“Cannabis absolutely should be part of the NAFTA (North American Free Trade Agreement ) agreement,” former President of Mexico Vincente Fox told thousands of participants gathered in Oakland CA for the National Cannabis Industries Association.
“The world cannot look to your nation for leadership under this Trump administration, but your people cannot separate from the world.” He noted that world governments today are disregarding the US government’s position on global issues and looking instead to Uruguay, Holland, Portugal, Canada and France for leadership in drug policy. Jamaica is also part of that list of world leaders.
Fox pointed out the horrors that the Drug War and the criminal organizations, to which it has given rise, have foisted on his country. He found a receptive audience to his call for ending cannabis prohibition and allowing the global commerce — for both hemp and marijuana. “Not so long ago Mexico used to provide 60 percent of the cannabis used in the USA,” he said, adding that Mexican farmers who traditionally supplied US with avocados, strawberries and other agricultural crops, should be likewise allowed to regain their rightful place in the world’s cannabis economy.
His talk was a politically-charged opening to a very business-oriented event.
Sessions subcurrent
The NCIA event ran June 13 and 14, 2017 and was several times larger than last year’s conference, held before four more states legalized adult sales by voter ballot and several more states legalized medical use last November. There was a decided subcurrent of discussion regarding the news that federal AG Jeff Sessions, currently under investigation for collusion with Russia and lying to Congress, had written to Congress to expand the Drug War.
Specifically, Sessions asked that the Rohrabacher Amendment to the budget should be rescinded, which would mean that federal prosecutors could again go after sick and dying Americans who use cannabis as a medicine.
Despite Trump’s campaign promises to legalize medical marijuana and let the states decide their own marijuana laws, his administration has appointed rabid drug warriors to key posts, most significantly Sessions. The AG once joked that he liked the KKK until he learned that some klansmen smoke cannabis.
Most people at the conference seemed to reject Sessions chances of overturning reforms, since expanding the war on cannabis would be one sure way to get millennial voters out in 2018 to vote Democrat and would likely wipe out the GOP stranglehold on the federal government. Almost 5000 people attended the 2017 event as opposed to 3200 in 2016.
Regulations still in play
One heavily packed panel featured Lori Ajax, California’s state “Cannabis Czar” who heads up the BMCR, aka the Bureau of Marijuana Regulations. There was a public hearing going on in nearby San Jose on the draft regulations. Ajax said that the input had been overwhelming and that the regulations would be rewritten for a second public input period, the next one only for ten days.
As if to prove the point that the situation is constantly changing, Governor Jerry Brown released a new budget trailer bill during the NCIA conference that would revamp the regulations passed by the legislators, the board and also the voters in Proposition 64, a bill that no one had had time to review in depth. The general impression of his proposal was favorable, however.
The new version of their bill proposes to align the state’s medical and non-medical production and distribution rules. People were advised that the governor’s proposal generally relies on the simpler Prop 64 rules passed by 57.1 percent of state voters but that the document, more than 200 pages long, does not at this point allow for one retail shop to serve both medical and non-medical consumers.
Another issue that arose is that licenses are not a right but a privilege, so if people find the regulations to be too onerous, they still have to follow the rules unless they are waived or amended.
Suing the regulators
Barring another voter initiative, there are four paths forward for the industry and consumers: Through the legislature, local governments, the regulators and, lastly, the courts.
Even as the new regulations are being formed, a panel discussed the question of “suing the regulators.” Understandably, the panel suggested not doing it unless necessary. They suggested two other approaches, seeking an informal resolution or filing an administrative appeal, before taking on a lawsuit. One of the reason is that the regulators don’t fear lawsuits, they actually rely on them to clarify the laws. Another reason is that once lawyers enter the discussion, open channels of communication can be closed and the opportunity to work out an out-of-court solution may be lost.
Nonetheless, if the laws are capricious or impracticable, there may be no choice but to move forward with a court case. Most criminal defense attorneys and even many civil law attorneys are not familiar with regulatory law and administrative courts. In that situation, getting an attorney with the right background and experience is critical both to negotiations and proceedings.
Other states’ implementation issues vary
As a national organization, NCIA included discussions on legalization and regulations in states across the country. The Maine initiative passed by with a razor-edge margin of 50.2 percent but has been embraced and the regulatory process is focussing on access, consumption sites and driving rules.
Massachusetts had a wider margin of victory and has had a special session on the cannabis laws with bipartisan support for rolling out the program. Local control is a major issue there, so the tax regulations are designed so that communities that allow production and sales get a percentage of the new tax revenues, whereas those with bans will not get the local fund, but will still benefit from taxes to the state general fund.
Oregon attorney Lee Berger noted that his state had a number of public consumption venues before the 2014 legalization initiative passed, but they were shut down as a result of a glitch in the language of the law. Fortunately, California’s Prop. 64 authors saw that happened and made sure that California law included the option of on-site consumption.
Conference and product expo
A large product expo filled the conference center and hallways of the hotel. Unlike the Cannabis and Emerald Cup-style events, these were not retailers with plants, cannabis, edibles and extracts for sale. These vendors have quality control, packaging, lighting, security, processing equipment and other ancillary products to improve compliance and protect consumers. Most of the exhibitors were B2B, business to business, rather than business to consumer.
NCIA Executive Director Aaron Smith was circumspect but upbeat in his opening remarks and later, as he walked through the event and expo, greeting participants from around the nation. Attendees were a combination of new and old faces, with some participants who had been active years ago and are now returning to the folc.
The conference bookstore featured a wide array of useful books, as well as hosting booksignings by the likes of grow book author Jorge Cervantes and Chris Conrad signing his latest book, The Newbie’s Guide to Cannabis and the Industry.
CCIA transition announced
At the June 13 reception sponsored by the California Cannabis Industries’ Association, co-founder Nate Bradley announced that he is stepping down as director of CCIA. Lindsey Robinson, formerly of the Marijuana Policy Project, will be taking the helm. Her ascent was greeted with enthusiasm, as many CCIA members know Robinson for her work advancing the reform movement.