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Category: Gov. Dan McKee

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Rhode Island Governor Nominates Three for Cannabis Regulatory Board

May 19, 2023 Published by

The governor of Rhode Island on Wednesday nominated three individuals to a regulatory panel that will oversee the state’s legal marijuana programs.

Gov. Dan McKee, a Democrat, announced his appointments to the Rhode Island Cannabis Control Commission, which “will oversee the regulation, licensing and control of adult use and medical cannabis in the Ocean State,” his office said in a press release.

“I am proud to appoint these three individuals to the commission to ensure Rhode Island’s cannabis industry is both fairly regulated and successful,” McKee said in the announcement. “These nominees bring diverse and relevant experience and I look forward to working with them.”

The three nominees are headlined by Kimberly Ahern, McKee’s pick to serve as chair of the commission and who currently serves as the governor’s deputy chief of staff.

“I am grateful to Governor McKee for his trust in me, and I look forward to the Senate confirmation process. If confirmed, I hope to continue the good work that has already begun in Rhode Island thanks to the leadership of the Department of Business Regulation and the Department of Health for many years. The first six months of adult-use have demonstrated our state’s success in carefully expanding into this new industry. I look forward to working with my fellow Commissioners to regulate cannabis in a manner that is safe, transparent and equitable in the years going forward,” Ahern said in the announcement.

The governor’s other two nominees are Robert Jacquard, currently a self-employed attorney, and Layi Oduyingbo, a managing attorney for a law firm in Cranston, Rhode Island.

“I am truly honored to be selected to the Rhode Island Cannabis Control Commission and serve as one of its three voting commissioners,” Oduyingbo said in the announcement. “I thank Governor Dan McKee for my appointment, and I am grateful for everyone who supported my candidacy. As a lifelong Rhode Islander and small business owner, I grasp the significance of this new and exciting opportunity to succeed which is now available to businesses operating in this industry. As a commissioner, I will use my business and legal experience to efficiently oversee the regulation, licensing, and control of cannabis and marijuana use in a manner that is cautious, transparent, equitable, and consistent with the laws of our State.”

The governor will now “send these three names to the Rhode Island Senate for Advice and Consent,” according to his office.

Recreational cannabis sales began in Rhode Island in December after McKee signed a measure legalizing pot for adults aged 21 and older last spring.

“This bill successfully incorporates our priorities of making sure cannabis legalization is equitable, controlled, and safe,” McKee said in a statement at the time. “In addition, it creates a process for the automatic expungement of past cannabis convictions. My Administration’s original legalization plan also included such a provision and I am thrilled that the Assembly recognized the importance of this particular issue. The end result is a win for our state both socially and economically.”

The adult-use cannabis market opened for business late last year after McKee announced that five existing medical cannabis dispensaries had been licensed to sell recreational pot as well.

“This milestone is the result of a carefully executed process to ensure that our state’s entry into this emerging market was done in a safe, controlled and equitable manner,” McKee said in the announcement. “It is also a win for our statewide economy and our strong, locally based cannabis supply chain, which consists of nearly 70 licensed cultivators, processors and manufacturers in addition to our licensed compassion centers. Finally, I thank the leadership of the General Assembly for passing this practical implementation framework in the Rhode Island Cannabis Act and I look forward to continuing our work together on this issue.”

The post Rhode Island Governor Nominates Three for Cannabis Regulatory Board appeared first on High Times.

Rhode Island Bill Attempts To Prevent Cannabis Gatherings of More Than Three People

February 15, 2023 Published by

S-125 was introduced in Rhode Island on Feb. 1 by six senators: Sen. Walter Felag, Sen. Leonidas Raptakis, Sen. Frank Ciccone, Sen. Lou DiPalma, Sen. Susan Sosnowski, and Sen. Dawn Euer (Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee). If passed, the bill would make it illegal to have cannabis present in gatherings, which is defined in the bill as “where a group of three or more people have assembled or are assembling for a social occasion or social activity at a resident or premises.” For the first offense, offenders will be charged $500, followed by $750 for the second offense, and subsequent offenses set at $1,000.

Lovewell Farms, the state’s only USDA organic hemp farm, posted about the bill and its effect on residents on Feb. 11. “Red Alert! Check out this new cannabis bill introduced into @RISenate by Senators Felag, Raptakis, Tikoian, Ciccone, DiPalma, & Sosnoswki! It creates a monetary fine for hosting 3 or more people on private property to smoke “m*rijuana,” Lovewell Farms wrote.

The bill in its current form, would limit more than cannabis. It also includes other “Hallucinogenic Substances” such as ibogaine, peyote, and psilocybin.

Lovewell Farms also pointed out that Rhode Island’s adult-use cannabis sales began last year on Dec. 1, 2022, but a bill such as S-125 directly clashes with the current law. “Now, this is all very strange considering the State regulated adult use of cannabis last year,” Lovewell Farms continued. “In fact, in that bill it specifically prevents adults from being penalized for possession or consumption of cannabis—but that’s exactly what this new bill does!”

