#marijuana dispensary massachusetts

[kayadc]

Cannabis Law 2023: Which States Is Cannabis Legal?

Living and working in the United States and enjoying Cannabis at the same time is an interesting challenge. Whether you travel or want to find a recreational dispensary near you, it’s important to know the quilt-work of legality defined by our state borders. Much of the West Coast and the Northeast are fully legal and the center of the nation has embraced medical cannabis, but there are still a few holdout states where cannabis is fully illegal or restricted to medical use only.

Know your local laws! There are even some cities like Atlanta, GA, and Austin, TX that have decriminalized marijuana separately from state law.

Let’s dive into the weed map of the United States. You can find a recreational or medical dispensary near you, or plan to find a dispensary near your destination if you choose to travel.

States Where Cannabis is Fully Legal: Recreational + Medical

In which states is cannabis totally legal? There are a total of 17 states where both recreational and medical use of marijuana is legal. In these states – including the legendary legal front-runners Colorado, Oregon, Washington, and California – medical and recreational dispensaries are often found in the same place. In most cities, you can find dozens of marijuana dispensaries nearby.

Cannabis Legal States

Alaska

Arizona

California

Colorado

Connecticut

Illinois

Maine

Massachusetts

Michigan

Montana

Nevada

New Jersey

New Mexico

New York

Oregon

Vermont

Virginia

Districts & Territories

Washington DC

Guam

Northern Mariana Islands

States Where Cannabis is Legal for Medical + Decriminalized

In states where medical marijuana is legal and cannabis is decriminalized, it is safe to walk around with a few buds in your pocket as long as you toke respectfully. In these 11 states, most major cities and many small communities have at least one cannabis dispensary where those with a medical card can buy medical marijuana. You can also safely share your cannabis with friends in private spaces because possession has been decriminalized.

Cannabis Medical Decriminalized States

Delaware

Hawaii

Louisiana

Maryland

Minnesota

Mississippi

Missouri

New Hampshire

North Dakota

Ohio

Rhode Island

Districts & Territories

US Virgin Islands

States Where Cannabis is Legal for Medical Only

In strict-medical states, you will need to have a medical marijuana card in order to legally possess cannabis on you, in your car, or in your home. You can often find a medical marijuana dispensary near you, though these venues are very tightly regulated to discourage or prevent recreational use. In most medical-only states, cannabis possession is a misdemeanor without a medical card or in excess quantities.

Cannabis Medical Only States

Alabama

Arkansas

Florida

Oklahoma

Pennsylvania

South Dakota

Utah

West Virginia

Districts & Territories

Puerto Rico

States Where Cannabis is Illegal but Decriminalized

In only two states, you will find no cannabis dispensaries, but you also won’t get in a lot of trouble for personal possession within state borders. Nebraska and North Carolina have, so far, decriminalized and hopefully legalized in the near future. Decriminalization alone is often a small step on the slow legalization path.

Cannabis Illegal Decriminalized States

Nebraska

North Carolina

States Where Cannabis is Illegal

Finally, it’s important to remain aware of which states marijuana is illegal and not safe to carry or use within state borders. Be safe when in these states. Where possession is fully illegal, even traces of THC in shake, vape cart empties, and concentrated crumble in the car can get you into trouble. If you need medical marijuana or prefer a lifestyle that includes dispensaries nearby, don’t settle in these states until policies change and be careful when passing through.

Cannabis Illegal States

Georgia

Idaho

Indiana

Iowa

Kansas

Kentucky

South Carolina

Tennessee

Texas

Wisconsin

Wyoming

Districts & Territories

American Samoa

Finding a Marijuana Dispensary Near You

In any state with recreational or medical cannabis law, you can often find a dispensary nearby and in most major cities. For Washington DC area Kaya DC is only a phone call away and in multiple locations and we will deliver to you. Visit us at www.kayadc.co/

[stonerstonezz]

[reasonsforhope]

Article | Paywall Free

"Maryland Gov. Wes Moore issued a mass pardon of more than 175,000 marijuana convictions Monday morning [June 17, 2024], one of the nation’s most sweeping acts of clemency involving a drug now in widespread recreational use.

