Boulder to Convene Marijuana Panel To Study Regulation

Boulder will convene an advisory group in early January with a broad mandate to review the city's marijuana laws and suggest changes.

The idea for the group came about because cannabis business owners have sought frequent changes to the city's laws, which were developed to rein in the free-for-all that ensued when medical marijuana dispensaries first appeared in 2009, and complained that the city code doesn't keep pace with ever-changing state laws.

City Council members said they want to see a less antagonistic relationship between business owners and the city, with pot businesses treated like any other, while also responding to concerns about potential health impacts, particularly on teenagers.

The group will discuss and make recommendations about the city's policy of requiring businesses that sell both recreational and medical marijuana to have complete physical separation between the two sides, the creation of a schedule of penalties for violations, similar to what exists for alcohol-related businesses, cannabis bars to allow for public consumption, advertising rules, the sale of nonmarijuana products, security requirements, restrictions on the transfer of licenses and whether Boulder should adopt the state marijuana code into city code to allow for better enforcement.

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