County Prepares for Retail Medical Marijuana

BRADENTON – Manatee County Commissioners were updated on the ongoing effort to finalize regulations related to the impending sale and distribution of medical marijuana at a workshop on Tuesday.

Municipal governments can (but are not required to) establish regulations for various aspects of zoning, including number and location of dispensaries, provided they do not conflict with state law, explained Manatee County Planner Margaret Tussing.

Tussing said that some of the common regulations being considered by governments included minimum distances between schools, parks and other dispensaries, as well as restricting them to places that have zoning classifications like industrial, heavy commercial or light manufacturing, while prohibiting them in planned development districts.

However, because state lawmakers failed during their recent annual legislative session to pass legislation fully implementing the Constitutional amendment legalizing medical marijuana that was approved by 72 percent of voters last fall, local governments have been forced to largely sit on their hands.

Further complicating the issue was a Florida Department of Health cease-and-desist letter delivered on Monday that ordered one of its approved medical-marijuana operators to stop selling a "whole flower" product for use in vaporizers because it can easily be smoked, which is not permitted by the law.

Quincy-based Trulieve began selling "Entourage," a whole-flower variant meant to be used in its vaporizer product, last week.

State law permits "vaping" medical marijuana, but smoking is prohibited. The company issues warnings to patients that the product should only be used for vaping, but the state was not satisfied, particularly because the vaporizer was sold only online and, during an inspection, company officials were not able to show how to use the whole flower product with the vaporizer.

Low-THC cannabis can be used by patients suffering from cancer, epilepsy, chronic seizures and chronic muscle spasms if approved by a physician. Patients with terminal conditions can also use marijuana for medical relief, including more potent strains.

The state laws must be fully in place by July and enacted by October 31, leading to broad speculation that a special session would be called.

Commissioner Vanessa Baugh said that she had spoken with State Rep. Jim Boyd on Monday and that he told her he was "fairly certain they were going to have a special session (on the matter) in June.“

Truelieve has already put a pending shop in place in Bradenton, securing retail property before city officials enacted a 180-day moratorium on dispensaries until the regulations were in place.

County officials will now await state action, then schedule another workshop to work on proposed local statutes that would be put in place before the Oct. 31 date.