According to reports, the Rhode Island Cannabis Control Commission approved a set of comprehensive regulations to govern recreational marijuana in the state. Rhode Island Current New rules have cleared the path for expansion in retail nearly two-and-ahalf years after legalization.
Kimberly Ahern, the chairperson of the Commission after voting said: “These are homegrown just like our growers.” “This is an industry that is growing here thoughtfully, intentionally, deliberately – and it needs to reflect that.”
According to the report, the three-member panel reached a decision within 18 minutes. However, it was not an easy road.
In December 2022 recreational marijuana sales will begin. Only seven dispensaries that were previously licensed to provide medical marijuana to consumers over the age of 18 are allowed to do so. In the meantime, 60 cannabis cultivators are waiting for a barely-existent market to be supplied.
Peter Kasabian from Loud LLC stated at an state Senate hearing held in June of 2023 that “Our industry probably has already lost 150 job in the initial wave of layoffs.” Green Market Report Previously wrote. It’s only the beginning of the layoffs. The next round of layoffs is unknown.
Kasabian expressed his relief following the vote on Friday.
“It’s awesome that this finally happened – we’ve been waiting years for this,” he told the Rhode Island Current
The new regulations that go into effect May 1 will establish a “hybrid” selection process, whereby applicants for the 24 retail licenses must first pass a screening to ensure they are qualified before participating in a random lottery. There are specific rules for applicants seeking social equity and worker-owned co-ops.
The six licenses reserved will go to applicants for social justice and the other six are for worker owned cooperatives. The licenses will be divided into six geographical zones, with no more than four stores in each zone.
Prospective retailers will be required to pay an application fee of $7,500 and a licensing fee of $30,000 per year.
Ahern replied to reporters, “Certainly within this calendar year or even quicker,” when they asked about when the applications would open.
After the January posting of draft regulations, more than 380 comments were received by the commission during a 30 day feedback period.
The February dismissal of two lawsuits challenging residency requirements, and program parameters that had delayed regulations was due to the validity of these. Commission officials said that those lawsuits could have impacted timelines for opening new stores. Officials have also said that direct-to consumer hemp products are still a danger to the traditional cannabis business in California.
The preliminary report presented by the Commission in October last year found that three cities met the requirements for the social equity zone under the law of 2022: Central Falls and Providence, and some census tracts from Pawtucket or Newport.
Ahern said that the commission will continue to refine social equity criteria at future meetings.
Rhode Island has a different approach than Massachusetts. Massachusetts embraced cannabis recreational sales more rapidly after the voter’s approval. Rhode Island is taking a more deliberate approach, which aligns well with the concerns of other states about market oversaturation.
As originally envisaged in the legalization legislation of 2022, the rules will transfer the regulatory authority of the Department of Business Regulation over to the Cannabis Control Commission. This is the first step towards the eventual operation of 33 adult-use marijuana shops across the state.