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Department of Cannabis Control seeks one analyst to implement combined-activities license, agency requests funded from Cannabis Control Fund
Summary
The Department of Cannabis Control asked the subcommittee for one position to support implementation of a new combined-activities license required by SB 1064; the request is funded from the Cannabis Control Fund and estimated at $154,000 in FY 2025–26 with $146,000 ongoing.
Christina Dempsey, deputy director for government affairs at the Department of Cannabis Control, told the subcommittee the department is requesting one position and related resources to support implementation of Senate Bill 1064, which requires a combined‑activities license allowing multiple commercial cannabis activities at a single premises.
Dempsey said the department—217s track-and-trace and licensing workload will shift under the combined‑activities license. The department estimates an additional position in the track-and-trace field support unit will cost $154,000 in fiscal year 2025–26 and $146,000 ongoing, paid from the Cannabis Control Fund (a special fund supported by industry licensing fees).
Dempsey told senators the combined‑activities license should simplify licensure for some businesses by allowing a single account to cover multiple activities at one site and removing certain administrative barriers that now exist when licensees operate several separate premises. She said the department expects a shift in existing licensing workload rather than a large net increase, but that complexity in track-and-trace data for combined licenses will require dedicated analysis and field support.
Senators pressed the department on whether one analyst would be sufficient and whether the change would reduce barriers for small and underrepresented cannabis businesses. Dempsey said some workload shifts could be absorbed by moving staff responsibilities away from managing multiple separate licenses, but the track-and-trace analysis need would be new. She also said licensing regulations must still be adopted and that the department is evaluating its legacy licensing systems (the transcript references earlier efforts to consolidate multiple legacy systems).
The department said it does not expect regulatory implementation issues and that the change could make day-to-day operations functionally easier for many licensees. The subcommittee chair said the item was recommended to be approved as budgeted and the committee planned to take the item up for a vote with other budget items later in the hearing.
Ending
No final vote was recorded on the request during the hearing transcript provided; the subcommittee recommended it for approval as budgeted and planned to take votes on budget items later.
