After months of behind-the-scenes negotiations, Democratic legislative leaders on March 1 introduced a sweeping bill in the General Assembly to legalize adult recreational marijuana use in the Ocean State.
The bill introduced in both chambers would allow for up to 33 retail licenses distributed in six zones statewide. It calls for a 10% state cannabis excise tax in addition to the 7% sales tax, plus a 3% local tax for the municipality at point of sale.
It would create an independent, three-member cannabis control commission that would eventually also assume oversight of medical marijuana, which is currently under the purview of the Department of Business Regulation. It also establishes a cannabis advisory board and a cannabis office within DBR.
Bill sponsor Sen. Joshua Miller, D-Cranston, said that the recreational cannabis industry in the state is projected to yield about $20 million in its first year of operation.
If approved, Rhode Island would join 18 other states in legalizing adult recreational marijuana use and sales.
Legalized Marijuana is just one more reason not to open a business in RI and certainly a strong reason not to raise a family here. The are only 18 States (aka the States of Confusion) that have legalized MJ.
You can bet that the politicians pushing to legalize cannabis are all Sackler wannabes and don’t really care about the health of taxpayers or their businesses.
The biggest beneficiaries of legalized cannabis will be the liability insurance industry and, as usual, the blood sucking lawyers that thrive off liability suits.