Most Rhode Island Marijuana Social Equity License Applicants Have Been Disqualified

*The commission also adopted new rules for hemp products.*

*By Christopher Shea, Rhode Island Currant*

Only 38 percent of pre-applicants for a cannabis retail license reserved
for those adversely affected by the war on drugs have qualified to submit a
formal application, the Cannabis Control Commission announced Friday
afternoon.

Of 94 requests to be considered for a social equity license, 36 met
eligibility criteria after being screened. They were certified by the
commission in a 2-0 vote Friday and now have until December 29 to submit
their applications to go into a lottery. The commission will award six
social equity licenses through that lottery.

The vote was the first taken since the departure of Chairperson Kimberly
Ahern, who stepped down from her $204,069-a-year post on October 21 to make
a run for state attorney general in 2026.

Ahern’s usual seat between commissioners Layi Oduyingbo and Robert Jacquard
sat empty as the two remaining members conducted business. In addition to
voting to certify social equity applicants who passed the eligibility
screening, the board formally adopted hemp regulations previously handled
by another agency.

Oduyingbo and Jacquard both thanked Ahern for doing the yeoman’s work in
getting them through the past two-and-a-half years worth of meetings, which
included the establishment of the rules governing Rhode Island’s
recreational pot industry.

Olivia DaRocha, a spokesperson for Gov. McKee’s (D) office, on Monday said
the governor’s team is still working on identifying a nominee to replace
Ahern. That nominee would require Senate approval and is expected to be
presented early in the next legislative session, DaRocha said.

“In the meantime, the commission continues its work,” DaRocha wrote in an
email to Rhode Island Current.

Social equity pre-applicant screenings were conducted by
Massachusetts-based Creative Services, Inc.

To be certified and continue in the application process, social equity
applicants must meet one of five criteria:

1. *51 percent ownership and control *by one or more people who have
resided for at least five of the preceding 10 years in a disproportionately
impacted area.
2. *51 percent ownership and control* by one or more individuals who
either have been arrested/incarcerated for drug offenses that have since
been decriminalized or have had a family member impacted by the war on
drugs.
3. *A minimum of 10 full-time employees* with at least 51 percent of
current employees residing in a disproportionately impacted area or were
arrested/convicted for marijuana charges.
4. The ability to *demonstrate significant past experience* in, or
business practices that promote, economic empowerment in disproportionally
impacted areas.
5. *Income not exceeding 400 percent of the median income*, as defined
by the commission, in a disproportionally impacted area for at least five
of the past 10 years.

Disproportionately impacted areas were determined under state regulations
by federal poverty level, unemployment rate, the number of students in a
free school lunch program, and historic arrest rates by census tract. This
applied to tracts in five Rhode Island municipalities: Central Falls,
Newport, Pawtucket, Providence and Woonsocket.

Those who didn’t meet the criteria can still apply for a standard license.
Applications for all license types are due by December 29.

Under the 2022 act that legalized recreational cannabis, the commission can
offer 24 new licenses to retailers, with six reserved for social equity
applicants and another six reserved for worker-owned cooperatives. All
recreational licenses will be spread throughout six geographic zones, with
a maximum of four stores per zone.

Starting January 1, 2026, the state’s Cannabis Office will have 90 days to
review applications and verify that each meets eligibility qualifications
before being placed in a lottery. The timeline established during the
commission’s October 20 meeting builds in at least 60 days to allow
applicants to secure approvals at the local level in order to qualify for
random selection.

Regulators expect to start awarding licenses as soon as May 2026.

*What’s going on with hemp?*

Commissioners also voted to formally adopt regulations for hemp products
manufactured and sold in Rhode Island. The rules had been accepted under an
emergency order in July, after the commission assumed hemp oversight from
the Department of Business Regulation ahead of its transfer to the new
Cannabis Office.

Carla Aveledo, policy liaison for the commission, told the panel that rules
were mostly unchanged. Regulations still require product testing, labeling
in a way that does not appeal to minors, and restricting sales to people
age 21 or older.

All products can contain up to 1 milligrams of total THC—the psychoactive
component of the cannabis plant—per serving, or 5 milligrams of total THC
per package. That’s somewhat at odds with the new rules passed by the
federal government meant to tighten loopholes that have allowed for the
proliferation of psychoactive hemp products such as beverages and edibles.

“Staff is going to continue to monitor federal legislation and any changes
to ensure that the Rhode Island hemp laws are in line with any federal
requirements,” Aveledo said.

Rhode Island has allowed intoxicating hemp drinks since August 2024. The
policy has split the cannabis industry, which mostly opposes the products,
and the liquor industry, which backs them but wants exclusive control over
where they’re sold.

The divide caused the General Assembly to request that the Cannabis Control
Commission conduct a study of dosage limits, packaging standards, labeling
requirements, licensing conditions, and other ways to ensure children don’t
accidentally consume the intoxicating drinks.

The commission’s recommendations are due to state lawmakers by March 1,
2026. The commission plans to hold listening sessions early next year as it
shapes its study, Charon Rose, spokesperson for the commission, said Monday.

*This story was first published by Rhode Island Currant.*

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Been Disqualified appeared first on Marijuana Moment.