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Bureau of Medical Marihuana Regulation - MMFLA Emergency Rules

By Robert A. Hendricks posted 01-24-2018 12:01

  

On December 4, 2017, the Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs Bureau of Medical Marihuana Regulation (BMMR) issued its long-awaited rules implementing the 2016 Medical Marihuana Facilities Licensing Act (MMFLA). Rather than permanent rules, however, they were issued as emergency rules, which are allowed under Michigan law. The rules will last for six months, and they may be extended for not more than another six months.

The BMMR said it issued the rules under the emergency provisions of the Administrative Procedures Act because of the strong need for some form of rules before December 15, 2017, the date on which applications for licenses under the MMFLA could begin to be submitted to the state. The licensing board and the regulators did not have sufficient time to craft comprehensive permanent rules. Moreover, the nature of emergency rules is that they can more easily be modified than permanent rules, which was an important consideration in the rollout of this brand new system.

Many of the current emergency rules are exactly what participants in this new industry expected. There were also a couple of big surprises. Rule 19 purports to authorize the temporary operation of existing “dispensaries” while they apply for provisioning center licenses under the MMFLA. Rule 20 contemplates that for the first 30 days after the issuance of an MMFLA license, the licensee can apparently “enter” marijuana product into the state tracking system. In other words, marijuana product possessed or developed under the old law will be allowed to be transitioned into the new system.

Both Rule 19 and 20 make perfect sense as transition rules. They just don’t seem to have any authorization in the existing statutory law. These rules indicate the BMMR’s willingness to propose solutions to problems with the system.

Matt Abel, from Cannabis Counsel PLC, and I will be in the ICLE studio filming an on-demand seminar on the emergency rules, which will be available in February 2018. Please let us know if you have questions for us. This on-demand seminar is cosponsored by the Marijuana Law Section of the State Bar of Michigan.

 

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