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For years, D.C.'s cannabis market has been a battlefield of contradictions, backroom deals, and selective enforcement. What was once a booming Initiative 71 (I-71) gifting scene has been crushed under the weight of regulatory crackdowns, while the newly expanded medical market has devolved into a playground for political favoritism and insider advantages.
Despite the D.C. Council and Alcohol Beverage and Cannabis Administration (ABCA) justifying their aggressive raids on unlicensed shops as a necessary step for "public safety," some licensed medical dispensaries are brazenly selling unregulated cannabis—without consequence. And yet, small hemp businesses, legal under federal law, are being harassed, raided, and shut down.
The double standards are as obvious as they are infuriating.
A Dispensary Selling… Unlicensed Weed?
Let’s start with Miel Wellness, a licensed dispensary that should be held to the highest compliance standards. Yet, they’ve been stocking flower from a brand called Cornerstone Cultivation—a name nowhere to be found on the list of licensed D.C. cultivators.
A simple check of the ABCA website (linked here) reveals that Cornerstone Cultivation does not hold a medical cannabis cultivation license in D.C. Nor does the name appear in any licensing applications.
So how is it that D.C. regulators are allowing a licensed medical dispensary to sell product from a completely unregulated source—the very same crime they used as justification for padlocking and seizing the product of I-71 shops?
For months, the Council and ABCA have been trumpeting the dangers of unregulated cannabis, citing concerns about lab testing, consumer safety, and product traceability. But when one of their own licensed dispensaries carries a mystery product from a non-existent grower?
Silence.
No padlocks. No raids. No enforcement.
A Marketplace Built on Selective Enforcement and Nepotism
Let’s talk about "Dispensary Near Me"—a dispensary whose owner, a Michigan resident with an out-of-state cultivation license, has openly bragged about how he can import cannabis from Michigan, California, or anywhere he wants without fear of reprisal.
How is that possible?
According to him, it’s all about who you know.
During a recent conversation with Toker's Guide, the owner boasted about his cozy relationship with ABCA cannabis enforcement supervisor Jason Peru, describing how he wines and dines him at expensive D.C. restaurants to keep enforcement off his back.
And this is the system D.C. has built?
A pay-to-play cannabis market where out-of-state operators with deep pockets can ship in their own packs, cut deals with regulators, and avoid oversight—while small, local operators who actually invested in transitioning from the I-71 market get suffocated under excessive regulations?
The hypocrisy here isn't just frustrating—it’s outright corrupt.
Why Are They Targeting Hemp Businesses Instead?
If you thought D.C.’s enforcement would at least focus on actual cannabis instead of a completely different federally legal industry, think again.
Instead of prioritizing genuinely unregulated cannabis sales, ABCA has aggressively targeted hemp businesses like District Hemp Botanicals and Capitol Hemp, attempting to shut them down despite them following all federal U.S. hemp laws.
In a lawsuit filed in October 2024, these businesses accused the District of:
✅ Misapplying outdated cannabis laws to hemp, despite clear distinctions in federal law.
✅ Unlawfully inspecting their stores, seizing products, and threatening closure.
✅ Targeting small hemp retailers while allowing corporate chains to sell the same products without issue.
As Alan Amsterdam, the owner of Capitol Hemp, put it:
“We sell the exact same products you can find at Whole Foods. Yet ABCA continues to target small, independent businesses while ignoring major national retailers.”
Again—why is enforcement being applied selectively?
“Our businesses are under severe strain,” said Barbara Biddle, the owner of District Hemp. “The District’s refusal to update its laws to reflect federal definitions of hemp has forced us into a legal battle for our survival. We cannot simply sit back while our livelihoods are destroyed."
The District’s cannabis task force raids and shuts down hemp businesses that are legally protected under the 2018 Farm Bill, but licensed medical dispensaries can sell flower from unlicensed cultivators without a single warning?
A Monopoly on Lab Testing: The Clearsight Labs Problem
If all of this wasn’t bad enough, D.C.’s cannabis enforcement has essentially handed a monopoly to one company: Clearsight Labs.
Want your cannabis tested so you can legally sell it? You have no choice but to go through Clearsight.
With no competition and zero regulatory oversight, Clearsight controls who gets their product approved, how much it costs, and how long it takes. This bottleneck has led to absurd delays and skyrocketing testing costs, putting additional financial strain on licensed operators—especially social equity applicants who were already struggling with funding and real estate access.
Also note that ClearSight Labs are actually located in a dingy English basement - yes a BASEMENT! I guess it's no wonder they keep finding mold in their tests.
The Real Reason D.C.’s Medical Market Is Struggling
D.C.’s media and politicians love blaming the I-71 gifting market for declining medical cannabis revenue. But let’s be real—this isn’t about I-71 anymore.
The true reason D.C. dispensaries are hurting?
✅ Maryland’s recreational market.
✅ Andy Harris.
Ever since Maryland legalized adult-use cannabis, thousands of D.C. residents ditched the medical system entirely in favor of Maryland’s open, untaxed, and hassle-free dispensaries.
Why? Because D.C. still doesn’t have a recreational market.
The reason? Maryland Congressman Andy Harris, who inserted a rider into the federal budget that bans D.C. from using local funds to regulate adult-use cannabis sales.
This forces D.C. to remain a medical-only market, creating a captive patient system where dispensaries are forced to compete with Maryland while abiding by excessive regulations and ABCA’s selective enforcement.
A Broken System That Favors Insiders, Not Locals
D.C.’s cannabis market is failing—not because of I-71, not because of the gifting economy, and not because of a lack of demand.
It’s failing because:
❌ ABCA enforces rules selectively, protecting well-connected insiders while cracking down on smaller businesses.
❌ Licensed medical dispensaries are selling unregulated products with zero consequences.
❌ Legal hemp businesses are being targeted instead of actual illicit operations.
❌ The entire medical cannabis supply chain is bottlenecked by one lab with a monopoly.
❌ D.C. is stuck in a medical-only model while Maryland eats up its customer base.
And yet, the D.C. Council continues to act surprised that dispensaries are "barely surviving" and that patients are flocking elsewhere.
The solution is not to continue persecuting small operators while allowing corruption to fester. The solution is to end the hypocrisy, level the playing field, and create a fair system where all businesses—big or small—operate under the same rules.
Until that happens? D.C.’s cannabis market will continue to be a disaster of its own making.
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