Knock
on
Doors
By
Jerry
Kopel
This
column
is
aimed
at
legislators
who are
presently
in
office
through
the
(1)
Republican
or
Democratic
vacancy
committees
vote
or
(2)
have
never
had
a
convention
battle,
or
(3)
a
primary,
or
(4)
an
opposition
party
candidate
in
the
November
election.
It's
also
aimed
for
candidates
waiting
to
take
you
on.
The
2010
Colorado
election
is
modeled
after
the
2006
election
when
no
presidential
candidates
were
running.
The
entire
state
executive
branch
is
up,
as
well
as
congressional
seats,
and
this
time
an
election
for
the
United
States
Senate.
What
have
you
been
doing
to
keep
your
name
known
to
the
voters
in
your
legislative
district?
Are
you
active
in
community
non-partisan
groups?
Have
you
been
sending
out
e-mails
on
various radio-active
issues
in
the
legislature?
I'm
sure
there
is
one
thing
you
have
not
done
nor
expect
to
do
when
you
knock
on
home
doors
to
talk
to
the
voters.
You
intend
to
open
the
conversation
by
discussing
what
is
wrong
or
right
at
the
state
legislature.
Even
though
you
are
running
for
that
office
the
homeowner,
assuming
he
or
she
is
still
employed
or
voluntarily
retired,
is
actually
more
interested
in
his
or
her
home
and
the
neighborhood.
"Is
there
anything
I
can
do
for
you?
Is
the
garbage
pickup
going
well?
Do
they
come
each
week
on
the
same
day?
How
about
the
lighting
system
in
the
block
maintained
by
the
utility
company?
Still
too
dark?
How
about
police
service?
Have
they
been
coming
back
when
needed?
Are
streets
being
cleaned,
and
potholes
filled
by
city
employees?
When
you
call
the
city
offices
for
assistance,
are
they
courteous
and
prompt
to
assist?
When
a
new
cover
of
tar
is
added
to
your
street,
do
they
make
sure
it
does
not
block
water
moving
down
your
driveway
to
the
gutters?"
You
are
running
for
the
legislature,
but
you
can
do
well
by
sounding
like a
city
council
person?
Let
them
ask
you
then
about
any
state,
city,
or
national
issues.
Let
the
homeowner
know
you
will
tell
the
city
or
county
management concerns
you discovered. You
will
do
so
and
send
a
copy
to
the
home
owner.
Be
sure
to
praise
the
officials
for
their
future
positive
action
in
the
letters.
If
the
officials
do
act,
that
becomes
known
to
everyone
else
in
the
block
and
hopefully
the
homeowner
will
let
you
know
your
intervention
helped.
Or
else
you
follow
up
to
see
if intervention
worked.
Any
plight
is
usually
solvable
and
a
thank
you
to
the
official
makes
the
next
complaint
even
easier
to
handle.
When
I
did
this,
my
positive
vote
in
that
block
was
always
greater
than
it
should
have
been
based
on
political
bias
of
the
voters.
One
Republican
legislator
serving
with
me
showed
me
an
opposition
document
that
found
I
was
getting
more
Republican
votes
on a
percentage
basis
that
any
other
Democrat
running
in
that
district.
You
have
not
knocked
on
doors
before?
I
can
tell
you
most
times
you
will
only
get
responses
at
one-third
of
the
homes.
But
you
can
keep
going
back
depending
on
how
much
time
you
have
to
try
to
reach
everyone.
I
always
left
a
note
pad
for
each
home
as
well
as a
printed
list
of
phone
numbers
that
tell
the
home
owner
how
to
get
help
from
city
or
county
officials.
One
certain
issue
in
2010
is
regulation
of
the
occupation
dispensing
medical
marijuana.
Should
the
occupation
be
reviewed
by
the
Dept.
of
Regulatory
Agencies
research
staff?
I
have
not
yet
seen
this
debated
or
considered.
You
can
find
the
Sunrise
review
language
at
CRS
24-34-104.1.
It
begins:
"... regulation should be imposed on an occupation or profession only when necessary for the protection of the public interest ... establishing a system for review prior to enacting laws ...will determine the least restrictive regulatory alternative consistent with the public interest."
The
dispenser
should
explain
in
writing
the
groups
involved,
the
reason
why
regulation
is
necessary,
the
benefit
to
the
public,
the
kind
of
regulation
needed,
and
the
cost.
It
is
possible
for
DORA
to
immediately
begin
the
research
and
have
it
available
for
the
2010
session.
DORA
could
review
if
it
determines
the
unregulated
occupation
"pose
an
immediate
threat
to
public
health,
safety
or
welfare".
Among
the
findings
which
could
come
from
DORA:
(1)
letting
local
jurisdictions
determine
whether
a
dispensary
violated
local
zoning
laws
(2)
refusing
to
allow
convicted
felons
to
operate
a
dispensary
(3)
halt
site
consumption
of
the
marijuana
at
the
dispensary
(4)
require
those
waiting
on
patients
to
have
attended
educational
lectures
regarding
the
consumption
of
and
potential
bad
effects
that
could
occur
based
on
the
strength
of
the
plant
being
sold,
dosage
provided
and
how
ingested
(5)
the
examination
and
follow-up
consultations
by
doctors
(6)
liability
insurance
required
for
dispensaries.
On
the
other
hand
the
legislature
could
pass
a
bill
exempting
marijuana
medical
legislative
regulation
without
going
through
the
Sunrise
process.
(Jerry
Kopel
served
22
years
in
the
Colorado
legislature.)