Ron Strider
Well-Known Member
Brenda Lutz ran a medical marijuana provisioning center in Jackson but shuttered it in late September after the Jackson Narcotics Enforcement Team asked her to close.
Commercial marijuana establishments like Lutz's have been operating in a gray area since Michigan voters approved a medical marijuana statute in 2008. Marijuana businesses were not mentioned in the statute, and many law enforcement officials deemed them illegal.
But the state is rectifying that. Applications for medical marijuana businesses will be available starting next month.
And, on Wednesday, Lutz was one of dozens of people at Michigan State University's Kellogg Center getting caught up with the state's new licensing and monitoring system at a free educational session hosted by the Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs.
Lutz plans to reopen when she gets her license from the state.
Her business' temporary closure has forced her customers to try to find medical marijuana elsewhere or return to opioids, she said
But the licensing will also help validate the industry, she said.
"I definitely do believe that this is legitimizing what we're doing and that regulation is good." she said. "This is a way for the state to fix our economy."
Wednesday's training was one of five LARA has hosted throughout the state in the last week. More than 2,000 people attended the events, said David Harns, a LARA spokesman
"The most important part of this is to be transparent and to over-communicate," he said. "We want to make sure that those who are looking to get licenses have the opportunity to plan ahead."
The state should begin issuing licenses in March or April, Harns said.
The training explained the five licensing categories: grower, processor, secure transporter, provisioning center and safety compliance facility. Anyone operating a marijuana establishment will have to have both state and local licenses.
Wednesday's crowd at the Kellogg Center included current medical marijuana businesses owners and those new to the industry.
Danielle Adams recently received her caregiver license and is currently shadowing at a dispensary in Detroit. She said she waited to start her own dispensary because she worried about operating a business that could easily shut down.
"I cannot afford to invest my money into something [the state] can take away," she said.
Medical marijuana business owners like Adams also got a first look at the state's seed-to-sale tracking system on Wednesday. Florida-based company Franwell will run Michigan's program through its software program METRC, which stands for Marijuana Enforcement, Reporting, Tracking and Compliance.
The program will assign unique identification numbers to marijuana products starting with the grower until they arrive at dispensaries for sale or transfer to registered medical marijuana cardholders.
The products will be able to be traced back to the grower and the plant from which they are sourced, which will help track product issues such as recalls, said Scott Denholm, executive director of METRC for Franwell.
The company has contracted with regulatory agencies in Colorado, Oregon, Alaska and Maryland to run marijuana tracking programs.
"We understand the industry," Denholm said. "We're not some company that's just coming in cold."
Wednesday's training was held just a day before the city of Lansing will start accepting dispensary applications.
The city's medical marijuana ordinance directs the city clerk to pick no more than twenty applicants to receive "conditional approval" before getting the approval from the state.
The office is already taking applications for the other four different types of licenses available. There is no limit on the number of these types of licenses.
News Moderator: Ron Strider 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: State presents new medical marijuana business regulations
Author: Haley Hansen
Contact: How to Reach Us | lansingstatejournal.com
Photo Credit: Anthony Souffle
Website: Lansing State Journal - Home
Commercial marijuana establishments like Lutz's have been operating in a gray area since Michigan voters approved a medical marijuana statute in 2008. Marijuana businesses were not mentioned in the statute, and many law enforcement officials deemed them illegal.
But the state is rectifying that. Applications for medical marijuana businesses will be available starting next month.
And, on Wednesday, Lutz was one of dozens of people at Michigan State University's Kellogg Center getting caught up with the state's new licensing and monitoring system at a free educational session hosted by the Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs.
Lutz plans to reopen when she gets her license from the state.
Her business' temporary closure has forced her customers to try to find medical marijuana elsewhere or return to opioids, she said
But the licensing will also help validate the industry, she said.
"I definitely do believe that this is legitimizing what we're doing and that regulation is good." she said. "This is a way for the state to fix our economy."
Wednesday's training was one of five LARA has hosted throughout the state in the last week. More than 2,000 people attended the events, said David Harns, a LARA spokesman
"The most important part of this is to be transparent and to over-communicate," he said. "We want to make sure that those who are looking to get licenses have the opportunity to plan ahead."
The state should begin issuing licenses in March or April, Harns said.
The training explained the five licensing categories: grower, processor, secure transporter, provisioning center and safety compliance facility. Anyone operating a marijuana establishment will have to have both state and local licenses.
Wednesday's crowd at the Kellogg Center included current medical marijuana businesses owners and those new to the industry.
Danielle Adams recently received her caregiver license and is currently shadowing at a dispensary in Detroit. She said she waited to start her own dispensary because she worried about operating a business that could easily shut down.
"I cannot afford to invest my money into something [the state] can take away," she said.
Medical marijuana business owners like Adams also got a first look at the state's seed-to-sale tracking system on Wednesday. Florida-based company Franwell will run Michigan's program through its software program METRC, which stands for Marijuana Enforcement, Reporting, Tracking and Compliance.
The program will assign unique identification numbers to marijuana products starting with the grower until they arrive at dispensaries for sale or transfer to registered medical marijuana cardholders.
The products will be able to be traced back to the grower and the plant from which they are sourced, which will help track product issues such as recalls, said Scott Denholm, executive director of METRC for Franwell.
The company has contracted with regulatory agencies in Colorado, Oregon, Alaska and Maryland to run marijuana tracking programs.
"We understand the industry," Denholm said. "We're not some company that's just coming in cold."
Wednesday's training was held just a day before the city of Lansing will start accepting dispensary applications.
The city's medical marijuana ordinance directs the city clerk to pick no more than twenty applicants to receive "conditional approval" before getting the approval from the state.
The office is already taking applications for the other four different types of licenses available. There is no limit on the number of these types of licenses.
News Moderator: Ron Strider 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: State presents new medical marijuana business regulations
Author: Haley Hansen
Contact: How to Reach Us | lansingstatejournal.com
Photo Credit: Anthony Souffle
Website: Lansing State Journal - Home
