Apr 4, 2018 | Blog, News
There is good news and bad news for the fledgling marijuana industry in Michigan.
The good news first: The federal budget passed by Congress and signed by President Donald Trump on Friday includes language that continues the policy that the federal government shouldn’t use resources to enforce federal drug laws in states that have legalized medical marijuana.
The bad news: The state Department of Treasury sent out a bulletin earlier this year that it expects medical marijuana card holders to pay a 6% tax whether they purchase the product from a dispensary operating with a state-issued license or from a caregiver operating under the old law that was approved by voters in 2008.
This is a departure for patients who will continue to use a caregiver — a person certified to grow 12 plants for each of five patients, say medical marijuana cardholders. They haven’t paid taxes on the products they’ve purchased since the old medical marijuana law was passed.
Michigan officials shutter 40 medical marijuana businesses across state
But it will be an honor system for those patients because they’ll have to claim what they’ve purchased on their annual state tax returns as a use tax. Cardholders who use dispensaries will pay a 6% sales tax — along with a 3% excise tax — when they purchase the product at a dispensary.
Marijuana advocates are calling it the “patient tax.”
“Until earlier this year, the Treasury Department didn’t want anything to do with patient-to-caregiver transactions,” said Rick Thompson, a board member of the Michigan chapter of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws or NORML. “Any change of this magnitude should be initiated by an act of the Legislature. It shouldn’t be up to the purview of a state department or department head.”
On the enforcement front, the federal government considers marijuana an illegal controlled substance, but 30 states have legalized cannabis for medical use, including eight states and the District of Columbia that also have legalized marijuana for recreational use. The federal budget language clarifies that states with medical marijuana laws shouldn’t be a target for federal prosecution.
“It’s great news because it takes the teeth out of (Attorney General Jeff) Sessions’ decision to rescind the Cole memo,” said Alex Leonowicz, an attorney with the Howard & Howard law firm in Royal Oak.
That memo, signed in 2013 during the administration of President Barack Obama, discouraged the Department of Justice from using federal resources to prosecute marijuana crimes in states that had legalized marijuana for recreational or medical use. And while that policy has been reversed, the recently passed federal budget doesn’t contain any money for medical marijuana enforcement.
“And nobody works for free,” Leonowicz said.
Left a bit in limbo, though, is the recreational market, which isn’t included in the language of the federal budget. Michigan voters may get to weigh in on the subject if a proposal to legalize marijuana for adult recreational use gets on the ballot in November.
“It’s important for any new industry to have continuity of regulations,” Thompson said. “It’s important for people who want to engage in industry as well as the financers and bankers who are going to go out on a limb to support the industry.”
Josh Hovey, spokesman for the coalition that is pushing the legalization ballot proposal said they’re not too concerned about the lack of recognition from the federal government for the recreational marijuana market.
“Based on recent polls, people in Michigan believe prohibition is a failed experiment and they’re ready for something different,” he said, citing a poll done earlier this month by the Lansing-based polling firm EPIC/MRA, which showed 61% support for legalization.
The poll was paid for by Michigan NORML.
As for the 6% tax, the state Treasury Department issued the bulletin earlier this year that it expects medical marijuana cardholders to pay the 6% tax on the products they purchase no matter where the product is sold.
“A qualifying patient that receives marijuana from a primary caregiver is liable for use tax at a rate of 6% of the purchase price of the marijuana,” the bulletin states. “Use tax should be remitted and reported annually on the qualifying patient’s Michigan Individual Income Tax Return.”
Angie Roullier, 43, of West Bloomfield was one of the first medical marijuana cardholders after the 2008 ballot proposal passed and the cannabis has provided tremendous relief from her symptoms of muscular dystrophy.
“The state’s getting their money whether you walk into a dispensary or not and it’s the only medication that is taxed,” she said. “And that’s BS.”
While there haven’t been similar bulletins sent out by the Treasury Department in recent years, spokesman Ron Leix said the tax on medical marijuana is not new and similar to the 6% use tax people are supposed to pay for online purchases in which the business doesn’t charge sales tax.
“It’s an honor system,” said Treasury Department spokesman Ron Leix, and not particularly easy to enforce.
The 6% use tax is consolidated into one line on state tax returns, so it’s impossible to tell if or how much medical marijuana cardholders have paid over the years.
“If they have, it’s been minimal,” Leix said.
