{"id":79852,"date":"2025-01-22T05:41:08","date_gmt":"2025-01-22T13:41:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/2025\/01\/22\/idaho-house-passes-bill-to-set-mandatory-minimum-fine-for-marijuana-possession\/"},"modified":"2025-01-22T19:46:25","modified_gmt":"2025-01-23T03:46:25","slug":"idaho-house-passes-bill-to-set-mandatory-minimum-fine-for-marijuana-possession","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/2025\/01\/22\/idaho-house-passes-bill-to-set-mandatory-minimum-fine-for-marijuana-possession\/","title":{"rendered":"Idaho House Passes Bill To Set Mandatory Minimum Fine For Marijuana Possession"},"content":{"rendered":"<\/p>\n

\u201cTell me what state\u2014anybody who debates against this bill\u2014what state is a better place because of the passage of marijuana legalization?\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

By Clark Corbin, Idaho Capital Sun<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Idaho House of Representatives voted largely along party lines Tuesday to pass a new bill that would create a mandatory minimum fine of $300 for anyone convicted of marijuana possession<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Following a lengthy debate at the Idaho State Capitol in Boise, House members voted 54-14 to pass\u00a0House Bill 7.<\/p>\n

Rep. Bruce Skaug, R-Nampa, sponsored House Bill 7. Skaug said an unnamed judge requested he bring the bill to establish a mandatory minimum fine of simple marijuana possession of 3 ounces or less.<\/p>\n

Skaug said passing the bill is a way to be tough on marijuana in an environment where most of Idaho\u2019s neighboring states allow recreational or medicinal cannabis. Washington, Oregon, Nevada, Montana and allow for the recreational use and sale of cannabis, while Utah offers medical cannabis.<\/p>\n

Skaug said several law enforcement organizations, including the Fraternal Order of Police, support the bill, as do several Republican organizations.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd the state GOP, with a resolution, supports being tough on marijuana and keeping marijuana from becoming normalized in our state, and use of it,\u201d Skaug said Tuesday. \u201cNot long ago, all 50 states of this nation outlawed marijuana.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cTell me what state\u2014anybody who debates against this bill\u2014what state is a better place because of the passage of marijuana legalization?\u201d Skaug asked. \u201cI submit none.\u201d<\/p>\n

Opponents of marijuana bill question need to take away judges\u2019 discretion during sentencing<\/b><\/h4>\n

House Minority Leader Ilana Rubel, D-Boise, argued against passing the bill Tuesday. Rubel said there is no reason to take away judges\u2019 discretion and implement mandatory minimum fines. Rubel said many Idahoans, including disabled U.S. Air Force veteran Jeremy Kitzhaber, would like to be able to use cannabis medically to treat pain and stimulate their appetite.<\/p>\n

Kitzhaber, who has stage four cancer,\u00a0testified last week\u00a0before a legislative committee that his doctors told him they wished medical cannabis was a legal treatment<\/a> option for Kitzhaber, who lost more than 40 pounds while going through chemotherapy treatments.<\/p>\n

\u201c[Kitzhaber] is in constant agony, and his only alternative is opioids, which completely destroyed his system,\u201d Rubel said Tuesday. \u201cHe\u2019s actually had to be hospitalized several times from the impact the opioids have on his system, and really the only safe painkiller he can take is cannabis.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAgain, this bill is not about medical cannabis, but it is about whether we\u2019re going to make the lives of folks like Sgt. Kitzhaber even harder,\u201d Rubel added.<\/p>\n

In the end, five House Republicans joined the nine Democrats in opposing the bill<\/a>. Reps. Kevin Andrus, R-Lava Hot Springs; Robert Beiswenger, R-Horseshoe Bend; David Cannon, R-Blackfoot; Jack Nelson, R-Jerome; and Mark Sauter, R-Sandpoint, joined Democrats in opposing the bill.<\/p>\n

Sauter said he opposed the bill after checking with a judge in his home district.<\/p>\n

This year\u2019s marijuana mandatory minimum fine bill is similar to an unsuccessful bill Skaug pushed last year,\u00a0House Bill 606, that would have created\u00a0a mandatory minimum fine of $420\u00a0for marijuana possession<\/a>. Last year, the House Judiciary, Rules and Administration Committee killed House Bill 606 after several legislators complained about taking away judges\u2019 discretion.
\nHouse Bill 7 heads next to the Idaho Senate for consideration.<\/p>\n

This story was first published by Idaho Capital Sun.<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

\n

Trump\u2019s New DEA Head Blamed Marijuana For School Shootings And Claimed Rescheduling Push Was Politically Motivated<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\n

Photo courtesy of Brian Shamblen<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

The post Idaho House Passes Bill To Set Mandatory Minimum Fine For Marijuana Possession<\/a> appeared first on Marijuana Moment<\/a>.<\/p>\n


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\u201cTell me what state\u2014anybody who debates against this bill\u2014what state is a better place because of the passage of marijuana legalization?\u201d By Clark Corbin, Idaho Capital Sun The Idaho House of Representatives voted largely along party lines Tuesday to pass a new bill that would create a mandatory minimum fineContinue Reading<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":457,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"false","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[81],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/79852"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/457"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=79852"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/79852\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":79853,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/79852\/revisions\/79853"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=79852"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=79852"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=79852"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}