AK Testimony before the Honorable Mead Treadwell Initiative to Regulate Marijuana like Alcohol Wasilla, Alaska September 25th, 2014 Official Statement for the record - please apply to the hearing record Statement of Mark N Fox, Houston, Alaska "Good afternoon, my name is Mark Fox, COO of ClinicalCannabisAlaska, based in Houston. I appreciate being part of this conversation today, and am greatful I live in a state that allows such generous access to legislators and agencies who will ultimately become stakeholders on the subject of marijuana. We are a start up bio science company with primary ownership held by long term Alaskans. Our company is not a large outside group..quite the opposite. I have been involved in the cannabis industry for many years, including founding and operating the first medical marijuana dispensary in Seattle. At our peak, our non profit collective gardens provided medicine to over 2800 patients. I was closely involved in the political process in Washington State to establish medical use, and I am court certified expert witness on cannabis cultivation. All that being said...I know a thing or two about the subject before us. First of all, I want to speak about the 800lb gorilla in the room...polarization. I've attended several debates, and listened to most of the rest, and what I'm sensing is that the real stakeholders are missing from the conversation. Once a campaign is over, then people move on. It's the nature of political campaigns. The real stakeholders are growers, processors, retailers, government at many levels, law enforcement and legislators. My mission here today is to truly invite the real stakeholders to join this debate. Aside from a few press release, and some contentious news coverage, the perspective of these vested parties is really invisible. I invite agencies and legislators to contact me to help ensure the concern of government are represented and honored as we move forward. We will be launching our legislative campaign in November, and no matter the election results, we intend as a coalition of statewide industry professionals to embark on reform of Alaska's medical marijuana laws. It's important to acknowledge, I feel, where the Big Marijuana Big Mistake group has got it right. It is on the issue of butane products, BHO and it's cousins. I strongly believe, there are significant health dangers associated with using an explosive carcinogenic solvent in either a medical or recreational product. The evidence is mounting more each day. I encourage you reject this category of product using butane. We can produce these products safely with CO2. I also believe, as do most Alaskans, that products producing intoxication should be strictly limited to those over 21. We don't need to guess, as we can clearly see that by regulating alchohol like marijuana, exactly the same results will be achieved as in our state we now have with cigarettes and liquor. This is really why I'm voting YES on 2, because I'm convinced we can end the $60 million black market, which exist now, who operate without asking for ID. If you really care about our youth, make it much harder to get. Thanks for allowing me speak today. Mark Fox ClinicalCannabisAlaska 13800 West Cheri Lake Road Houston, AK 99694 907 341 4776