Don Duncan and Yami Bolanos are widely known for their work as activists, collective operators, consultants and educators in the medical cannabis industry. The MCC Training Program is pleased to host this dynamic duo and the unique seminar they have developed for Collective and Cooperator Operators, those who contemplate opening a medical cannabis collective, or professionals who would like to service these entities.

Don and Yami developed the MCC 136 Seminar for the specific purpose of providing information to Collective or Cooperative Operators that will support the protection of medical cannabis facilities and the improvement of operations and patient member services. Additionally, they will take participants completely through the process of setting up a collective or cooperative. The course covers the nuts and bolts of how to do this correctly, and the political and government hurdles that must be overcome to establish and maintain a medical cannabis facility.

The seminar is designed specifically for those who might be in interested in becoming Collective and Cooperative Operators, existing operators who want to know more about the process, or professionals such as lawyers, doctors, and accountants who want to be at the forefront in the advancement of healthcare services under California's Medical Marijuana Program.

This is an historic occasion. It’s the first time this sort of class has been taught by seasoned activists. Don is the co-founder of Americans for Safe Access, and Yami founded the first and oldest trade association for Medical Cannabis Collectives in the United States, The Greater Los Angeles Collective Alliance. Both have operated medical cannabis facilities for many years, and are some of the most seasoned and respected collective operators in Los Angeles.

Syllabus:
CLASS SYLLABUS

A. LOCATIONS:

Zoning
Local Regulations
Local Ordinances

B. GENERAL BUSINESS OPERATIONS:

The nonprofit legal entity
Incorporation
Sales tax.
Licenses and Permits
Insurance
Business Records

C. FEDERAL, STATE AND LOCAL ISSUES

Federal
Attorney General of California
The Sherman Act
City and County Ordinances

D. STAFF and PERSONNEL:

Hiring Staff:
Background checks.
Workers Compensation
Volunteers and Interns
Independent Contractors
Staff Training
Collective’s Staff Policies and Procedures
Patient/Member Services

E. SECURITY:

Security Systems
Security Gurards
Raid Preparation

D. MEDICATION:

Sources
Reasonable Compensation
Organic
Cultivation Method
Sherman Act Compliance
Non-smoked Products
Labeling

E. PATIENT/MEMBER INTAKE:

The Collective Member Agreement
Patient Orientation
HIPAA Compliance

F. MARKETING:
Website
Advertising
Reasonable Compensation

G. ADVOCACY:
Organizations


H. WORKING WITH PROFESSIONALS:

Attorneys
Lobbyists
Consultants

H. RAID PREPARATION

Patient/Member Training
Evidence
Raid Plan
Bail

DON DUNCAN

Mr. Duncan is the co-founder of Americans for Safe Access and the founder of one of the oldest and most reputable families of medical cannabis Collectives in California. He has helped to open legal facilities in Berkeley, Los Angeles, West Hollywood, and Palm Springs.

Mr. Duncan is recognized as a leading consultant in the field of medical cannabis. His clients include some of the largest medical cannabis Collectives/Cooperatives in California, as well as numerous smaller patient associations.

Mr. Duncan’s work, through ASA, has been instrumental in galvanizing grassroots resistance to federal interference and intimidation. He continues to play a key role in seeding local self-regulatory alliances for medical cannabis providers statewide. He is currently working with the Los Angeles City Council and city staff to write permanent regulations for medical cannabis Collectives/Cooperatives operating in the City.

Mr. Duncan led the campaign to adopt legislation to protect patients’ employment rights in California in 2008, work that continues to date with California Senator Mark Leno’s (D-SF) SB 129. He also worked with the California Board of Equalization on issues related to sales tax and medical cannabis since 2005, He has provided input into the California Attorney General’s guidelines for medical cannabis in 2008, and coordinated ASA’s statewide symposia on medical cannabis collective operations in 2006 and 2007.


YAMILETH BOLANOS

Ms. Bolanos is a patient, whose commitment to Medical Cannabis began after she became a two time cancer survivor and a liver transplant patient.

She is also the first Latina to open a medical cannabis facility in the City of Los Angeles.

Her collective, Purelife Alternative Wellness Center, is considered a model facility and has been featured in numerous news reports and documentaries on Medical Marijuana. In May of this year, Purelife celebrated half a decade of service to the sick and dying of Los Angeles.

Shortly after founding Purelife, Ms. Bolanos realized that medical cannabis facilities were completely unregulated, and established a series of best practices for the safe and responsible regulation of cannabis collectives and cooperatives. Many of these are now a part of the City of Los Angeles’ Medical Marijuana Ordinance.

Ms. Bolanos is the founder of the Greater Los Angeles Collective Alliance, (GLACA) the first trade organization for medical cannabis collectives in the United States of America. She is the organization’s president.

In this capacity, she served on the Working Group the City of Los Angeles convened to help write its Medical Marijuana Ordinance. She has narrated a film about the experience, “Compassionate Use”. The film is streaming on-line and can be seen at: http://www.purelifealternative.com/events.html.