Massachusetts approves retail marijuana stores

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The approval is a step in the right direction for retail expansion in the state

Following up to yesterday’s article on the subject, the Cannabis Control Commission (CCC) of Massachusetts has approved licenses for retail stores to operate on the state. The CCC held the vote yesterday and approved four licenses, but this doesn’t mean that the retail establishments will start operating immediately – there are still other hurdles that need to be jumped.

The vote was supported overwhelmingly by commissioners, all of whom said yes with the exception of one, Commissioner Shaleen Title. Title declined to vote over concerns she has on the subject of retail marijuana sales. She stated following the vote, “I will vote yes when I see a host community agreement that complies with the law. I think that is my duty. The commission made that decision [not to review agreements] and I lost that decision. I respect that. But I can’t, on principle, vote for a license that does not comply with the law.”

In order for the retail stores to receive approval, the two companies awarded the licenses, Cultivate and NETA (New England Treatment Access) must now receive waivers from the Massachusetts Department of Public Health that will allow non-medical marijuana patients to enter their premises. They also have to receive permission to move as much as 65% of their medical marijuana inventory to recreational operations.

After that, they still have to record all of their stock in the state-run seed-to-sale tracking program, which will allow all products to be tracked along the entire supply chain, a requirement established by state law.