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U.S. NEWS Thursday 18 July 2019

California pot regulators

struggling with job, audit says

By MICHAEL R. BLOOD While legal cannabis is be- tion — the Department
Associated Press ing sold around California, of Food and Agriculture,
LOS ANGELES (AP) — The it's unavailable in many ar- which oversees cultivation,
agency overseeing Califor- eas because local govern- and the Public Health De-
nia's legal marijuana mar- ments have banned sales partment, which regulates
ket has been overmatched or not set up rules for the manufacturers. The primary
by the job and is struggling market to operate. A le- source of revenue for the
to hire sufficient staff and gal fight is underway over agency is from application
set an overall strategy for home deliveries into com- and license fees. About
the nation's largest can- munities that have banned $200 million was expected
nabis economy, an audit commercial pot sales. to come in through June
found. In a lengthy response, the 30, 2019, but the bureau This Sept. 11, 2018, file photo shows cannabis plants growing at
a greenhouse at SLOgrown Genetics in the coastal mountain
About two-thirds of the 219 Department of Consumer has collected only $2 mil- range of San Luis Obispo, Calif.
staff positions authorized Affairs, which oversees lion as of January 2019.q Associated Press
for the Bureau of Cannabis the cannabis bureau, said
Control remain unfilled, ac- the agency faced a rigid
cording to an audit by the deadline to adopt regula-
state Finance Department. tions and begin issuing li-
A shortage of staff in the censes in 2018.
enforcement unit is hinder- Regulators hit that target,
ing the agency's ability to but the agency acknowl-
conduct investigations. edged it faced a maze of
While the cannabis bureau shifting legislation and re-
is in its relative infancy and lated requirements, includ-
has established a founda- ing hiring staff, conduct-
tion to oversee the market, ing studies, finding office
"the current status and lo- space, entering into con-
cation of personnel is not tracts for basic equipment
sustainable to provide ef- and services, designing an
fective and comprehen- online system and review-
sive oversight of cannabis ing license applications.
activities throughout Cali- The agency disputed some
fornia," according to the findings and argued that
audit, which was released it met or exceeded its re-
earlier this month. sponsibilities despite the
The problems outlined in challenges.
the audit provide a back- "Unlike most state govern-
story to the uneven roll- ment programs, the bu-
out of the state's legal pot reau was simultaneously
market, which kicked off starting from the ground up
sales on Jan. 1, 2018. By just on multiple fronts," the re-
about any measure, Cali- sponse said.
fornia's effort to transform Lori Ajax, the state's top pot
its longstanding illegal and regulator, said the audit
medicinal marijuana mar- recognized the agency's
kets into a unified, multibil- ability to establish a com-
lion-dollar industry remains plex regulatory system
a work in progress. "under challenging condi-
Legal shops must compete tions."
with thriving underground She said the agency wel-
sales, and companies say comed the audit's recom-
hefty tax rates make it hard mendations to "strengthen
to lure customers. A prom- our operations as we move
ised state tax windfall has forward."
yet to arrive, and licensing The audit did not exam-
has been slow and prob- ine two other agencies
lematic. involved in pot regula-
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