Oklahoma Bill Would Let Medical Cannabis Agency Shut Down Non-Eco-Friendly Operations

March 22, 2023 · Ganjapreneur

The Oklahoma Senate on Tuesday passed a measure that would allow the director of the state Medical Marijuana Authority to shut down cannabis operations that are damaging the environment, KOKH reports. Sen. Joe Newhouse (R) authored the legislation and argued that it would help reign in medical cannabis operations in the state that are not following state law. 

Oklahoma has one of the nation’s most permissive medical cannabis programs, but it has been rife with controversy. Last year, two Oklahoma attorneys were charged in a “Ghost Owner” scheme for putting their assistants’ names on more than 400 cannabis cultivation applications for non-residents. Later that year, four people – all Chinese citizens – were murdered at a cannabis farm. The suspect, Wu Chen, was also a Chinese national and the alleged straw owner of the farm, Richard Ignacio, was arrested and charged with felony conspiracy against the state. 

Travis C. Smith, the founder of Smokey Okie’s Cannabis, told KOKH that “there are thousands of illegal grows” in the state and that officials “could walk in and shut down overnight if they just visited them.” He added that he doesn’t think Newhouse’s law will do much to stop them.     

“This legislature is fired up to pass a lot of anti-cannabis legislation,” he said in the report, “but until start enforcing the rules they have, against, against the bad actors, passing more rules just isn’t going to make a difference.” 

The measure will be considered next by the House.  (Full Story)

In categories:Medical Politics
Tags:
Next Post

New Hampshire House Passes Medical Marijuana Home Grow Bill As Broader Legalization Also Advances

The New Hampshire House of Representatives has approved a bill to allow medical marijuana patients to grow their own plants for personal use. Weeks after moving through committee, the full chamber passed the legislation from Rep. Wendy Thomas (D) on a voice vote…
Read
Previous Post

New Political Action Committee to Back Candidates Who Support Psychedelics

A newly-formed political action committee aims to back candidates for office that back the use of psychedelics for therapeutic purposes, NBC News reports. The Psychedelic Medicine PAC also aims to secure federal funding to further education and research efforts for psychedelics but stops short…
Read
Random Post

‘Cannabis in Germany will be a success story’: Europe’s biggest economy moves closer to weed legalization

Germany could be weeks away from introducing a bill to legalize cannabis under sweeping reforms that would greenlight the consumption and sale of the drug in Europe’s largest economy. Germany’s Health Minister Karl Lauterbach last week said that the plans had received…
Read
Random Post

How Psychedelics Can Transform End-of-Life Care

Welcome to State of Mind, a new section from Slate and Arizona State University dedicated to exploring mental health. Follow us on Twitter. If you’re on TikTok or Instagram, you may have encountered one of nurse Julie McFadden’s viral videos about all…
Read
Random Post

Cannabis producer Tilray makes US list of largest craft brewers

Cannabis and alcohol company Tilray Brands has made a widely followed list of the largest craft brewers in the United States, an apparent first for the nation’s multibillion-dollar craft brewing industry. Tilray’s beer division ranked No. 9 on the Brewers Association’s…
Read
Random Post

Nevada Bill Could Remove Marijuana From Controlled Substances & Strip Pharmacy Board's Control Over It

New legislation in Nevada seeks to remove the status of cannabis as a "controlled substance" and strip the Nevada Board of Pharmacy of authority over the plant and its derivatives. Assemblyman Reuben D'Silva said that under the proposed bill, the Cannabis Compliance Board would have oversight over marijuana, reported…
Read