R.I.’s cannabis reset proving costly

Christopher Allen

09/25/2026

cannabis0925 — RHODE ISLAND HAS RESET the process of issuing retail cannabis licenses, upsetting some of the previous applicants who say they had spent a lot of money preparing their initial applications, which were tossed out in response to a legal challenge. PBN FILE PHOTO/MICHAEL SALERNO

For Rhode Island businesses that spent years preparing to enter the state’s expanding adult-use cannabis market, the licensing process has become a costly reset. The R.I. Cannabis Control Commission is accepting a new round of retail applications after a federal court challenge derailed the state’s original process and lawmakers rewrote the rules governing who can

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