Former deputy to begin marijuana enforcement in January

Dispensary owner Hank Borunda isn’t worried that a county employee plans to run sting operations at pot shops next year. In fact, he welcomes it.

“I think it’s just gonna help when the state does come around. There’s not gonna be much for them to look at cause we got our local investigator that’s all over us making sure we’re doing everything the right way,” said Borunda, owner of The Greener Side.

Pueblo County Commissioners announced Monday Jason Chambers will be the county’s first marijuana code compliance inspector. Among his responsibilities, Commissioner Sal Pace said Chambers will “ensure that no one under 21 is in any of these stores, that there’s nothing being sold out the back door, that they’re complying with all the tax requirements.”

Chambers works for the county as a land use inspector. He’ll continue working there while working part time as the county’s marijuana inspector.

“We need to kick the bad actors out of Pueblo,” Pace said.

In the three years Borunda has owned a dispensary, he said state inspectors have only stopped by twice. Pace said those infrequent visits encouraged commissioners to create Chambers’ position. “We didn’t want to rely on the state to do all of the enforcement,” Pace said.

Recreational marijuana license fees will be used to pay for Chambers’ position.