The pardons forgive low-level marijuana possession charges for an estimated 100,000 people in what the Democratic governor said is a step to heal decades of social and economic injustice that disproportionately harms Black and Brown people. Moore noted criminal records have been used to deny housing, employment and education, holding people and their families back long after their sentences have been served.

[Note: If you're wondering how 175,000 convictions were pardoned but only 100,000 people are benefiting, it's because there are often multiple convictions per person.]

A Sweeping Act

“We aren’t nibbling around the edges. We are taking actions that are intentional, that are sweeping and unapologetic,” Moore said at an Annapolis event interrupted three times by standing ovations. “Policymaking is powerful. And if you look at the past, you see how policies have been intentionally deployed to hold back entire communities.”

Moore called the scope of his pardons “the most far-reaching and aggressive” executive action among officials nationwide who have sought to unwind criminal justice inequities with the growing legalization of marijuana. Nine other states and multiple cities have pardoned hundreds of thousands of old marijuana convictions in recent years, according to the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws. Legalized marijuana markets reap billions in revenue for state governments each year, and polls show public sentiment on the drug has also turned — with more people both embracing cannabis use and repudiating racial disparities exacerbated by the War on Drugs.

The pardons, timed to coincide with Wednesday’s Juneteenth holiday, a day that has come to symbolize the end of slavery in the United States, come from a rising star in the Democratic Party and the lone Black governor of a U.S. state whose ascent is built on the promise to “leave no one behind.”

The Pardons and Demographics

Derek Liggins, 57, will be among those pardoned Monday, more than 16 years after his last day in prison for possessing and dealing marijuana in the late 1990s. Despite working hard to build a new life after serving time, Liggins said he still loses out on job opportunities and potential income.

“You can’t hold people accountable for possession of marijuana when you’ve got a dispensary on almost every corner,” he said.

Nationwide, according to the ACLU, Black people were more than three times more likely than White people to be arrested for marijuana possession. President Biden in 2022 issued a mass pardon of federal marijuana convictions — a reprieve for roughly 6,500 people — and urged governors to follow suit in states, where the vast majority of marijuana prosecutions take place.

Maryland’s pardon action rivals only Massachusetts, where the governor and an executive council together issued a blanket pardon in March expected to affect hundreds of thousands of people.

But Moore’s pardons appear to stand alone in the impact to communities of color in a state known for having one of the nation’s worst records for disproportionately incarcerating Black people for any crimes. More than 70 percent of the state’s male incarcerated population is Black, according to state data, more than double their proportion in society.

In announcing the pardons, he directly addressed how policies in Maryland and nationwide have systematically held back people of color — through incarceration and restricted access to jobs and housing...

Maryland, the most diverse state on the East Coast, has a dramatically higher concentration of Black people compared with other states that have issued broad pardons for marijuana: 33 percent of Maryland’s population is Black, while the next highest is Illinois, with 15 percent...

Reducing the state’s mass incarceration disparity has been a chief goal of Moore, Brown and Maryland Public Defender Natasha Dartigue, who are all the first Black people to hold their offices in the state. Brown and Dartigue have launched a prosecutor-defender partnership to study the “the entire continuum of the criminal system,” from stops with law enforcement to reentry, trying to detect all junctures where discretion or bias could influence how justice is applied, and ultimately reform it.

How It Will Work

Maryland officials said the pardons, which would also apply to people who are dead, will not result in releasing anyone from incarceration because none are imprisoned. Misdemeanor cannabis charges yield short sentences and prosecutions for misdemeanor criminal possession have stopped, as possessing small amounts of the drug is legal statewide.

Moore’s pardon action will automatically forgive every misdemeanor marijuana possession charge the Maryland judiciary could locate in the state’s electronic court records system, along with every misdemeanor paraphernalia charge tied to use or possession of marijuana. Maryland is the only state to pardon such paraphernalia charges, state officials said...

