Lawmakers meeting to hear public testimony on several bills aimed at changing the way the cannabis industry works in the Bay State instead got an earful from speakers who say pot regulators are not listening to whistleblowers and retaliating against licensees who complain.
According to testimony provided by the CEO and founder of the state’s first independent cannabis testing lab, the Cannabis Control Commission responded to his reporting of what he described as serious public health concerns by launching an investigation into his business.
“The investigation was then cited by the CCC as an excuse to prevent us from engaging with commissioners regarding consumer safety. I believe CCC enforcement staff may be misusing investigations as a pretext to silence and harass licensees,” CEO Michael Kahn told the Joint Committee on Cannabis Policy during a Tuesday hearing.
Kahn told lawmakers he was testifying in support of S.58 and H.106, or “An Act establishing an internal special audit unit within the Cannabis Control Commission,” which he said would prevent waste and abuse.
“I reached out to the CCC with concerns about public health on multiple occasions over the past several years. Instead of listening or taking action, CCC staff, in my opinion, retaliated by opening an investigation into our laboratory,” he said.
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