Arizona Senate Passes Medical Marijuana Testing Bill

The Arizona Senate unanimously passed SB 1494 this week, which would require the Arizona Department of Health Services (ADHS) to create standards for third-party labs to test medical marijuana grown in the state for contaminates and toxins such as pesticides, herbicides, and fungicides.

“[Patients with compromised immune systems] take this medicine and they’re counting on it to alleviate symptoms and give them a better quality of life,” Ryan Treacy of C4 Labs told azfamily.com. “If we aren’t here to ensure that medicine is clean, then we may be adding to their problems as opposed to helping fix them.”

Testing labs that are not associated with Arizona medical marijuana dispensaries and cultivators would need to receive certification from the ADHS to test medical marijuana.

SB 1494 would “include destroying contaminated medical marijuana products, imposing fines and suspending or revoking a dispensary’s license,” if testing reveals toxic marijuana.

Arizona and Rhode Island are the only two states with medical marijuana programs that don’t require testing. However, Rhode Island is currently establishing a mandatory testing process.

Revisions to the Arizona Medical Marijuana Act (AMMA) must have support by at least three-fourths of both chambers.

If the bill passes, testing would be implemented on June 1, 2020.

How to Support This Bill
Arizonans can support this bill online by using the Request to Speak (RTS) system. It entails making a one-time visit to 1700 W Washington St in Phoenix or 400 W Congress St., Suite 201 in Tucson and registering for RTS using the kiosks there.  Once that step is completed, you can then individually support bills online. Learn more about RTS at www.azleg.gov/alisPDFs/RTS_Manual_public.pdf.

Petition to Reduce MMJ Card Fee in Arizona
– Sign the petition here