As for further individual notifications to medical marijuana cardholders, who decide to continue to use caregivers rather than dispensaries, Leix said, that task would be impossible because of medical privacy laws that prohibit the disclosure of the names of cardholders.
“What I like to call this tax is the pass and pretend laws,” Thompson said. “They pass the laws and we pretend that people are going to comply.”
But Leonowicz said the Treasury Department bulletin is an attempt to level the playing field for medical marijuana customers.
“It’s a loophole that needs to be closed. If you don’t put everyone on the same plane, you can have caregivers who can charge less than dispensaries,” he said. “It’s consistent and it’s fair across the board.”
Contact Kathleen Gray: 313-223-4430, kgray99@freepress.com or on Twitter @michpoligal.
Kathleen Gray, Detroit Free Press Lansing Bureau Published 6:00 a.m. ET March 27, 2018
Feds-unlikely-to-pursue-Michigan-medical-marijuana-but-treasury-will.pdf
If you or someone you know is facing charges as a result of Medical Marijuana recommended to you as a medical marijuana patient under the Michigan Medical Marijuana Act, contact Komorn Law and ensure your rights are protected. Michael Komorn is recognized as a leading expert on the Michigan Medical Marihuana Act. He is the President of the Michigan Medical Marijuana Association (MMMA), a nonprofit patient advocacy group which advocates for the rights of medical marijuana patients and their caregivers.
Contact us for a free no-obligation case evaluation at 800-656-3557.
Apr 2, 2018 | News
It’s April 2018 and the 47th annual Ann Arbor Hash Bash is just around the corner on . If you are attending you should know the laws of the city and the State of Michigan.
The U of M Student Legal Services provides an overview of the City of Ann Arbor laws regarding possession of Marijuana.
To quote the website…
“It is illegal to possess, use, or sell marijuana. In the City of Ann Arbor, a violation of this law is considered a civil infraction, punishable by a fine of $25 for the first offense.
However, while on the University of Michigan’s property, state law is enforced. Therefore, possession of marijuana is a misdemeanor.
This offense is punishable by fines and up to six months in jail. If you are convicted, the court is also required to suspend your driving privileges in Michigan.
It is not uncommon for students to smoke marijuana in their dorm rooms. Because of this, it is not uncommon for housing security to check the halls for the smell of Marijuana. Once marijuana is found in your dorm room, whether you are arrested or not, if it is seized, it will be tested which could take several months.
Therefore, it may take as long as six months before you are officially charged. After that, you will go to court and that process can last another six months.”
Source: student legal services
Apr 1, 2018 | Blog, News
Forty medical marijuana businesses across Michigan got an unpleasant visit Thursday from state officials and the Michigan State Police, ordering them to stop operating.
And those visits are just the beginning. Hundreds more are expected to get cease and desist letters in the coming days.
The state Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs began the process of shutting down medical marijuana facilities that are operating illegally and haven’t submitted applications to the state for a license.
“Any business that didn’t apply for a license by Feb. 15 isn’t in compliance with the emergency rules that were set up,” said David Harns, spokesman for the department. “We did 40 today all throughout the state and there will be hundreds more.”
Harns wouldn’t say what kind of businesses got the cease and desist letters or how the state had identified them, but most were probably dispensaries that have been operating outside of Michigan’s medical marijuana laws.
The emergency rules “permits an applicant for a state operating license to temporarily operate a proposed marijuana facility under certain conditions,” the cease and desist letter read. “In order to comply with this rule, a temporarily operating facility must have applied for a state operating license by February 15. … A person that does not comply with this rule shall cease and desist operation of a proposed marijuana facility.”
If the business owner doesn’t shut down, he or she risks not being able to get a license at all from the state, the letter said, and could also result in a “referral to local, state, or federal law enforcement and other penalties or sanctions as provided in the MMFLA (Medical Marijuana Facilities Licensing Act) and Emergency Rules.”
When LARA and the Michigan State Police visited the businesses, they only delivered the cease and desist letter and did not confiscate any products from the businesses, said Harns.
Michigan voters passed a medical marijuana law in 2008 that allowed caregivers to grow up to 12 plants for each of five patients who had obtained medical marijuana cards. There are more than 277,000 people who have medical marijuana cards in the state.
Some of those caregivers banded together to set up dispensaries, some with the blessing of the communities where they were open for business. Others got busted, including many in Oakland County over the years, by police in towns that were more wary of the medical weed.
