EMAIL YOUR REPRESENTATIVES HERE AS WELL, LET’S LET THEM KNOW WHAT WE WANT!
HIGH, Everyone!
Hope everyone had a wonderful Holiday and is as excited as we are about the change we’re pushing here in Texas. We’ve got about 18 Days left in our membership drive and have gained about 25 new members and would like to thank all of you who have suggested us to your friends and helped our organization grow. We will be continuing with the Drive these next couple of weeks and are going to be working on bolstering our ranks. The legislative session has started and we’ve got until June 1st to get one of these Bills supported and brought to a vote, where we will be able to decide our policies through the ballot box if we can let our Representatives know that it’s what we truly want. Information on HB 548, a bill that has been re-introduced in the Texas House of Representatives, as well as information on the Hekkela and Timmons Acts is available in the next few sections. We need to keep pressing forward and let our Government know that we’re not all just “Burn outs”, but that we’re burning up at the prospect of more of our citizens being imprisoned for choosing to medicate, create and unwind with a peaceful plant.
Bill and Act Information in Texas for the 2011 Legislative session
– HB 548, An act relating to the penalties for possession of two ounces or less of
“marihuana” – HB 548 is a bill that has been introduced before and pertains to lowering the penalties of possession here in Texas. While we want full legalization eventually, we know that in Texas, it’s going to take a lot of smaller bills favoring reform getting passed first. This bill, while not perfect, lowers possession of under an ounce from a class B misdemeanor to a class C, meaning only a fine and no jail time and could keep many of your friends and family members from losing their jobs/tuition for choosing to be safer. For more information on HB 548 and a email you can send to your representatives here in Texas, click here. The full bill can be viewed here at capitol.state.tx.us.
– The Karen Heikkala Compassionate Care Act – a medical marijuana bill that will likely be introduced here during this legislative session, more information on which can be found here at TexasCompassion.com. The Karen Heikkala act is an affirmative defense bill, which means patients who are legally prescribed medical marijuana by an out of state caregiver would have a definite defense in court under Texas law. While this does not protect from immediate incarceration, it does give you the opportunity to plead your case in front of a jury of your peers with a legitimate defense as to why you have the marijuana.
– The Tim Timmons Compassionate Care Act – a more traditional Medicinal Marijuana bill that would allow Doctor’s to prescribe Marijuana to their patients and would allow for licensed dispensaries in the state. More information on it can be found here at MedCanUniversity.com. This is a bill that would protect patients/caregivers from being arrested at the state level and having a black mark put on their records, as well as open up legitimate dispensaries where they can freely get their medication without worry.
Our membership drive is still in full effect and we’d love to get more smiling faces involved in the volunteering we’re doing here in Texas. All packages come with your one year membership in Texas NORML, an introductory one year membership to National NORML at no extra cost and a Texas NORML membership card.
To see our Student/Low Income membership package, click here
For our Individual membership package, click here
For our Family membership package, click here
For our Freedom Fighter membership package, click here
For our Lifetime membership package, click here
While we first and foremost want to legalize cannabis for all legal adults, getting our patients taken care of here in Texas is a very high priority for us and a task we don’t take lightly. Hundreds upon thousands of patients here in Texas sure could use a medicine with no harmful side effects and natural pain inhibitors. Medicinal, Industrial and Recreational, we all need to work together to be the catalyst for change we want in Cannabis law reform. Any new information on possible bill numbers for the Heikkela and Timmons acts will be brought to you immediately, so make sure to mention them as well. Cannabis Liberum in the Lone Star State!
Onward and upward,
Topher Belsher
Director of Online Community Outreach
Texas NORML
Topher@TexasNORML.org