The Rhode Island Cannabis Act, passed in May 2022, allowed for retail sales of marijuana at seven medical dispensaries and promised an eventual expansion through the issuance of 24 additional retail licenses.
Those licenses have not been awarded yet by the R.I. Cannabis Control Commission, the agency overseeing the regulation of the nascent sector. The three-member panel has been meeting for about a year and getting input from an advisory board.
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The commission is expected to begin rolling our regulations before the end of the year.
Cultivators are among those growing frustrated by the slow rollout.
The 60 licensed cannabis cultivators in the state can grow their products but many are struggling and say they need more than seven retailers to sell to.
Neighboring Massachusetts has a much more mature industry but a commission overseeing it is in turmoil. Inspector General Jeff Shapiro called the agency “rudderless” and asked Bay State lawmakers to put it into receivership.
