of communication. So, please, at least take the time to cross post this. That will fix both of the above mentioned problems.

    Thanks for fighting the good fight!
     
  2. EarthWorm

    EarthWorm Member

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    81(R) HB 164 - Introduced version - Bill Text

    Author: Naishtat



    81R1585 GCB-D By: Naishtat H.B. No. 164 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED AN ACT relating to the medical use of marihuana. BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: SECTION 1. Section 481.121, Health and Safety Code, is amended by adding Subsections (c) and (d) to read as follows: (c)It is an affirmative defense to prosecution under Subsection (a) that the person possessed the marihuana as a patient of a physician licensed to practice medicine in this state pursuant to the recommendation of that physician for the amelioration of the symptoms or effects of a bona fide medical condition. (d)An agency, including a law enforcement agency, of this state or a political subdivision of this state may not initiate an administrative, civil, or criminal investigation into a physician licensed to practice medicine in this state on the ground that the physician discussed marihuana as a treatment option with a patient of the physician or made a written or oral statement that, in the physician's opinion, the potential benefits of marihuana would likely outweigh the health risks for a particular patient. SECTION 2. Subchapter B, Chapter 164, Occupations Code, is amended by adding Section 164.0525 to read as follows: Sec.164.0525.MEDICAL USE OF MARIHUANA. A physician may not be denied any right or privilege or be subject to any disciplinary action solely for making a written or oral statement that, in the physician's professional opinion, the potential benefits of marihuana would likely outweigh the health risks for a particular patient. SECTION 3. The change in law made by this Act applies only to an offense committed on or after the effective date of this Act. An offense committed before the effective date of this Act is covered by the law in effect when the offense was committed, and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose. For purposes of this section, an offense was committed before the effective date of this Act if any element of the offense was committed before that date. SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 2009.
     
  3. EarthWorm

    EarthWorm Member

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    Join Operation Contact Hi!

    Attention all compassionate citizens of Texas! Please join me in an informal gathering of people who care, as I contact my state representatives and Texas newspapers to just say hello, explain marijuana to them, and ask them to support the current medi-pot bill.

    This week (Feb. 4 thru Feb. 10th)

    Write, fax, call, or send an e-mail the following House Members that Co-sponsored the same bill in the last session (2007) and ask for them to sign onto this years bill:

    Jackson, Jim(R) in Carolton/Dallas
    1120 Metrocrest Drive #107
    Carrollton, TX 75011
    (972) 416-7698
    (972) 418-1304 Fax
    E-Mail URL: http://www.house.state.tx.us/members...ep=jim.jackson

    Coleman, Garnet F.(D) in Houston
    5445 Alameda, Suite 501
    Houston, TX 77004
    (713) 520-5355
    (713) 520-1860 Fax
    E-Mail URL: http://www.house.state.tx.us/members...garnet.coleman

    To submit your Letter to the Editor of the Austin-American Statesman:

    http://www.statesman.com/opinion/con...tersubmit.html
    The Austin-American Statesman is the main, major newspaper in our stat's capitol city.

    The Houston Chronicle

    ****This is the school district where all the hoopla is over drug testing the teachers. See if you can speak their language. Try to tie in what you say with that controversy. Just an idea.****

    Send letters to the editor, 250 words or less, as part of e-mail text to viewpoints@chron.com. Include name, address, and day and evening phone numbers for verification purposes only. Letters subject to editing.
    Reader essays policy
    E-mail essays, up to 600 words long, to outlook@chron.com. No attachments, please. Include name, day and evening phone, and byline identification with affiliation or expertise related to essay.


    [​IMG] About Letters to the Editor:

    Letters to the editor REACH millions of registered voters in one fell swoop. So powerful is the Letter to the Editor, that whenever you mention the name of a political representative in one (that gets published), a copy of your letter is faxed to the desk of the politician/s you mentioned (by name) and they ACTUALLY READ IT.
     
