Beth Gonnaget about a minute ago · Email from Jordan Wellington, I am upset that the rulemaking and hearings will occur during the application process. Day late = dollar short. Retail and Medical Marijuana Rulemaking Announcement September 18, 2013 Background Information On May 28, 2013, Governor Hickenlooper signed three bills into law that address the implementation of Amendment 64, including requirements for the State Licensing Authority (“SLA”) to adopt rules governing retail marijuana establishments. In order to comply with those requirements and those found in Amendment 64, the SLA adopted emergency rules governing retail marijuana in the state of Colorado on July 1, 2013. The emergency rules were then refined through a permanent rulemaking process during which the SLA hosted over forty hours of working groups meetings, reviewed nearly 300 written comments and held two days of formal hearings. After working extensively with stakeholders and reviewing all public input, the SLA adopted the permanent rules for retail marijuana and revised rules for medical marijuana on September 9, 2013. Through the permanent rulemaking process, the SLA identified four public safety issues, (1) interim production caps, (2) concentrate production oversight, (3) edible product production oversight, and (4) a mandatory testing program, that it requires additional information and public input prior to the adoption of additional rules. Therefore, the SLA intends to immediately initiate a follow-up rulemaking in order to promulgate clear and thorough rules that will address these important public safety issues. This announcement provides information for members of the public interested the upcoming rulemaking. Working Groups Stakeholder Working Groups & Membership: The SLA intends to organize four stakeholder working groups to engage in in-depth discussions about the public safety issues to be addressed by this rulemaking. Each group will focus on a different issue and include a different set of stakeholders. The groups to be established are as follows: The Interim Production Cap Working Group, The Concentrate Production Oversight Working Group, The Edible Product Production Oversight Working Group, and The Mandatory Testing Program Working Group. Members of the public and local authorities may apply for membership within a stakeholder working group. The SLA will re-consider applications from all individuals that applied to participate in working groups held during July and August of 2013, though an individual may submit additional information if he or she desires. Those who wish to submit an application or additional information should email Jordan Wellington at [email protected] by 5pm, Friday, September 20th. Applications should be limited to the individual’s name, his or her contact information, any entity or organization he or she represents, and a brief explanation of no more than 150 words detailing that individual’s qualifications for inclusion on a working group. Stakeholder Working Group Descriptions: The Interim Production Cap Working Group will discuss temporary limits on retail marijuana production that will be in place until the SLA has collected sufficient information, including receipt of an independent market study scheduled to be released in the Spring of 2014, to determine how best to implement a permanent production cap. The Concentrate Production Oversight Working Group will discuss various methods of concentrate production and regulations that are necessary to address concerns related to worker and product safety. The Edible Product Production Oversight Working Group will discuss the creation of an edible product safety program. The Mandatory Testing Program Working Group will discuss the creation and implementation of a mandatory testing program that involves random sampling of cultivated marijuana, marijuana concentrates, and marijuana products. Meeting Dates: The stakeholder working groups will meet according to the following tentative schedule: The Interim Production Cap Working Group: Week of October 14th The Concentrate Production Oversight Working Group: Week of October 21st The Edible Product Production Oversight Working Group: Week of October 29th The Mandatory Testing Program Working Group: Week of November 4th The date, time and locations for each meeting will be announced shortly. Public Participation: All stakeholder working group meetings will be open to the public. Additionally, a recording and minutes of each meeting will be made available via the Department of Revenue’s (“DOR”) Amendment 64 website: colorado.gov/revenue/amendment64. Agendas for every meeting will also be made available to the public at least 24 hours in advance via the website. There will be time set aside during the first meeting of each working group for members of the general public to comment. Written Comments The SLA encourages interested parties to submit written comments on the issues to be addressed during this rulemaking by November 6, 2013, so that the SLA can review comments prior to the rulemaking hearing. Written comments will also be accepted until the rulemaking record is closed following the hearing. The SLA will accept all written comments but strongly encourages written comments to be submitted on Form DR 2477. The form is available on the DOR’s Amendment 64 page, which can be found at: colorado.gov/revenue/amendment64. Please print, complete and save Form DR 2477 as a separate document and then submit the Form via e-mail. Written comments and completed Forms DR 2477 may be emailed to: [email protected]. In addition, you may submit completed Forms DR 2477 to: Colorado Department of Revenue Executive Director’s Office RE: Rules 1375 Sherman Street, Room 409 Denver, CO 80261 Written comments will also be accepted at the rulemaking hearing and at all stakeholder working group meetings. Public Hearings The SLA will hold formal, public hearings regarding the rules developed though this rulemaking process. Any member of the public may testify at the hearing and/or submit written comment - all testimony and written comment will be considered part of the formal public record. Hearing Schedule: A formal public hearing will be held during the week November 11th. The date, time and location of the hearing will be announced shortly.
Posted on: Thu, 19 Sep 2013 02:03:25 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015