People who benefit from the mass pardon will see the charges marked in state court records within two weeks, and they will be eliminated from criminal background check databases within 10 months."

-via The Washington Post, June 17, 2024. Headings added by me.

[cannabisbusinessexecutive]

Recreational cannabis prices in Mass. plummet as dispensary owners weigh future

Recreational cannabis prices in Mass. plummet as dispensary owners weigh future

Recreational cannabis has never been cheaper in Massachusetts than it was this year. Prices have been steadily decreasing for more than a year, and those running businesses in the burgeoning industry expect them to keep dropping. While customers may be rejoicing over greater access to marijuana, the lowering of prices has some concerned about the ramifications for cultivators, small businesses,…

[nwbeerguide]

Harpoon Brewery releases its first THC-based beverage, Rec. Weed.

Press Release

BOSTON...Harpoon Brewery – the maker of New England's first IPA – is dipping their toes into new territory with the launch of their first THC-based beverage: Rec. Weed. Made in partnership with Massachusetts' Novel Beverage Company, Rec. Weed is a hop-forward yet approachable beverage made with 5 milligrams of THC, real passionfruit puree, green tea, and hops at only 25 calories and 3 grams of sugar per can. With tropical juiciness and citrusy hop notes, Rec. Weed has a clean, crisp finish that encourages consumers to kick back at the end of a long day and unwind with a new kind of drink in their hand.

"The adult beverage space is constantly evolving. With THC now legalized in states across much of the country – especially here in the Northeast – we saw not only high demand for a THC-based beverage, but an opportunity to experiment in a way that would uniquely leverage our strengths in the beer world," said Dan Kenary, CEO and co-founder of Harpoon. "We knew we had to find the right partner to help craft Rec. Weed, and Novel Beverage Co.'s vast knowledge of the industry and strong New England roots made them the ideal team to work with on this release."

Rec. Weed is brewed similarly to a session ale but without fermentation, meaning it has no alcohol content. The process starts with a base of green tea and a bit of added sugar, followed by the cold steeping of Citra and other West Coast hop oils and passionfruit puree. After the steeping process, THC is added to the liquid base, and the beverage is carbonated like a traditional beer. This process imparts minimal THC flavor or aroma. And because the THC is absorbed into the liquid, people feel its effects quicker than with more common edibles.

"Our consumers come to us with an innate curiosity to try new THC products from brands they can trust. Rec. Weed meets them at the intersection of what they want – a buzz through a non-alcoholic and low-calorie beverage that doesn't sacrifice on taste," Donald Wyse, COO of Seagrass Dispensary in Salem, MA. "Both Harpoon's and Novel Beverage Co.'s expertise in their respective fields contributed to creating an exciting product we know our consumers will love. We're excited to roll Rec. Weed out."

The launch of Rec. Weed marks the second step into marijuana-inspired products for Harpoon's parent company, Mass. Bay Brewing Company, with the first being Long Trail's CBD Seltzer. The CBD seltzers are non-alcoholic, hemp-infused seltzers that pay homage to a classic Long Trail flavor. They are available in the following flavors: Raspberry Lime, Blueberry Melon and Blackberry. Long Trail's CBD Seltzer can be purchased at Long Trail Tap Room in Bridgewater Corners, VT and is also distributed in MA, VT, RI, CT, and NJ. Find it today using the Long Trail Beer Finder.

Rec. Weed will be available in 12 oz. slim cans with a suggested retail price of $6.99. It will be available year-round at recreational dispensaries throughout Massachusetts. Must be 21+ to purchase. Visit www.drinkrecweed.com for more information.

About the Harpoon Brewery: The Harpoon Brewery was founded in 1986 by beer lovers who wanted more and better beer options. When the Brewery was founded, Harpoon was issued Brewing Permit #001 by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, since it was the first to brew commercially in Boston after a dormant period of about 25 years. Since then, it has expanded to a second brewery in Windsor, VT. Harpoon's line of craft beer features its award-winning IPA and seasonal beers, along with special limited releases. In 2014, Harpoon became an employee-owned company.

