San Jose Medical Marijuana Ban May Have To Go To Voters

City plans to end its medical marijuana industry, but may need to ask voters.

San Jose may have to have voter approval in order to shut down its medical marijuana industry.

Operators of the city's medical cannabis dispensaries -- most of which would be eliminated under a new city law that severely restricts what parts of the city are open to legal weed -- are pushing a voter initiative, according to the San Jose Mercury News.

Up to 99 percent of San Jose would be off-limits to medical marijuana businesses under strict new rules proposed by the city council in December. Those rules could become final in March.

However, with months to go, the city has already started sending out letters to some of its 82 medical  marijuana dispensaries, informing them it's time to shut down.

The voter initiative, which was cleared to collect signatures Monday, would establish a "minimum" of 50 dispensaries, the newspaper reported.

Most of marijuana's most-vociferous opponents are City Council members vying to succeed termed-out Mayor Chuck Reed.

The marijuana group, headed by Dave Hodges, head of All American Cannabis Collective, wants to create an 11-body "cannabis commission" that would oversee the industry.

That said, Councilwoman Rose Herrera is dead-set on shutting San Jose's weed industry down.

The marijuana business "have proven to me that they do not want to be regulated," she told the newspaper.

"They are going to oppose anything we do -- so we need to ban them," she said.

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