NCIA Cannabis Industry Voice

Justin Battles is a passionate advocate for service-disabled veterans in the cannabis industry. After serving in the Army for 8 years, including time as an airborne infantryman and quartermaster chemical repairer, he was medically discharged due to knee injuries from his airborne service. This led Justin to pursue his interest in horticulture business management and cannabis studies.

His journey in the cannabis industry began with growing his own cannabis for pain management, anxiety, and ADHD. He intends to apply for a microbusiness license to further expand his involvement in the industry. Justin serves as the Co-chair of the Veterans Committee of the Cannabis Association of New York (CANY), where he works tirelessly to help as many veterans as possible find success in the cannabis sector.

His primary goal is to ensure that veterans have access to licenses, resources, funding, and affordable cannabis products in a fair and equitable industry. With a vision for the future that includes equal opportunities and access for service-disabled veterans, Justin Battles is dedicated to making a positive impact on the lives of those he serves.

Ricardo Baca is a 20-year veteran journalist and cannabis futurist, widely respected in both modern media and drug-policy circles. He was appointed The Denver Post’s first-ever cannabis editor in 2013 and founded the news vertical The Cannabist, where he extensively covered the advent of the U.S. adult-use cannabis market and related issues around the world, as seen in the feature documentary Rolling Papers.

Ricardo launched Grasslands: A Journalism-Minded Agency in 2016 to work directly with business leaders in highly regulated industries, from cannabis and psychedelics to spirits and healthcare. Grasslands is a journalism-minded marketing and public relations agency working with bold brands in cannabis and psychedelics.

Named one of Fortune’s 7 Most Powerful People in America’s Marijuana Industry in 2016 and Marketer of the Year by AdCann in 2019, Ricardo has received numerous accolades for his trailblazing work.

They talk about the challenges of advertising in cannabis, social media plays a crucial role in this. Recently Twitter sort of “opened up” some of the cannabis advertising capabilities so we dive into that and much more. 

Andrew J. Kaye is a chief commercial officer at Sweet Leaf Madison Capital. He has been involved in all aspects of the financial services industry, working as a fund portfolio investment manager, investment banker, family office investor, and attorney. Kaye has worked with startups on their first raise and supported global enterprises undertaking billion-dollar stock offerings. He also has significant investment experience in the cannabis industry.

Financing cannabis is a myriad of challenges. Not only raising capital for a federally illegal business but also regular banking issues for businesses that are regularly losing their bank accounts or struggling with those services. We talk about some other financial challenges cannabis businesses are facing.

It’s an exciting but challenging industry, especially as each state operates independently due to the federal status, so we dive into how federal legalization would impact how states are operating in addition to solving what we call the cannabis banking crisis.

Axel Bernabe serves as Chief of Staff and Senior Policy Director. Axel is responsible for standing up and overseeing all aspects of the Office of Cannabis Management. Prior to this position, Axel spent 6 years as chief health counsel to Gov. Cuomo, overseeing all legal and policy deliberations in the health portfolio. 

As part of his cannabis responsibilities, he led the expansion of the medical program, directed the launch of the State's cannabinoid hemp program, and drafted and negotiated the Marihuana Regulation and Taxation Act (MRTA).

The New York State Office of Cannabis Management (OCM) was established upon passage of the Marijuana Regulation and Taxation Act (MRTA) in March 2021 to implement a regulatory framework for medical and adult-use cannabis and hemp in the state of New York. This includes but is not limited to production, licensing, packaging, marketing, and the sale of cannabis.

Last year we began to emerge from the restrictions of the pandemic and we were able to return to Washington D.C., but in the interim, we hosted some VIRTUAL LOBBY DAYS to fill the gap. And then returning in person, finally, in September last year, it was just like riding a bike, but with a few limitations. Mainly the security protocols for getting into the various House and Senate buildings, but things went mostly smoothly, so we discuss our guest's experience. 

Some of our goals at Lobby Days have been consistent since Day One, which is generally educating Congress as to why cannabis should be federally legal, and of course, licensed business owners who want to see banking protections and 280E tax reform. 

It’s important that we keep doing this work and keep adding to the conversation as it becomes more complex and sophisticated. We discuss the possibility of newer issues or topics that we’re bringing to Capitol Hill more recently or at this next Lobby Days event and much more.  

Aaron Smith is co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of the National Cannabis Industry Association, Prior to launching NCIA, Aaron distinguished himself as a public advocate for marijuana policy reform. First under the auspices of a California-based medical cannabis advocacy group, Safe Access Now in 2005, and then as the California state policy director for the Washington, D.C.-based Marijuana Policy Project until founding NCIA in 2010.

Monica Gray is from Nice Guys Delivery and is also an NCIA Board member. Nice Guys Delivery was incorporated in 2016 by Monica Gray-Fong and her husband Adam Fong. Nice Guys Delivery is a knowledgeable, high-level delivery service that offers the highest-grade flowers, edibles, lotions, teas, tinctures, and more. The couple owns and operates Nice Guys Distribution and Nice Gals, a CBD online retailer. 

