User:Rthiggins/StateCannabisTestingRegulations/Alaska

Regulatory scheme

Medical use of marijuana was legalized in Alaska after the 1998 election. The law allows certified physicians to recommend treatment with medical marijuana to their patients with qualifying debilitating diseases. Patients must register with the state, and thereafter may legally possess, use, and cultivate limited quantities of marijuana.^[1]

The law does not provide guidance or regulation related to the legal opening and operation of marijuana dispensaries within the state. With the approval of adult-use of marijuana, effective 2016, new regulatory structures were codified that cover all aspects of the marijuana industry in Alaska. Medical and retail marijuana now share a common set of regulations, including those for inventory tracking and laboratory testing.^[1]

Licensing requirements

Alaska defines four types of marijuana establishments: retail marijuana store, marijuana cultivation facilities, marijuana product manufacturing facilities, and marijuana testing facilities. All establishments must be licensed by the Marijuana Control Board, and each of the four types has its own license.

Marijuana testing facilities

A person or organization may not offer or provide marijuana testing services or results unless they have applied for and obtained a Marijuana Testing Facility license. There is an initial application that is common to all establishments, followed by a supplemental application for the specific type of facility. Testing facility icensing requirements do not apply to a licensed marijuana establishment that conducts in-house testing using its own equipment to test material produced within the same facility.

Conflict of interest

The code specifically states that a holder of a marijuana testing facility license may not hold another type of marijuana license in Alaska. Further, the licensee, or any employee or agent of the licensed testing facility are prohibited from having an ownership interest or direct or indirect financial interest in another licensed marijuana establishment within the state. Finally, the licensee may not have a financial interest in common with a person who holds a license in Alaska for a marijuana establishment other than a testing facility.

Privileges and prohibitions

Licensed marijuana testing facilities may have any amount of marijuana/products on premises at any given time as long as facility inventory tracking system used and indicates all marijuana on site is for testing purposes. However, distribution, sale, or transfer of marijuana directly to a consumer is prohibited, as is consumption of marijuana by anyone while on the premises of the testing facility.