The Cannabis Regulators Association (CANNRA) elected two new board members this past week: Kirsten Davis-Franklin, Deputy Cannabis Regulation Oversight Officer of Legislation and Policy at the Illinois Cannabis Regulation Oversight Office, and Amy Moore, Director of the Division of Cannabis Regulation at the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services, the organization states.
Davis-Franklin and Moore were elected to serve out the terms of Tyler Klimas, former Executive Director of the Nevada Cannabis Compliance Board and Chris Tholkes, former Director of the Minnesota Office of Medical Cannabis – both of whom left their posts as regulators in December 2023, according to the organization.
Helping to Guide CANNRA Forward
“I am grateful to both Tyler and Chris for their service to the CANNRA board and the association since the early days of CANNRA’s founding,” said CANNRA’s current President, Will Tilburg, Director of the Maryland Cannabis Administration, in a news release. “I am excited about Kirsten and Amy’s engagement in the board. Their experience and insights as regulators will help guide CANNRA forward in what promises to be a year filled with continued policy and regulatory changes at the federal and international level.”
“I am keenly aware of the value CANNRA provides to regulators and have benefited greatly from the knowledge of my peers,” said Davis-Franklin, who also co-chairs CANNRA’s Social and Economic Equity Committee, in the release. “I look forward to helping the board support and expand CANNRA as an association while simultaneously supporting regulators across the country as we strive to build a safe, sustainable, and equitable cannabis industry.”
“CANNRA’s work in bringing regulators together to identify and share best practices is increasingly necessary,” said Moore in the release. “As a board member, I want to contribute more to that work, particularly efforts to provide education from state lessons learned that can inform key U.S. federal decisions that may be made in the coming years.”
The Netherlands to be CANNRA’s New International Member
In addition to welcoming new board members, CANNRA welcomed the Netherlands as a new international non-voting member, the organization states. The Netherlands joins Canada, who became an international nonvoting member of CANNRA in 2023, and 45 U.S. states and territories who are CANNRA members.
“We are thrilled to welcome the government of the Netherlands to our growing international membership,” said CANNRA Executive Director, Dr. Gillian Schauer, in the release. “As the cannabis, cannabinoid, and hemp industries grow and evolve, it is important that regulators around the globe can learn from each other and better understand how different policy approaches may impact market dynamics, public health and consumer safety, and equity.”
