OKLAHOMA CITY – Rep. Scott Fetgatter today received passage of Senate Bill 1033 through the House of Representatives. The bill will allow the Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs (OBNDD) and the Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Association (OMMA) to enter into agreements to hire more agents.

“In 2018 we bought the ticket and took the ride when it came to medical marijuana in Oklahoma,” Fetgatter said. “There weren’t many regulations and stakeholders on all sides of the issue have been looking for structure. This industry has blossomed over the past 3 years and we have been working to make sure there are structures in place to regulate and help give guidance to those working within it. I’m proud that this session we were able to pass so many important pieces of legislation that do just that.”

In addition to SB 1033, there were a number of other pieces of legislation passed to better regulate medical marijuana and give clarity to the duties of OBNDD and OMMA including:

• House Bill 2272 which compels OMMA compliance in conducting inspections on new licensees. It also forces any foreign ownership to disclose by Oct. 1 or have their license revoked. If an entity lies about foreign ownership on their form, they will also have their license revoked.
• House Bill 2646 which gives OMMA additional authority to revoke licenses.
• House Bill 2904 which is a limits bill that includes language on mandating OMMA to hire an additional 62 compliance and enforcement positions, six positions to perform legal and financial duties, four investigatory officers and four positions to perform planning and logistics duties.

Fetgatter said that in crafting these bills lawmakers were listening to the will of their constituents who requested that the industry be better regulated and illegal black market activity be reined in within the state of Oklahoma. SB 1033 will now make its way to the governor’s desk.