Municipal Monitor Q2 2017 | Page 11

COVER STORY position of enforcement. I think the best way is to leverage the expertise of people who understand enforcement and regulation.” There should also be representation from such areas as public health, planning and fire. “That’s the approach we’ve been taking, and I think it helps,” he says, “because no one person can handle all these things.” In its statements about the proposed new legislation, the federal govern- ment has emphasized that “the current approach to cannabis doesn’t work.” Certainly, many Canadians treat the use of marijuana less like a felony and more like a guilty pleasure. In 2012, a Canadian Community Health Survey found that 43 per cent of Canadians over the age of 14 had tried marijuana at least once, and 12.2 per cent reported having used it in the past year. A 2016 survey of 1,000 Canadians conducted by Nanos for CTV found 69 per cent at least somewhat in favour of marijuana legalization. Health Canada reports that by the end of 2016, a flood of almost 130,000 Canadians had signed up with licensed producers of medical mari- juana, up 32 per cent since the end of September 2016. Canadians have made it clear that they want adults to have legal access to cannabis while young people are protected from its health risks, and Canada is part of a growing pool of jurisdictions legalizing posses- sion, consumption and production of moderate amounts. In the U.S., Alaska, California, Colorado, Maine, Massachusetts, Nevada, Oregon, Washington state and Washington D.C. have all legalized marijuana, to greater or lesser degrees. Nonetheless, the process will likely be a challenging one for Ontario municipalities over the coming months and years.   YOUR ONTARIO EMPLOYMENT LAW PROFESSIONAL Municipal Integrity Commissioner Workplace Investigator Code of Conduct Matters Policy Review and Training 519-317-2227 [email protected] korablaw.ca MUNICIPAL MONITOR 9