One Lawyer's view on 1284 Compliance

[Nosmo33]

7/1/10 or 7/1/11? Which is it? | Gard & Bond, L.L.C.

Confusion continues to guide the MMJ industry. Many of you have attended presentations by Mr. Matt Cook, the head of the stateâ??s MMJ business regulation division. At these presentations, Mr. Cook repeatedly states that the bill goes into effect on 7/1/11 and that local regulations apply until then. I have spoken with many MMJ business people who take this information as the gospel truth and intend to continue with their businesses in their current form until 7/1/11. Many such businesses are â??grow onlyâ?� or â??retail onlyâ?� operations that have been locally approved (or not). Many are owned by people who have not resided in the state for two years, have a felony drug conviction or a felony conviction less than five years old or all three. In my discussions and correspondence with Mr. Cook (see prior blogs), it appears that continued operation of a MMJ business without strict compliance with HB1284 until 7/1/11 could be a serious problem.

Letâ??s examine the idea that you have until 7/1/11 to comply with HB1284. If the bill does not take effect until 7/1/11, is there any requirement to apply to the state by 8/1/10? Can you refuse to pay the $7500-$18,000 application fee until July 2011? When you list your optional grow premises, can you tell the state that you plan to get around to it before July 2011? When you list a drug felon or out-of-state resident as an owner or employee on your application, will you be able to address this issue sometime before 7/1/11. Finally, when you certify, under penalty of perjury, on 9/1/10 that you are growing 70% of your own MMJ, can you tell the state that you are planning on doing this, but currently are buying all of the MMJ from various growers?

The point of this exercise is to point out that compliance with HB1284 appears to be immediate. If it were otherwise, none of the provision of HB1284 would apply, including the 8/1/10 application, the license/application fee, the 9/1/10 certification, etc.

Based on the information we received from Mr. Cook and our reading of HB1284, we suggest immediate compliance with HB1284. If you follow this advice, the worst that can happen is that you ran an HB1284 compliant business for one year longer than necessary. However, if you defer your compliance until July1, 2011, you may find that your application is denied or, worse, that you may face criminal prosecution for operating a business without the benefit of HB1284 protection. In our view, it is better to be safe than sorry.

Jeff Gard July 7th, 2010

Nosmo33 Reviewed by Nosmo33 on 07-10-2010. One Lawyer's view on 1284 Compliance 7/1/10 or 7/1/11? Which is it? | Gard & Bond, L.L.C. Confusion continues to guide the MMJ industry. Many of you have attended presentations by Mr. Matt Cook, the head of the stateâ??s MMJ business regulation division. At these presentations, Mr. Cook repeatedly states that the bill goes into effect on 7/1/11 and that local regulations apply until then. I have spoken with many MMJ business people who take this information as the gospel truth and intend to continue with their businesses in Rating: 5

[jenny32]

Thanks Jeff. I too have received similar responses from Matt Cook when asking if infused product manufacturers can continue to use commissary kitchens until 7-1-11.

Since so many IPM's will be put out of business due to the scarcity and high cost of kitchens in Denver, what do you think about groups of manufacturers setting up LLC's and working under the same license at the same kitchen? How many members do you think each LLC can have and still be in compliance with HB 1284? Is there any way that LLC members can protect themselves from illegal activities by the other members?

Would your office like to help with the legal structure of these LLC's?

[GratefulMeds]

I agree with Jeff on this, procrastinate at your own peril.

[Nosmo33]

Thanks Jeff. I too have received similar responses from Matt Cook when asking if infused product manufacturers can continue to use commissary kitchens until 7-1-11.

Since so many IPM's will be put out of business due to the scarcity and high cost of kitchens in Denver, what do you think about groups of manufacturers setting up LLC's and working under the same license at the same kitchen? How many members do you think each LLC can have and still be in compliance with HB 1284? Is there any way that LLC members can protect themselves from illegal activities by the other members?

Would your office like to help with the legal structure of these LLC's?

I am not Jeff Gard, nor do I have any affiliation with Jeff Gard. I simply wanted to post what I thought was an intelligent opinion and possibly valuable information for members here to read. This was taken directly from the public website of Gard & Bond Associates. I realize the way I posted it, with no additional comments from myself might be confusing. Again I apologize, communicating on a public forum like this is completly new to me. I am simply a MMJ patient who frankly is disturbed by the current climate and direction our state leaders are taking the Medical Marijuana program of this state. Again, I apologize for the confusion. Lesson learned!

[HighPopalorum]

Absolutely. If I had skin in this game, I would be in compliance yesterday.