Action Alert: Solano County Medical Marijuana ID Card Program

Dear Medical Marijuana Supporter,

Next Tuesday, September 26, the Solano County Board of
Supervisors will be conducting a hearing on the
implementation of the medical marijuana ID card
program. The Board will likely decide whether or not
to implement the program at this important meeting,
set for 9am in Fairfield.

The ID cards would be voluntary for patients and
caregivers to obtain through the county and serve to
further protect them from detainment, arrest or
seizure of their medicine by state and local law
enforcement.

Approval of this program would be a major step in the
right direction towards securing safe and legal access
to medical marijuana in Solano County. With your help,
we can ensure that the Board of Supervisors votes to
uphold state law and protect local patients.

Please take a few minutes to contact the County
Supervisors (using the info listed below) and politely
urge them to support the medical marijuana ID card
program in Solano County. Feel free to use the talking
points or sample email posted at the end of this
message.

Email: cao-clerk [at] solanocounty.com

*This is a general mailbox; please address your email
to: "Honorable members of the Board of Supervisors."

Phone: (707) 784-6100 Hours: M-F, 8am-5pm

Its also very important that we fill the board
chambers with patients and advocates backing the
program. Please attend Tuesday's meeting to show your
support for safe, legal and hassle-free access to
medical marijuana in Solano County. Feel free to
contact me for meeting details.

Thank you for your support of this important program.
Once implemented, not only will it reduce patients'
risk, it will also further strengthen California's
decade-old medical marijuana law.

Sincerely,
Aaron Smith
Safe Access Now
safeaccessnow [at] gmail.com
(707) 291-0076

(see details below)

Solano Board Meeting Time and Location:

Tuesday, September 26 -- 9:00 am
County Government Center
675 Texas Street
Fairfield, CA 94533
Map: http://tinyurl.com/ncf5x

Feel free to use these talking points when addressing
this issue:

* The ID card protects patients and caregivers from
lengthy detainment, arrest, seizure of property or
unnecessary court proceedings. While patients are not
required to participate in the ID card program, many
choose to because they cannot afford the personal risk
of wrongful prosecution that those without ID cards
face.

* The ID card program will greatly assist
law-enforcement in distinguishing patients with
legitimate medical marijuana recommendations from
those who are using false or counterfeit
documentation. The county-administered ID program
clarifies the current patchwork of patient
documentation and frees our law enforcement and
judicial system to focus on genuine criminal activity.

* The county will not incur any additional costs by
implementing the ID card program because the county is
allowed to set its own fees to recoup the start-up and
operating costs. For example, the Oregon Medical
Marijuana Program, implemented in 1999, was able to
realize a $986,000 budget surplus after two years of
operation. This also allowed the state to
significantly reduce the fees imposed on patients.

* The county has a legal responsibility to the State
of California to implement the program because it is a
requirement of Senate Bill 420, signed into law in
2003

* Voters' support of safe and legal access to medical
marijuana has only grown stronger since the passage of
the Compassionate Use Act (Prop. 215) in 1996.
According to an independent field poll conducted in
2004, 74% of Californians support the implementation
of our states medical marijuana laws.

* Solano is the only county in the greater bay area
without the ID card program. Local implementation of
the state-mandated program will help Solano to catch
up with the rest of the region and provide consistency
for local patients and law-enforcement officers.

Sample email message:

Dear Honorable Members of the Board of Supervisors:

I am a patient residing in Solano County who uses
medical marijuana under the supervision of my doctor,
as permitted by state law. I am contacting you today
because I have been waiting far too long for Solano
County to fully implement our state's long-standing
medical marijuana laws.

Please vote to approve the medical marijuana ID card
program at Tuesday's meeting (agenda item #26). The
County is required by statute to implement this
program, refusal to do so would not only be a
violation of law, but would be a slap in the face to
the sick and dying in our community.

The program will benefit local law enforcement because
it provides a quick and easy means of identifying
patients using medical marijuana under state law.
There is no reason to spend precious resources
arresting critically ill residents who are abiding by
a decade-old, voter-approved law.

As a voter in Solano County, I am counting on you to
follow state law and the will of the voters by
approving the implementation of this important
program. Thank you for your time.

Sincerely,

[insert first and last name]
[city/town of residence, within Solano Co.]