Colorado State Audit Exposes Safety Gaps In Marijuana Testing Rules

Audit Finds Gaps In Colorado Marijuana Testing Oversight

A Colorado state audit has found significant gaps in the regulatory framework used to test marijuana for contamination and warn consumers about risks. The audit focused on product testing problems and inconsistent monitoring by the Marijuana Enforcement Division, which sits within the state’s Department of Revenue and licenses businesses while overseeing compliance with marijuana rules and laws. Colorado voters approved recreational marijuana in 2012.

Auditors did not find evidence of widespread health and safety risks, but they concluded the framework is not airtight. “As a result, there’s an increased risk that marijuana products sold in Colorado may have contaminants or may inaccurately list potency.”

Sample Selection Practices

One issue identified in the audit is how testing samples are selected. Marijuana businesses choose the private labs that test their products, selecting their own samples and sending them for potency and contaminant testing. The audit says the practice raises the risk that unsafe products will not be properly flagged.

Twenty-four other states with legalized marijuana do not allow self-selected samples and instead rely on a third party.

“Is that something that’s going to be addressed?” Sen. Rod Pelton, a Cheyenne Wells Republican, asked. “Because if I’m a shady character, I know which products I’m going to sample and which ones I’m not. That’s a pretty gray area to me.”

Division Response

Kyle Lambert, deputy director of the marijuana division, said the topic of sample collection has been researched extensively but the division ultimately decided against changing it this year.

Audit manager Kate Shiroff said the Marijuana Enforcement Division’s inspections are inconsistent, leaving key details unavailable for review, Axios reported. The audit found that gaps in oversight could expose consumers to unsafe marijuana products, according to Axios. Products sold between 2023 and 2025 were tested inconsistently for contaminants and potency, the outlet reported.

In one case in 2025, potentially harmful products remained available for purchase before the Marijuana Enforcement Division issued a public health advisory.

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