Colorado Governor John Hickenlooper released a proposal this week on how he intends to spend the taxes collected from marijuana sales.

Marijuana sales have greatly exceeded expectations. For the fiscal year beginning in July, marijuana sales are expected to reach $1 billion, with $600,000 coming from the sale of recreational pot.

In the proposal, Hickenlooper's budget office says it expects the recreational and medical marijuana industries will pump nearly $134 million in tax and fee revenue into state coffers in the fiscal year beginning in July. Extrapolating from those figures, the proposal estimates sales in all marijuana stores to approach $1 billion for that fiscal year. Recreational pot shop sales are estimated to account for more than $600 million of that — a more than 50 percent increase over a previous projection.

The first $40 million go to school construction, as required by law. Above that, But Hickenlooper's office expects to have "$28 million this fiscal year and $101 million next fiscal year left over to spend on other things."[More...]

I won't catch up on the days' news for a few hours as I'm finalizing a motion I've been working on yesterday and today.

In the meantime, here's an open thread, all topics welcome.

Colorado made history yesterday, becoming the first government to allow marijuana to be purchased by adults for recreational use.

From Denver to Telluride, the lines were long. Here's a look at the day in photos.

The stores are projected to generate a lot of income, as well as jobs.

Colorado projects $578.1 million a year in combined wholesale and retail marijuana sales to yield $67 million in tax revenue, according to the Legislative Council of the Colorado General Assembly.

I'll be keeping track of emerging marijuana legal and policy issues, both federal and state, at a new blog on marijuana laws I launched yesterday. Take a look. (It also looks good on mobile devices.)

The City and County of Denver has a new website on marijuana. Not surprisingly, it concentrates on what is not legal. The six things it wants you to know:

• It is illegal to consume marijuana in public.
• It is illegal to take marijuana out of state.
• Only licensed establishments can sell retail marijuana products.
• It is illegal for retail establishments to give or sell marijuana to minors.
• You must be over 21 to possess or use "retail marijuana.
• It is illegal to "drive high".

Some other things Denver would like you to know [More...]:

Christmas comes early to Colorado....The Denver Post reports the state made history yesterday when it became the first state to issue businesses licenses to sell marijuana for recreational use. So far, 136 licenses were issued. The licensed stores can begin selling pot to adults on January 1.

In addition to the retail licenses, the Post reports Colorado issued licenses for "178 marijuana-cultivation facilities" and "31 marijuana-infused products makers."

Here's a map of the stores that received licenses. Here's an article about one Colorado pot bakery whose business is already booming.

Meanwhile, tickets for pot consumption are up sharply from 2012. The new laws do not allow people to smoke pot in public.

R.I.P. Ken Gordon, former long-time State legislator, Senate majority and minority leader, adjunct law professor and public defender. He really was one of the good guys.

Ken, age 63, was on his way to work out Sunday but drove to the emergency room instead. He collapsed outside his car, and was pronounced dead a few hours later, apparently of a massive heart attack.
His son Ben says:

...[I]t was completely unexpected; his father was extremely fit, ate a healthy diet and worked out daily. "I thought he was going to outlive us all....He was the most fit person I knew. He was so strong."

More on Ken's life and legacy here and here.

While I didn't have any contact with Ken in recent years, I remember him well from his time as a public defender and in private practice, and his early years as a legislator. He was dedicated, caring and principled -- always fighting the good fight. You can read his bio in his own words here. [More...]

Arapahoe high school student Claire Davis has died of her shooting injuries. Her family released this statement:

"It is with heavy hearts that we share that a 4:29 p.m. this afternoon, Claire Davis passed away, with her family at her side. Despite the best efforts of our physicians and nursing staff, and Claire's fighting spirit, her injuries were too severe and the most advanced medical treatments could not prevent this tragic loss of life. Claire's death is immensely heartbreaking for our entire community, our staff and our families.

[More...]

For days following the Araphoe High School shooting, supporters of Claire Davis, who was shot by shooter Karl Pierson and remains in a coma, posted pleas on Twitter for One Direction to let Clair know they supported her. The hashtag was #get1Dtoclaire.

The band complied, privately sending the video message above to her family. It was Claire's boyfriend, Alex Chapman (not the band, as reported here) who uploaded it to You Tube.

The group recorded a 13-second video message and sent it directly to Claire's family, a source close to One Direction told CNN Thursday. While it was not intended to be shared online, her boyfriend apparently uploaded it to YouTube, the source said.

How about an open thread? All topics welcome.

The Arapahoe County Sheriff held a live press conference today at 3:15 MT on yesterday's shooting at Arapahoe High School. Here are my notes of what he said:

Authorities know what happened now that they have viewed the school security video. Karl Pierson entered the north side of Arapahoe High School at 12:33 pm. The door is next to library.

Pierson parked at the curb by the north side parking lot. He entered the school with a pump shotgun, which he did not attempt to conceal. He also had a "bandoleer" (?) strapped across him with multiple rounds of ammunition. In addition, he had a machete and a backpack containing 3 incendiary devices. All were molotov cocktails.

[More...]

No one besides the shooter died at Arapahoe High School today, where a male student entered the school with a shotgun and asked for teacher/librarian/Tracy Murphy. The shooter shot at Murphy and missed. A janitor helped Murphy get out of the school and into a car. The shooter then shot two one student who happened to be nearby. He then went into a classroom and killed himself. He was found 5 minutes after the shooting was first reported. No law enforcement shots were fired and all 2,000 students have been reunited with their families. Two 2 molotov cocktail "devices" were also found.

The deceased shooter is believed to be Karl Pierson.

The motive, according to the Sheriff, was revenge following a disagreement with the teacher a few days ago when the teacher "docked him a few points" in speech class.

Rivalry Weekend. The picks (2 units unless otherwise indicated): Arizona +11½ over Arizona State, San Diego State -3 over UNLV, Boise State -37 over New Mexico, UCLA +3½ over USC, Temple +8½ over Memphis, Minnesota +16 over Michigan State, BYU -15 over Nevada, Stanford -15 (3 units) over Notre Dame, Illinois +3½ over Northwestern, Missouri -4½ (3 units) over Texas A&M, Georgia Tech +3½ over Georgia, Iowa State +7½ over West Virginia, Virginia Tech -13 (3 units) over Virginia, Vanderbilt -14 over Wake Forest, Connecticut +3 over Rutgers, Kansas State -17½ over Kansas, Tulsa +4½ over North Texas, Tennessee -4 over Kentucky, Wisconsin -24 over Penn State, Clemson +4½ (3 units) over South Carolina, North Carolina -6 (4 units) over Duke, Alabama -10½ (9 units) over Auburn, Ohio State -16½ (3 units) over Michigan.

Go Gators!

Open Thread.