Flandreau Santee Sioux Tribe getting ready to sell marijuana


McClatchy DC published a photo of Flandreau Santee Sioux Tribe President Tony Reider inside a medical marijuana grow facility in Arizona. The photo was provided by Reider.

Four months from now, the Flandreau Santee Sioux Tribe of South Dakota should be selling marijuana on its reservation.

The tribe plans to grow at least 60 strains of marijuana in a 10,000 square-foot warehouse, The Sioux Falls Argus Leader reported. Patrons will be able to purchase the drug for medicinal or recreational purposes and consume it in a 15,000 square-foot lounge.

President Tony Reider said the operation will create about 20 new jobs on the reservation. And revenues could reach as high as $2 million a year.

“We definitely have a need for jobs,” Reider told the paper.

The Department of Justice opened the door to legal marijuana in Indian Country with the 2014 Wilkinson memo. The tribal council voted 5-1 in June to legalize marijuana and approved a comprehensive set of laws and policies to address the sale and use of the drug.

Get the Story:
Tribe seeks to capitalize on cannabis (The Sioux Falls Argus Leader 8/5)

Relevant Documents:
Department of Justice Policy Statement Regarding Marijuana Issues in Indian Country (October 2014)

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