Pot panel packed with potent opponents
Opponents of legalized marijuana pack the powerful commission that will oversee what's expected to be a multibillion-dollar pot industry in Massachusetts.
Four of the five members of the Cannabis Control Commission, whose full slate was named yesterday, opposed the legalization initiative that was passed by voters last year.
Led by Steven Hoffman, a former Bain & Co. executive, the commission faces a tight deadline to hire staff and craft regulations before next April, when applications will begin flowing in for the state's first recreational marijuana dispensaries. They'll then need to vet candidates before the first pot shops can open July 1.
The board includes:
Hoffman, a legalization opponent who has no background in the marijuana industry and was tapped Thursday by Treasurer Deborah B. Goldberg to chair the commission.
Britte McBride, who also voted against legalizing marijuana last November, once headed AG's policy and government division, and was tapped yesterday by Attorney General Maura Healey.
Kay Doyle, a joint pick announced yesterday by Goldberg, Healey and Gov. Charlie Baker, who served as deputy counsel at the Department of Public Health, where she was the top in-house lawyer for the state's medical marijuana program. Doyle also voted against legalization, according to the treasurer's office, citing “concerns with the ballot initiative.”
Shaleen Title, co-founder of THC Staffing Group, a cannabis recruiting firm, was another joint selection announced yesterday. Title helped write the marijuana legalization referendum voters passed last November and is a founding board member of the Minority Cannabis Business Association.
And Jennifer Flanagan, who resigned her seat in the state Senate after Baker picked her for the board earlier this month. Flanagan, who was co-chair of the Joint Committee on Mental Health and Substance Abuse, voted against legalization, and has a degree in mental health counseling.
Healey, who was required to make a selection with a public safety background, praised McBride as bringing “vast experience” to the panel.
“Her knowledge and expertise in public policy, rule-writing, and government transparency will be an asset to the Commission and the state as this new industry is launched in Massachusetts,” Healey said in a statement.
Doyle and Title are the only selections with a direct background in the marijuana industry, though Flanagan, as a state lawmaker, voted for the legislation that overhauled the state's new legalization law and established the fivemember commission.
Title is the sole proponent of legalization, and her pick comes as advocates have fretted over the earlier selection of legalization opponents to serve on the commission.
The commission's four members will make $120,000 a year. Hoffman, as chair, will make $161,000 under state statute.