AUGUSTA - Gov. Janet Mills recently signed into law a bill sponsored by Rep. Laura Supica, D-Bangor, that reforms the state's adult use marijuana tracking system.
Maine's adult use regulations previously called for a plastic tracking "tag" to be placed on every plant or, in the case of marijuana products, every "item". The system incurred significant financial and personnel costs for small businesses and resulted in unnecessary plastic waste across the industry.
LD 1817 address this issue by requiring plants to be tagged and tracked by group, and the bill implements record-keeping requirements in order to support the health and safety of the public. This does not change the amount of cannabis product tracked nor does it impact the ability of the state to accurately track these plants, rather it streamlines the process by allowing one physical tag per canopy instead of the many tags and hours of labor utilized under a per-plant approach.
"I am grateful to Gov. Mills for signing this legislation into law," said Supica. "The adult use marijuana industry in Maine is booming. Ensuring we can safely and efficiently regulate these businesses without crushing them with unnecessary and burdensome requirements is critical, both for the survival of many small businesses, but also for the health and well-being of so many Mainers."
The bill received unanimous support in the House and Senate. The new law will go into effect later this year, 90 days after the Legislature adjourns.
Supica is serving her first term in the Maine House of Representatives and represents District 126, part of Bangor. She sits on the Veterans and Legal Affairs Committee.
Contact:
Jackie Merrill [Supica], c. 812-1111