After launching legal market for adult-use marijuana, Maine co-launches regulatory group
FILE PHOTO / TIM GREENWAY
Maine was the 10th state and second on the East Coast to launch retail sales of adult-use cannabis. It is now a founding member of the Cannabis Regulators Association.
Maine is one of 19 states that have founded the Cannabis Regulators Association, a national, nonpartisan organization of cannabis regulators throughout the U.S.
The association, which announced its launch Thursday, aims to share knowledge and best practices and to assist federal, state and local jurisdictions that have approved or are considering legalization of cannabis, according to a news release.
"As the 10th state and second on the East Coast to launch retail sales of adult-use cannabis, the Office of Marijuana Policy is proud to partner with our fellow regulators in this important endeavor,” Erik Gundersen, director of Maine’s Office of Marijuana Policy, said in the release.
“As we developed the regulatory framework for Maine’s adult-use marijuana program, we relied heavily on the expertise of the states that came before us. We look forward to sharing our best practices, lessons learned, and high standards with other regulating jurisdictions through the Cannabis Regulators Association.”
In addition to the Maine OMP, founding members of CANNRA include regulators from Colorado, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Iowa, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, North Dakota, Oregon, Rhode Island, Utah and Washington.
For years, states have relied on each other for help navigating the evolving policy and regulatory issues around cannabis. Often the first step for state and local jurisdictions weighing legalization is to communicate with regulators from other markets and programs.
However, there has never been an organization to facilitate that process or find objective data for policymaking, the release said.
The association is not an advocacy group and takes no formal position for or against cannabis legalization, but instead will provide government jurisdictions with unbiased information, according to CANNRA.
It expects additional state regulators to join soon, and may provide membership opportunities for county and municipal cannabis regulators. Membership is limited to regulators and representatives from government offices, and is not open to businesses or advocacy organizations.
CANNRA members will be able to access a national registry of regulators, resources for cannabis policy development and staff training, “Regulator Roundtable” conferences and programs, legislative analyses, bulletins on current issues and more.
Four years after Maine legalized the recreational use of marijuana by adults, Maine’s Office of Marijuana Policy in September announced it had issued Maine's first active licenses for adult-use marijuana businesses.
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