In 2016, the Legislature decided it needed to get a handle on the medical marijuana business and passed bills to regulate and tax medical marijuana. It’s expected to be a lucrative business with revenues exceeding $700 million a year. That could rise even more dramatically if a proposal to legalize marijuana for adult recreational use gets on the November ballot and is passed by voters.
The state began accepting applications for licenses in December and is in the process of doing background checks on the business owners. The Medical Marijuana Licensing Board is meeting next Thursday and will begin considering some of the applications. But licenses aren’t expected to be handed out until the board’s April meeting.
The licenses are in five categories: growers, processors, testing facilities, secure transporters and dispensaries.
So far 378 applications have come in to pre-qualify for a license, which means that the business owners are going through the state background check, but still need to get approval from a town that has passed an ordinance allowing medical marijuana businesses. Another 117 applications — including 43 growers, 20 processors, 49 dispensaries, 2 secure transporters and 3 testing facilities — have been turned in that include approval from a local community.
Contact Kathleen Gray: 313-223-4430, kgray99@freepress.com or on Twitter @michpoligal.
Kathleen Gray, Detroit Free Press Lansing Bureau Published 8:36 p.m. ET March 15, 2018
If you or someone you know is facing charges as a result of Medical Marijuana recommended to you as a medical marijuana patient under the Michigan Medical Marijuana Act, contact Komorn Law and ensure your rights are protected. Michael Komorn is recognized as a leading expert on the Michigan Medical Marihuana Act. He is the President of the Michigan Medical Marijuana Association (MMMA), a nonprofit patient advocacy group which advocates for the rights of medical marijuana patients and their caregivers.
Contact us for a free no-obligation case evaluation at 800-656-3557.
Mar 15, 2018 | Blog, Komorn Law Blog, Medical Marijuana, Medical Marijuana Attorney Michael Komorn, Michigan Medical Marhuana Regulation, Michigan Medical Marijuana Act, News
On March 14, 2018 The Dept. of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA) has posted a revised technical bulletin for clarification on testing and accreditation standards.
The bulletin refers to Safety Compliance FacilitiesTesting, The purpose of the bulletin is intended to address requests for clarification on Rule31(6) and (7) of the Emergency Rules filed on December 4, 2017.
This bulletin can be viewed at the following links
Komorn Law – PDF Link
State of Michigan – LARA link
Feb 4, 2018 | Medical Marijuana, Medical Marijuana Attorney Michael Komorn, Michigan Medical Marijuana Act, News, Uncategorized
Michael Komorn is the leading expert attorney dedicated to the Michigan Medical Marihuana Facilities Licensing Act, the Michigan Medical Marihuana Act and the Marijuana Tracking Act.
Call Komorn Law PLLC today if you are interested in working in or with the Michigan medical marijuana business industry. We offer expert planning and advice for all MMFLA applicants, employees and related services including Certified Public Accountants and financial institutions.
Combined with Komorn Law PLLC’s expert criminal defense services, we can help you maximize profits, minimize risk and liabilities and ensure that you are in compliance with all of the laws, rules and regulations.
MMFLA Applications

Please note that these laws, rules and regulation forms change and are updated regularly. Always get the latest forms directly from LARA at http://www.michigan.gov/bmmr

Administrative Rule 72 says that before a marijuana plant is sold or transferred, a package tag must be affixed to the plant or plant container and enclosed with a tamper proof seal that includes all of the following information:
• Business or trade name, licensee number, and the RFID package tag assigned by the statewide monitoring system that is visible.
• Name of the strain.
• Date of harvest, if applicable.
• Seed strain, if applicable.
• Universal symbol, if applicable.
Administrative Rule 73 says before a marijuana product is sold or transferred to or by a provisioning center, the container, bag, or product holding the marijuana product must have a label and be sealed with all of the following information:
• The name of the licensee and the license number of the producer, including business or trade name, and tag or source number as assigned by the statewide monitoring system.
• The name of the licensee and the license number including business or trade name of licensee that packaged the product, if different from the processor of the marijuana product.
• The unique identification number for the package or the harvest, if applicable.
• Date of harvest, if applicable.
• Name of strain, if applicable.
• Net weight in United States customary and metric units.
• Concentration of THC and cannabidiol (CBD).
• Activation time expressed in words or through a pictogram.
• Name of the safety compliance facility that performed any test, any associated test batch number, and any test analysis date.
• The universal symbol for marijuana product published on the department’s
website.