About Novel Beverage Company: Novel Beverage Co. (Novel) is the northeast United States premier manufacturer of THC infused beverages. Operating state-of-the-art production and packaging facilities in Scarborough, Maine and Salisbury, Massachusetts, Novel is locally owned and operated, with a team combining decades of experience in both cannabis and beverage production to bring safe, consistent, delicious ready-to-drink beverages dosed with just the right amount of THC. Novel's diverse line of products can be found in most adult use cannabis retail stores.

[hemp-pot]

HEMP.gg : Owners of proposed marijuana dispensary meet with Florence residents - Western Massachusetts News

Owners of proposed marijuana dispensary meet with Florence residents  Western Massachusetts News source https://www.westernmassnews.com/2022/08/16/owners-proposed-marijuana-dispensary-meet-with-florence-residents/

[tfgadgets]

Martha’s Vineyard Will Have Enough Pot This Summer

Until recently, Geoff Rose, the proprietor of a cannabis business on Martha’s Vineyard, believed he was in for a bleak summer. That was because his marijuana dispensary, Island Time, had run out of product — and it seemed as if he would be unable to replace it during the busy tourist season on the 96-square-mile Massachusetts island that has long been a haven for vacationers. But on Thursday,…

[cocainepineal]

As Martha’s Vineyard runs out of pot, dispensary sues state’s cannabis regulator https://www.pbs.org/newshour/nation/as-marthas-vineyard-runs-out-of-pot-dispensary-sues-states-cannabis-regulator

[tocitynews]

Martha's Vineyard Is About To Run Out Of Pot. That's Led To A Lawsuit And A Scramble By “Arbitrary, Unreasonable, And Inconsistent” Regulators –Hartford Connecticut reporting

Massachusetts takes the position that transporting pot across the ocean risks running afoul of federal laws

An 81-year-old woman on Martha's Vineyard drove up to the Island Time dispensary last week seeking her usual order of pot. But owner Geoff Rose had to tell her the cupboard was bare — he'd been forced to temporarily close three weeks earlier after selling every last bud and gummy.

Unless something changes, the island's only other cannabis dispensary will sell all its remaining supplies by September at the latest, and Martha's Vineyard will run out of pot entirely, affecting more than 230 registered medical users and thousands more recreational ones.

The problem boils down to location. Although Massachusetts voters opted to legalize marijuana more than seven years ago, the state's Cannabis Control Commission has taken the position that transporting pot across the ocean — whether by boat or plane — risks running afoul of federal laws. That’s despite a counterargument that there are routes to Martha’s Vineyard that remain entirely within state territorial waters.

The conundrum led Rose to file a lawsuit last month against the commission, which now says that finding a solution to the island’s pot problem has become a top priority. Three of the five commissioners visited Martha’s Vineyard on Thursday to hear directly from affected residents.

For people living on the island, taking the ferry to buy pot can be expensive and time-consuming. There's no dispensary in Woods Hole, where the ferry lands, so they either need to take an Uber from there or bring over a car, and space for vehicles is in hot demand over summer. That leaves medical users such as Sally Rizzo wondering how they will access marijuana. She finds the drug helps relieve her back problems and insomnia.

[commavecanna]

https://commavecanna.com/recreational-marijuana-dispensary/cbd/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=tumblr

[northeastalternativesfallriver]

Northeast Alternatives Weed Dispensary Fall River

999 William S Canning Blvd, Fall River, MA 02721

508-567-6761

https://www.nealternatives.com/fall-river/

Welcome to Northeast Alternatives (NEA), the premier destination for medical and recreational marijuana in Fall River, where quality, innovation, integrity, and community converge to deliver an unparalleled cannabis experience. We feature a variety of high quality, lab-tested, cannabis including: flower, edibles, concentrates, oils, and topicals. We are proud to serve the community as a Recreational Weed Dispensary in Massachusetts. At NEA we value quality, innovation, integrity, commitment and community. Ultimately, we exist to enhance people's health and happiness in the communities we serve through incredible products and customer experiences! If you don't have your MA Medical Marijuana card, please visit our website for more info.

