Have you noticed that every time you turn on the news lately you’re seeing stories about marijuana? Legalization of marijuana is gaining momentum across the United States. Polls show that 86% of Americans support making marijuana legal1. So the question is, do states have a clear course of action for developing their regulations, work-force, processes and policies? The answer is … not really! Even though approaches have varied, the experience to date points to some common elements that states must address if they are to be successful in the marijuana arena.
The biggest factor complicating the issue of legalization for marijuana is the current position of the federal government. Marijuana is still a Schedule I Controlled Substance. With the issuance of the Cole Memo in 2013, the current federal position appears to be states that are legalizing marijuana need to establish strict regulatory requirements and enforcement protocols to protect the federal interests. States that adhere to strict regulation and enforcement can then expect little interference from federal entities.
A second factor is the limited amount of time and resources available to a state between passage of the law and the date to be up and running. States just don’t move as quickly as lawmakers would like. Finding experienced resources is difficult at best. Being able to quickly put together a program that will protect the interests of the state and its citizens is a daunting challenge.
During the last year, QuantumMark, LLC has worked with one state to develop their medical marijuana licensing program for establishments. By using a partnership approach, QuantumMark LLC, and the State, were able to meet all the mandated legislative deadlines and have the program approving applications in just less than a year.
Often the needs of the local jurisdiction and the state are at odds – marijuana is no different. Communication is the key to reducing the level of discontent among local jurisdictions. Regular public meetings provided a forum for stakeholders to voice concerns, ask questions and for the State to disseminate information and knowledge. This was one key to success in QuantumMark’s recent implantation.
QuantumMark specializes in helping states implement marijuana programs including the development of regulations, policies, process and procedures; organizational structure and job descriptions; development of new system requirements; operational budgets; establishment licensing application and evaluation processes and documents.
With the launch of QuantumMark’s new Marijuana Consulting Services web-site, we will be posting a white paper detailing the obstacles states face and the steps they can take to ensure a successful program implementation. QuantumMark, LLC is launching a series of blog posts discussing important `topics in the marijuana arena. Follow us at www.quantummark.com, on Facebook, or on Twitter.
1 Marijuana Policy Project Website, Key Marijuana Policy Reform Bills, 2014.