• A warning that states all the following: “For use by registered qualifying patients
only. Keep out of reach of children. It is illegal to drive a motor vehicle while
under the influence of marijuana. National Poison Control Center 1-800-222-1222.
Licensees may continue to use any remaining versions of the previous Universal Symbol until they are completely used up.
Licensees are also permitted to choose which Universal Symbol version to use on a marijuana product until any remaining
versions of the previous Universal Symbol until they are completely used up.
- The educational session (video above) will include presentations on the following topics:
- BMMR Educational Session Power Point Presentation (PDF)
- Keith Lambert, the Director of the Bureau of Construction Codes, will discuss important items to know – and specific steps to follow – when designing and constructing medical marihuana facilities. (missing)
- Greg Kozak, an on-site Industrial Hygiene Consultant with Michigan Occupational Safety and Health (MIOSHA), will present an overview of the MIOSHA standards and regulations potentially impacting the medical cannabis industry in Michigan.
- Kevin Sehlmeyer, State Fire Marshal, and Brian William, Plan Review Specialist, will provide an overview of National Fire Protection Association standards.
- Brandi Branson-Boone, a departmental analyst in the Business Taxes Division of the Michigan Department of Treasury, will be assisting with navigation of the Michigan Treasury Online (MTO) – Treasury’s web services portal.
MMFLA Licensing Board meeting 4-19-2018
Michigan Medical Marihuana Facilities Licensing Board Meeting 5-3-2018
Michigan MEDICAL MARIHUANA LICENSING BOARD Meeting 5 31 2018
Michigan Medical Marijuana Licensing Board Meeting 7 12 2018
Michigan Medical Marihuana Licensing Board Meeting 8-9-2018
Michigan Medical Marihuana Licensing Board Meeting 9-10-2018
Michigan Medical Marihuana Licensing Board Meeting 10-18-2018
MMLB Medical Marihuana Licensing Board Meeting 10-29-2018 part 1
MMLB Medical Marihuana Licensing Board Meeting 10-29-2018 part 2
Michigan Medical Marihuana Licensing Board Meeting 11-08-2018
Michigan Medical Marihuana Licensing Board Meeting 12-07-2018
Michigan Medical MJ Facility Licensing Board Meeting December 21, 2018
LARA LIVE, BMMR video chat with BMMR Director Andrew Brisbo on CBD oil and Industrial Hemp or Medical Marijuana.
Medical Marihuana Licensing Board Minutes
December 21, 2018 – Unapproved
December 7, 2018
November 8, 2018
October 29, 2018
October 18, 2018
October 29, 2018 – Unapproved
October 18, 2018 – Unapproved
September 10, 2018
August 9, 2018
July 12, 2018
May 31, 2018
May 3, 2018
April 19, 2018
March 22, 2018
January 19, 2018
November 28, 2017
October 17, 2017
September 12, 2017
August 21, 2017
June 26, 2017
Also look for all MMMA reports here:
MMMA all government statistics, reports, grants and analysis
Dec 22, 2017 | Blog, Criminal Defense Attorney Michael Komorn, Komorn Law Blog, Medical Marijuana Attorney Michael Komorn, Michigan Medical Marijuana Act, News
Two families — including one mom who alleges Child Protective Services took her suckling baby from her breast — are suing the state, alleging discrimination because they are medical marijuana users and poor.
In the lawsuit, attorney Michael KOMORN alleges the faith-based foster care and adoption agencies used by the State of Michigan were “grossly negligent” in opposing and delaying reunification of his clients’ children on the grounds of “poverty and illness” and in violation of the Michigan Medical Marijuana Act.
The suit also alleges Michigan laws allowing faith-based agencies “to discriminate on the basis of their religious beliefs are unconstitutional.”
“The mental image of CPS entering a hospital room accompanied by armed men and taking a newborn from a nursing mother’s breast and from the grandmother, shattering three generations of lives because CPS and Holy Cross (Children Services) found this family to be unfit because they were poor, diseased, medical marijuana card holders is excruciating,” Komorn said in the lawsuit filed Dec. 15 in the Court of Claims. “They treated this family the way the poor and leprous were treated until Jesus taught otherwise.”
Plaintiffs in the case are two families — Jennifer BARTLETT, her three children and parents, and Spring Lake residents Max LORINCZ and his wife, Erica CHITTENDON, and their son.
