Massachusetts Marijuana Regulators Plan To Release Social Consumption Rules Proposal Next Month

*“I obviously appreciate that we’re a little behind…the schedule that we
laid out last December, but I still think we’re making great progress.”*

*By Bhaamati Borkhetaria, CommonWealth Beacon*

The Cannabis Control Commission said on Tuesday that the agency is aiming
to release final social consumption regulations by October of this
year—later than the “mid-2025” goal that the agency had previously indicated
.

The commission plans to vote on a version of the social consumption
regulations in July before sending them to the Secretary of State to create
an official record. Then, the agency will take public comment and hold a
public hearing. The testimony will be incorporated into another draft by
late August or early September, at which point the regulations would be
resubmitted to the secretary and become enforceable in October.

“I obviously appreciate that we’re a little behind…the schedule that we
laid out last December, but I still think we’re making great progress,”
Acting Chair Bruce Stebbins told CommonWealth Beacon following the public
meeting. “It’s a process [that] include[s] all of the commissioners and all
of the staff input as we get further closer to the end.”

The framework in the new social consumption regulation—which was first
unveiled in December 2024—is currently set to create three proposed types
of licenses. A new “supplemental” license will allow existing marijuana
businesses to add a social consumption area—such as a “tasting room”—where
customers can consume cannabis purchased on-site. A “hospitality” license
will permit on-site cannabis consumption at both new and existing
non-cannabis businesses, including lounges, yoga studios, cafes and
theaters. Finally, an “event organizer” license will enable cannabis
consumption at events like festivals, provided they last no longer than
five days.

The commission is still working to update the details of the regulations
before it votes on them in July.

Stebbins said that even after the regulations are finalized, there will be
more steps in implementing social consumption. Communities across the state
will have to “opt-in” to allow social consumption, and the commission will
have to approve licenses before people in Massachusetts will be able to
walk into an establishment, buy a weed gummy or cannabis drink and consume
it at the location.

Social consumption—the ability to consume cannabis products in designated
public spaces—has been legal in the state since the ballot question
legalizing marijuana was approved by voters in 2016, but the commission has
been slow to roll out regulations to create the framework to support it.

The commission’s last major changes to the regulations—which removed the
two-driver requirement for cannabis delivery—took a long time to come to
fruition. Even after the commission voted to make a long-awaited change to
the two-driver rule, it took nearly a year for the agency to publish the
final regulations. There has been frustration in the cannabis industry
around how slow the commission has been to update its regulations and write
new ones to support social consumption.

The commission has been enmeshed in controversy ever since Treasurer
Deborah Goldberg suspended Shannon O’Brien from her position as chair of
the commission for allegedly making racially insensitive comments. There
have been allegations of bullying at the agency, and the commission has failed
to collect over $500,000 in licensing fees. Last June, the Inspector
General called the commission a “rudderless ship” and urged lawmakers to
put it under a receivership.

Currently, the five-member commission is down to three and is at risk of
being deadlocked because three commissioners must all agree for the
commission to take any action. The House passed a cannabis reform bill on
June 4 that would restructure the commission to a three-member body
appointed solely by the governor as a way of addressing some of the
leadership issues. It is unclear if the Senate will take up the cannabis
legislation.

“There’s general excitement from the community and the stakeholders that
have wanted [social consumption], and I think we’re getting to a point
where we’re going to have regulations that will prioritize public health
and safety and at the same time will [bring] exciting, new opportunities
for potential licensees,” said Stebbins.

*This article first appeared on CommonWealth Beacon and is republished here
under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International
License.*

‘Justice Is Still Being Denied’ To People With Past Marijuana Convictions
As Legalization Spreads, Review By Advocacy Group Says

*Photo courtesy of Martin Alonso.*

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Consumption Rules Proposal Next Month appeared first on Marijuana Moment.