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About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 29, 2016)
4A THE DAILY ASTORIAN • TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 29, 2016 Weed: Marijuana industy has grown under three presidents level rules. When states began pushing the marijuana exper- iment beyond the medical realm, former Attorney Gen- eral Eric Holder urged them to keep the drug away from crim- inals, kids, federal lands and other states where it remains illegal. Marijuana activists say the pot experiment is too far along for anyone to stop, but the industry is anxious. When Sessions was announced as the attorney general nominee, the pro-legalization group Drug Policy Alliance didn’t mince words. “This,” the group announced in an urgent email to supporters, “was our worst nightmare.” Continued from Page 1A Department could file lawsuits on the grounds that state laws regulating pot are unconsti- tutional because they are pre- empted by federal law. Something similar hap- pened in 2010, when the Jus- tice Department successfully sued Arizona to block an immi- gration law that conflicted with federal immigration law. Federal courts can also compel action, not just block it, as in Kentucky last year, when a county clerk was ordered to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples following a landmark Supreme Court ruling. Twenty-eight states and Washington, D.C., allow mar- ijuana for medical or recre- ational purposes. The govern- ment has yet to sue any of them. Raid pot businesses: The government could avoid court entirely if it doesn’t mind a more expensive option: law-en- forcement raids. The Drug Enforcement Administration retains the legal ability to shut down any- one selling or growing pot, but there has been no coordinated federal attempt to close pot pro- ducers in multiple states. The agency has said repeatedly that it does not have the resources to pursue ordinary pot users. Any change in that approach would likely require more money from Congress, which just saw many of its con- stituents vote in favor of legal- ization. And a federal agency probably will not spend limited resources busting people grow- ing pot for personal use, said John McKay, a former U.S. attorney in Washington state. “Who is going to stop peo- ple from smoking pot in a res- idence in Denver? Federal agents?” he said. “They are going to stop doing terrorism investigations and start arrest- ing people for pot? That, to me, is crazy.” Still, a series of raids could upend the marijuana landscape and chill investment in the fledgling industry. Financial hurdles It’s the biggest complaint in the weed business: taxes. Businesses selling mari- juana cannot use tax breaks or incentives offered to other small businesses, and some of them say they pay 80 per- cent or more of every dollar on taxes and fees. They have lim- ited access to banking because many financial institutions are leery of the paperwork they are required to file on clients work- ing with marijuana. Colorado officials tried last year to ease the banking burden by setting up a special credit union to safely handle pot- shops money, only to see the Federal Reserve Bank and fed- eral courts block the effort. As long as Congress and the new administration leave those hurdles in place, the marijuana business will grow haltingly. Voters may generally support pot legalization, but few have sympathy for a pot entrepre- neur unable to become a multi- millionaire because of banking obstacles. AP Photo/Brennan Linsley AP Photo/Brennan Linsley The morning sun rises behind a row of maturing pot plants at Los Suenos Farms in Avondale, Colo. Farmworkers transport newly harvested marijuana plants at Los Suenos Farms in Avondale, Colo. ington state spent more than a year mulling rules for the pot business. dents, each opposed to legal- ized weed. The Obama administration Anxious industry The marijuana industry has grown under three presi- has generally shied away from pursuing commercial opera- tors who comply with state- BLAZERS BONUS See store for details. Promotion ends 4/11/17. For every 5 participating products you purchase, you’ll receive a code making you eligible to enter the BLAZERS BONUS Sweepstakes! Open only to residents of Oregon and SW Washington. See www.trailblazers.com/blazersbonus for offi cial rules regarding eligibility, prizes and odds of winning. THANK YOU TO OUR SPONSORS PARTICIPATING ITEMS clip or CLICK! 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