Cannabis Control Commission Statement on Constituent Post About “Backroom Intervention” at the Agency

Attributable to a Commission spokesperson:

The Cannabis Control Commission (Commission) will not corroborate any of the disinformation that constituent Grant Smith Ellis published on September 12 and will correct some of the most egregious claims at this time.

1. Commentary about efforts to “consolidate delegated authority” of the Executive Director or “hand-pick a successor” is patently false. With regards to the Deputy Executive Director position, Commissioners discussed it publicly at two separate public meetings:

a) On January 12, 2023, when they voted to approve the creation of the role; and

b) On July 13, 2023, when they asked the Executive Director follow-up questions about the status of the position and its hiring process.

Consistent with standard procedures when the Executive Director is absent, the Chief Operating Officer, Chief People Officer, Chief of Investigations and Enforcement, Chief Communications Officer, and Acting General Counsel are presently delegated to manage administrative affairs of the agency.

2. With regards to allegations about one staff member’s “aggressive pattern of behavior,” the Commission has conducted an investigation into the complaint and that matter has been closed. The agency is confident in the thorough and fair review that was conducted by outside counsel and an independent investigator, whose findings from a sizeable number of witness interviews did not substantiate the allegations that were made.

The Commission takes issue with the categorization of typical administrative functions of the agency as “backroom intervention”. The posting of unsubstantiated rumors, based on anonymous sources “in the orbit of the agency” are further evidence of the lack of journalistic values employed by the author who published them. Any individuals, inside or outside the agency, who contribute to the publication of falsehoods about Commission work as fact, disclose private, personal and personnel information of staff, or engage in racist tropes about any employee will not be tolerated by the agency and will be held appropriately accountable.

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