Colorado's Amendment 64 Task Force Releases Full Report

DENVER, CO — Ending months of speculation, Colorado’s Amendment 64 Task Force issued its final recommendations for the state implementation of legal, regulated marijuana sales to adults.

The Task Force released a 165-page report Wednesday, which includes 58 recommendations to be reviewed by state lawmakers.

The report now will go to the state’s lawmakers, who will use the recommendations to create the regulations for Colorado’s newest industry.

Article continues after ad Advertisement

The 24-member task force, composed of lawmakers, police, drug counselors, medical marijuana patients, dispensary owners and government representatives, has been working since December, studying every aspect of creating an industry that remains illegal under federal law.

“This is a very comprehensive report, developed in a rapid timeframe, that lays the groundwork for the establishment of a robust regulatory framework, with adequate funding for marijuana industry oversight and enforcement, consumer protection and prevention and treatment programs for young people,” Jack Finlaw, the Governor’s Chief Legal Counsel, who co-chaired the task force, said in a statement.

The Task Force’s major recommendations include the following:

The adult-use marijuana industry should be required to have common ownership from seed to sale. This vertical integration regulatory model means that cultivation, processing and manufacturing, and retail sales must be under common ownership.

During the first year of licensing, only entities with valid medical marijuana licenses should be able to obtain licenses to grow, process and sell adult-use cannabis.

A new Marijuana Enforcement Division in the Department of Revenue would be funded by General Fund revenue for the next five years and would provide the necessary regulatory oversight of all marijuana industries in Colorado.

Refer a ballot initiative to voters this November for a 15% excise tax, with the first $40 million of excise tax proceeds going to the state’s school construction fund as outlined in Amendment 64, and a “marijuana sales tax” to create funding sources to cover the costs of regulating the industry, implementing consumer safeguards and establishing youth prevention and treatment programs.

Only Colorado residents should be allowed to hold licenses to grow, process and sell adult-use cannabis. But sales to both residents and visitors to the state should be permitted, with stricter quantity limits for visitors.

All types of marijuana sold from adult use cannabis retail facilities should be in childproof packaging and have warning labels that detail tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) potency and list all pesticides, herbicides, fungicides and solvents used in cultivation or processing.

“This was ground-breaking work and the Task Force process went very well,” task force co-chair Barbara Brohl said. “It was supported by many committed and astute individuals who took the Governor’s charge very seriously. Task force members represented differing viewpoints, they addressed all issues in a well-thought-out manner and worked hard to develop sound solutions. The Task Force did all the ‘heavy lifting,” but now a lot of follow up work has to be done in the coming months.”

Article continues after ad Advertisement

For those who do not wish to read the entire 165 page report, the Task Force has released a four page “quick reference guide,” available here.

It remains to be seen when the recommendations will become regulations for a legal cannabis industry in Colorado. It is estimated that the first legal recreational sales of marijuana will not happen until early 2014.

The task force’s recommendations will now go to the state house, where lawmakers will assemble them into a bill, and begin a new round of discussion and debate.

Tags: Amendment 64