Oklahoma's 'Secret Shopper' Cannabis Program Is A Bit Too Secretive: Authorities Keep Results Under Wraps

Ever since a law allowing the Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Authority (OMMA) to use secret shoppers at dispensaries took effect details around it have been kept a top secret by the agency.

As highlighted by Oklahoma Voice's Kennedy Thomason, the regulatory body will continue to be secretive around how the program will actually operate until its first anniversary. OMMA told the state Rep. Ty Burns, (R) – who authored the HB3971 along with Reps. Josh West (R) and Kevin McDugle (R) – in an email that they’re keeping the results under wraps because the agency wants to protect the "integrity of the program."

The regulatory body provided a brief statement exclusively to Burns, who made public his email exchange with the OMMA.

Under the bill that the state legislature passed in May 2022, secret shoppers are obligated to inspect at least 50 retail locations that are licensed to sell cannabis by the year’s end. The role of secret shoppers is to check if dispensaries are asking for cards and to check if the products are properly tested and labeled. At least 10% of the total number of dispensaries statewide must be inspected, under the new law by the beginning of 2025.

Read Also: Human Trafficking At Cannabis Farms: The Hidden Plight Of Immigrant Workers Abused In Oklahoma

"It's outrageous that we have a state agency that believes the word "secret" in "secret shoppers" means it can operate a covert program with no public transparency or accountability," Oklahoma Voice's Janelle Stecklein wrote at the beginning of her reaction piece to the news first published on Friday.

She said the news outlet's reporters have been reaching out to the agency for nearly seven months, seeking more details.

"The agency has repeatedly refused to tell us," Stecklein wrote, adding that Porsha Riley, OMMA's spokeswoman said in an email to Oklahoma Voice that the program's details are not yet being released to the public. However, the legislature will get a hold of the report from the agency "later this year."

Meanwhile, Oklahoma’s once high-flying medical cannabis industry has been experiencing a sharp decline in the past three years.

Why? As pointed out by Benzinga's Rolando García that’s due to an oversupply of cannabis. Oklahoma has no less than 32 times more cannabis than it needs, according to the last year's report.

Another issue the program has been facing since medical cannabis legalization in 2018 is competition with the illicit market and a lack of effective oversight.

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