Public and Municipal Law Group
ATTORNEYS:
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Governor Signs Marijuana Law Rewrite
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Earlier today, Governor Charlie Baker signed a bill (
available here
) amending the voter-approved Regulation and Taxation of Marijuana Act, imposing significant changes to the way municipalities may regulate, or prohibit, recreational marijuana establishments.
Among the changes to the Marijuana Act:
Prohibiting / Regulating Marijuana Establishments:
- Communities that voted 'Yes' on Question 4 in November of 2016 may prohibit one or all types of recreational marijuana establishments by local referendum.
- Communities that voted 'No' on Question 4 may prohibit one or all types of recreational marijuana establishments by town meeting or city council vote only, up until December 31, 2019.
- In lieu of a full or partial ban, communities may still adopt bylaws or ordinances imposing reasonable regulations on the time, place and manner of marijuana establishment operations.
- The new Marijuana Act clarifies that zoning provisions may not prevent a medical marijuana establishment licensed as of July 1, 2017 from converting to a recreational facility.
Local Referenda:
- The Marijuana Act now provides a form of ballot question for the local referendum seeking to prohibit recreational marijuana establishments, and provides authorization to place such a question on a regular or special election ballot.
- Municipal acts regulating or prohibiting recreational or medical marijuana establishments prior to July 1, 2017 are not affected by the new Marijuana Act.
Host Agreements:
- Recreational and medical marijuana establishments must enter a Host Community Agreement with the municipality.
- Impact fees under a Host Community Agreement are capped at 3% of the facility's gross sales and are effective for no longer than 5 years.
Local Sales Tax:
- Municipalities may, by local option, adopt a local sales tax on recreational marijuana establishments of up to 3% of sales (increased from 2%).
Cannabis Control Commission:
- The Cannabis Control Commission (CCC) expands to a 5-member body, with consolidated regulatory powers over both recreational and medical marijuana establishments.
Key Dates:
- All deadlines in the Marijuana Act, previously revised, remain the same:
- March 15, 2018: deadline for CCC's regulations.
- April 1, 2018: deadline for CCC to begin accepting marijuana license applications.
- July 1, 2018: CCC may begin issuing marijuana establishment licenses.
In the coming weeks, we will provide more comprehensive guidance to our public sector clients on this topic.
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Worcester Office
Mercantile Center
100 Front Street
Worcester, MA 01608
t 508.791.8500
f 508.791.8502
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Westborough Office
1800 West Park Drive
Suite 400
Westborough, MA 01581
t 508.898.1501
f 508.898.1502
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Boston Office
175 Federal Street
Suite 1220
Boston, MA 02110
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Mirick O'Connell is a full-service law firm with offices in Worcester, Westborough and Boston, Massachusetts. The Firm's principal practice groups include Business;
Construction Law; Creditors' Rights, Bankruptcy and Reorganization; Elder Law; Family Law and Divorce; Health Law; Intellectual Property; Labor, Employment and Employee Benefits; Land Use and Environmental Law; Litigation; Personal Injury; Public and Municipal Law; and Trusts and Estates.
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This client alert is intended to inform you of developments in the law and to provide information of general interest. It is not intended to constitute legal advice regarding a client's specific legal issues and should not be relied upon as such. This client alert may be considered advertising under the rules of the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court.
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