In addition to Clinton-based Holy Cross, defendants are the State of Michigan, Michigan Department of Health and Human Services Director Nick LYON, Executive Director Herman McCALL of Children Services Agency, Holy Cross worker Andrea HAGEN, Bethany Christian Services and its social worker, Kerry JIPPING, and CPS social worker Cody MAYHEM.
Kassie KRETZSCHMAR, a spokeswoman with Holy Cross, was not able to comment on Thursday because the agency had not seen the lawsuit.
A spokeswoman with Bethany Christian Services was working to get a comment from officials late Thursday.
The suit alleges gross negligence and wanton misconduct, and violation of the Elliot Larson Civil Rights Act.
According to the lawsuit, Bartlett’s children were removed from the family after a houseguest was killed in January 2016 when his gun accidentally discharged while her children were present.
Bartlett took her children to her parents’ home for safety while police investigated the case as a murder prior to blaming her boyfriend, who had spent time in jail.
Mayhew went to the children’s grandparents’ home and told Bartlett that the children were going to be removed because Bartlett “was not showing proper emotions and was making poor life choices,” the lawsuit alleges. Mayhew then drug-tested Bartlett, who tested negative, and she questioned the grandparents,’ who she said “were medical marijuana cardholders.”
Bartlett’s children were removed after a hearing in January 2016 and placed with Holy Cross.
Hagen, who was the Bartlett family’s caseworker, told the court the children shouldn’t be placed with her parents’ because her father had a 27-year-old conviction for use of half of a marijuana joint.
Drug officers later interviewed Bartlett to try to tie her and her boyfriend to drug trafficking in Detroit, which she denied. She was later charged with maintaining a drug house. She was eventually released on bond, but rearrested and charged with possession of drugs found in her dead guest’s pockets as well as conducting a criminal enterprise.
The lawsuit alleges that Hagen maintained Bartlett’s parents would not be good placement for her children because they “had a bad attitude” and were “uncooperative.” She also publicly revealed medical information about the grandmother in violation of federal privacy rules, the suit alleges.
Bartlett, who was pregnant, was released from jail in November 2016. A few hours after giving birth, a CPS worker saw her breastfeeding the baby and returned later with a court order and the police.
CPS “took (the) baby . . . from her mother’s breast and took her away, placing her with Holy Cross,” Komorn alleged.
After more than a year in foster care, Bartlett’s children were returned to her and the case closed in June 2017.
Komorn noted in the lawsuit that Hagen was “recently disciplined” by the Department of Health and Human Services for “misrepresenting health issues” of Bartlett’s parents “to justify placing the children with Holy Cross,” according to the lawsuit.
The allegations are similar in Lorencz’s case.
According to the lawsuit, Lorencz’s doctor recommended medical marijuana to alleviate chronic pain and he opted to use an oil extract from the plant. He was charged in September 2014 with misdemeanor possession of marijuana, which was bumped up to a felony possession after Lorencz refused to plead guilty to the misdemeanor.
The felony charge was later dismissed, but not until after the state “took away” Lorencz’s 5-year-old son, who was placed with Bethany Christian Services.
The lawsuit alleges Lorencz and Chittendon were not told that they could opt-out of a faith-based agency. When they learned they could, they sought a court order dismissing Bethany.
The lawsuit further alleges that Jipping testified at a hearing that “marijuana, even legally used for medical conditions, makes a parent unfit.” The caseworker acknowledged, however, that there was no evidence to prove drug abuse or that Lorencz was not in clear mind around his son when using medical cannabis.
Komorn further alleges that once Bethany Christian Services no longer had the pending criminal charges to use against his client, they “made other ridiculous claims” to keep his client’s son in foster care, including that he “plays lots of video games, his family is poor and his mother is ill.”
“Court hearings revealed that the behavior shown by Bethany Christian Services, including asking the child himself to choose between his parents and other living options, was contradictory to state procedures regarding foster care,” Komorn wrote in court documents. “The caseworker explicitly testified that she had not read or followed the (CPS’) policy. Instead . . . she follows Bethany Christian Services’ policy.”
According to Bethany Christian’s employee policy, “Under no circumstances will marijuana be considered a ‘legal drug.’ . . . Use of marijuana is not permitted under this policy even if the marijuana is used for medical purposes and is permitted under state law.”
The state’s Medical Marijuana Act notes that a “person shall not be denied custody or visitation” or a minor under the act unless the “person’s behavior is such that it creates an unreasonable danger to the minor that can be clearly articulated and substantiated.”
People v Max Lorincz
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