GLENPOOL — A greenhouse grower, Ben Neal said he’s among a kind of exodus from Oklahoma’s medical marijuana industry as he has listed his cannabis businesses for sale.
On the day Republican lawmakers announced legislative priorities for medical marijuana, several cannabis business leaders did not want to speak on the record. Neal, hesitant himself at first, told the Tulsa World he is just one of many struggling to stay afloat as the state’s legal program has evolved.
“The price (for cannabis) has come down, and the expense to grow has gone up,” Neal said, noting how much oversight has been added already. “And you’re thinking, ‘Are things going to be better in one year?’ And honestly, I don’t think so.”
In a news conference Monday, the GOP working group on medical marijuana discussed legislation needed to fix problems across the state that are going on 4 years old.
Working group member Rep. Scott Fetgatter, R-Okmulgee, cited specific language in the 2018 state question that legalized medical marijuana in Oklahoma as helping bad actors proliferate.
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“That has been one of the biggest contributors to the straw man, out-of-state, out-of-country ownership in our grow operations in the state of Oklahoma,” he said.
But changing the State Question 788 rule — that nonresidents may have an ownership stake under 25% — was not among the priorities listed by the House Republican working group.
Among the bills listed Monday by Rep. T.J. Marti, R-Broken Arrow, was a proposal that would require data reporting from utilities on licensees’ electricity and water usage. Other states with legal cannabis have similar systems, said Rep. Jon Echols, R-Oklahoma City.
Combined with the upcoming implementation of a seed-to-sale tracking system, information on utility usage could help inspectors identify discrepancies that might indicate diversion from a grower, Marti said.
“The electrical and water data is what’s going to make seed-to-sale work and allow us to find who’s consuming our utilities and who falls outside the standard deviation of what they should be growing based on what they’re using,” he said.
Neal, founder of Sage Farms, said it may be challenging to develop such a baseline, noting that every grow operation is different.
“If every facility was the exact same — the exact same efficiency, the exact same lights, dehumidifiers, heat and air — then, sure, you could say … ‘It takes this much energy to grow this many plants,’” Neal said.
Noting that the number of changes being proposed for the industry makes for “quite an expensive plan,” Marti said one of the proposals would be a revenue-generator by increasing some license fees.
A substitute for House Bill 2179 by Echols would create eight tiers for indoor, greenhouse and outdoor grow operations. The bigger the operation, the greater the license fee, starting at $2,500. The fee for an operator seeking to license a 2.2 million-square-foot outdoor grow would be about $150,000. For a 20,000-square-foot greenhouse grow, it would be about $16,000 for the OMMA license. A similar size indoor grow would have to pay $60,000 for a license.
“When you talk to legitimate growers, there is nothing more offensive to them than having to compete against those who are breaking the law right now,” Echols said.
Enforcement is at the heart of the issue, he said, so another proposal would add local partners working in tandem with the Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Authority and other state agencies to weed out illegal operators. HB 3530 would carve $5 million per year from state tax revenue on marijuana sales to fund grants for county sheriff’s offices.
“We’re funding the sheriff, so the sheriff’s going to be out there. We’re going to have at least one inspection annually, so you won’t be able to hide from us anymore,” Marti said.
Fetgatter, saying he has talked to more than 200 medical marijuana business owners, said legitimate businesses shouldn’t be concerned with the proposals.
“They see these bills as a way that they can stop having to compete with the black market, so they’re more than happy to have these bills implemented and follow those rules,” he said. “The problem in the state of Oklahoma is we legalized marijuana and we still have people who want to break the laws.”
Echols, who said the working group had support from the Senate on the slate of proposals, noted that only a fraction of medical marijuana bills were included in the list of priorities. Others are “not dead yet,” said Rep. Rusty Cornwell, R-Vinita, including some proposals that have drawn concerns.
HB 3208 by Cornwell would impose a moratorium on new business licenses until oversight agencies “get everyone in compliance.”
Oklahomans for Responsible Cannabis Action founder Jed Green said putting new licenses on hiatus would stifle businesses and possibly also create an unforeseen burden on the state oversight agency.
“A moratorium could create a rush on license applications by speculators and set OMMA back in their efforts to catch up, which they are finally doing,” Green said Monday.
