Maine Regulators Deny Proposal to Use Energy Bills to Detect Marijuana Farms

Versant Power said it has ‘a high success rate’ in identifying illegal cannabis growing locations but no ability to tell law enforcement.
Maine Regulators Deny Proposal to Use Energy Bills to Detect Marijuana Farms
Marijuana plants at an indoor cannabis farm in Gardena, Calif., on Aug. 15, 2019. Richard Vogel/AP Photo
Aldgra Fredly
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Maine utility regulators on Aug. 13 rejected a proposal that would have allowed utilities to share information about high-usage customers with law enforcement to detect illegal marijuana growing operations.

The proposal was put forward in March by Versant Power, a Maine-based electric utility, which said it has “a high success rate” in identifying marijuana growing locations but no ability to share that information with police.