Delaware Governor’s Pick For Next Marijuana Commissioner Has Vocally Supported Federal Rescheduling
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“His experience navigating complex regulatory systems and work across the cannabis industry make him uniquely qualified to launch Delaware’s adult-use marijuana market.”
By Jacob Owens, Spotlight Delaware
Gov. Matt Meyer (D) nominated attorney and government regulations expert Joshua Sanderlin on Monday to serve as Delaware’s next state marijuana commissioner.
Sanderlin, who doesn’t have any apparent ties to the First State, will inherit a role that was originally filled by Robert Coupe, a former Delaware State Police superintendent.
The selection of Sanderlin could represent a shift in ideology for the Office of the Marijuana Commissioner. Former Gov. John Carney (D), who has been opposed to the legalization of recreational marijuana, chose a longtime law enforcement leader to head the office, while Meyer has now selected a proponent for the legal industry.
“Josh Sanderlin will bring deep expertise, steady leadership, and a clear commitment to equity and accountability to the Office of the Marijuana Commissioner,” Meyer said in a statement announcing the pick. “His experience navigating complex regulatory systems and work across the cannabis industry make him uniquely qualified to launch Delaware’s adult-use marijuana market quickly and correctly. With Josh at the helm, we’re ready to build a system that is safe, transparent, and delivers real opportunity for hardworking Delawareans.”
It also fulfills a promise that Meyer made during his first State of the State address, when he said he would name a new commissioner within days. He added in the speech that “This industry has the potential to produce tens of millions of dollars in annual tax revenue, money meant to be invested directly into our schools, libraries, and communities.”
Sanderlin would inherit an office that is deeply mired in issues at the federal and state levels that have ground progress on opening the recreational market to a halt, though.
The governor’s office said that Sanderlin would not be available for an interview before his confirmation hearing before the state Senate.
In a statement posted on his LinkedIn account, Sanderlin wrote, “As I look ahead to the confirmation process, I’m deeply grateful for the opportunity to help shape a safe, equitable, and responsible cannabis industry in Delaware. I look forward to working with public officials, licensees, advocates, and all stakeholders to build an industry that best serves Delawareans.”
Who is Sanderlin?
Sanderlin is an attorney and government affairs specialist with over 15 years of experience advising businesses, investors, and policymakers on regulatory compliance, licensing and public policy. His work has focused heavily on emerging and highly regulated industries, particularly the cannabis sector.
He was particularly involved with Washington, D.C.’s legalization of recreational marijuana, which has had a rocky relationship with Congress since its passage in 2014. He actively commented on that fight through a Twitter account during a three-year period from 2017 to 2020.
Sanderlin was particularly critical of Republicans like U.S. Rep. Andy Harris (R-MD), who has opposed giving the District of Columbia more autonomy over its governance around marijuana. Sanderlin also supported the federal rescheduling of marijuana to allow more research and wider use of the drug.
Sanderlin also advocated for the inclusion of hemp into the 2018 Farm Bill—a decision that has opened a loophole into the marijuana industry by creating derivatives that contain the intoxicating THC compound but don’t legally qualify as marijuana. Those products are now commonly found in liquor stores, gas stations and smoke shops, and could subvert the legal recreational market with untaxed and unregulated competition, which has convinced the marijuana commissioner’s office to investigate whether to crack down on them.
Today, Sanderlin serves as the principal of Sanderlin Strategies PLLC, an advisory and law firm for the complex legal and regulatory landscapes around marijuana. His practice is also involved in drafting compliance protocols, developing standard operating procedures, managing responses to regulatory enforcement actions and engaging directly with policymakers and regulatory bodies to shape state-level cannabis laws.
He is also involved in the business, having co-invested in a Newark, N.J., consumption lounge with famous Wu-Tang Clan rapper Raekwon, according to the New York Post. That business, known as Hashtoria, allows patrons to smoke or consume cannabis on the premises, much like coffeeshops in Amsterdam.
Prior to that, he served two years at Cogent Law Group, a D.C.-based firm where he worked on local marijuana policy and lobbying for the end to marijuana’s federal prohibition. And before that, he served 10 years at Greenberg Traurig, a major national law firm, where he worked on civil litigation, government affairs and campaign finance compliance.
Sanderlin got his law degree from Catholic University of America’s Columbus School of Law, and before that earned degrees from Florida State University and Jacksonville University. He spent time interning in former Florida Republican U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson’s office as well as the Florida State Senate.
Delaware’s market in flux
If confirmed, Sanderlin will lead an office that oversees more than a half dozen medical marijuana dispensaries and a growing and testing industry. It is also responsible for getting the state’s recreational market—approved by the state legislature nearly two years ago—up and running.
Officials had originally targeted the industry to open this month, but it has been significantly hampered by a dispute with FBI over background checks for operators, which would prevent criminal enterprises from taking advantage of a system that is largely cash dependent.
The legislature is now expediting a fix for what the federal law enforcement agency says it needs in order to complete the needed checks, but it was a process that should have concluded this past winter.
Even after that is resolved, operators will still have to deal with a permitting climate in Delaware that has not been friendly to the burgeoning industry. Under the law that made recreational sales legal, municipalities were allowed to prohibit marijuana businesses from their jurisdictions and counties were allowed to dictate where they could locate. Those allowances led to more than a third of Delaware towns and cities to opt out of allowing shops, and Sussex County to place significant restrictions on locations for businesses.
State legislators are now debating whether to rollback those allowances in order for the industry to gain more options.
This story was first published by Spotlight Delaware.
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Photo courtesy of Mike Latimer.
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