Medical marijuana advocates are making what is being called a final try this legislative session to fix the 2011 law that imposed such tight restrictions on what was then a booming industry that it has been called a defacto legislative repeal of the 2000 law approved by 62 percent of voters.

Senator Dave Wanzenreid (D-Missoula), who has consistently been a friend to medical marijuana patients in the Big Sky state, recently introduced Senate Bill 377 on behalf of a group called Montana Association for Rights, reports Charles S. Johnson at The Missoulian.

A hearing date hasn't yet been set for the bill, which has been assigned to the Senate Business and Labor Committee. Wanzenreid hopes to get the bill switched to the Judiciary Committee.

Political analysts believe SB 377 may havea tough time getting any traction; it would expand the 2011 medical marijuana law in some ways.

The 2013 Legislature, controlled by Republicans, has so far opposed changing the current strict law, killing, so far, six other bills that sought to soften it. The 2011 law was intended by the Legislature to make it harder for people to get medical marijuana cards, and to profit from the industry.

There were 30,000 card-holding medical marijuana patients in Montana in June 2011, with about 4,400 providers registered with the state to supply them cannabis. As of last month, the numbers had fallen to about 7,500 cardholders and just 300 providers.

"To me, what the bill comes down to is two things," Wanzenreid said on Friday. "It provides a seed-to-sale system to track all