A legislative committee in Maine approved rules that would relax state residency requirements for companies looking to qualify for recreational marijuana licenses.
The move could open up new opportunities for Maine businesses that are interested in adult-use cannabis opportunities but are controlled by out-of-state firms.
Here’s what you need to know:
- The committee’s amended rules say Maine residents who have lived in the state for at least four years would have to claim at least 51% ownership of a cannabis company to qualify for a recreational license.
- The state’s Veterans and Legal Affairs Committee voted to approve the rules and send them to the full Maine Legislature. The committee removed a stipulation that would have limited out-of-state control over Maine MJ companies, according to the Portland Press Herald.
- Wellness Connection – which is the largest medical marijuana company in Maine and has financial ties to New York-based multistate operator Acreage Holdings – recently threatened to sue the state if it didn’t change course on its proposed residency requirements. Those rules would have effectively cut Wellness Connection entirely out of the state’s adult-use market.
If the committee’s rules are approved by the House and Senate before the legislative session ends June 19 and Gov. Janet Mills then signs the measure into law, the state could begin accepting applications for rec cannabis business permits by the end of the year, according to the Press Herald.
– Associated Press and Marijuana Business Daily
