Our View

Our View

The next steps in the medical marijuana mess

Now that the process of naming the five members of the newly formed Arkansas Medical Marijuana Commission has been completed, the issue now to solve is which method is best in deciding who actually grows and sells this so-called “medical” pot.

Seems Gov. Asa Hutchinson is suggesting the commission of two doctors, a pharmacist, a lawyer and a former chief of staff for the Arkansas Senate to with a lottery system to distribute state licenses.

That process, Hutchinson believes, would discourage out-of-state interests from commanding the market.

But, the lawyer who sponsored a voter-approved amendment to legalize pot use for certain medical purposes, thinks a merit system is best. That system calls for licenses being distributed on the basis of points earned and geographic diversity.

Lawyer David Couch said this would serve the state better by supposedly rewarding high-quality applications.

So seems the Department of Finance and Administration is working on draft rules to implement a lottery system for dispensaries, but the ultimate decision will be left up to this commission.

Hutchinson says the lottery system would be similar to the alcohol-permit process Arkansas has and would involve setting up minimum qualifications, and then qualifying applicants would be picked randomly.

This process, he says, is what the state already has experience with and says is the preferred method.

What will eventually occur when this is all ironed out is having four to eight cultivation facilities and from 20 to 40 dispensaries scattered throughout the state, both operations expected to rake in a ton of money and profit.

Under the rules, cultivation facilities would be required to cough up a $15,000 application fee while dispensaries would pay a $7,500 fee.

One of the only aspects of this amendment that is noteworthy is the fact that no individual can have interest in more than one cultivation facility and one dispensary. Nevertheless, there is tons of money to be made by those selected to grow and sell this wacky weed.

The point needs to be made once again that the cost of implementing what we still believe is totally ridiculous and unnecessary will be very costly to the taxpayers of Arkansas.

With that said we certainly hope that Gov.

Hutchinson, lawmakers and this commission have in place taxes similar to what is applied to the sale of tobacco in Arkansas, an administrative fee system and any other type financial resource that can cover the costs.

On a final note, another aspect of all this is the law enforcement end whereby steps are in place to adequately deal with those individuals who are caught operating vehicles on public roads under the influence of this drug. Furthermore, we would suspect some study being given to handling the illegal sale of this drug to individuals who are not suffering from on of the medical conditions outlined in the amendment.

It just might also be recommended that the members of this marijuana commission consult with those individuals in other states that have similar medical marijuana laws to see what the pros and cons are, the pitfalls and steps they have taken in this process.

Learning the lessons of others will play a valuable role in how Arkansas proceeds with this situation.