Mark Couch

Amendment 64: Should retail marijuana shops be limited to Colorado residents?

Once retail shops for recreational marijuana can open their doors in Colorado, who will actually be allowed to use them? This was one of the questions raised at a meeting yesterday of the Amendment 64 task force charged with making recommendations on implementing the new law. We'll likely see more d ... More >>

Medical Marijuana Enforcement Division e-mail snafu causes backup in MMJ warehouses

For about a week starting last week, the e-mail system by which MMJ businesses send in their travel manifests and receive confirmation from the state has been down. The problem is causing quite the backup in dispensary warehouses.

Crooked Stave Barrel Cellar ordered to stop selling draft beer

The Crooked Stave Barrel Cellar, which opened just a few weeks ago, has been ordered by the Colorado Department of Revenue to stop selling beer on draft. "They have a wholesaler's license, not a manufacturing license, so they can only sell alcohol for off-premises consumption," says Mark Couch, a s ... More >>

Medical marijuana dispensaries can't deduct business expenses on state tax returns

Marijuana, even of the medical variety, remains illegal at the federal level -- meaning that dispensary owners can't take business deductions on tax returns they submit to the feds. But since MMJ is legal in Colorado, shouldn't they be able to deduct legitimate business expenses on state forms? Mitc ... More >>

Medical marijuana fees, bill prompt proposed class-action lawsuit

At this writing, the fate of HB 1358, a Representative Beth McCann-sponsored bill that would shift millions from the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment's medical marijuana registry fund to the financially strapped Medical Marijuana Enforcement Division, is still unknown with just t ... More >>

Medical Marijuana Enforcement Division staff cuts big but likely temporary

Last night, CBS4 ran a piece about staff cuts (from 37 to twenty) at the Medical Marijuana Enforcement Division. At the conclusion of the report, on view below, correspondent Rick Sallinger asked ominously if the reduced crew could possibly enforce the many regulations imposed on MMJ businesses. But ... More >>

Video: See the scariest DMV bathroom ever

DMV branches are often unpleasant, but the men's room at the central Denver branch, at 1865 West Mississippi Avenue, is off-the-charts. Aside from the questionable cleanliness of the facilities seen in the video below, virtually every surface has been tagged by graffiti, transforming the space into ... More >>

Top ten Westword marijuana news stories of 2011

​From regulations changing and shops being raided, to pizza delivery guys calling the cops on tokers, it has been an interesting year for medical marijuana in Colorado. Below is our top ten list of Westword's most popular marijuana stories of 2011 as well as links to the original posts.

Marijuana: 2 guvs petition feds to reclassify pot, but John Hickenlooper not ready to do so -- yet

This week, governors in Rhode Island and Washington asked the federal government to concede that marijuana has medical uses. A Colorado official is required to send a similar message by year's end -- but would John Hickenlooper consider following the lead of these fellow governors and do the deed hi ... More >>

Medical Marijuana Enforcement Division chief Laura Harris on being both regulator and mom

Laura Harris.​In recent weeks, news broke that Medical Marijuana Enforcement Division head Dan Hartman would be leaving that post in favor of Laura Harris, director of the Liquor and Tobacco Enforcement Division -- a controversial move that prompted plenty of speculation. Harris took charge o ... More >>

Medical Marijuana Enforcement Division's Dan Hartman reassigned in favor of Laura Harris

Dan Hartman.​Update below: Last week's reports from industry sources that Medical Marijuana Enforcement Division director Dan Hartman would be leaving his post have now been confirmed. However, Hartman's not out of a job. He's been reassigned within the Department of Revenue, with another Reve ... More >>

Update: Med. Marijuana Enforcement Division chief Dan Hartman out? Revenue dept. responds

Dan Hartman.​Update: We've now received a response from Department of Revenue spokesman Mark Couch regarding persistent reports from multiple medical marijuana industry sources that Dan Hartman will depart as director of the state's Medical Marijuana Enforcement Division at day's end. Couch's ... More >>

Marijuana: Colorado to formally ask DEA to designate pot Schedule II controlled substance

​The Drug Enforcement Administration dubs marijuana a Schedule I controlled substance -- meaning it has no accepted medical use. Switching pot to Schedule II, like morphine and cocaine, among other drugs, would instantly change the dynamic between the feds and medical marijuana states. And a C ... More >>

Just in time for Cinco de Mayo: State says Corona Light is heavy enough to serve in bars

Turn that frown upside down!​ If Senate Bill 60 passes out of the House, "on-premises" liquor licensees -- meaning restaurants and bars, and restaurants and bars only -- would be free, free to pour any beer they want to, even the 3.2 beer they're now prevented from serving by the state's arc ... More >>

Medical morning advisory meeting postponed after complaints it was closed to the public

Robert Chase.​Update below: It only took a day for the Department of Revenue to blink. The DOR had planned for this morning's first meeting of its new medical marijuana advisory working group to be closed to the public. But thanks to complaints from two notable MMJ advocates, Cannabis Therapy ... More >>

Medical marijuana dispensary applications: 700-plus, earning Colorado $7 million

​Every Colorado dispensary and associated business had to apply for a state license by August 1 -- which means we finally have a total number of Colorado pot shops willing navigate the state's new rules and fees. The tally: 717 dispensaries, 271 marijuana-infused product manufacturers and 1,07 ... More >>

Medical marijuana application deadline: Dispensary owners are (literally) off to the races

A Flickr photo​Dispensary owners are scrambling as another tight deadline approaches: Applications for "medical marijuana centers," optional grow facilities and marijuana-infused product manufacturers -- along with fees from $1,250 to $18,000 -- need to be submitted to the state's new Medical ... More >>

DMV rage: Year after fee hikes, Jeffco budgeting $200,000 per annum for private security

​It's been more than a year since the initial bedlam over increased vehicle registration fees prompted some counties to pay off-duty police to keep angry citizens from lashing out at Motor Vehicle personnel. But Jefferson County is still spending a good chunk of the extra revenue to post priva ... More >>

Flour power: Want to save on sales tax? Buy a Kit Kat

​Keep chomping on your candy bar! Although several Colorado sales tax exemptions have been removed effective today, including "nonessential items related to sales of food and beverages" (i.e., to-go containers), materials used in direct mail advertising and standardized computer software, can ... More >>

India House back in the curry business

​Early last week, India House, the curry den at 1514 Blake Street, was seized for non-payment of taxes. But owner Ghugi Singh was able to cough up the $12,739.91 demanded by the state, which he paid in full to the Colorado Department of Revenue. "The business was released back to the owner yes ... More >>

After vegan requests LVTOFU license plate, the DMV reveals its dirty mind

Bill Menezes on the closure of Colorado Media Matters

Photo by Anthony CameraBill Menezes, in a 2006 photo. In "On Watch," a September 2006 Message column, former Rocky Mountain News and Denver Post journalist Bill Menezes explained his mission as head of Colorado Media Matters, the first state-based spin-off from Media Matters, a Washington, D.C. org ... More >>

Helping Journalists Take the Jump

An organization called The Jump aims to assist veteran journalists who've left the daily newspapers, as well as those who fear the end is near.

National Press Corps Gets DNC Party Preview

Media members planning to cover the Democratic convention have big questions for Howard Dean and his crew. Like, what about the food?

The Denver Post Huddles Up