LAWMAKERS MOVE TO ADVANCE STATE MEDICALMARIJUANA BILL by Jon Matthews
Bee Capitol Bureau Copyright (c) 1997, McClatchy Newspapers, Inc.

Legislation intended to help implement Proposition 215,
the state initiative allowing medical use of marijuana,
was approved Wednesday by the state Senate Health and Human
Services Committee.

Several lawenforcement officials opposed the bill,
noting that marijuana continues to be banned under federal
law. But supporters said the followup legislation simply
advances the will of state voters, who already have
approved medical use of the drug.

"This bill is very simple. It simply carries out the
will of the people of California," the author of the
measure, Sen. John Vasconcellos, DSanta Clara, told the
committee.

Proposition 215 was approved by California voters in
last November's election.

Among other things, the followup bill, SB 535, would:

* Find that the state's voters affirmed that " medical
marijuana is a drug with appropriate uses for the
treatment of thousands of Californians suffering from
serious illnesses," and that "physicianrecommended use of
medical marijuana is a health issue and not a criminal
justice issue."

* Direct the University of California to create a
Medical Marijuana Research Center to study the drug and
establish medical guidelines for medical marijuana use,
and provide an initial $ 2 million for the research. *
Require doctors to notify parents or guardians prior to
recommending any medical use of marijuana by a minor.

* Create a Medical Marijuana Distribution System Task
Force to research and design a statewide plan "for the safe
and affordable distribution of marijuana to all patients
in medical need of marijuana. "

In other legislative action Wednesday:

* A bill by Sen. Ray Haynes, RTemecula, to ban
ebonicsbased instruction from California classrooms was
rejected on a 38 vote by the Senate Education Committee.

* The state Senate Education Committee approved
legislation to overhaul the state's system for teaching 1.3
million children with limited English skills.

The committee advanced a measure by Sen. Deirdre Alpert,
DCoronado.

Alpert said the bill would give school districts badly
needed flexibility to develop their own bilingual programs,
while at the same time also holding the districts
accountable for results. The measure now moves to the
Senate Appropriations Committee. LOADDATE: April 4, 1997