Commissioner's Corner: Regulating medical marijuana

On Nov. 4, Floridians will vote on Amendment 2 to the state constitution. If passed, the amendment would allow the use of medical marijuana for conditions for which a physician believes the medical use of marijuana would likely outweigh the potential health risks for the patient. The amendment language also calls for the state Department of Health to institute a medical marijuana identification card program for patients and their caregivers as well as regulate the sale of medical marijuana and its related products. In other states that have adopted similar amendments, medical marijuana has been prescribed primarily for stress and pain ailments.

Amendment 2 is similar to ballot initiatives that legalized medical marijuana in other states. In 1996, Proposition 215 made California the first state in the nation to legalize medical marijuana. Proposition 215 gave doctors the ability to recommend marijuana for the treatment of a list of ailments including “any other illness for which marijuana provides relief.” While some local governments moved quickly to implement limits on medical marijuana-related businesses, others, most notably the city of Los Angeles, waited too long to implement regulations with disastrous results. In 2005, Los Angeles was home to four medical marijuana dispensaries. By 2007 that number had grown to approximately 186. Over the next five years, the number of dispensaries in Los Angeles skyrocketed. By 2012, an estimated 700 to 1,000 dispensaries were operating within city limits. While the city has tried several approaches to limit the number of dispensaries operating within its borders, to date they have been ineffective.

At my urging, Orange County is taking proactive action to prepare for the potential passage of Amendment 2. In May, I requested that the Board of County Commissioners discuss the potential issues that could arise should Amendment 2 pass. The board discussed the topic during our meeting on June 3, including prohibiting use of medical marijuana in public and regulating the growth and sale of medical marijuana. County staff is working on an ordinance that will be brought to the board for a work session in late July. Public hearings on the ordinance would be held as early as September.

Many local governments across the state have begun to prepare for the amendment’s passage. The cities of Maitland, Edgewood, Mount Dora, Cocoa Beach, Palmetto, Flagler Beach, and the Town of Ponce Inlet have each prepared draft ordinances addressing medical marijuana in their communities. These ordinances share several core components. They limit medical marijuana dispensaries to a single zoning district, restrict medical marijuana cultivation, prohibit loitering in and around dispensaries, ban drive-through service, limit hours of operation, and forbid alcohol on premises. They also include separation distances from facilities such as pain clinics, schools, churches, day cares, public parks, and other medical marijuana dispensaries.

I hope that an Orange County ordinance will incorporate good ideas from other municipalities’ draft ordinances as well as limit the public consumption of medical marijuana, particularly in our important tourist corridor. While bans on tobacco and alcohol consumption exist in state statute and the county code, no such ban on the consumption of medical marijuana exists. Denver, Colo., attempted to pass such an ordinance in 2013 but failed to do so due to public outcry. Our proactive action will ensure that Orange County does not face the same problems that have plagued local governments in other states.

I will do everything that I can to prevent the potential passage of Amendment 2 from negatively impacting our community. If you have any other questions or concerns about medical marijuana or any other issue facing Orange County, please feel free to contact me or my staff, Edgar Robinson and Lynette Rummel. We can be reached at 407-836-7350 or by email at [email protected]