The advisory board to the Massachusetts Cannabis Control Commission is backing the creation of cannabis cafes and pot-consumption events, voting unanimously for the state to develop regulations around the licenses. The vote is a promising step forward for advocates who have pressed for the state to begin licensing places where people can consume marijuana on-site, […]
massachusetts marijuana
1st legal marijuana stores are open in Massachusetts, but industry is far from mature
After years of preparation and debate, legal marijuana is now a reality in Massachusetts. Any adult can walk into a store, pay cash and walk out with a joint, which they can smoke, legally, in their home. But the roll-out of the first marijuana stores is only the beginning. In the coming year, marijuana entrepreneurs […]
Massachusetts marijuana: Sales hit $23.8 million in first two months of open retail pot shops
In the first two months of recreational marijuana sales in Massachusetts, pot shops took in nearly $24 million in sales, according to data released by state regulators. The Cannabis Control Commission, the state’s marijuana regulatory agency, released the figures this week. Massachusetts opened the first retail pot shops east of the Mississippi in late November. […]
Committee recommends allowing marijuana home delivery in Massachusetts
Despite concerns about robberies and security, a state committee recommended that Massachusetts grant licenses to companies to deliver marijuana. The question surrounds “delivery-only” licenses, in which the Cannabis Control Commission would let a company form a business and obtain a license to deliver marijuana from a retail store to a customer’s home. Walpole Police Chief […]
What is Massachusetts planning to do with all that marijuana tax revenue?
In a recent interview, Boston Mayor Marty Walsh said he hoped the the tax revenue from marijuana in Massachusetts would be worth the “human toll.” Walsh, who opposed the 2016 state ballot measure to legalize the drug for recreational use, later explained that he hoped the money would be devoted toward initiatives that promote public health and safe […]
Massachusetts marijuana retail shops’ rollout going ‘mostly according to plan,’ Gov. Charlie Baker says
Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker says he’s satisfied with the rollout of the state’s first recreational marijuana retail stores. “I think it’s gone what I would describe, I guess, as mostly according to plan, which is a good thing,” Baker told MassLive. Two stores, Cultivate in Leicester and New England Treatment Access (NETA) in Northampton, opened […]
While marijuana sales begin in Massachusetts, could New York next?
If New York chooses to follow Massachusetts’ lead on recreational marijuana, Tuesday provided a window in to what it might see. Hundreds of people swarmed the New England Treatment Access store on Tuesday morning as Massachusetts became the first state on the East Coast to legalize the sale of recreational marijuana. The store is one […]
Recreational marijuana sales to begin in Massachusetts Tuesday and the first two customers have already been selected
The first two retail marijuana shops in Massachusetts are set to begin selling products to the public Tuesday, marking the first time recreational pot will be sold east of the Mississippi. The Massachusetts Cannabis Control Commission has given the green light to Cultivate Holdings, LLC, which has a retail shop in Leicester, and New England Treatment […]
The first Massachusetts marijuana retail shops are finally opening; Here’s what you should know
Retail stores that sell recreational marijuana are anticipated to open in Massachusetts. More than two years after Bay State voters approved a ballot question broadly legalizing recreational marijuana, state regulators have provided final sign-offs to the stores, and all that’s left is the “commence operations” notice. The specific opening dates are still unclear. It’s a […]
Banking Evolution
The cannabis industry is evolving rapidly and so should your perception of banking. I recently attended the Second Annual State of the Cannabis Industry Conference, in Massachusetts. The event was organized by the cannabis law practice of Burns & Levinson and by Viridian Capital Advisors, a financial advisory firm dedicated to the cannabis industry, with […]
It Will Be ‘Years’ Before Marijuana Cafes Open In Massachusetts, Regulators Say
The days when marijuana users will be able to congregate at an establishment in Massachusetts and socially consume the drug are years away, cannabis regulators said Tuesday, and it is likely that any social consumption will be limited to vaping and edibles. The Cannabis Control Commission has the authority under the 2016 voter law legalizing adult-use […]
Why can’t Massachusetts medical marijuana labs also test recreational?
By early next month, it will be two years since Massachusetts voters declared they wanted marijuana legalized for recreational use by approving a ballot question. But not one recreational marijuana shop has been permitted to open. State law requires samples be tested to ensure that marijuana products are safe to ingest. A big reason for the […]
Slow rollout on retail marijuana is shrinking Massachusetts’ estimated taxes, advocates say
Saying Massachusetts has missed out on $16 million in marijuana taxes, officials behind the 2016 legal marijuana ballot question on Monday pointed to staffing levels and bureaucracy at the Cannabis Control Commission as potential reasons for the slow rollout of retail sales in Massachusetts. “The Cannabis Control Commission needs to pick up the pace,” Will […]
Massachusetts’ First Recreational Pot Sales Could Be Days Away
More than two months after recreational marijuana sales became legal in Massachusetts, the first wave of retailers is still working to open to the public. But the first sales could happen soon. Eleven potential marijuana shops are awaiting site inspections, the last step before they can seek final approval of their business license applications from the Cannabis […]
Massachusetts marijuana retailers could get final go-ahead this month
A handful of the marijuana businesses granted provisional licenses have informed the Cannabis Control Commission they are ready to be inspected, one of the final steps before retail sales of marijuana, approved by voters almost two years ago, can begin. Commission chairman Steven Hoffman said Thursday that the agency is working to schedule inspections for […]
Marijuana Entrepreneurs Given ‘Priority’ In Mass. Are Struggling To Get Through Licensing Process
So you’ve got priority in getting your marijuana license application reviewed in Massachusetts. But you’ve got a major hurdle ahead of you — getting through the actual application. Applicants who get priority are from communities disproportionately criminalized for marijuana — like people of color. Marijuana use is similar among different groups, but minorities have been punished for it at far […]
MMJ Dispensary In Massachusetts Receives First License To Sell Recreational Cannabis
Massachusetts hit another milestone in its era of legalized marijuana: State regulators granted Cultivate a license to sell recreational marijuana at the company’s existing medical marijuana dispensary in Leicester. The five-member Cannabis Control Commission unanimously voted to grant the retail license to Cultivate Holdings, Inc., which operates the first medical marijuana dispensary in Worcester County. Medical […]
Ruling By AG Maura Healey Could Slow Massachusetts Marijuana Industry
Attorney General Maura Healey is giving cities and towns more power to slow down the recreational marijuana industry, ruling that local officials can unilaterally prohibit cannabis companies for another year without polling residents. The decision, approving an extension of Mansfield’s temporary moratorium on pot shops and other marijuana businesses through June 2019, was released Friday […]
