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Industry urges OMMA to pause pesticide-list expansion, citing lab capacity and enforcement gaps
Summary
Lab directors, chemists and industry representatives at an OMMA public comment session urged regulators to delay expanding the pesticide analyte list from 13 to 60 until the state QA lab is functional, instrumentation allowances are updated, and enforcement of existing rules is consistent.
Laboratory directors, analytical chemists and other industry stakeholders told the Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Authority on Dec. 17 that proposed rules expanding the pesticide analyte list risk outpacing the laboratories and enforcement systems meant to protect patients.
"Expanding the pesticide list without first addressing these critical enforcement gaps does not enhance safety," Matthew Phillips, CEO of Oklahoma Compliance Testing Lab, said, urging OMMA to prioritize enforcement of current requirements before adding analytes. Several speakers said more than half of the state's labs are failing to detect pesticides already on the list because of equipment or quality-control shortfalls.
Multiple commenters warned the proposed action limits are set at or near the limits of quantification. "The action limits being at about 20 parts per 1,000,000,000 is basically the bottom line of what you can achievably quantify," said Ryan Crist, lab director at High Bridal Labs, adding that requiring all analytes to be present near the action limit in lab QC samples (LCS) is practically impossible.
Speakers pressed OMMA to allow a broader set of instrumentation methods. "For some of these compounds, the ability to use a GC triple quad is absolutely necessary," Cole Allman, medical director at Oklahoma Compliance Testing Laboratory, said, noting statutory language he cited (47.17A) that he said requires state guidance on recommended equipment and SOPs.
Veteran analytical chemist Brandon Mosley urged OMMA to delay the 60-analyte list until the state's QA laboratory is accredited and operating, and to adopt EPA-style system performance checks. "Table the proposed pesticide list until the state lab is functional and they can demonstrate these 60 pesticides can truly be determined," Mosley said.
Several commenters reported round-robin proficiency testing results and anecdotal failures in inter-lab comparisons. "Of 24 labs, only 10 actually reported the correct values," Ben Cortez said, arguing that either action levels be raised (he cited Florida's 100,000 standard) or the program adopt a tested-and-reported model like New York's to avoid blanket failures that punish compliant growers.
OMMA staff earlier told the room that a state QA lab is expected to be functional in the coming months; commenters repeatedly said they need evidence of accreditation, published SOPs and a clear instrument/equipment list before enforcement proceeds.
Next steps: the public comment period remained open online through 5 p.m. on Dec. 17; OMMA said every commenter will receive a written response. Several laboratory representatives requested follow-up meetings and offered to provide data or regional surveys to inform a more targeted pesticide list and realistic QC standards.