  4. EarthWorm

    EarthWorm Member

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    Texans! Here are places where you can go to get more information:

    Texas Coalition for Compassionate Care
    (texascompassion.com)

    Formerly named Texans for Medical Marijuana, you might be familiar with some of their accomplishments, as outlined on their website. Some of the contact information in my last post came from their site.

    Because of the lack of an easily-accessed central location for all related Texas legalization news, I've created an e-mail group. I don't know how long I can keep visiting all these forums myself. Like everyone else, I have busy times in my life and not so busy times. Hopefully, someone else in the e-group will use the alerts posted there and post them around the Internet. Because, that's what this is all about- communication. I've seen two previous bills in Texas die in committee because they didn't even have enough support to make it to the floor for a vote. I don't want that to happen this time, or ever again. But, I can't do it without YOU, my fellow compassionate Texans.

    So, to this end, you may choose to subscribe to the e-group by sending an e-mail to:
    legalize_texas-subscribe@yahoogroups.com



    At Texas Legislature Online (http://www.legis.state.tx.us/) you can sign up to be notified of any movement of this bill, find your representative, and take advantage of the tons of other b.s. they have on their website, which you may be interested in. This is the site I use to get contact information for "Operation Contact Hi!"


    Project Vote Smart

    Here, you can find out where Texas politicians stand by reviewing their voting records, that being what bills they voted on, which way they voted, and whether or not the bill was passed. There is another function here where each representative is given a questionnaire, asking what issues they support. Just for an example, I pulled up Elliot Naishtat's, because he is the author of our beloved bill, HB 164. The "X" are what he supports. No "X" means he doesn't support it.


    Crime Issues
    (Back to top) Related: Key Votes Ratings Indicate which principles you support (if any) regarding crime.X a) Increase state funds for construction of state prisons and hiring of additional prison staff.
    b) Support the death penalty in Texas.X c) Support programs to provide prison inmates with vocational and job-related skills and job-placement assistance when released.X d) Implement penalties other than incarceration for certain non-violent offenders.X e) Decriminalize the possession of small amounts of marijuana.
    f) Minors accused of a violent crime should be prosecuted as adults.
    g) Support state and local law enforcement officials enforcing federal immigration laws.X h) Support hate crime legislation.
    i) Other or expanded principles
    I like reviewing Project Vote Smart's data before contacting my representative, so I don't waste an entire letter educating someone whose been voting my way for the past five years.
    Project Vote Smart's website is located at: http://www.votesmart.org/index.htm

    And, finally, I'd like to recommend this fun video over at You Tube, about how a bill becomes a law. This cartoon video uses the federal system as a setting, but everything is the same, except the President/White House would be the Governor/the State Capitol Building in Austin.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mEJL2Uuv-oQ
     
  5. blackcat666

    blackcat666 Senior Member

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    i hate to be the bearer of bad news, but my state rep say this has no chance to pass.
    as he told me, most reps belive they will lose their seats if they vote for it.
     
  6. EarthWorm

    EarthWorm Member

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    Thanks, but that's not bad news. Bad news would be that the Committee head who leads whatever committee this bill lands in, won't allow it to be voted on. That's the only real road block any bill can have.

    It's no surprise your representative says this bill has no chance, but is that really a reason to quit and give up? Because, I guarantee that given our past habit of sitting around doing nothing, your representative is 100% correct. But, the truth is that a poll has showed that 75% of Texans support legalizing medical marijuana. I'm sure your representative failed to mention that fact.

    I've been an activist for many, many years. I haven't been fighting this fight, but I have been an activist. I've written many letters and I can assure you that at this stage, all but about 5 of Texas' House members are going to tell you the exact same thing, because they believe what they are saying.

    But, look at their educational sources- each other and those stupid drug commercials. Because we do not write and educate them, because we don't insist on straight answers out of them instead of b.s. excuses sung to the tune of "give up and go away because you don't stand a chance", and because we don't write to them and remind them that we can vote them out of office if they fail to represent the 75% of us Texans who DO support legalizing medical marijuana, your representative is probably right.

    It's our job to make sure that our representatives understand and comprehend that they will lose their seats if they don't vote for it!

