Katelyn Baker
Well-Known Member
Sacramento–State officials will likely need to rely on emergency rules, provisional licenses and grace periods to ensure California's recreational marijuana market is up and running by Jan. 1, 2018, the state's lead pot regulator said Monday.
Lori Ajax, chief of the Bureau of Medical Cannabis Regulation, told a state Senate committee that "there are a lot of challenges" to drafting rules for what could be a $6 billion recreational industry.
But she expressed few worries about meeting the 2018 launch deadline mandated by the voter-approved Proposition 64, in part because the state has been working on rules for medical marijuana dispensaries since last year. Those regulations should be released for public comment this spring.
"Once we have those moving forward we believe much of the work we've done on medical regulations will carry over to Prop 64," Ajax said. "We anticipate using emergency regulations for the adult use regulation so we will be ready for that Jan. 1, 2018 deadline."
It's already an aggressive timeline for setting up a system that will be responsible for issuing 19 types of licenses.
The task will likely become more daunting as state lawmakers consider legislation this summer that could add new requirements for cannabis labeling, testing and advertising. The new Trump administration, too, may reverse President Obama's hands-off approach to states that allow recreational marijuana use.
Ajax said emergency regulations should be able to accommodate any legislative changes.
"Probably for us the biggest [challenge] is the transition of the industry into a state regulatory system," she told lawmakers. "As a result it may require some business models to change to meet these new requirements."
Ajax continued: "So we're looking, along with the other licensing authorities, at considering some options for transitioning the industry so we can be ready to go on January 1–maybe have provisional licenses, maybe have some sort of grace periods for certain things to just transition folks into the regulated market."
Sen. Mike McGuire, a Healdsburg Democrat whose North Coast district includes one of the nation's largest marijuana growing regions, expressed skepticism that regulators could get all the necessary work done by Jan. 1.
"If we can't hit [the deadline] we owe it to Californians to give them answers of when they can expect full compliance with this massive new law," he said.
News Moderator: Katelyn Baker 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: California Considers Options To Meet Marijuana Deadline
Author: Cheryl Miller
Contact: 877-256-2472
Photo Credit: Brendan Smialowski
Website: The Recorder
Lori Ajax, chief of the Bureau of Medical Cannabis Regulation, told a state Senate committee that "there are a lot of challenges" to drafting rules for what could be a $6 billion recreational industry.
But she expressed few worries about meeting the 2018 launch deadline mandated by the voter-approved Proposition 64, in part because the state has been working on rules for medical marijuana dispensaries since last year. Those regulations should be released for public comment this spring.
"Once we have those moving forward we believe much of the work we've done on medical regulations will carry over to Prop 64," Ajax said. "We anticipate using emergency regulations for the adult use regulation so we will be ready for that Jan. 1, 2018 deadline."
It's already an aggressive timeline for setting up a system that will be responsible for issuing 19 types of licenses.
The task will likely become more daunting as state lawmakers consider legislation this summer that could add new requirements for cannabis labeling, testing and advertising. The new Trump administration, too, may reverse President Obama's hands-off approach to states that allow recreational marijuana use.
Ajax said emergency regulations should be able to accommodate any legislative changes.
"Probably for us the biggest [challenge] is the transition of the industry into a state regulatory system," she told lawmakers. "As a result it may require some business models to change to meet these new requirements."
Ajax continued: "So we're looking, along with the other licensing authorities, at considering some options for transitioning the industry so we can be ready to go on January 1–maybe have provisional licenses, maybe have some sort of grace periods for certain things to just transition folks into the regulated market."
Sen. Mike McGuire, a Healdsburg Democrat whose North Coast district includes one of the nation's largest marijuana growing regions, expressed skepticism that regulators could get all the necessary work done by Jan. 1.
"If we can't hit [the deadline] we owe it to Californians to give them answers of when they can expect full compliance with this massive new law," he said.
News Moderator: Katelyn Baker 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: California Considers Options To Meet Marijuana Deadline
Author: Cheryl Miller
Contact: 877-256-2472
Photo Credit: Brendan Smialowski
Website: The Recorder
