State Senate Approves Bill Prohibiting Smoking, Growing Medical Marijuana Without Landlord's Consent
LANSING (WWJ) -- The State Senate has approved a bill that would prohibit smoking or growing medical marijuana on rental properties without permission from a landlord.
The bill is sponsored by state senator Rick Jones, who said that he has heard complaints from several constituents.
"Two constituents had $150,000 homes destroyed by grow operations," Jones said. "I had another apartment owner who had a guy set up a bunch of lights for the plants and the lights tipped over and started a fire, endangering other apartment dwellers."
The legislation is aimed at those renters who have a legal medical marijuana card.
"What we're seeking to do is to codify into statute that they may not smoke and may not grow," Jones said. "Why is that? Obviously the smoking bothers other apartment dwellers, but the growing has its own problems."
Jones says the bill would leave a loophole for those who want to produce other edible forms of medical marijuana or oils.
"I have two different constituents who have returned basically from Florida, they went to check on their rental units and found them totally destroyed," Jones said. "Now they're having trouble with their insurance companies paying off -- certainly security deposits doesn't even come close to taking care of that."
The bill now goes on to the State House for approval.