The Massachusetts Cannabis Control Commission (CCC) has come under scrutiny for failing to collect approximately $1.75 million in licensing fees over the past two years. Inspector General Jeffrey Shapiro termed this oversight “an egregious operational breakdown” and has called for a comprehensive audit of the commission.
Shapiro’s investigation indicates that the missed collections occurred between August 2022 and August 2024. In a letter addressed to CCC’s new executive director, Travis Ahern, and commission chair Bruce Stebbins, he detailed that the uncollected fees fell into two main categories. The first involved license extension fees from 159 marijuana establishments, totaling $550,000. The second category was related to provisional license applications, where 121 applicants did not pay required fees amounting to $1.2 million.
Although the Office of Inspector General (OIG) did not uncover any instances of fraud, Shapiro noted that the findings reveal poor business practices and insufficient oversight within the commission. Ahern responded by stating that the CCC had collected over $34.5 million in licensing and application fees and emphasized the commission’s commitment to fulfilling its responsibilities regarding fee collection.
Currently, the CCC is working to collect the outstanding $550,000 in fees. As of this week, they reported having $170,000 still due. Regarding the $1.2 million in fees for provisional license applicants, Ahern mentioned that these applicants were not required to pay unless they intended to proceed with the licensing process. He added that only a small number of provisionally approved applicants continued with their applications.
Shapiro has expressed ongoing concerns about the CCC, previously suggesting that the commission be placed into receivership due to turmoil within the agency. His report also highlighted a lack of supervision from CCC management and former executive directors, as well as minimal staff accountability.
In response to the report’s findings, Ahern refrained from commenting on personnel matters. However, Shapiro emphasized the need for an audit to review all accounts receivable and the commission’s IT systems to ensure that no fees were improperly waived.
“The failure to have collected fees is a significant problem, whatever its underlying causes, and should be a call for action,” Shapiro wrote. He requested an update from the CCC within 30 days on plans to implement the audit recommendations.
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