Calaveras Spares Marijuana Patients State Fee

San Andreas, CA — Medical marijuana patients in Calaveras County can thank local officials for saving them a little extra money this year.

Tuesday the Board of Supervisors opted against passing along a recent increase in the state fee for medical marijuana ID´s. Instead the county will cover the increase for its medical marijuana using residents.

The county joined the state´s medical marijuana ID program last year and has issued 12 ID cards since.

The current ID fee of $45 will remain in place.

The board was considering whether to increase the fee to $165. The state´s original cut from the $45 fee was $13. According to Public Health Department Director Colleen Tracy now the state wants $142 per ID. The reasoning is lack of participation in the ID program.

The county analyzed its portion of the fee and discovered it could bring it down a notch and proposed to do so from $32 to $23, which was included in the proposed $165 fee.

The board agreed to pay for the state´s fee hike out of the Public Health budget until final budget time when it will determine where the additional money to pay for the fees will come from.

Written by Vanessa Turner.