According to the 2022 Rhode Island Cannabis Act, the law protects residents who use cannabis for personal use. “Notwithstanding any other general or special law to the contrary, except as otherwise provided in this chapter, a person twenty-one (21) years of age or older shall not be arrested, prosecuted, penalized, sanctioned or disqualified under the laws of the state in any manner, or denied any right or privilege and shall not be subject to seizure or forfeiture of assets…”

Citing an ACLU Rhode Island report from 2014, Lovewell Farms addresses how a bill like this would negatively affect people who have already been targeted unjustly due to the War on Drugs. “Also keep in mind that Black people in Rhode Island are 8x more likely to be arrested (or fined) than non-Black people—that’s more than Ferguson, MO! What would implementation of this law look like? Probably disproportionate fines for people of color.”

Lovewell Farms calls for advocate action against the bill, providing data and contact information for the bill sponsors. “So PLEASE! Make a call to these Rhode Island State Senators listed below and let them know that this bill is terrible! We need to stop spending state & municipal funding chasing cannabis consumers. This is a waste of money—we have already decided adults are responsible enough!”

Rhode Island Gov. Dan McKee signed the state’s cannabis act into law in May 2022.

During the first week of adult-use sales in December 2022, Rhode Island collected $1.6 million in total revenue between recreational ($786,000) and medical ($845,400) sales.

In the recently released Americans for Safe Access 2022 State of the States report card, Rhode Island received a B- for the implementation of its medical cannabis program. “This year, Rhode Island doubled the number of dispensaries in the state,” the ASA wrote. “While this is a big boost to patients, Rhode Island policymakers should also be aware that more than 6 dispensary locations are necessary to serve medical cannabis patients in the state.”

Rhode Island is one of only two other states, Connecticut and Maryland, which received the same score (also the highest score provided to any states in the U.S. this year). Most other states earned C, D, and F scores.

The post Rhode Island Bill Attempts To Prevent Cannabis Gatherings of More Than Three People appeared first on High Times.

Rhode Island Rakes In $1.6 Million in First Week of Recreational Pot Sales

December 12, 2022 Published by

Rhode Island’s new adult-use cannabis market opened for business earlier this month, and so far, business is good. 

Local news station WPRI, citing the state’s Department of Business Regulation, reported this week that “Rhode Island’s six marijuana dispensaries — five of which are currently authorized to sell to recreational customers — collectively sold just over $1.63 million worth of marijuana from Dec. 1 to Dec. 7.” 

“Less than half of those sales were for recreational marijuana, at about $786,000. The rest, about $845,400, were sales to medical marijuana patients,” the station reported. “For comparison, during the last week of October — the most recent full week available prior to recreational sales — the dispensaries collectively sold $1 million worth of medical marijuana.”

Rhode Island legalized recreational cannabis use in May, when Gov. Dan McKee signed a bill that was passed by lawmakers in the state General Assembly. 

The law made it legal for adults aged 21 and older to cultivate and possess marijuana, while also establishing the regulatory framework for cannabis sales. 

“This bill successfully incorporates our priorities of making sure cannabis legalization is equitable, controlled, and safe,” McKee, a Democrat, said in a statement at the time. “In addition, it creates a process for the automatic expungement of past cannabis convictions. My Administration’s original legalization plan also included such a provision and I am thrilled that the Assembly recognized the importance of this particular issue. The end result is a win for our state both socially and economically.”

Additionally, the law “will give courts until July 1, 2024, to automatically expunge past convictions, and those who want their expungement sooner may request it,” the governor’s office explained in a press release at the time.

Late last month, McKee and the state’s Department of Business Regulation’s Office of Cannabis Regulation announced that “five licensed medical marijuana compassion centers have received state approval to begin selling adult use marijuana on or after December 1.”

The five “compassion centers” that were given approval to begin adult-use sales are: Aura of Rhode Island (Central Falls); Thomas C. Slater Center (Providence); Mother Earth Wellness (Pawtucket); Greenleaf Compassionate Care Center (Portsmouth); and RISE Warwick (Warwick).

“This milestone is the result of a carefully executed process to ensure that our state’s entry into this emerging market was done in a safe, controlled and equitable manner,” McKee said last month. “It is also a win for our statewide economy and our strong, locally based cannabis supply chain, which consists of nearly 70 licensed cultivators, processors and manufacturers in addition to our licensed compassion centers. Finally, I thank the leadership of the General Assembly for passing this practical implementation framework in the Rhode Island Cannabis Act and I look forward to continuing our work together on this issue.”

Matt Santacroce, who is serving as interim deputy director of the Rhode Island Department of Business Regulation, said last month that the state was “pleased with the quality and comprehensiveness of the applications we received from the state’s compassion centers, and we are proud to launch adult use sales in Rhode Island just six months after the Cannabis Act was signed into law, marking the Northeast’s fastest implementation period.”

“We look forward to continuing to work with the state’s cannabis business community to ensure this critical economic sector scales in compliance with the rules and regulations put forward by state regulators,” Santacroce said. 

The launch of recreational sales on December 1 was only one change to Rhode Island’s existing marijuana policy to arrive this month. 

WPRI reported that, on the same day, “the state also stopped charging medical patients to obtain or renew their medical marijuana cards,” adding that “there is an expected revenue loss from the pending plan to expunge marijuana possession charges, which will eliminate court fees from those crimes.”

The post Rhode Island Rakes In $1.6 Million in First Week of Recreational Pot Sales appeared first on High Times.