Rhode Island Governor Celebrates Full Year of Legal Marijuana Sale To Adults

The Rhode Island recreational marijuana market has been in operation for one year. Officials are proud of the way it is developing.

Gov. Dan McKee (D) said, “We are proud of our careful execution in launching adult-use marijuana sales in Rhode Island. We were able to define this industry with the meticulous execution we put into place.” Dan McKee (D). This success is a growing opportunity not only for the state’s economy, but also for nearly 70 licensed growers, processors and manufacturers who are part of our local cannabis supply chains.

Officials said that Rhode Island has achieved many things in the last year, including the creation of the Cannabis Control Commission to regulate this new industry. McKee nominated the commissioners in May, and lawmakers confirmed them in June. The commission also hired a Chief Legal Counsel and plans to hire more in the coming months.

The state also established a Cannabis Advisory Board, which began meeting last month. This body is made up of experts that provide policy recommendations for the system.

Year 1 of adult use cannabis sales in Rhode Island

Milestones:

CCC formed

Support staff hired

– Appointment of a Advisory Board

We’re looking forward to Year 2 https://t.co/dYrw0zryBj

RI Cannabis Control Commission December 1, 2020

Kim Ahern, Chairperson of the Commission, said that “significant progress has been made in the past year.” “I commend our collaborative efforts which have brought us to this point and look forward in continuing our work to shape the future of marijuana regulation in Rhode Island.”

CCC stated in a press release that sales of marijuana products have “steadily increased almost every month since December 2022,” the anniversary of the legal sale of marijuana.

The release states that “this is in part due to the State’s efforts to create an accessible market for adults over 21 years of age, which is safe and regulated.”

CCC’s representative told Marijuana Moment the November sales figures, which represent a year’s worth of data since the launch of the adult-use marijuana market, will be released during the first half of the month.

In response to Marijuana Moment’s observations, state officials recently updated their sales figures back to December 2020 . The discrepancies were sometimes small, such as the $0.04 difference in September. However, other months had errors ranging from $70,000 to $124,000.

has seen a significant drop in medical marijuana sales since the adult-use sale of cannabis began.

Kimberly Ahern, chair of the Commission, said that the commission hopes to begin accepting license applications for new stores next year. This is in addition to the medical cannabis dispensaries which have already converted to hybrid businesses.

According to the Boston Globe, she stated in a press release that “our overall goal is to have applications available in 2024. However, this is dependent on a number of factors which will make it an iterative procedure.” We understand that some people feel a sense of urgency, but we want this to be a thoughtful and deliberate process.

The legalization law of the state envisaged 33 stores in total, which is 24 additional retailers to the nine medical marijuana dispensaries already operating within its borders. Some will go to social equity operators, while others will be given to worker-owned cooperatives.

Ahern stated at the CCC meeting last month that the commission is interested in focusing more on social equity. The commission has requested data from the federal and state agencies about , who could qualify for the 12 licenses set out by the state’s legalization legislation.

Ahern explained that the idea was to “frame” where these people might be. “But we need to have all the data before we get there.”