The Rhode Island Department of Business Regulation (DBR) has opened the application period for businesses that would like to obtain a license to operate one of 6 new medical marijuana dispensaries. Rhode Island has been limited to only 3 state-licensed medical marijuana dispensaries (known as “compassion centers”) since 2009. In 2019, the Rhode Island General...

On May 2, 2019, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) issued new guidelines as to how the agency will handle trademark applications for marijuana-related, hemp-related and CBD-related goods and services, in light of the federal Farm Bill that became law on December 20, 2018. Unfortunately, the new Guidelines raise as many questions for applicants...

Last week, a bipartisan group in Congress took a big step toward eliminating the current conflict between federal and state marijuana laws by re-introducing a bill that would allow each state to determine its own marijuana position. The bill is called the “Strengthening the Tenth Amendment Through Entrusting States Act,” or STATES ACT for short....

Governor Gina Raimondo has proposed legislation that would legalize the recreational use of marijuana by adults in Rhode Island. Proposed bills to legalize recreational use of marijuana in the Ocean State have stalled in the past, or have been sent to committees for more study. Governor Raimondo and other legislative leaders have been reluctant to...

Future Farm Technologies, Inc., a Vancouver based marijuana cultivator, has announced that it plans to purchase a 15,000 sq. ft. building in Providence for $750,000. The closing is set for January 15, 2018.  The location of the building has not been disclosed. According to Future Farm’s press release, the building is zoned for marijuana cultivation. ...

Will next summer’s opening of the recreational marijuana market in Massachusetts impact Rhode Island’s medical marijuana demand? An industry leader and a government regulator recently expressed different views to committees of the Rhode Island General Assembly. Earlier this month, Norman Birenbaum, the Principal Policy and Economic Analyst for the Rhode Island Department of Business Regulation...

The Massachusetts Department of Public Health (DPH) recently issued guidance to allow licensed medical marijuana dispensaries to operate as Massachusetts business corporations. Until July 2017, Massachusetts law required medical marijuana dispensaries to operate as non-profit corporations. However, the bill passed into law in July that allows the recreational use of marijuana, also contains a provision...

Supporters of recreational marijuana use are still celebrating their legislative victory in Massachusetts. But whether they ultimately will be successful at the federal level still is unclear.  While Attorney General Jeff Sessions has been sending signals that indicate that a federal crackdown on the use of marijuana may be imminent in states that have legalized...

The recent wildfires in Northern California have destroyed nearly 6,000 structures and have burned over 200,000 acres of land — an area the size of New York City. The fires also have killed at least 40 people. According to reports in the New York Times, the fires also have destroyed many of the region’s marijuana farms...

A Rhode Island Superior Court judge has halted the Town of Smithfield’s attempts to limit medical marijuana cultivation by patients through its zoning laws. In April, the Smithfield (RI) Town Council passed an ordinance that amended the Town’s zoning laws by prohibiting licensed medical marijuana patients from possessing more than two mature marijuana plants and...