News & Articles

If Colorado’s Stakeholder approach highlights one thing, it is that you need to understand how your business functions in order to identify what actions are or may be subject to some form of regulation. By understanding your business processes (the real world activities), you will be able to identify current regulations and how they impact your actions as well as anticipating future regulatory actions that you want to be aware of while they are being considered rather than after they have been put into effect.

This paper is primarily focused state regulatory processes; with Colorado as a micro-environment we can study. There are significant aspects of business, not just cannabis businesses - that are subject to regulatory control from Federal, state and local governments. It is important to note that regulations do not exist in a vacuum, behind any set of regulations is a government agency and the bureaucrats who implement the rules!

Continued from last week: Beware the Regulators...Not the Sheriff

Current Status

Government regulation is the linchpin for state actions changing the legal status of the cannabis industry from a criminal environment into a legal environment. Whether for medical or recreational use, state and local government regulators and regulations will define the geography for cannabis businesses.

This factor should be included as an important focal point in any cannabis related business’s strategic planning. An important aspect of government regulation of commercial cannabis activity is the fact that it is a relatively new area for state and local legislators and regulators:

One of our outstanding mentors, Michael Leventhal, helped out with a presentation on calculating potential market. Michael's background with Nielsen combined with his focus on cannabis provides fascinating insight into market potential and lends a degree of structure desperately needed within the industry.

Be Careful What You Wish For….

After reviewing the above, it certainly seems that there were many hidden benefits to running a criminal enterprise. It was much simpler than trying to run a legal business. The only government involvement was whether or not you got arrested, and if you got arrested you’d still get your day in court. You might not be convicted and even if you got convicted you might not go to jail and you might get to keep your ill gotten gains. As a criminal, you also enjoyed many legal rights and protections based on standards for the activities of law enforcement personnel.