THE House Committee on Cannabis is working on a bill that would abolish the Commonwealth Cannabis Commission, which former educator Ambrose M. Bennett has described as “dysfunctional.”
In an interview Monday, Vice Speaker Diego Vincent F. Camacho said the committee is proposing to disband the five-member Cannabis Commission and create a division within the Department of Commerce with authority to regulate the cannabis industry in the CNMI.
He added that this approach would be more cost-effective for the government. “Instead of paying five commissioners, it would be more prudent to give Commerce enforcement staff similar authority to that of the Alcoholic Beverage & Tobacco Control director,” Camacho said.
In the 23rd Legislature, Camacho introduced House Bill 23-21, which sought to amend Public Law 20-66, the Taulamwaar Sensible CNMI Cannabis Act of 2018. The bill would have replaced the commissioners’ $55,000 annual salaries with a stipend of $60 for a full-day meeting and no more than $30 for a half-day or shorter meeting, with total compensation capped at $6,000 per year. The bill, however, died in the House Ways and Means Committee.
“This time,” Camacho said, “instead of reintroducing that bill, Rep. Denita Yangetmai, chair of the House Cannabis Committee, and I are working on a bill to abolish the Cannabis Commission.”
Former Board of Education member and teacher Ambrose Bennett sent a letter to the House requesting oversight hearings on the cannabis and casino commissions. In the letter to the chairs of the House Ways and Means and Cannabis Committees, Bennett wrote that the Cannabis Commission “is clearly dysfunctional, never sponsoring a single event for the industry, and has yet to draft a law for the Legislature or Municipal Councils to approve so the justice system can prosecute violators.”
Bennett, who drafted the original cannabis legislation when the industry was first introduced in the CNMI, said the territory has operated the cannabis industry “at a loss,” spending more on commissioners than it has earned. “If you look at the original bill, you will find language stating that the Cannabis Commission and director were temporary for five years to get the industry started,” he said.
Bennett said he looks forward to testifying in the House oversight hearings on behalf of concerned citizens. “It’s obvious to the average citizen now that we must fix (reform) both of these commissions,” he said.
