California Seeks Cannabis Chief with High Expectations

[dropcap class=”kp-dropcap”]W[/dropcap]ith the passing of the Medical Marijuana Regulations and Safety Act, the state of California is looking for a Chief to oversee the Bureau of Medical Marijuana Regulation. Aside from having to advise the Bureau’s Director and executive staff, the individual appointed Chief will have to “Oversee and maintain overall responsibility for all activities of the Bureau’s Licensing, Enforcement and Administration programs, including the Bureau’s legislation and regulation activities,” as stated in a job posting by the Department of Consumer Affairs.

With an expected salary of roughly $120,000 a year, the Chief’s responsibilities seem to outweigh the pay. Serving as the face of the Bureau, the Chief is expected to communicate with news media, local and federal agencies, consumers and professionals within the cannabis industry. The Chief will also have to regulate product labeling and weed out collectives that don’t adhere to regulations, according to CBS Local. If the Chief is not knowledgeable about California legislature concerning medical cannabis, it will be hard for them to properly regulate the industry, and starting the agency from nothing does not give inexperienced candidates much leverage.

Although this seems like a good idea to government officials, suppliers like Kimberly Cargile of Therapeutic Alternative in Sacramento, hopes the right candidate is chosen, stating, “It’s putting a lot of power in the hands of one person so everyone is a little bit nervous, hoping that the person in charge is compassionate and sees marijuana as medicine.”

Whenever the Department of Consumer Affairs finds the ideal candidate for the position of Chief, that individual will have to be approved by Governor Jerry Brown. The Chief is expected to be hired by January 2016 giving them some time to build up the Bureau as well as create the various rules and regulations for the cannabis industry in California.