[garudabluffs]

Northampton City Briefing: Pot tax continues to drop 8/31/2023

NORTHAMPTON — The city’s tax revenue from marijuana businesses declined once again last fiscal year, and the city will look to lower its revenue projections in the current fiscal year that began July 1.

Revenues from adult-use marijuana sales in fiscal 2023 were $846,000, compared to $1.15 million in the previous year. The city imposes a 3% levy on cannabis sales in Northampton, meaning that dispensaries sold about $28 million worth of goods, a 27% decrease from the previous year and nearly 50% lower from sales three years ago.

At August’s City Council meeting, Finance Director Charlene Nardi said that once again, tax revenue from cannabis failed to meet the city’s projections in the final quarter of fiscal 2023, which ended June 30.

“I don’t know if we’ve hit the bottom for our market share or not. My guess is no,” Nardi said. “I have dropped that revenue projection for next year and my hope is that I will actually make it for this year that we’re living in right now.”

Northampton currently has 11 marijuana dispensaries within its borders, ranking it second among all Massachusetts cities only behind Boston. The city earlier this year capped the number of dispensaries at 12, despite opposition from the mayor’s office.

While cannabis tax revenue was down for the city, other forms of tax revenue, such as from restaurants and hotel lodgings, steadily rose for this fiscal year, bringing in more than $1.7 million combined for the city.

The city received $779,000 in meals tax revenue for the 2023 fiscal year, an increase of 12% from the previous year. Hotel lodging tax brought around $971,000 in revenue, a more than 40% increase from the previous year, a sign hotels are seeing a return in business after struggling during the pandemic.

[the-emerald-standard]

Ohioans to Decide Fate of Recreational Marijuana in November as Initiative Qualifies for Ballot

Ohio Marijuana Legalization Initiative Qualifies for November Ballot

Ohioans will have the opportunity to vote on a marijuana legalization initiative in November after the Ohio Ballot Board approved the measure on Tuesday. The initiative, which was proposed by the Ohio Rights Group, would legalize the possession, cultivation, and use of marijuana for medical and recreational purposes.

The Ohio Rights Group, a grassroots organization that advocates for marijuana reform, submitted more than 1.4 million signatures to the Ohio Secretary of State's office in July. The office then verified that the signatures were valid and the initiative was approved by the Ohio Ballot Board.

The initiative would allow adults 21 and older to possess up to one ounce of marijuana and cultivate up to six plants for personal use. It would also create a system of regulated marijuana dispensaries and allow for the sale of marijuana products. Additionally, the initiative would establish a system of taxation and regulation for the sale of marijuana.

If passed, the initiative would make Ohio the first state in the Midwest to legalize recreational marijuana. It would also make Ohio the 11th state in the country to legalize recreational marijuana, joining Alaska, California, Colorado, Illinois, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Nevada, Oregon, and Washington.

The initiative is expected to be a contentious issue in the November election, as opponents of the measure have argued that it would lead to an increase in drug use and crime. Supporters of the initiative, however, have argued that it would create jobs and generate revenue for the state.

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For more information on ACS Lab and their services, visit ACS Lab.

[primabeecbd]

Paul Borde: CBD on Cape Cod with Primabee

Primabee Founder Lives Out Company’s Mission Of Wellness

CHATHAM – For many people on the Cape, the jury is still out on cannabis-based products. Paul Borde gets it.

“I was that guy,” he said.

He was, that is, until a golf injury in 2018 led him to Cannabidiol, more commonly known as CBD. The pain was excruciating, he recalled, and Tylenol, Advil and other pain relieving medicines weren’t working.

Borde eventually found that he had a slipped disc. By the time a chiropractor recommended that he try CBD, he was ready to try just about anything. The pain went away, and the experience has since led Borde, a Chatham resident, down a whole new path not only in business, but in life.

