Rhode Island Cannabis Regulator Discusses New Licenses, Data And Regulation Oversight

In a recent TV interview, Rhode Island's Cannabis Control Commission Chair, Kimberly Ahern, covered a few topics related to the state's cannabis industry such as issuing new retail licenses, the availability of hemp-derived cannabinoids, and an error in state-reported sales data.

According to Marijuana Moment, Ahern emphasized that they are taking a cautious approach to managing the adult-use cannabis market. She stressed the need for caution in issuing new retail licenses as regulators want to make sure they make the right rules based on the law and the experiences of other states.

“The goal would be to issue licenses in 2024 with the huge caveat that other states that have done this have taken several years,” Ahern said.

She explained that changing from illegal to regulated cannabis is a big deal, so they need the government to oversee the process. “We’re moving a substance (...) into a regulated space. And so I do think we need government oversight,” she said in response to co-host Tim White's comment about people being disappointed due to the fact that there are 60 licensed cannabis growers, but they can't sell everything they produce.

In addition, there were some issues with the data about cannabis sales going back to December 2022. These problems were due to errors when they put the information into the state's tracking software.

Ahern mentioned that the commission wasn't in charge of this data; it's the state Office of Cannabis Regulation (OCR)'s job, she said. This number has been going up since December, with only small differences.

“It’s my understanding that none of that changed the top line many people are most interested in, which is total sales and adult use, which since December of last year has consistently ticked up,” Ahern concluded.

Read the full story here at Marijuana Moment. 

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