Two Democratic lawmakers escalated their efforts to obtain long-overdue reports on Maine’s cannabis industry on Wednesday, writing a letter to the director of Maine’s cannabis regulatory agency demanding that the reports be turned over by Friday.
The letter comes nearly a week after a high-ranking state government employee admitted to intentionally hiding the documents last year because she wanted to influence the legislative process. The stunning admission from Anya Trundy, Deputy Director for Legislative Affairs at the Department of Administrative and Financial Services (DAFS), came during a Veterans and Legal Affairs (VLA) Committee hearing last week.
Trundy confessed that she intentionally withheld the 2023 report, which was due on February 15, 2024, citing what she personally believed was an overly tense legislative climate surrounding cannabis reforms at the time.
[RELATED: Deputy Finance Director Admits to Withholding Data from Maine Lawmakers…]
Trundy, who received taxpayer-funded compensation worth more than $150k in 2024, said she willfully disregarded the statutory requirement to provide the briefing to lawmakers because, in part, she wanted to help the Office of Cannabis Policy (OCP) secure a favorable outcome with LD 40, a major cannabis reform omnibus that passed last year.
“We had a really difficult legislative session last year in this committee that was filled with a lot of acrimony,” Trundy explained. “When the draft [report] came to me from OCP, I put it on my desk and realized that it needed some editing and that likely releasing that report would throw another log on the fire. I didn’t want to throw another log on the fire.”
The log in question was actually a pair reports about Maine’s cannabis industry that would have provided lawmakers with a host of information about Maine’s medicinal and adult-use marijuana programs, including information related to enforcement actions and public health. Under Maine law at the time, DAFS, the parent agency of OCP, was required to give lawmakers the reports on Feb. 15 of a given year.
Trundy has not responded to the Maine Wire’s questions about her decision to violate state law, though she remains a top ranking employee with Maine’s finance agency.
Nearly one year after she decided to keep VLA members and Maine taxpayers in the dark, the Democratic co-chairs of the committee are demanding that OCP cough up the reports.
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“The purpose of an annual report is to inform a committee of jurisdiction on matters that may be of relevance…The failure of your Office to provide this report to the Committee in a timely manner has limited the oversight capacity of this Committee as provided in statute,” said Sen. Craig Hickman (D-Kennebec) and Rep. Laura Supica (D-Bangor) in a Jan. 22 letter to John Hudak, the embattled OCP director.
The revelation that OCP has been hiding information from lawmakers came during Hudak’s first appearance before the VLA committee of the 132nd Legislature.
During the hearing, Hudak, appeared not to grasp how negatively lawmakers would react to Trundy’s disclosure. Gliding over the admission, he proceeded to complain at length about a supposed pattern of violent harassment and sexual harassment that OCP employees and cannabis lobbyists had experienced. When Hickman pressed him to say whether there were any reports or charges filed about the alleged incidents, Hudak acknowledged that the harassment had resulted in just one phone call to the Capitol Police.
In the same meeting, Hudak spoke about the rise of illicit cannabis grows operated by Asian Transnational Criminal Organizations, revealing that his office has knowingly provided licenses to suspected or known elements of organized crime.
Hudak, who earned $170k in taxpayer comp last year, told VLA members there was simply no way he could avoid bestowing transnational criminal networks with lucrative medicinal marijuana licenses that will offer them significant protection from law enforcement.
In their letter, Supica and Hickman requested that the unedited version of the reports, along with any finalized draft, be submitted by January 24.
The missing reports, which include critical data on cannabis production, licensing, compliance, public health, and OCP spending, have historically played a significant role in shaping state cannabis policy.
If this person is not fired then the a governor recall for lack of confidence must be generated. The voters demand it!
How are these two still employed?
Man y’all are some dumb motherfuckers. Being played with anti-establishment rhetoric by assholes in the medical market that want all the oversight of a black market while enjoying the protections of legitimate one.
Not surpised to see more slop about this here on the Maine Wire
Trundy and Hudak SHOULD BOTH BE DISMISSED .
THEY BOTH HAVE WILLFULLY LIED AND TRIED TO HIDE TRUTH FROM THE PEOPLE OF MAINE
Is there no oath of office they took ?
NO pledge of truth ?
Why is this excused by Gov, Mills ?
THIS IS UNACCEPTABLE !
UNACCEPTABLE
The people of Maine and politicians of Maine made a huge error of judgement when they voted to free up the growing and distributing of a Federally outlawed drug to the children of our State. Some may say that our children are not supposed to have access to pot, but that is not what is happening.
Just outlaw it all!!!
It’s not just these two. The entire top office of OCP needs to be let go.
Vernon – Diana the chemist – all of the assists.
The director of compliance Dean is the only one with a working brain in the top office.
Most of the field investigators are pretty legit but they have to be order takers from slimeball VP and director
Raising right hand, “I do solemnly swear that I will never vote for collins again”. She must be primaried The whole country swings right and here’s madam shakes the clown wondering if that seat was wet before she sat down. I hope when pete gets in he shuts down BIW and PNSY, thanks sue you moron.
This should be a no-brainer. No excuse for deliberately ignoring a required work product. There should be an instant firing and discipline for the higher ups who allowed it to happen. There is incompetence then there is in your face blatant disrespect & deliberate disregard. FIRE & blackball from any further taxpayer funded employment.