Pubdate: Thu, 18 Jan 2018
Source: Boston Globe (MA)
Copyright: 2018 Globe Newspaper Company
Contact: http://services.bostonglobe.com/news/opeds/letter.aspx?id=6340
Website: http://bostonglobe.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/52
Author: Dan Adams

CANNABIS COMMISSION PICKS FIRMS TO TRACK MARIJUANA PLANTS AND LICENSE 
APPLICATIONS

The Massachusetts Cannabis Control Commission is plowing ahead with
its preparations for the debut of recreational pot sales in July,
despite a recent change in federal law enforcement policy that has put
a cloud of uncertainty over the marijuana industry.

The commission has voted to negotiate a contract with Franwell Inc., a
Florida-based software firm whose "Metrc" product tracks all the
marijuana sold legally in Colorado and most other states with
recreational markets.

The system, for which about $750,000 has been budgeted, is a vital
piece of regulatory infrastructure meant to prevent marijuana that's
grown, processed, and sold in state-licensed facilities from being
diverted to the illicit market.

Metrc uses wireless RFID tags and barcodes to log every movement of a
marijuana plant from the time of planting until its cured buds and the
products derived from them - such as edibles and tinctures - are sold
in dispensaries.

The commission also voted to negotiate a contract with a local
company, Salem-based JD Software Inc., for a system that will handle
applications for recreational marijuana licenses. The state Department
of Public Health already uses the firm's software to manage the
licensing of medical marijuana dispensaries.

Shawn Collins, the commission's executive director, said the companies
were selected over other bidders because of their ability to set up
their systems quickly and adapt the software as the agency tinkers
with its final regulations.

"There's a lot of confidence that, on day one, we will have a tracking
system that functions," Collins told the agency's five commissioners
at a meeting Tuesday.

Earlier this month, US Attorney General Jeff Sessions ended the
federal government's hands-off policy towards states with legal
cannabis markets, raising the prospect of raids and diminished
investment in the burgeoning industry.
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MAP posted-by: Matt