BOSTON — Gov. Charlie Baker has signed a invoice aimed toward delaying the opening of marijuana retailers in Massachusetts, authorized by voters in a poll initiative in November, till mid-2018.
A spokeswoman mentioned Mr. Baker shared a need with state lawmakers to completely put together for the beginning of a brand new business distributing a managed substance. However the spokeswoman, Lizzy Guyton, mentioned the governor was "dedicated to adhering to the need of the voters by implementing the brand new regulation as successfully and responsibly as potential."
Mr. Baker signed the invoice on Friday as a small group of marijuana activists protested exterior the Statehouse.
Members of the Massachusetts Hashish Reform Coalition and the Nationwide Group for the Reform of Marijuana Legal guidelines faulted lawmakers for passing the invoice throughout end-of-year classes and mentioned the delay "flies within the face of the need of the voters" who authorized the poll query legalizing the drug.
The Home and Senate handed the invoice Wednesday with no public listening to and with out debate throughout casual classes in each chambers. Solely a handful of lawmakers have been current.
The poll initiative, which permits adults 21 and over to own and use restricted quantities of marijuana and develop as many as a dozen marijuana vegetation of their houses, was authorized by about 53 p.c of voters on Nov. eight and took impact Dec. 15.
The invoice signed by the governor doesn't change that. However what it's nearly sure to do is push again the timetable for the opening of retail marijuana shops from the start of 2018 till the center of that 12 months.
The State Senate president, Stan Rosenberg, and the Home speaker, Robert DeLeo, each Democrats, mentioned pushing again the deadlines will give lawmakers extra time to contemplate points that weren't addressed within the poll query.
Among the many dozen or so protesters exterior the Statehouse was Rachel Ramone Donlan, 45, a Braintree resident who mentioned she and different hashish activists have been "100 p.c outraged" that, as she put it, a small group of lawmakers had undone the need of the folks. She mentioned she was even angrier that the governor signed the invoice.
Ms. Donlan additionally warned of what she known as a authorized grey space that may confuse folks.
"We're in concern that persons are going to get arrested within the subsequent six months as a result of there will likely be a timeframe when it's authorized to own it however you can not purchase it," Ms. Donlan mentioned. "We're shedding out on tax income and we're fueling the black market."
Among the many main deadlines that will be postpone for six months beneath the measure is a March 1 deadline for the state treasurer to nominate a hashish management fee to supervise the leisure marijuana market; a Sept. 15 deadline for the fee to approve detailed laws; an Oct. 1 deadline for accepting functions for retail marijuana retailers, and the Jan. 1, 2018, deadline for licensing the primary marijuana retailers.
For now, it stays unlawful in Massachusetts to promote marijuana besides to registered medical marijuana sufferers.
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