[420 Girl]

After the state's voters approved decriminalizing possession of less than an ounce of marijuana, the Board of Health is trying to close a potential public health loophole.

Presently, the town's smoking code deals exclusively with tobacco. It is silent on marijuana, prompting the board to act to ensure town regulations specifically outlaw the smoking of the drug in public places.

With voters approving Question 2 on the Nov. 4 ballot, possession of less than an ounce of the drug constitutes a civil infraction and a $100 fine.

That initiative will go into effect in January.

Board of Health Chairman Michael Hugo indicated there is nothing on the books that would prohibit someone, once the law changes, from lighting up a joint in the bathroom of Town Hall.

"There's nothing to stop them from doing it because it's a tobacco ban," said Hugo.

While "you can have a fine for the marijuana," said Hugo, "you can't do anything about the fact that they're smoking in a restaurant."

Hugo, an attorney by profession, is crafting a separate regulation for marijuana that would prohibit a person from smoking the drug in public places like restaurants, the work place, schools, and other town-owned buildings.

He expects his board to discuss and vote on the matter next Tuesday.

"I don't know if anyone else is doing this," he said. "My suspicion is that we're going to be the first."

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