We expected some pushback, sadly. Many of the legislators voting on these bills don’t understand Cannabis at all or personal freedom for that matter.
Here’s something they and maybe others do not know- many businesses are and have been testing their products, they check and validate IDs, they childproof packaging, they have safety standards because the market demands it. There are even competency evaluations to determine if someone is capable of performing certain safety-sensitive tasks.
Cannabis is therapeutic but it is not pharmaceutical and too many try to put it in that box and then create all kinds of ridiculous regulations. We have experts in the cannabis industry who are way more qualified to work with businesses to develop the proper protocol. Interestingly though, the use of dangerous, mind-altering pharmaceuticals aren’t even scrutinized to this degree.
Here’s a side note: meantime, cannabis businesses are expected to pay horrendous taxes, comply with federal tax reporting, pay the state taxes but have NO protections for banking- productive people who are doing good things are denied safe access to banking creating serious safety issues for business owners and employees.
HB2612 was signed into law with some serious issues. We’ve heard, “it can be fixed later or with trailer bills”. Why pass bad bills and go back later and TRY to fix them? Thus is the inefficiency of govt.
If you’re a business owner and want to know how this law affects you, consider attending a free event facilitated by Shawn Jenkins at the Flower District.
For OMMA licensed businesses only.