    Now, please write back to your representative, include some educational brochures, remind him that 75% of Texans are in favor of legalizing medical marijuana and remind him that his only purpose is to represent his constituents (voters), so he should be doing that. I know I don't have to remind you to always be polite, always ask for a reply, and always ask if your representative plans to sponsor HR 164.

    Thanks for talking to your rep about this issue!!!
     
  7. EarthWorm

    EarthWorm Member

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    Operation Contact Hi!

    Here are this week's two political and two news contacts.

    This is for the week of February 11th through February 17th, 2009.

    Political:

    Representative Joe Straus, (R) in Bexar County

    Rep. Joe Straus
    7373 Broadway, Suite 202-A
    San Antonio, TX 78209
    Phone: 210-828-4411
    Fax: 210-826-0567

    Send comments via e-mail at this URL:
    http://www.house.state.tx.us/members...rep=joe.straus
    This guy is the Speaker of the House (of Representatives) in Texas. He has a pretty extensive background in finance, so you may consider basing your argument on the benefits to our economy.
    His page on Project Vote Smart is here: http://votesmart.org/bio.php?can_id=49917


    Rep. Jim Jackson (R) Carrolton (right next to Dallas)
    1120 Metrocrest Drive
    #107
    Carrollton, TX 75006
    Phone: 972-416-7698
    Fax: 972-418-1304

    Send comments via e-mail at this URL:
    http://www.house.state.tx.us/members...ep=jim.jackson
    This guy was a co-author of our last medical marijuana bill.

    **Remember, what this bill needs now is SPONSORS. We need to be asking these representatives, "will you please sign on as a sponsor to HB 164?" We must ask them directly. We cannot just convince them to vote for it, because then they all sit and wait for it to come out of committee, which it never does, in Texas. [​IMG]

    Texas Newspapers:

    Please send a Letter to the Editor of the following two newspapers:

    The Dallas Morning News
    http://dallasmorningviewsblog.dallas...etters-to-the/
    On this page, you will see an oblong column on the left side of your screen. It's got tips for getting your Letter to the Editor published, and you can also choose which category you want your Letter to go into. This newspaper is the main newspaper circulated in Carrolton, too. Kindly mentioning Rep. Jackson (above) would probably be a good thing to do.



    Amarillo Daily News/Amarillo Globe Times at amarillo.com:
    You are allowed one letter per calendar month. Letters should be no longer than 200 words. Please include your full name, street address and daytime telephone number. If you do not include this information, your submission will not be considered.

    Please mail your submissions to Amarillo Globe-News, Letters Editor, P.O. Box 2091, Amarillo TX 79166; send them by FAX at 806-345-3400; e-mail them to letters@amarillo.com; or deliver them in person at the public entrance on 900 S. Harrison St. in downtown Amarillo.
    This is Rep. William Thornberry's district, in case you want to name him in your Letter to the Editor. I cannot find any information about where he stands on our issue.

    Please don't forget to forward this everywhere! [​IMG]
     
  8. EarthWorm

    EarthWorm Member

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    Please, everyone, remember that our problem has been silence. We must overcome that and get our fellow Texans busy writing, calling, faxing, and forwarding.

    It is extremely unlikely that this bill will get passed this year, but it is not impossible. I say it is unlikely because of how all our other bills have sat in committee with no interest by any of our representatives to move it out of committee.

    Our representatives are not seeing what we're seeing- that 75% of Texans have already said they favor medical marijuana being made legal somehow. When our bills come up, we either don't know about them or don't do anything to help them get passed, so our representatives don't hear anything about them; not a lot of (if any) talk is generated about them in Austin, so it's no wonder our representatives don't think this issue is really important to anyone.

    Only we can change that.

    Only we can breathe life into a bill that shows up D.O.A. every year.
     
