Action Alert

February 17, 2006

Oppose SB 2445 - Alcohol near a School and SB 2568 - Medical Marijuana

Last year your calls to the Senate and the Governor stopped legislation to allow a restaurant near a school to sell alcohol. This week, another bill to allow alcohol close to a school passed in a Senate committee and will be voted on the Senate floor.

Please help to protect children by calling on these two important bills.

Call your state Senator (217-782-2000) and ask him/her to protect children by Voting NO on SB 2445 and SB 2568.
Share this information with your church and adult Sunday School class.
Forward to 6 others.

Talking Points on SB 2445 - Alcohol near a school

SB 2445 would allow alcohol to be sold at a restaurant closer than 100 feet of a school if the entrances are separated by an alley. A recent study found the more minors are exposed to alcohol advertising, the more likely they are to drink, and the exposure led to increased consumption. Children would see alcohol advertising every day when they are at school.
Approximately 7,000 youth under the age of 16 begin drinking alcohol every day. Alcohol is the drug most frequently used by teens, and the one that causes the most negative health consequences.
SB2445 would allow the issuance of a liquor license near a school unless the school principal and alderman indicate their opposition in writing to the local liquor control commissioner. This is too important an issue to be decided by two people. Parents, teachers, residents, and businesses will be impacted by having alcohol sold so close to a school.

Talking Points for SB 2568 - Medical Marijuana

While we have compassion for people who are suffering debilitating illnesses, bypassing the FDA process and approving medicine by legislative vote sets a dangerous precedent.
Adolescent marijuana use increased in 8 out of 10 states that legalized medical marijuana. Illinois already has a marijuana problem: admissions for marijuana treatment increased 29% in the entire state from 2001 to 2004.
SB 2568 would allow a large quantity of a controlled substance to be placed in the hands of one person. A "primary caregiver" is not a doctor, but anyone 18 or older who has agreed to assist up to 5 "qualifying patients" in the acquisition, possession, cultivation, manufacture, use, delivery, transfer, or transportation of cannabis OR paraphernalia relating to the consumption of cannabis to alleviate the patient's medical condition.
SB 2568 allows the "primary caregiver" to possess 12 marijuana plants and 2.5 ounces of useable cannabis for each qualifying patient. A teenager, 18 or older, could be in possession of 60 marijuana plants and 12.5 ounces of smokeable marijuana! NOTE: A typical marijuana plant produces 1-5 pounds of smokeable materials. The 12 plants will produce approximately 5,448 to 27,240 joints per year per qualifying patient.
SB 2568 allows non-profit dispensaries to supply cannabis to any number of qualifying patients who have designated it as one of their primary caregivers. Neighborhood stores could become warehouses for growing marijuana.