WSLCB announces vendor to provide marijuana consultation services

From the Washington State Liquor Control Board:

Liquor Control Board Announces BOTEC Analyses Corporation as Marijuana Consultant

Think tank is apparent successful vendor to provide technical expertise as the Board implements I-502.

OLYMPIA – The Washington State Liquor Control Board (WSLCB) today announced that BOTEC Analysis Corporation is the apparent successful vendor to provide technical expertise as the agency implements Initiative 502. Apparent successful bidder is the official term until contract terms are finalized.

BOTEC Analysis Corporation is a Cambridge, MA based think tank specializing in crime and drug policy and will serve as the prime contractor. The company was a clear winner scoring highest in all four categories of consulting services the agency sought in its request for proposals (RFP): product and industry knowledge; product quality standards and testing; product usage and consumption validation; and product regulation.

This team’s lead members and subcontractors are among the world’s leading experts on marijuana and drug policy,” said Board Chair Sharon Foster. “Their credentials speak for themselves.” 

According to their bid, BOTEC has “a wealth of experts in formalized cultivation and testing, quality standards, statistical modeling, policy analyses, dynamics of illicit markets, law enforcement, drug control, drug dependency economics and rule-making. They’ve occupied prestige positions ranging from presidential advisors to a Nobel laureate. 

“I would like to thank the team that produced, scored and communicated this RFP,” said agency administrative director Pat Kohler. “It was a multi-agency effort that was produced and completed much faster than a typical state RFP. It’s the kind of efficient and effective government that Gov. Inslee is expecting of state government.” 

BOTEC Analysis, Inc. Team Leads

Project Leader: Dr Mark Kleiman, CEO BOTEC, Ph.D. Public Policy, Harvard Kennedy School

Dr. Kleiman teaches public policy at UCLA. He is an expert in many aspects of criminal and drug policy, including probation and parole, incarceration, and marijuana policy. He is the co-author of the book Marijuana Legalization: What Everybody Needs to Know. 

Project Manager: Steven Davenport, Coordinator BOTEC

Key Sub-Contractors

1. Product and Industry Knowledge: Michael Sautman, former CEO of Bedrocan International.

Leading expert in producing standardized cannabis products on an industrial scale in a regulated environment. Has over 25 years of experience in natural product manufacturing.

2. Product Quality Standards and Testing: David Lampach, President, Steep Hill Lab. 

Lampach is an expert in applying technology and analytical instruments appropriate for analyzing cannabis samples. He is co-founder and president of Steep Hill Lab, the first and largest cannabis testing lab in the United States.

3. Product Usage and Consumption Validation: Dr. Beau Kilmer, Ph.D. in Public Policy, Harvard University

Dr. Kilmer is a Senior Policy Researcher at the RAND Corporation. He is Co-Director of the RAND Drug Policy Research Center and a professor at Pardee RAND Graduate School 

4. Product Regulation: Lowry Heussler, JD, General Counsel BOTEC 

Ms. Heussler is on the Massachusetts Department of Labor and Workforce Development Board of Review and has extensive experience in administrative and agency law. She has co-authored books with Dr. Kleiman concerning drug policy. She was a research assistant on BOTEC’s Analysis of Cocaine and Heroin Market Structure and for Dr. Kleiman’s, Against Excess: Drug Policy for Results.