WHEREAS, Kalamazoo and other Michigan taxpayers are burdened by the
substantial costs of investigating, arresting, prosecuting and jailing
people for charges involving marijuana, with each case amounting in
thousands of dollars of lost revenue;

WHEREAS, in 2008 Kalamazoo law enforcement agencies made 1,600 arrests
involving controlled substances, nearly 60 percent of which involved
marijuana and nearly 90 percent of those marijuana charges were
misdemeanor offenses.

WHEREAS, Kalamazoo funds and supports Kalamazoo Valley Enforcement
Team (KVET) with a $1.5 million annual budget for fiscal year 2008
alone. Besides enforcing statutes concerning marijuana possession by
adults for personal use, KVET is tasked with investigating
and\arresting individuals for possession and/or sales of cocaine,
methamphetamine, heroin and other devastating controlled substances
that have had a dramatic impact on our community;

WHEREAS, federal education loans are denied to middle-income and
lower-income students pursuant to Congressional amendments to the
Higher Education Act where applicant students have been convicted of
charges involving controlled substances;

To the City Clerk of Kalamazoo, we, the undersigned qualified and
registered electors, residents in the city of Kalamazoo, in the County
of Kalamazoo, in the state of Michigan respectively petition that
the Kalamazoo City Charter be amended by adding a new section 198 "Law
Enforcement Priorities", to read as follows:

SECTION 198 "LAW ENFORCEMENT PRIORITIES"

Definitions

a. “Adult” means an individual who is 21 years of age or older.

b. “City of Kalamazoo Law enforcement officer” means a member of the
City of Kalamazoo Police Department or any other city agency or
department that engages in law enforcement activity.

c. “Lowest law enforcement priority policy” means a priority such that
all customary law enforcement activities related to marijuana offenses
where 1 ounce or less of usable marijuana was either possessed or
consumed by adults, shall be a lower priority than all other customary
law enforcement activities not relating to marijuana offenses where 1
ounce or less of usable marijuana was either possessed or consumed by
adults.

d. "Marijuana" means that term as defined in section 7106 of the
public health code, 1978 PA 368, MCL 333.7106.

e. "Usable marijuana" means that term as defined in MCL 333.26423(j).

f. “law enforcement activities” means investigation, citation, arrest,
seizure of property, or providing assistance to the prosecution of
marijuana offenses.

Lowest Law Enforcement Priority Policy

a. City of Kalamazoo law enforcement officers shall make law
enforcement activity relating to the personal possession or use of 1
ounce or less of usable marijuana, their lowest law enforcement
priority.

b. This lowest law enforcement priority policy shall not apply to the
consumption of marijuana on public property or operating a motor
vehicle while under the influence of or impaired by marijuana.

c. This lowest law enforcement priority policy shall apply to the
cooperation by city law enforcement officers with county, state or
federal agents or employees to arrest, cite, investigate, prosecute,
or seize property from adults for marijuana offenses included within
the lowest law enforcement priority policy.

d. The City of Kalamazoo Police Department shall file with the City
Manager by June 1 of each year a written report containing the number
of adults cited and/or arrested for personal possession or use of
marijuana offenses by City of Kalamazoo law enforcement officers
during the previous calendar year.

e. This report shall be a public record.