[[{“value”:”
A cannabis industry reform activist says while the bill to remove marijuana from pre-employment drug testing requirements is a step in the right direction, it falls short in addressing needs to reform the industry.
Ambrose Bennett, whose services has been retained by Gov. Arnold I. Palacios to head his cannabis industry reform initiative, says that while the passage of House Bill 23-50 is great, it’s lacking.
“First, it’s great and about time, as the deletion of marijuana testing was in the first draft of the bill that I wrote for the 19th Senate. The [Commonwealth] Cannabis Commission, director, and staff were also supposed to have been temporary just to get the industry started as an ‘experiment to be re-evaluated in five years,’ In my original draft, the cannabis industry was supposed to have eventually been ‘self-driven’ once the industry was up and running like all the other business operations like the hotel industry that’s united to promote their hotels and even events that will bring visitors. So, for me, the bill falls far short in addressing all the needs to augment or reform the cannabis tourism industry. Presently, it is virtually a two-person operation with only a director and secretary which is far too insufficient to run an entire industry, which is why we are losing money,” he said.
Bennett said for the reform to be successful, other laws pertaining to cannabis need to be revisited or even deleted.
“There are also other laws that need to be deleted like the fee of $75 for people to grow their own marijuana is only making criminals given nearly half of our society is at or below the poverty level, as it should be free like it was in Oregon when I wrote the draft. Growers are also transporting large amounts to the dispensaries with no kind of legal standing to transport in the law. In fact, there are no laws covering the misuse of marijuana on the books for the Office of the Attorney General to prosecute after nearly six years. The local style of doing things ‘little by little’ is not going to get us to economic prosperity because we need to make a giant leap to fix everything wrong with our economic engine that is not running,” he said.
Bennett further states that the CNMI is spending more to run the industry than it brings in revenues, therefore the CNMI must institute reform.
“I recently proved the CNMI can save over $300,000 that is now being paid mostly to the Cannabis Commission, and how the CNMI could earn the over $200,000 that are being collected in licenses, fees, and taxes. Genuine reforms to fix our economy is the only cure that will be prescribed by any real economist worth their title,” he said.
Last week, Palacios wrote to Senate President Edith Delon Guerrero (D-Saipan) and House Speaker Edmund Villagomez (Ind-Saipan) informing the Legislature that he has signed H.B. 23-50 and it is now Public Law 23-27.
Public Law 23-27 basically removes marijuana from all pre-employment drug testing for government employees with certain exceptions.
Rep. Diego Vincent F. Camacho (D-Saipan), who is the principal author of the bill, also said the intent of the legislation really is just to be in line with Public Law 20-66, the Taulamwaar Sensible CNMI Cannabis Act of 2018.
Public Law 20-66 authorized the personal, medicinal, and commercial use of cannabis/marijuana.
Camacho said the pre-employment matter was not addressed in Public Law 20-66.
“Really the intent of this legislation is for the initial drug testing, anything after that is on the employee or the employer,” he said.
Camacho said the legislation also addresses that any position that is federally funded, even partially, will be the exception to include positions that are safety sensitive.
He said it also authorizes the director of Office of Personnel Management to identify these positions.
The passage of P.L. 23-27 comes after Palacios announced his plans for a cannabis tourism industry reform.
”}]] A cannabis industry reform activist says while the bill to remove marijuana from pre-employment drug testing requirements is a step in the right direction, it falls short in addressing needs Read More