Colorado lawmakers to review a marijuana consumer safety audit at Oct. 19 hearing

Colorado's Legislative Audit Committee is scheduled to review a performance audit titled "Marijuana Consumer Safety" at a hearing on Monday, Oct. 19, according to the committee's published agenda. The audit, dated September 2026, covers the Marijuana Enforcement Division in the Colorado Department of Revenue and the Colorado State Public Health Laboratory in the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment.

The audit is the first item on the agenda, set for 9 to 10:30 a.m. in the Old Supreme Court Chambers at the State Capitol in Denver. The Marijuana Herald, which reported the hearing on Oct. 16, wrote that lawmakers are expected to hear from state auditors and agency officials about the findings and recommendations. It also reported that under Colorado's audit procedures, reports remain confidential until the committee releases them.

The review traces to an audit request the committee approved on March 26, 2025, according to the committee's minutes. The request, related to the Marijuana Enforcement Division's enforcement of consumer protection standards, was submitted by Senators Byron Pelton and Rod Pelton, the minutes say, and passed on a 6-2 roll call vote.

It follows a July 2023 performance audit of the division. According to that audit's highlights, between fiscal years 2019 and 2022 the division did not inspect 40 of 112 newly licensed retail marijuana stores (36%) within one year of licensure, as its policy aims to do. The 2023 audit also found that the division did not pursue disciplinary action for 23 of 44 sampled violations of marijuana laws and rules that affected public safety.