The fact that this even a topic for discussion tells me the US Virgin Islands have a rocky road ahead when it comes to the cannabis.
The answer is a simple No , if you have a business beforehand the choice is stay in business or dump it and move into political adminstration. You can’t have your cake and eat it. On a small island as with anywhere else this leads down tghe road of favours and corruption
It staggers me that this is even a discussion.
St Thomas Source
As the Virgin Islands prepare for the next legislative session, the Cannabis Advisory Board is considering whether elected officials should be prohibited from retaining cannabis business licenses after taking office, raising questions about ethics, conflicts of interest and potential changes to existing law.
The issue was discussed during the board’s Thursday meeting, after Office of Cannabis Regulation Executive Director Joanne Moorehead asked members to consider whether the existing restrictions adequately address individuals who obtain cannabis licenses before being elected to public office.
Section 784(g) of Title 19 of the Virgin Islands Code, as amended by Acts 8680 and 8925, restricts cannabis business licenses from being held by or issued to individuals who, within the preceding 12 months, held elected office in the executive or legislative branches of the Virgin Islands government, were employed by the Department of Licensing and Consumer Affairs or the Office of Cannabis Regulation, or served as members of the Cannabis Advisory Board.
Moorehead said the law clearly addresses individuals who hold elected office and subsequently seek to obtain or retain a cannabis license within the restricted period. However, she questioned what should happen when someone already owns a licensed cannabis business and later wins an election.
“It’s election season,” Moorehead said, explaining that the question had come to the office’s attention as the territory approaches its elections.
Board member Chris Jones said he believed individuals elected to public office should not be allowed to retain cannabis business licenses because of the potential for conflicts of interest.
“I don’t think they should be able to hold their license after being elected because then they, you know, could influence decisions that affect them,” Jones said.
Board chair Dr. Catherine Kean said the matter required further examination to determine whether the concern was primarily legal or ethical.
“If an individual gets a license, has a dispensary for four or five years and then decides to run for office and wins,” Kean said, the question becomes what that individual should do with the business.
The discussion was not limited to dispensary ownership. Moorehead clarified that the restriction applies to licenses authorized under the Cannabis Use Act, including dispensary, cultivation, manufacturing, and research and development licenses. Micro-cultivation permits are treated separately under the licensing process.
Members agreed that the matter deserved additional discussion, but no decision was made during Thursday’s meeting because a quorum was not present. The board indicated it would revisit the issue at its next scheduled meeting on Nov. 19.
Moorehead emphasized that changing the restriction would require a legislative amendment because it is established in law, rather than solely in the regulations governing the industry.
The discussion came as the Office of Cannabis Regulation reported progress in moving cannabis businesses toward operation across the territory.
According to the office’s October market rollout dashboard, St. Croix was expected to have two operational cultivators by the following week, with a third anticipated shortly afterward. The office was also working with the island’s existing dispensary in hopes of having regulated cannabis products available for the Crucian Christmas Festival season.
Moorehead said the second cultivator was expected to be a Tier 3 operation, following the first Tier 1 cultivator. A third Tier 3 operation was also anticipated within the following weeks.
The office was continuing to work with conditionally approved licensees to establish timelines for completing compliance requirements. Moorehead said the process had taken longer than many applicants had hoped, but the office was working to develop a clearer picture of when additional businesses would be ready to operate.
On St. John, two dispensaries were reportedly close to being ready to open, but the lack of available cultivation product remained an obstacle.
The office also reported that 11 micro-cultivation applications submitted in September had advanced to the compliance phase. Those applications included three from St. John, four from St. Thomas, three from St. Croix and the first application from Water Island.
Moorehead said an evaluation committee meeting was anticipated the following week to review dispensary, cultivation and manufacturing applications received in September. The office hoped to complete scoring by the end of October, allowing applications to advance more quickly.
Alongside licensing developments, the Office of Cannabis Regulation announced upcoming opportunities for people seeking employment in the industry.
The Cannabis Career Expo is scheduled for Monday at My Brother’s Workshop on St. Thomas and Wednesday at D.C. Canegata Ballpark on St. Croix. Both events will run from noon to 4 p.m. and are free and open to the public.
Representatives from licensed cannabis businesses are expected to attend to discuss available positions, qualifications and employment opportunities. Members of the public do not need to register and may attend for any portion of the event.
The office also plans to conduct another round of Responsible Vendor Training in November. Sessions are scheduled for Nov. 16 on St. Thomas and Nov. 19 on St. Croix, at the Port Authority Conference Room at the Florence Williams Public Library.
The training is required for employees seeking cannabis business representative or agent cards, which are necessary for access to restricted areas of cannabis businesses. Moorehead encouraged licensees and prospective employees to take advantage of the sessions to avoid delays in meeting operational requirements.
The office’s updates also included medical cannabis participation, with five practitioners reported on St. Thomas and five on St. Croix. Patient registrations remained in the mid-40s. One sacramental organization had been approved, while two applications remained pending.
Although the board did not take formal action on the proposed restrictions for elected officials, members are expected to continue considering the issue ahead of the next meeting, when they may discuss whether the existing law should remain unchanged or be amended.