It’s been two years since Borde and his partner, Stephen Crane, launched Primabee, which sells CBD products including oils, creams, gummies and tinctures aimed at improving people’s wellness. The company even has an oil for dogs.

“CBD has so many wellness qualities to it,” Borde said. “It supports anxiety, pain, sleep. It supports a million things.”

Borde and his wife have had a home in Chatham for 25 years, where they now live full time. Before relocating permanently to the Cape, he worked in the restaurant and hospitality industry in Greenwich, Conn. But his experience with CBD encouraged him to get more active in what he sees as a significant movement in the field of health and wellness.

“I was really, super interested in what positive impact this was having on my body,” he said.

The passage of the Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018, also known as the Farm Bill, opened the doors for the legalization of marijuana and hemp-based products nationally. But Massachusetts and other New England states have been slower adopters than others. By the time Borde reached out to Crane, who lives in Southern California, THC and CBD products had already long become the norm in other parts of the country.

“We just started chipping away,” he said. “Maybe there was an opportunity here in New England.”

Borde said he looked at purchasing a CBD company in Michigan, but that he and Crane opted instead to start their own business. Motivated by what he saw as less-than-honest companies selling dodgy products at stores such as CVS, Borde and Crane sought to use Primabee in part to serve as a platform for educating customers about CBD and its benefits, as well as what to look out for when shopping for CBD products.

The Primabee website includes a page for consumer education, including a blog that is updated weekly with the latest news on what’s happening in the industry. Borde also gives talks and presentations directly to people interested in learning more about the company and the wellness benefits of CBD. He’s spoken at senior centers, libraries, retirement communities and other venues across the Cape as well as on Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard. Last week, Borde had two talks, in Osterville and Hyannis.

“We decided to lead with one word: Education,” he said. “Like I did in my previous life, earning trust one person at a time, we decided to take that same philosophy.”

That process of educating consumers has been slow but steady, but Borde said he regularly hears from people about how Primabee and other CBD products have helped them on their wellness journey. The most common uses of Primabee products are for pain, anxiety and sleep, he said.

Primabee’s top selling product is its topical sports cream, Borde said.

“The menthol, it dilates the blood vessel,” he said. “It opens it up and lets the CBD get right to the inflammation. That’s the big thing, the disruption of the inflammation.”

Unlike THC-based products derived from marijuana, which are restricted to being sold in dispensaries, Primabee’s hemp-based CBD products can be sold more broadly. Locally, they can be found at locations including the Chatham Bars Inn. Primabee products are also sold at some chiropractor offices in the region, Borde said.

The company’s newest product is its PrimaBuzz CBD gummies, which also include some THC (the product is comprised of five milligrams of THC and 25 milligrams of CBD). Borde said he initially anticipated that the gummies, also called “Buzzies,” would be most popular among younger people in their 20s. To his surprise, they’ve been most popular among seniors.

“In a million years, I never would have thought that older people would be using it for sleep.”

The materials used in Primabee products are all harvested and manufactured in Colorado, where the company also works with a lab that tests all products before they are shipped to Chatham. The company, which has 10 employees, fills online orders locally.

The extra steps involved with ensuring his products’ efficacy are worth it, Borde said, especially in a region of the country where CBD and THC products are still relatively new. In the end, Borde said he wants to build a brand that people can trust so that his products can help others the same way they’ve helped him.

Now 57, Borde said it’s been two years since he’s last reached for a Tylenol or Advil bottle, medications he used to take daily. These days, he takes about 100 milligrams of CBD a day as a substitute.

“It’s changing lives,” he said. “I don’t want to sound dramatic, but it profoundly changed my life.”

To learn more about Primabee or to shop the company's products, visit www.primabee.com

[cannabisbusinessexecutive]

The cannabis industry is fighting over how many stores one company can own. Here’s why.

A debate over the cap on weed permits has sparked worries about broken promises to entrepreneurs of color and fears of a marijuana monopoly When recreational cannabis became legal in Massachusetts in 2016, the state imposed strict limits on how big any given retailer could be. The thinking went that capping the number of dispensaries any single business could own at three would keep large retail…