Maine Legislators to Consider Nearly a Dozen Cannabis-Related Bills This Session

Maine legislators will consider at least a dozen cannabis-related bills during the legislature’s 2020 session, with some of the legislation proposing changes to the state’s adult-use cannabis program, which has yet to open.

The bills include legislation to reduce the required 1,000-foot school buffer for dispensaries to 300 feet, changes to how adult-use cannabis is taxed and a proposal to allow state-licensed retailers to deliver adult-use cannabis to customers’ homes, according to a Portland Press Herald report.

Another key piece of legislation would allow dispensaries to sell both medical and adult-use cannabis from the same storefront, and would eliminate the residency requirement for business licenses next year, the news outlet reported.

Maine voters approved adult-use cannabis legalization in 2016, and the state hopes to launch an adult-use market this spring. The Office of Marijuana Policy has received 156 adult-use business license applications and has flagged 70 as complete enough for official departmental review, the Portland Press Herald reported.

Applications that receive conditional state approval require authorization from a host community before the state will award a final state license, and so far, 32 Maine municipalities have agreed to allow some type of adult-use cannabis business, according to the news outlet.