Section 77: Cannabis Advisory Board

652 words·~3 min read·/ma/part-i/title-ii/chapter-10/77

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Section 77.

(a)There shall be a cannabis advisory board to study and make recommendations to the Massachusetts cannabis control commission on the regulation and taxation of marijuana. The board shall consist of: the executive director of the Massachusetts cannabis control commission who shall serve as chair; the secretary of economic development or a designee; the commissioner of revenue or a designee; the commissioner of public health or a designee; the commissioner of agricultural resources or a designee; the colonel of the state police or a designee; the president of the Massachusetts Municipal Association, Inc. or a designee; the president of the Massachusetts Patient Advocacy Alliance, Inc. or a designee; a registered qualifying patient appointed by the president of the Massachusetts Patient Advocacy Alliance, Inc.; the executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Massachusetts, Inc. or a designee; 5 persons to be appointed by the treasurer and receiver-general, 1 of whom shall be an expert in marijuana cultivation, 1 of whom shall be an expert in marijuana retailing, 1 of whom shall be an expert in marijuana product manufacturing, 1 of whom shall be an expert in laboratory sciences and toxicology and 1 of whom shall be an expert in providing legal services to marijuana businesses; 5 persons to be appointed by the governor, 1 of whom shall be an expert in minority business development, 1 of whom shall be an expert in economic development strategies for under-resourced communities, 1 of whom shall be an expert in farming or representing the interests of farmers, 1 of whom shall be an expert representing the interests of employers and 1 of whom shall be an expert in municipal law enforcement with advanced training in impairment detection and evaluation; and 5 persons to be appointed by the attorney general, 1 of whom shall be an expert in social welfare or social justice, 1 of whom shall be an expert in criminal justice reform to mitigate the disproportionate impact of drug prosecutions on communities of color, 1 of whom shall be an expert in minority business ownership, 1 of whom shall be an expert in women-owned business ownership and 1 of whom shall be an expert in the prevention and treatment of substance use disorders. Members of the board shall serve for terms of 2 years. Members of the board shall serve without compensation but shall be reimbursed for their expenses actually and necessarily incurred in the discharge of their official duties. Members of the board shall not be state employees under chapter 268A by virtue of their service on the board. To take action at a meeting, a majority of the members of the board present and voting shall constitute a quorum.

(b)The cannabis advisory board shall:

(i)consider all matters submitted to it by the commission;

(ii)on its own initiative, recommend to the commission guidelines, rules and regulations and any changes to guidelines, rules and regulations that the advisory board considers important or necessary for the commission's review and consideration; and

(iii)advise on the preparation of regulations pursuant to chapter 94G and chapter 94I.

(c)The chair may appoint subcommittees in order to expedite the work of the board; provided, however, that the chair shall appoint:

(i)a subcommittee on public health to develop recommendations on products, labelling, marketing, advertising, related public health issues, potency, which may include a recommended maximum limit for individual servings of marijuana products, and packaging, which may include the development and implementation of a public health warning to appear on marijuana products;

(ii)a subcommittee on public safety and community mitigation to develop recommendations on law enforcement, property, business and consumer issues;

(iii)a subcommittee on the cannabis industry to develop recommendations on cultivation, processing, manufacturing, transportation, distribution, seed-to-sale tracking and market stability; and

(iv)a subcommittee on market participation to develop recommendations on women, minority and veteran-owned businesses, local agriculture and growing cooperatives.