Pot states try to curb smuggling, fend off administration
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) – Officials in states like Oregon where marijuana is legal are trying to curtail smuggling of pot to other states. Meanwhile, U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions is pushing for a more aggressive approach in these states, noting the drug is being diverted to other states.
The U.S. attorney for Oregon, Billy Williams, told The Associated Press that insufficient enforcement has led to marijuana overproduction and diversion.
Under a bill Oregon Gov. Kate Brown signed into law, all marijuana grown for sale in the legal market must be tracked from seed to store by the Oregon Liquor Control Commission, which regulates recreational marijuana.
Washington state is replacing its current tracking system with a better one. Voters in California last November approved recreational marijuana, and a software system to keep track of it.