# Compliance review checklist for cannabis copy

Run this on anything an AI wrote before it goes to a customer, a vendor, a new hire or the public: menu descriptions, emails, SOPs, training one-pagers, social posts. It takes two minutes. It is not legal advice; your state's rules and your compliance officer win every time.

From Distru's No Bullshit AI Course, lesson 03-03. CC0 1.0: copy, edit, print, paste into a prompt. Status 2026-09-17: section A's phrases match the medical-claim list the course lints its own lessons against; section B lists the requirements common to most adult-use states and must be checked against yours. The model will catch most of A and some of C when you paste it as a review step. It will not catch what it invented and believes, which is why section C is yours to do.

## A. Claims (every state)

- [ ] 1. **No medical or health claims.** No "treats", "cures", "helps with", "relieves", "for anxiety / pain / sleep", "wellness benefits". "Customers describe it as relaxing" is a report of what people say, not a claim; even that is banned in some states. When in doubt, describe aroma, flavor and potency only.
- [ ] 2. **No safety claims.** No "safe", "non-addictive", "no side effects", "natural" used to imply safety.
- [ ] 3. **No comparative claims you cannot document.** "Strongest on the shelf", "best price in town" need proof or go.
- [ ] 4. **Potency numbers match the COA.** THC, CBD, terpene percentages come from the lab report for that batch, not from the strain's reputation. Check one number against the COA.
- [ ] 5. **No appeal to minors.** No cartoons, candy look-alikes, "kid", "fun for the whole family", toy or game references. Many states also ban anything "attractive to children" by design, not just words.

## B. Required elements (check your state; these are the usual ones)

- [ ] 6. **License number** where your state requires it on ads and outbound business communication.
- [ ] 7. **Age statement** ("21+ only" or your state's medical wording) on anything public.
- [ ] 8. **State warning text** on product and promotional copy where required (impairment, pregnancy, keep away from children; exact wording varies by state).
- [ ] 9. **Audience restriction** for ads: most states require a reasonable expectation that 70% or more of the audience is 21+. Social posts count.
- [ ] 10. **No giveaways or price promotions** where your state bans them ("free", "BOGO", "discount for review").

## C. Facts (the AI part)

- [ ] 11. **Every number traces to something you pasted.** Prices, weights, dates, quantities, percentages. Open the source; find it.
- [ ] 12. **Every named thing exists.** Product names, strain names, vendor names, people. Search your catalog or contacts for each one.
- [ ] 13. **Every rule quoted is real.** If the copy says "state law requires", find the sentence in the regulation or the state's bulletin. If you cannot, cut it.
- [ ] 14. **Dates are right.** Deadlines, delivery windows, "this week". AI drafts often carry the wrong year.
- [ ] 15. **Nothing was added that you did not give it.** Read once asking only "where did this come from?" Invented prices and invented delivery promises are the most common leftovers.

## D. Voice and send

- [ ] 16. **It sounds like you.** If a sentence would not survive being read aloud to a budtender, rewrite it.
- [ ] 17. **The audience is right.** A one-pager for budtenders is not a public ad, but it will be repeated to customers, so A still applies.
- [ ] 18. **A person read it.** Anything going to the state, a customer or the public gets a human read. No exceptions, no matter how good the draft.

## Paste it into the prompt

Add this line to the end of any document prompt, then paste the checklist above it:

```
Before you give me the final text, review your draft against the checklist I pasted. List each item you changed something for, with the original and the fix. Then give the final text.
```

The model will catch most of A and some of C. It will not catch what it invented and believes. That is items 11 to 15, and that is your job.

## State rules

Advertising and labeling rules differ by state and change often. Start from the state's own site (the cannabis control agency's regulations page and its bulletins), not from a summary. Add your state's exact required warning text and license-number rule to section B and keep this file with your SOPs.