Promises Kept: Arizona’s Safe Cannabis Market Marks Five Years, Funding Vital State Priorities
Ann Torrez is the Executive Director of the Arizona Dispensaries Association which serves as the voice of Arizona's licensed marijuana dispensaries.
Copperstate Farms operates the largest cannabis greenhouse in the United States in Snowflake, Arizona. Photo courtesy of Copperstate Farms.
All products undergo state testing before being sold at retail dispensaries across the state of Arizona. Photo courtesy of Smithers Lab.
“Five years in, Arizona’s cannabis market is delivering what voters were promised,” said Ann Torrez, executive director of the Arizona Dispensaries Association.
“Smart and Safe is a win that continues to deliver for Arizona,” said Ann Torrez, executive director of the Arizona Dispensaries Association. “Five years in, Arizona’s cannabis market is delivering exactly what voters were promised including rigorously tested, safe products and more than $1.4 billion in tax revenue that is directly supporting our communities. This is a model of how thoughtful regulation protects consumers while creating meaningful public benefit,” said Ann Torrez, executive director of the Arizona Dispensaries Association.
According to Torrez, Arizona’s regulated marijuana program continues to demonstrate its commitment to consumer safety. Marijuana products undergo multiple layers of testing, from cultivation through final production. A single product can require nearly 20 separate tests.
Over the past five years, there have been approximately 1.6 million safety tests at Arizona laboratories held to international standards and audited by both Arizona regulators and independent accreditation bodies such as ISO 17025.
Products sold in Arizona are tested for heavy metals, 59 pesticides, 27 solvents, and microbial contaminants including E.coli, salmonella, fungi and molds. Potency and cannabinoid tests include D9-THC, THCa, CBD, CBDa. Testing for D8-THC and D10-THC will be added this summer.
Many labs are also testing and reporting for other cannabinoids that can be found in products. And with all this testing over five years, there have been only 45 product recalls, with some products later cleared for sale following additional verification.
Of the $1.4 billion in tax revenue generated by Arizona’s adult-only cannabis sales, $800 million has gone directly into the dedicated Smart and Safe Arizona Fund, Torrez said.
Prop. 207 created the new, specialized revenue stream with a 16 percent excise tax on the sale of cannabis products to fund community colleges, public safety, public health, social justice reform, and transportation, among other priorities. The fund also supports the Department of Health Services, the Department of Revenue, the Supreme Court and the Department of Public Safety.
This ensures that the economic activity generated by the adult-use marijuana market is channeled directly into priorities overwhelmingly supported by the voters. Because the fund is voter protected, its resources do not revert to the state general fund at the end of the fiscal year, providing a stable financial base for its long-term objectives without legislative interference.
For more information, go to www.stillsmartstillsafe.com.
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About the Arizona Dispensaries Association:
The Arizona Dispensaries Association (ADA) is the voice of Arizona's licensed marijuana dispensaries. The ADA is dedicated to ensuring a safe, regulated, and flourishing marijuana industry while also contributing to the well-being of Arizona communities. For information, www.azdispensaries.org.
Kim Prince
Proven Media
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