By The Violation
Vermont Lt. Gov. John Rodgers plans to pay a reduced fine to settle a case involving an unlicensed cannabis grow site in Glover.
In June, a state inspector found him growing cannabis plants in a greenhouse at a site about a mile from his permitted location on Rodgers Road.
Rodgers has permission to grow cannabis at the Rodgers Road site, which is named for his family. But he never told the state he was growing plants at the second location.
Rodgers said in an interview that there were 120 plants, while the Cannabis Control Board’s violation notice described “approximately 200.” He said the plants were small starts, meaning they had no or very little THC in them.
State rules require cultivators to update regulators on the precise location of where plants are growing, including by keeping up-to-date maps on file of their operations.
Rodgers acknowledged in an interview that he “made a mistake” by failing to follow the Cannabis Control Board’s rules on providing information about where growing operations are located.
The Settlement
The Cannabis Control Board initially said in a notice to Rodgers that he was facing a $5,000 fine. At a meeting with Rodgers last week, which was not open to the public, state regulators agreed to cut the fine in half to $2,500, the lieutenant governor said.
“I said that I would pay it to have it behind me,” Rodgers said. He said he disagreed with having to pay any fine at all, maintaining the incident was a simple oversight and not evidence he was trying to hide any part of his operations from the state.
He called the settlement “an outrageous penalty.” Crowley confirmed in a statement Monday that regulators discussed a resolution to Rodgers’ case last week but did not provide specifics on the terms of a settlement.
Crowley said the full details of the agreement would be made public, but he did not say when. He added that such settlements are a common way to address violations of the board’s rules.
What Happens Next
Rodgers, who has grown cannabis and hemp for years, said his son, who is his partner in the cannabis business, failed to include the greenhouse building on the most recent updated information they shared with state regulators.
He said it was his intention to include the greenhouse details. “But that’s what happens,” Rodgers said.
“He has two businesses. I have several businesses, and I’m the lieutenant governor, and we work six or seven days a week. Sometimes, you drop the ball,” Rodgers said.
Rodgers plans to pay the $2,500 fine to resolve the matter. The settlement terms are expected to be released publicly at a later, unspecified date.
