Even as medical and sacramental cannabis registrations continue to rise, and applications for cultivation licenses steadily come in, the Office of Cannabis Regulations is still grappling with unresolved challenges — particularly federal restrictions on banking and transportation — that are slowing the full rollout of the legal cannabis industry in the U.S. Virgin Islands.
During Wednesday's meeting of the Cannabis Advisory Board (CAB), OCR Executive Director Joanne Moorehead answered a question from board member Gary Jett about banking and transportation. "I don't have today an official solution," Ms. Moorehead responded. However, discussions are ongoing with "the relevant authorities" to ascertain what legislative changes would be needed where that is concerned. "We are closer than when last we spoke. We have some viable options on the table," Ms. Moorehead assured, saying that further conversations were needed "to close the gap on the rules and the legislation that would allow for that."
Banking and transportation remain unresolved due to ongoing federal restrictions. Under federal law, marijuana is still classified as a Schedule I controlled substance, which makes transporting it across state or territorial lines illegal and limits financial institutions' willingness to work with cannabis businesses. These federal constraints continue to complicate implementation of a fully operational cannabis industry in the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Meanwhile, in her report to the board Ms. Moorehead disclosed that medical and sacramental registrations "continue to increase." She reminded that people wishing to register as individual sacramental users must belong to a licensed sacramental organization first. Currently, there are two such organizations with pending registrations with approximately 40 members between them, Ms. Moorehead noted.
Read more at The Virgin Islands Consortium