From outside the House working group, Rep. Dean Davis, R-Broken Arrow, has proposed HB 4287, which would prohibit dispensaries from having “deli-style sales” but would require prepackaging of products.
“That’s a debacle,” Green said of the bill heading to the House floor. “That’s a bad one.”
Earlier proposals that sought to mandate prepackaged medical marijuana met with patient pushback, he said. Davis’ bill, as written, would limit patients’ ability to purchase less than 3.5 grams of cannabis flower at a dispensary.
Changes and other evolving oversight have Neal ready to throw in the towel and return to his roots: a farm-to-table delivery service for fresh produce.
He joked that his setup for medical marijuana, with its many security compliance measures, would probably stay the same.
“We’ll have the safest tomatoes in Oklahoma,” he said.
10 things that are still illegal under Oklahoma’s medical marijuana laws
Can’t get a prescription for marijuana
Marijuana is listed as a schedule 1 controlled substance in federal law, so it cannot be prescribed, only “recommended.”
A Ninth Circuit Court ruling ensures protection for doctors who issue recommendations to patients who may benefit from cannabis-based treatments, but federal law precludes doctors from “aiding and abetting” patients obtaining marijuana. This means doctors and patients cannot discuss dosages, strains or specific cannabis products for treating a specific ailment. Doctors instead fill out a form indicating they have discussed the risks of marijuana use with the patient and feel the benefits are worth the treatment.
Some patients who see physicians for pain and are treated with opioids also may not be able to do so and use medical marijuana as a licensed patient.
Can’t use marijuana in the workplace or be impaired on the job
State Question 788 says only that an employer may not discriminate against an employee simply because of their status as a medical marijuana patient. This means that simply having a license cannot be grounds for termination or discipline. That employer can still, however, write and enforce rules that restrict the use of marijuana by employees just like any other controlled substance. No patients would be protected if they come to work high, use marijuana in the workplace or attempt to do their job while impaired.
Can’t transport marijuana across state lines
Patients who obtain medical marijuana cards in other states may purchase from dispensaries there, but the products may not be brought back to Oklahoma. Nor could a patient travel to a state with a recreational marijuana law and bring any legally obtained products back to Oklahoma. Those patients who plan to cultivate marijuana at their own homes would also not be permitted to obtain seeds from another state.
Can’t get a doctor’s recommendation inside a dispensary
A change to the law made it illegal to post a physician inside a medical marijuana dispensary, as this one did, for customers to sign up as patients inside the retail business operation.
Can’t try the product while shopping
The use of any cannabis product is prohibited inside a licensed medical marijuana business, so patients should not expect samples like what some CBD shops have been able to offer.
Can’t smoke marijuana where tobacco also prohibited
The law makes cannabis like tobacco when it comes to public consumption by falling under the Smoking in Public Places and Indoor Workplaces Act.
Can’t give marijuana away
Nothing in the law allows for patients to transfer ownership of marijuana. Patients cannot donate or sell marijuana, even to other patients. Licensed patients may cultivate marijuana on their own residential property or, with written permission, on rented property. They cannot grow outdoors unless the plants are surrounded by a locked 6-foot fence. If the yield of the plants at harvest surpasses the legal amount that may be in a patient’s possession, the marijuana must be either processed or destroyed. Patients may process their own marijuana for concentrates or edibles but would not be permitted to perform extractions using butane.
Can’t drive while impaired on marijuana
Although it is legal for patients to have a certain amount of marijuana on their person, if that patient is behind the wheel, a law enforcement officer will evaluate whether the person is at all impaired. Driving while under the influence remains illegal even for medical marijuana patients.
Can’t possess an excessive amount of marijuana
A patient remains within the legal guidelines if they possess no more than 3 ounces of marijuana on their person and 8 ounces at their residence, 1 ounce of concentrated marijuana, and 72 ounces of edible marijuana. If caught exceeding those limitations, a patient would lose their license and could face criminal charges including intent to distribute or trafficking.
Can’t smoke where you’re told not to
Renters have no legal right to smoke medical marijuana, even with a patient card, if the landlord/owner issues rules for residents that prohibit smoking.
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