{"id":75723,"date":"2024-05-29T10:09:54","date_gmt":"2024-05-29T18:09:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/2024\/05\/29\/rhode-island-governor-appoints-oklahoma-marijuana-official-to-lead-new-state-cannabis-office\/"},"modified":"2024-05-29T12:45:44","modified_gmt":"2024-05-29T20:45:44","slug":"rhode-island-governor-appoints-oklahoma-marijuana-official-to-lead-new-state-cannabis-office","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/2024\/05\/29\/rhode-island-governor-appoints-oklahoma-marijuana-official-to-lead-new-state-cannabis-office\/","title":{"rendered":"Rhode Island Governor Appoints Oklahoma Marijuana Official To Lead New State Cannabis Office"},"content":{"rendered":"<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m confident Michelle will effectively continue Rhode Island\u2019s commitment to promoting the safe usage and responsible regulation of cannabis in our state.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

By Christopher Shea, Rhode Island Current<\/strong><\/p>\n

One of Oklahoma\u2019s top medical marijuana regulators is Gov. Dan McKee\u2019s (D) choice to become Rhode Island\u2019s first cannabis administrator.<\/p>\n

Michelle Reddish was named to lead the state\u2019s Cannabis Office\u2014a position tasked with coordinating the oversight and administration of cannabis use in Rhode Island, per the statute that legalized recreational cannabis in 2022\u2014McKee\u2019s office announced Thursday, May 23.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m thrilled to move to beautiful Rhode Island with my children and step into the role of inaugural administrator,\u201d Reddish said in a statement. \u201cI am eager to build strong partnerships across the state in support of safe and equitable access to cannabis.<\/p>\n

The Senate Committee on Judiciary is scheduled to consider Reddish\u2019s nomination Thursday, May 30. If confirmed by the whole Senate, Reddish would receive an annual salary of\u00a0$162,270, said Christina O\u2019Reilly, a spokesperson for the Rhode Island Department of Administration.<\/p>\n

Reddish would also have to report directly to the state\u2019s Cannabis Control Commission\u2014the three-member panel that regulates and gives licenses to businesses looking to get in on Rhode Island\u2019s growing marijuana industry.<\/p>\n

The commission was formed last June, just a little over a year after recreational cannabis was legalized. Commissioners\u00a0spent their summer on a listening tour, hearing the concerns of community members and cannabis workers<\/a>, which include\u00a0ensuring the commission prioritizes social equity measures<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The commission is still in discussion mode, with input from an 11-member Cannabis Advisory Board, and expects to finalize rules and regulations this year.<\/p>\n

Commission chairperson Kimberly Ahern celebrated Reddish\u2019s nomination.<\/p>\n

\u201cHer regulatory and industry experience will help ensure our Commission continues its thoughtful and thorough progress as we carefully expand the adult-use market in Rhode Island,\u201d Ahern said.<\/p>\n

At the moment, Reddish serves as the chief operating officer for the Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Authority\u2014a position she has held since June 2023, according to her resume<\/a>. Before that, she spent over a year as the authority\u2019s chief regulatory officer.<\/p>\n

As regulatory officer, Reddish\u2019s resume notes she helped refine Oklahoma\u2019s compliance inspections, audits, complaints, notices of violation and administrative actions regarding medical marijuana.<\/p>\n

Medical marijuana was legalized in Oklahoma in 2018, and the state now has\u00a07,114 licensed cannabis businesses. The state last year extended a moratorium on new medical marijuana business licenses through 2026,\u00a0according to Oklahoma Voice.\u00a0A report\u00a0for the Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Authority published last June found the state had 32 times more regulated cannabis than necessary to meet patient demand.<\/p>\n

From April 2021 to March 2022, Reddish was the director of compliance for C3 industries\u2014a Michigan-based cannabis grower and retailer with facilities in Massachusetts and Missouri. She was also a regulatory compliance officer for Orlando-based Ravago Chemicals and SLB, a Houston-based global technology company.<\/p>\n

\u201cMichelle\u2019s significant expertise in regulatory compliance, development, and technological advancement position her to hit the ground running on day one,\u201d McKee said in a statement<\/a>. \u201cI\u2019m confident Michelle will effectively continue Rhode Island\u2019s commitment to promoting the safe usage and responsible regulation of cannabis in our state.\u201d<\/p>\n

Reddish holds two master\u2019s degrees from Tulane University \u2014 one in occupational health and safety and the other in cell and molecular biology. Reddish has a third master\u2019s degree from the University of New Orleans in health care management.<\/p>\n

This story was first published by Rhode Island Current.<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

\n

Delaware Governor Signs Bill To Expand Medical Marijuana Access By Letting Doctors Recommend It For Any Condition<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\n

Photo courtesy of Chris Wallis \/\/ Side Pocket Images.<\/em><\/p>\n

The post Rhode Island Governor Appoints Oklahoma Marijuana Official To Lead New State Cannabis Office<\/a> appeared first on Marijuana Moment<\/a>.<\/p>\n


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\nRead More: Rhode Island Governor Appoints Oklahoma Marijuana Official To Lead New State Cannabis Office<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u201cI\u2019m confident Michelle will effectively continue Rhode Island\u2019s commitment to promoting the safe usage and responsible regulation of cannabis in our state.\u201d By Christopher Shea, Rhode Island Current One of Oklahoma\u2019s top medical marijuana regulators is Gov. Dan McKee\u2019s (D) choice to become Rhode Island\u2019s first cannabis administrator. Michelle ReddishContinue Reading<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":457,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"false","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[81],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/75723"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/457"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=75723"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/75723\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":75724,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/75723\/revisions\/75724"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=75723"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=75723"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=75723"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}