  9. EarthWorm

    EarthWorm Member

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    My Letter to the Editor of the Dallas Morning News:


    [FONT=&quot]Once again, Texas has a medical marijuana bill, which may come up for a vote some time this year. A 2004 poll showed 75% of Texans support medical marijuana. A state as large as Texas has its fair share of citizens who use marijuana as a medicine. They join others, such as Montel Williams, who suffers from Multiple Sclerosis and states he cannot get through the taping of one show without smoking pot in the bathroom between takes. There are others, average citizens, who are ready to testify before Texas government, and tell their stories. Then, we can better judge whether or not to support HB 164, a bill that does not legalize medical marijuana. It merely legalizes physician’s ability to prescribe it, and allows someone arrested on marijuana charges to state in court that they do have a prescription for it. If a bill were passed to legalize medical marijuana in Texas, we would be the 14th state to do so. I am writing to my representatives in congress in support of this bill no other states where medicinal marijuana is legal are experiencing a societal meltdown; therefore, a tiny bit of compassion on our part will not, either.[/FONT]
     
  10. EarthWorm

    EarthWorm Member

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    These are the current members of the committee on Public Health, where HB 164 is sitting, and will die, without our support to breathe life into it:


    Chair- Representative Lois W. Kolkhorst
    Room E2.318, Capitol Extension
    Austin, TX 78701
    (512) 463-0600
    (512) 463-5240 Fax

    Vice- Chair Representative Elliott Naishtat
    Author of HB164
    Room GW.16, Capitol Building
    Austin, TX 78701
    (512) 463-0668
    (512) 463-8022 Fax

    Representative Garnet Coleman
    Room GW.17, Capitol Building
    Austin, TX 78701
    (512) 463-0524
    (512) 463-1260 Fax

    Representative John E. Davis
    Room 4S.4, Capitol Building
    Austin, TX 78701
    (512) 463-0734
    (511) 479-6955 Fax

    Representative Veronica Gonzales
    Room E1.324, Capitol Extension
    Austin, TX 78701
    (512) 463-0578
    (512) 463-1482 Fax

    Representative Chuck Hopson
    Room E2.708, Capitol Extension
    Austin, TX 78701
    (512) 463-0592
    (512) 463-8792 Fax

    Representative Susan King
    Room E2.416, Capitol Extension
    Austin, TX 78701
    (512) 463-0718
    (512) 463-0994 Fax

    Representative Jodie Laubenberg
    Room EXT E2.504
    P.O. Box 2910
    Austin, TX 78768
    (512) 463-0186
    (512) 463-5896 Fax

    Representative Jim McReynolds
    Room CAP 1W.3
    P.O. Box 2910
    Austin, TX 78768
    (512) 463-0490
    (512) 463-9059 Fax
    (877) 796-0581

    Representative Vicki Truitt
    Room CAP GW.18
    P.O. Box 2910
    Austin, TX 78768
    (512) 463-0690
    (512) 477-5770 Fax

    Representative John Zerwas
    Room EXT E2.316
    P.O. Box 2910
    Austin, TX 78768
    (512) 463-0657
    (512) 236-0713 Fax
    (888) 827-1560 Toll Free
     
  11. EarthWorm

    EarthWorm Member

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    Operation Contact Hi! has moved elsewhere on this forum!

    For this week, and all future weeks, until such a time as they are posted on this forum no longer, please follow this thread:

    Hip Forums>Activism>Activist Spotlight>Operation Contact Hi! TEXAS

    As far as I know, this thread is still open. I just thought the OCH! messages were starting to get lost among all the other posts.

    Thanks again for participating. I am currently working with Drug Sense dot org to try to fit the Operation Contact Hi! list in their weekly newsletter. I think it's just a format issue and soon, many more people will be receiving the weekly list!

    Please don't take for granted that other people are writing or calling, so you don't need to. That is why our bills always fail. We don't realize how important each one of us is, as individuals.

    Everyone reading this is crucial to our cause! YOU are important, YOUR help is needed!
    Please support and participate in Operation Contact Hi!

    Thanks in advance for your help. Together, we can Save Texas!
     
  12. Tsurugi_Oni

    Tsurugi_Oni Member

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    One step closer to allowing this amazing plant to heal the world. Keep this thread stickied! All this information and especially contacts are very important.
     

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