SUPERVISORS APPROVE STRICTER RULES FOR POT CLUBS

After months of contentiousness and compromise, supervisors voted
unanimously Tuesday to impose a newly modified set of regulations for
medicinal marijuana clubs that allows most existing operations to
stay open under much closer oversight.

The latest incarnation, a set of sweeping amendments proposed by
Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi, means clubs could only sell 1 ounce of
cannabis at a time and all new clubs must be kept at least 1,000 feet
from schools. But it also gets rid of proposed record-keeping
requirements that some medical pot advocates feared could be
subpoenaed by federal prosecutors who are not swayed by California
state law allowing patients to use the substance with their doctor's
permission.

Once the 9-0 vote was taken, Mirkarimi stood to cheering applause in
the board chambers. He commended the patience of all who weighed in
during long discussions trying to balance the needs of patients with
those of neighbors and singled out the dozens of activists in the
medicinal cannabis community who attended hearing after hearing.

"At times, we've known that the community doesn't speak with one
voice," he said, but added that he considers the final legislation "a
perfect junction" for a forward-looking city. The plan will likely
allow all but a handful of The City's three dozen or so clubs to
remain where they are once they pay permit and business license fees
and meet new planning and health standards.

Supervisor Chris Daly, who had recently voiced opposition to certain
regulations out of concern that even clubs that had been "pretty good
neighbors" might be shuttered by zoning limits, said he was satisfied
with the new rules, which basically grandfather in the existing clubs
in the South of Market area.

Supervisors Sean Elsbernd and Gerardo Sandoval were absent for the vote.