The cannabis industry certainly has a plethora of regulations to follow, so compliance is crucial. In fact, some operators like to joke that cannabis is “more heavily regulated than plutonium”. We talk about some of the complicated or challenging regulations already happening at the state level since it's currently illegal at the federal level.

So that begs the question of the next stage or next step in all this, as we all look toward federal legalization. We dive into what they see happening on the regulatory side once that happens. Will the states that are more established with a cannabis market need huge changes, or will there be a smoother way to adapt to federal regulations? Harry Bernstein joins us today to discuss all this more!

Harry Bernstein - executive director of Verde Compliance Partners. As general counsel of a beer and wine wholesale distributor for nearly two decades, Harry handled all legal matters including, contracts, franchise agreements, labor negotiations, as well as state and federal licensing and compliance. For the past 19 years, as an attorney, he has assisted individuals with health care matters and special needs including representing clients at federal administrative hearings at the Social Security Administration.

Verde Compliance Partners is a national consulting firm focused on guiding clients through federal cannabis permitting and regulatory compliance. The firm prepares and navigates cannabis growers and processors through the regulatory, legal, and administrative requirements necessary to comply with current and future federal regulations. The team consists of senior-level experts with decades of experience consulting in federal, state, and local permitting, regulation, and compliance in the cannabis, alcohol, and tobacco industries. 

Charlie Alovisetti is a partner at Vicente Sederberg and chair of the firm's Corporate Department. He is recognized by Chambers & Partners as one of the top cannabis lawyers in the United States and is the co-author of The Business of Cannabis: Understanding Law, Finance, and Governance in America’s Newest Industry (Routledge, 2020). 

Prior to joining VS, Charlie worked as an associate in the New York offices of Latham & Watkins and Goodwin, where he represented public companies and private equity sponsors and their portfolio companies in a range of corporate transactions.

“Receivership” - So bigger picture here, cannabis companies have a myriad of challenges in operations and financial issues, and banking. Some cannabis companies are finding it difficult to operate and keep their heads above water in a sustainable way for their businesses to survive. Considering 280E and banking issues, this is a tenuous situation so we dive into that and much more.

Gary Strahle is a Technical Architect with over a decade's worth of operational cannabis industry experience. 2023 NCIA Retail Committee Chairman. Avid surfer and golfer with a passion to help others.

Cannabis Cloud - Applications, Consulting & Payments. Founded in 2015, providing service to over 2,500 cannabis businesses. 

Specialized as a Salesforce Partner innovating industry standard solutions from seed to sale, Cannabis Cloud’s payments integrated Retail Point of Sale hosts a robust API for connecting external menus such as Weedmaps or Leafly, and much more.

Angel is a plant scientist at UC Berkeley in plant genetics and molecular biology. He is also a recognized researcher and scientist specialist in plant genomics and molecular breeding. As our CEO, he is committed to delivering the promise of revolutionizing the Industry by applying all his knowledge, time, and effort to developing innovative solutions to break the barriers that growers and breeders face.

MyFloraDNA is a genomic laboratory based in Sacramento California, delivering modern genomics for the Cannabis Industry. Services include Trait detection (cannabinoid profile and sex/gender ID), Pathogen Detection, and Genetic Validation Services.

We start by looking into the microscope and taking a closer look at the cannabis plant, beyond even the terpenes and cannabinoids. Angel explains why the genetics of the cannabis plant is important, and what information we can get by looking at the genome of the plant.

When we’re cultivating cannabis, we think about sunshine and water and the basics of agriculture, but there are clearly some very high-tech aspects to growing cannabis. Our guest defined the genetic makeup part of it. We dive into what is “molecular breeding” and how is it different from traditional or “classic” breeding of plants.

On the construction side of the cannabis industry, before the facility or dispensary opens its doors before any plants are growing before any customers walk in the front door, is an important side to the whole process. After a certain number of years here of legal cannabis in the U.S., there are certainly some best practices, as well as best practices in all even non-cannabis construction, some DOs and DON’Ts that you've seen in this process.

Andrew Halbert, a member of the firm’s Cannabis Law Practice Group, counsels clients on structuring, vetting, and closing purchases and sales of licensed cannabis businesses and provides guidance on regulatory compliance in Illinois and other states where cannabis has been legalized. He also advises clients in cannabis and other industries on a full range of corporate transactions, including debt and equity offerings and corporate governance.

Ron Williams is a seasoned construction lawyer who has advised numerous businesses, including major players in the cannabis industry, on the legal, contractual and operational aspects of major construction projects throughout the U.S. and abroad. In short, Ron helps clients structure and implement construction agreements that mitigate risk and facilitate efficient, on-time completion of projects.