Mon County Delegates, commissioners and Morgantown city leaders disapprove of new cannabis dispensary rules

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – All five Mon County Delegates have written a letter asking the board of health to stop their effort to add local regulations to the medical marijuana dispensary permit application process.

Morgantown city council, Mon County commission and some local business leaders have also either voiced opposition or have also written similar letters to health officials.

“We put the letter together because it’s an issue of compassion and trying to make sure medical cannabis is available locally to the people who need it,” Delegate Evan Hansen said.

Medical cannabis dispensary permits were submitted to the state in the spring, then submitted to the appropriate county health department for approval. Mon and Mercer are the only counties in the state that have not approved any permits yet.

State regulations require dispensaries to be at least 1,000 feet from any school or daycare facility.

Guidance from the Mon County Health Department adds libraries and parks to the 1,000 foot list, while dictating dispensaries must be stand-alone or not in a strip mall and not within 4,000 feet of another medical cannabis dispensary. The new rules also add a requirement for a medical professional to be onsite during hours of operation- a provision state lawmakers struck down in the initial debate. The new guidelines were announced weeks after the health department received 21 applications.

The Medical Cannabis Act passed in 2017 says there will be no more than 100 medical cannabis dispensaries in the state and more than 280 applications were submitted to DHHR Office of Medical Cannabis, according to Hansen.

“We’re concerned dispensaries in Mon County might be left out if the Mon County Health Department doesn’t act soon,” Hansen said,” Because, once the 100 dispensary licenses are given out at the state level there might not be any left.”

Private investment and the local economy are also in jeopardy if the applications, which were completed before new guidelines were proposed, are not approved because of the new rules.

“I can appreciate that members of the board of health might think there are special considerations in a college town and that additional rules might be needed,” Hansen said,” But I think the proper venue for that is the legislature, not a local ordinance.”

In large part, the new regulations address set backs, locations and placement which are all zoning-related issues.

“It’s not appropriate, and arguably not legal for a local board of health to take it upon themselves to add new regulations,” Hansen said.

The Mon County Board of Health has a special virtual meeting planned for 9 a.m. Thursday and a link to that meeting is available by contacting the health department.

“I would like to see the board immediately sign off on the dispensary applications for Mon County,” Hansen said,” Then enter into a dialog with local delegates, but also legislators from across the state to see if we can improve the law at the state level.”