State Rep. Justin Humphrey accused the Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Authority (OMMA) of financial mismanagement and conducting unnecessary layoffs, including whistleblowers.
“For the last year I have been working with whistleblowers from the Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Authority to expose improper and possible criminal acts,” said state Rep. Justin Humphrey in an Aug. 20 statement in which he suggested that OMMA’s layoffs were financially unjustified and potentially discriminatory.
“I submit that it is very possible OMMA fired experienced employees who were reporting wrongdoing,” he added.
OMMA, which once oversaw as many cultivation licenses as California, has seen a dramatic drop in active licenses while battling illicit diversion of product out of state. A lighter staff could find it more difficult to root out cannabis scofflaws.
The OMMA announced in July it would have to downsize, eliminating roughly 10% of positions, after failing to receive the full amount of funding that it requested from the legislature for the fiscal year. The agency requested a $45.8 million operating budget for fiscal year 2025, but the state legislature gave the agency only $41.9 million. Still, this was a jump from the $37 million allocated for fiscal year 2024.
“To maximize taxpayer dollars, 29 positions that no longer served the needs of OMMA were eliminated,” said OMMA spokesperson Porsha Riley, who did not say whether those staffing reductions affected the authority’s enforcement efforts. “Following the reduction in staff, the agency strategically reorganized to ensure operations remain effective and efficient.”
Aside from legislative spending, OMMA also received funding through the collection of licensing fees, which have dropped significantly over the last few years as the authority has been shutting down rogue operators, reducing the total number of cultivation licenses from about 9,400 in 2021 to about 2,995 as of Aug. 21, according to the CRB Monitor licensing database.
Humphrey argued that the drop in fee collection was no longer relevant to OMMA’s operating budget.
“While OMMA was funded by fees when it was first created, this year the agency is funded solely through state budget appropriations by the legislature,” he said. “It seems very clear Director Berry was not truthful in claiming she had to rift employees due to a reduction in fees.”
Whistleblowers ‘fired’
Humphrey also said he has been working with two OMMA whistleblowers who alleged a series of potentially illegal purchasing practices, such failing to use purchase orders and failing to use proper contracts with vendors. They also alleged that an unnamed “top executive” from OMMA attempted to do business with his wife’s employer. Humphrey said that the whistleblowers gave him documents confirming the purchases that are in question and that the data was given to investigative authorities, which could have led to retaliation.
“Whistleblowers produced a tape of this executive, sounding aggressive and intimidating, telling employees there was nothing wrong with the business transactions but because of the employees, the transaction would be terminated and that their actions had been an embarrassment,” said Humphrey. “The tape is very compelling and appears to be an admission of guilt. I do want to report that these two brave whistleblowers have been fired.”
Other claims of financial mismanagement included executives remodeling their offices multiple times, despite the agency having only existed since 2018, paying for yoga instruction and mats, and providing cars for employees who spent most of their week working remotely.
Humphrey said that he submitted all of his evidence to the state auditor’s office.
“I want to encourage statewide elected officials to investigate why dozens of employees have been fired based on a lie, and I want to personally ask that this be made right,” he said.
OMMA spokesperson Porsha Riley said in an email, “The allegations made by Rep. Justin Humphrey are inaccurate and do not reflect our agency’s operations. Rep. Humphrey has previously been provided information showing we conduct operations in full compliance with state laws and that we are dedicated to maintaining transparency and integrity in everything we do.”
OMMA continues cannabis business shutdowns
In the meantime, OMMA has continued to crack down on non-compliant businesses.
Most recently, OMMA suspended the license of Graves Farm Organics on July 31, shutting down the Ardmore, Okla.-based grow operation. The suspension was the latest in a series of actions from OMMA to cut down on illicit diversion of cannabis from the legal medical market. Before the suspension, the state ordered a recall on June 10 of dozens of products from Graves Farm, after they tested positive for pesticides.
OMMA officials identified unsafe and unsanitary conditions during a July 29 site inspection, while also noticing product that was not properly labeled for tracking purchases or had not been properly tested. The inspection resulted in the issuance of an Emergency Order of Summary Suspension and Embargo.
After the suspension, Michael Graves, owner of Graves Farm Organics, took to Facebook on Aug. 7 to defend his company, claiming in a statement that the business was the victim of poor lab testing standards.
“After hearing about the concerns of patients who, upon having a product tested at a laboratory and receiving a result indicating contamination, we have gathered evidence suggesting that the testing laboratories we use may not be providing reliable results.”
The statement explained that Graves Farm tested four different products across six different labs and did not receive consistent results, with some failing microbial or contaminant tests at one lab, while passing at another. THC potency also varied from lab to lab.
“This raises serious concerns about the reliability of the initial recall, the accuracy of the test results we receive, and the Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Authority’s regulation of testing laboratories.”
Riley declined to comment with any specifics about the case against Graves Farm Organics because of pending litigation. The state will hold an administrative hearing on the suspension order on Sept. 4 and 5.
(This story was updated on Aug. 23 at 10:15 a.m. CDT)
