The report states
A review of the Commission’s payments to vendors for contracted services disclosed that a vendor providing legal services received payments for an amount in excess of the total contract amount. The total contract amount was $400,000.00 and the vendor received $604,197.55, resulting in an overpayment of $204,197.55. The overpayment occurred due to the Commission’s failure to properly monitor payments on the contract to ensure payments were made within the contract terms.
The firm in question
Webster, Henry, Bradwell, Cohan, Speagle & DeShazo, P.C.: This firm held a major legal services contract during the audit period, the state audit found they were paid over $604,000 on a contract capped at $400,000, requiring a claim to be filed with the Alabama Board of Adjustments to resolve the overpayment.
Will Justin Aday the GC for the commission remain in his role is the question we would be asking?
Aday is a deacon in the First Baptist Church and a member of the Kiwanis Club. His professional memberships include the Alabama State Bar, the American Bar Association and the Hugh Maddox Chapter of the Inns of Court.
Aday received his undergraduate degree from the University of Alabama and graduated cum laude from the Thomas Goode Jones School of Law in 2010, according to the announcement from the bar. He also received a master’s degree in public administration from the University of Alabama.
Source: https://www.al.com/spotnews/2014/01/alabama_state_bar_names_justin.html
Where the money was spent, we presume
A legal morass is thwarting Alabama’s medical marijuana program
https://www.politico.com/news/2023/10/26/alabama-medical-marijuana-program-00123305
Ganjapreneur
The Alabama Department of Examiners of Public Accounts found in a recent audit of the state’s medical cannabis program that the Alabama Medical Cannabis has failed to follow state law on multiple occasions.
The audit investigated a multi-year period from May 17, 2021, through September 30, 2025.
Officials noted at least five instances of noncompliance by Alabama cannabis regulators, including:
- Failure to comply with state record-keeping policies.
- Failure to comply with the Alabama Open Meetings Act.
- Overpayment on a legal services contract by over $200,000.
- Failed to fully establish a licensing and fee structure for the industry, as required under the state’s medical cannabis law.
- The Commission established an administrative rule for lost or stolen medical cannabis ID cards that conflicts with state law.
For the overpayment, the receiving vendor had to file a claim with the Alabama Board of Adjustments to get its payment.
“The total contract amount was $400,000.00 and the vendor received $604,197.55, resulting in an overpayment of $204,197.55. The overpayment occurred due to the Commission’s failure to properly monitor payments on the contract to ensure payments were made within the contract terms.” — Excerpt from the audit
According to the audit, the Commission has collected $2.78 million in cannabis licensing fees between 2022 and 2025.
