The ordinance was criticized by social conservatives because it expanded anti-discrimination laws to include sexual orientation in addition to gender identity and expression. The ordinance, unlike similar local ordinances in the state, also specifically prohibits discrimination on the basis of HIV status.

As a result of the petitioning process, city commissioners said they would pass the ordinance again but created the special committee to hear additional testimony about proposed changes to the law. That committee held a special session for that purpose on March 11.

Sean Brier, a spokesman for Kalamazoo Alliance for Equality (KAFE), said his group will be in attendance Wednesday night at another meeting of the special committee.

“The subcommittee is reviewing language that has been proposed by the city attorney, Clyde Robinson. Based on whatever recommendations they get from him, they will decide on recommending or not recommending to the full commission,” Brier said.

The ordinance is expected to pass out of committee.

But the controversy surrounding the anti-discrimination ordinance is forcing a group pushing a ballot initiative related to marijuana use to postpone its campaign for fear that a mobilized opposition to the anti-discrimination ordinance could sink the pot measure as a result.

The local group has been working to amend the city charter to make possession of small amounts of marijuana law enforcement’s lowest priority, but as the Kalamazoo Gazette reports, it’s thinking there’s a good chance the anti-discrimination ordinance could make it onto the November ballot.

According to the Gazette, the reason for the suspended activity was simple:

But [organizer Louis Cloise] Stocking said organized opposition is expected if the proposed ordinance creating a protected class for gays, lesbians and transgender people in employment, housing and public accommodations is placed on the ballot. That opposition, she said, could have carried over to the marijuana-enforcement initiative.

Brier said the decision by the Kalamazoo Coalition for Pragmatic Cannabis Laws to delay its initiative until next year had no reflection on the support for the anti-discrimination ordinance.

“Our indication has been very positive towards an inclusive ordinance,” he said.

The Kalamazoo Coalition for Pragmatic Cannabis Laws is seeking to have an ordinance added to Kalamazoo’s city charter that would make the possession of small amounts of marijuana the “lowest priority for law enforcement.”

If adopted, Kalamazoo would be the only municipality in the state to have such a law. Ann Arbor has an ordinance that makes it a civil infraction to use or possess small amounts of marijuana.

Supporters say the Kalamazoo ordinance would save taxpayer money by significantly limiting police investigations of small-scale marijuana possession and use and would also allow for the responsible recreational use of the drug in one’s own home without the fear of police intrusion.

“We’re stunned at the amount of money being spent for pot arrests,” said Martin Chilcutt, a member of the coalition. “It’s the least dangerous of all drugs. We don’t understand what [law enforcement] is afraid of. It’s irrational fear.”

Ron Kramer, head of the criminal justice department at Western Michigan University, said that the issue “seems to make sense.”

“It’s a sane proposal that’s long overdue,” said Kramer, who is an advocate for the legalization of marijuana. “It would let law enforcement focus on the real problems facing the city.”

Organizers will have to submit a total of at least 1,273 signatures of registered city voters to the Kalamazoo city clerk by Aug. 14. The issue would then go before the city commission, which would have 14 days to either adopt the measure or punt it to voters. The coalition is hoping to have the issue before voters in the November election.

But local law enforcement officials and local leaders don’t see the need for such an ordinance, saying that small-scale marijuana investigations are not a priority currently.

“I don’t see why it’s needed,” said Kalamazoo County Prosecuting Attorney Jeff Fink. “We don’t need an ordinance to determine what law enforcement’s priorities are.”

Fink said that marijuana possession is “on the lesser scale of offenses” in the city. He added that when marijuana is found, it’s usually because it’s tied to another offense, such as police investigating an assault, searching a person and finding the drug.

Cpt. Joseph Taylor, commander of the Kalamazoo Valley Enforcement Team, which targets illegal drug use in Kalamazoo County, went a bit further, calling the proposal “ludicrous.”

“This is a silly idea,” he said. “It’s a roundabout way of circumventing the more difficult process of getting marijuana legalized.”

Preliminary statistics for 2008 show that 1,593 controlled substance arrests were made in Kalamazoo. Of that number, 933 were for marijuana offenses of which 173 for felonies and 820 for misdemeanors.

The average cost per arrest is $4,000, according to the coalition.

Mayor Bobby Hopewell said the commission would likely send the issue to voters, adding that he is “not a person who is championing the decriminalization of marijuana.”

“I don’t know much about this,” Hopewell said. “We need to have the city attorney look into this and research it. It’s a larger issue than just what I think, though. We need to find out what folks in our neighborhoods think, what law enforcement thinks.”

Still, the coalition sees Kalamazoo as fertile ground for the measure, pointing out that the state’s new medical marijuana law, a measure which went into effect on Saturday, passed by 75 percent in the city.

“If it goes before voters, it will pass,” Chilcutt said.

The coalition is being funded through grassroots fundraising and is receiving legal assistance through the Marijuana Policy Project, the largest marijuana policy reform organization in the United States.