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Rhode Island towns would have to vote to opt out under marijuana bill

Not every town is high on the idea of legalizing recreational marijuana for adults. But to opt out under the “Rhode Island Cannabis Act” introduced this week, towns would have to put the question on the ballot in November. Take Middletown, for…

When will marijuana be legal in Rhode Island? Here’s why the answer might be 2022

PROVIDENCE — Rhode Island appears a step closer to becoming the next state to legalize recreational marijuana use. On Tuesday, two key lawmakers in the House and the Senate introduced identical legislation that resolved a major impediment to passage last year: They defined who would…

R.I. lawmakers call for marijuana legalization to help those impacted by War on Drugs

Legislators joined a progressive group outside the State House on Wednesday, calling for Rhode Island to ensure that marijuana legalization benefits poor and working-class communities of color that bore the brunt of the War on Drugs. The General Assembly concluded this…

RI Senate approves recreational marijuana bill

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI) — The Rhode Island Senate became the first chamber of the General Assembly to ever vote in favor of recreational marijuana on Tuesday, though the legislation still has a ways to go before potentially becoming law. The…

Medical marijuana providers stage protest over proposed new rules in Rhode Island

Medical marijuana providers and patients gathered outside the Augusta Civic Center on Wednesday to protest a series of proposed rule changes that one provider called “obscene and cost-prohibitive.” In January, the Maine Office of Marijuana Policy released a preliminary draft…

A guide to the Rhode Island Senate’s plan to legalize cannabis

Rhode Island could become the next state to legalize cannabis. A year after Senate leadership declared a different legalization proposal dead on arrival, Senate President Dominick Ruggerio and Majority Leader Michael McCaffrey are co-sponsoring a bill that would legalize, tax,…

Who will win the lottery to run Rhode Island’s six new medical marijuana dispensaries?

PROVIDENCE -- David Spradin is the CEO of a California-based marijuana company called Perfect Union. It has 14 marijuana stores between Los Angeles and Sacramento, six stores in New Mexico and has had stores in Oregon and Washington, says Rick McAuliffe,…

Rhode Island opens application window for 6 new medical-marijuana dispensaries

Many of the 55 or so state-licensed cultivators who now grow medical marijuana for the three existing dispensaries have their eye on winning one of the licenses. The state Department of Business Regulation will begin accepting applications Friday from businesses…

In reversal, R.I. lawmakers abandon attempt to regulate medical marijuana outlets

The House and Senate passed identical bills in unanimous votes, removing the “legislative veto” language over medical marijuana and hemp regulations that was included in this year’s state budget. There was no debate. Rhode Island lawmakers voted Tuesday to give…

Where Does Rhode Island Stand On Marijuana?

In the early evening of June 22, the Rhode Island House of Representatives passed the state’s $9.9 billion budget for fiscal 2020. Among the high-profile provisions in the 488-page spending plan was Article 15, which significantly reshaped the state’s medical…

R.I. Senate won’t support legalizing marijuana in 2020

Marijuana legalization in Rhode Island appears dead in the state Senate for another year. Senate President Dominick Ruggerio said Tuesday he doesn’t think the state’s medical marijuana program has been well-regulated and expanding legal access to the drug any further…

Rhode Island bills would help minorities get into marijuana business

PROVIDENCE — House lawmakers have introduced several bills designed to help minorities and their communities — disproportionately hurt over the years by marijuana prosecution — enter the profitable pot business. While no approved recreational marijuana market exists in Rhode Island,…

Rhode Island demand for medical marijuana skyrocketing

While state lawmakers consider legalizing recreational pot this year, sales of medical marijuana continue to hit new highs. The reason isn’t just that more people are ailing, state regulators say. The state’s three medical marijuana dispensaries are on pace to sell about…

Rhode Island governor to propose legalizing recreational marijuana

Facing the “inevitable” prospect of being encircled by states that have legalized recreational marijuana, Gov. Gina Raimondo will propose this week that Rhode Island do the same. “I will say, I do this with reluctance,” she told The Journal last…

Rhode Island Legislatures to Introduce Plan for Marijuana Legalization in 2018

PROVIDENCE, R.I. — Marijuana legalization advocates are planning to introduce a scaled-back version of their legislation that would legalize the drug next year but put the brakes on immediate plans for retail stores. While the previous version of the bill…