The Yuma City Council, with a 6-1 vote, adopted an ordinance that adds a new chapter on recreational marijuana to the city code.
Councilwoman Karen Watts, during the Dec. 16 meeting, voted against the ordinance because it prohibits marijuana testing facilities within the city limits.
Watts, a healthcare provider, reiterated her reasons for voting against the amended ordinance. âIâll be voting no as Iâm concerned with the prohibition of testing facilities. The testing facilities that were left out to me are about science and safety. Government research is woefully underfunded and deficient in the area of cannabis. And I believe as people are looking to replace narcotics, anxiety meds and sleeping aids with marijuana, the consumer needs to know the health benefits and risks. So Iâm voting no because we left out the testing facilities,â she said.
Can the city be more restrictive with health rules?
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Recreational marijuana, pension bonds top Yuma agenda
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Yuma lays out vision for next decade
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The Yuma City Council, in a special meeting held Monday, introduced an ordinance that authorizes the issuance of bonds to pay off its debt to the public safety pensions mandated by the state.
At the special meeting, the council immediately went into an executive session to seek legal advice. After about an hour, the council returned to the dais and representatives of Stifel, Nicolaus and Company recapped the situation and offered three options.
Due to the current historically low interest rates, the council previously directed staff to work with the advisors to issue bonds to pay off 100% of the debt it owes to the Arizona Public Safety Personnel Retirement System for police and fire employee pensions, plus use a portion for a contingency fund to deal with future pension costs.