While society generally has experienced a prolonged downward trend in criminality, one recently opened sector of the economy is seeing the exact opposite – legal cannabis. As more states legalize the growth and sale of the crop, many are finding the disparity in legality between the state and federal levels is causing unforeseen consequences, one of which is an unprecedented level of criminality targeting the industry.
Cannabis’s continued classification as a controlled substance on the federal level has limited the ability of businesses operating in the industry to utilize financial services such as banks and credit card processors, which means that they are forced to operate in cash. Larger dispensaries, logistics companies, and growing operations can have tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars on the premises at any given time.
Cannabis also enjoys a very lucrative price on the black market, as legal sellers carry a heavy tax burden that forces them to raise prices precipitously. Illegal sellers, unburdened by onerous taxes and regulations, can sell their product at a much-reduced price while maintaining better margins, with the only real problem being sourcing their goods.
This double whammy of being flush with cash and carrying a significant amount of an easily sellable commodity means growers, distributors, and transporters are extremely attractive targets for the criminal element. With city and state governments seemingly unwilling to provide proper protections, cannabis company owners are left on their own regarding security.
This is where creating an airtight security plan comes into place. Properly crafted security plans help growers and distributors create processes and security systems that provide physical protection for their businesses and legal and financial security from liability and insurance concerns.
Security plans can include, but aren’t limited to, the following:
- Entry and exit controls
- Security personnel, patrol routes, response procedures
- Security technology and vendor contracts
- Staff training
Each item must comply with the company’s insurance policy and local and state regulations to the letter, which means parsing out potentially hundreds of pages of legal documents to find the applicable rules. This represents a massive undertaking for the typical grower or dispensary owner, whose expertise lies far outside the bounds of discerning esoteric lawbooks and sneakily worded insurance documentation.
This is why it is heavily recommended that most business owners contract out their security plan drafting to security experts. This won’t just save time, it may also save your business from costly mistakes made during the process.
For cannabis growers and distributors here in California, one of the best security contractors in the business is Cannabis Compliant Security Solutions. Founded by former law enforcement officers that saw the destructive influence of criminal activity in the cannabis space firsthand, the firm brings a level of expertise and professionalism unmatched by many of their peers in the field.
The cannabis industry is in its first burgeoning steps after decades of heavy-handed policing, and this wild west atmosphere is set to continue into the near future as states and the federal government battle it out over the product’s future. In the meantime, all cannabis growers and distributors are heavily recommended to utilize firms like CCSS to draft and implement security plans that provide a safe harbor in tumultuous seas.
Cannabis Compliant Security Solutions
(925) 922-1067