SANTA FE — Three years after New Mexico began allowing the legal sale of cannabis, a bill giving a state agency authority to clamp down on illicit products is halfway to Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham’s desk.
The House voted 68-1 on Thursday to approve the measure, with Rep. Randall Pettigrew, R-Lovington, casting the lone “no” vote.
House Speaker Javier Martínez, D-Albuquerque, described the bill as a necessary fix, saying backers of cannabis legalization realized such changes to state law would have to be made in the years following the initial roll-out.
The bill, House Bill 10, would create a new law enforcement bureau within the state Regulation and Licensing Department that would have the ability to seize and destroy unlawful cannabis products.
That could apply to products from licensed retailers or illegal growing operations alike.
During a recent committee hearing, Todd Stevens, the director of the state’s Cannabis Control Division, said 22-24% of the state’s current licensees have some sort of “criminal element,” such as illegal or mislabeled cannabis products.
In addition, a recent report from the state’s Organized Crime Commission found cannabis remains a major source of income for organized crime syndicates from Mexico and China.
Specifically, some criminal groups exploit regulatory loopholes in the state’s cannabis industry and might be using commercial dispensaries as fronts to launder millions of dollars to help fund their operations, according to the commission’s report.
House Minority Leader Gail Armstrong, R-Magdalena, pointed out during Thursday’s debate that the Regulation and Licensing Department had stepped forward to request the additional authority from lawmakers.
“This is an actual thing that we need in the state of New Mexico,” Armstrong said.
If the bill is signed into law by Lujan Grisham, the new law enforcement bureau would consist of six agents and one bureau chief, according to a legislative analysis.
The bill now advances to the Senate with just under 30 days remaining in this year’s 60-day legislative session.