Burns & Levinson Hosts Fifth Annual State of the Cannabis Industry Conference on September 28, 2021

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MASSACHUSETTS: August 31, 2021 – Burns & Levinson will host its fifth annual “State of the Cannabis Industry” conference, which will focus on critical issues in the multi-billion dollar cannabis industry, on September 28, 2021, from 9:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. ET. The conference will be held in person at the Westin Waltham Boston, and all attendees, speakers and staff must provide proof of vaccination. A live stream option will also be available.

 

The conference will feature an interview with Commissioner Steven Hoffman, Chairman of the Massachusetts Cannabis Control Commission, in an exclusive one-on-one Q&A with Frank A. Segall, founder and Chair of the Cannabis Business & Law Advisory Group at Burns & Levinson.

The expert panels and Q&A sessions will tackle a wide range of issues impacting the cannabis industry, including regulatory and legislative issues, capital markets, M&A and investments, e-commerce strategies and opportunities, and trends and developments in the marketplace.

“When we launched our conference five years ago, it was the first event of its kind with a specific focus on showcasing cannabis industry pioneers and sharing their experiences and expertise with our audience. It has since grown to attract industry leaders from all segments of the cannabis industry, including major capital market sources who are helping to fuel its growth. The conference has become a best-in-class forum and networking event, and we are excited and honored to be regarded by our industry peers as one of the leading law firms in the nation at the forefront of what comes next,” said Segall.

“We love bringing people together at this conference to make connections, develop partnerships and learn from their peers and industry leaders. We are especially looking forward to gathering safely in person, after being all virtual last year,” added Scott Moskol, who founded and chairs Burns & Levinson’s Cannabis Business & Law Advisory Group with Segall.

The current conference sponsors include: CohnReznick, HUB International, Cannabis Co-Op Fund L.P., KreditForce, KindTap, Opus Consulting, Douglas Washing and Sanitizing Systems, Emerald Media Group, Needham Bank, AdaptiveHR, Agrify, Elevate Northeast, FlowerHire, Lighthouse Biz Solutions, LLC, and Young America Capital.

Burns & Levinson was the first major Boston corporate law firm to develop a cannabis business practice, and has been advising cannabis businesses, entrepreneurs and investors across the country for nearly a decade. The firm has unrivaled experience in cannabis and hemp/CBD business formation and corporate structuring, private placements, venture capital, M&A, securities, banking issues, fund formation, debt and equity financing, restructuring and receiverships, real estate acquisitions and leasing, intellectual property protection, 280E taxation issues, and cannabis litigation.

The firm is well-known for its role in the cannabis banking industry and has worked with multiple financial institutions to establish a framework that allows them to accept cannabis-derived deposits. Burns & Levinson is currently working with regulated financial institutions and non-regulated private funds to set up first-of-their-kind cannabis lending programs. The firm is also among the top law firms in the country handling M&A and high-level corporate and financing deals in the private and public markets in the cannabis market.

For more information about the conference and to register, click here. For information on sponsorship opportunities, please contact Kristen Weller at kweller@burnslev.com.

 

4Front Ventures To Open Third Dispensary In Massachusetts

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PHOENIX, August 16, 2021 – 4Front Ventures Corp., a vertically integrated, multi-state cannabis operator and retailer, announced it has received its commencement letter from the Massachusetts Cannabis Control Commission (“CCC”), which will enable the Company to open its third dispensary in the commonwealth.

Mission Brookline will initially begin serving adults 21 years and older in the Allston Innovation Corridor, a vibrant community within the wider Boston University and Boston metropolitan area, via online appointments and in-store pickup on Saturday, August 21st at 10 am. Located  at 1024 Commonwealth Ave. in Brookline in Norfolk County, the Company’s new storefront is located in one of the largest towns in New England that is also a highly desirable place to live, due to its proximity to job opportunities, public transportation, school systems, and livable neighborhoods that balance green space, historic preservation and outstanding commercial services.

“We want to thank the Massachusetts Cannabis Control Commission for awarding us final approval of our third dispensary in the commonwealth,” said Derek Stewart, Vice President of Retail Operations, Mission Dispensaries, Massachusetts. “We look forward to serving this vibrant community from our new storefront in Brookline, which is surrounded by the City of Boston on three sides and located in a mature suburban, residential community with urban characteristics. We also believe Mission Brookline will help us accelerate our growth as we continue to bring our high standards, low-cost cultivation and production methodologies and build out our capabilities in Massachusetts in the year ahead.”

Upon opening Mission Brookline will offer its existing suite of products such as Funky Monkey™, Legends™, Marmas™, Crystal Clear™ and Hi-Burst™, which have been widely embraced in Massachusetts, Washington and Illinois. The new storefront will also carry a full line of consumer-demanded flower, extracts, edibles, vaporizers, cartridges, batteries, ancillary products and merchandise. Mission’s expertly trained staff will also be available to ensure an informative, welcoming and inclusive experience for all consumers.

Having previously received approval for medical and adult-use cannabis sales at its Mission facilities in Georgetown, 4Front already has a strong foothold in Massachusetts. 4Front’s Mission Worcester dispensary, along with the Company’s cultivation/processing facilities in Worcester, Massachusetts, were also granted authorization to commence adult-use retail and production operations in September 2020.

Kaycha Announces Three New Labs In Massachusetts, Nevada & Oregon

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With locations across the U.S., Kaycha Labs is establishing a national network of Cannabis and Hemp labs that provides essential product quality and safety information

FLORIDA: Kaycha Labs, a leader in Cannabis and Hemp testing technologies and methods, is adding three new states to its national network of labs. The company’s nine labs are in California, Colorado, Florida (Fort Lauderdale/Davie and Gainesville), Massachusetts, Nevada, Oklahoma, Oregon, and Tennessee.

In recent weeks, Kaycha has acquired Evio Labs in Medford, Oregon, signed a definitive agreement to acquire DB Labs in anticipation of Clark County and Nevada Cannabis Compliance Board approvals, and received a provisional license to open and operate a lab in Natick, Massachusetts. Both the Oregon and Nevada labs were early entrants to their respective markets; Evio Labs Medford commenced operations in 2014 and DB Labs was organized in 2014 and operates its ~11,500-square-foot lab several blocks away from the Las Vegas Strip. The Massachusetts lab is a new build and is strategically located in Natick near major interstate highways within a couple hours driving time to all major customers.

James Horvath, CEO of Kaycha Labs, commented, “We know that the Cannabis industry is rapidly consolidating and that national Cannabis companies are working hard to build national brands. As they grow, we appreciate that there is a need for a testing partner who can provide and apply a uniform and consistent process.  Furthermore, all Kaycha labs will be equipped with back-up instrumentation so that client testing is not interrupted by an outage.” Chris Martinez, Kaycha Labs’ President, added, “We know clients value quality testing, fast turnaround times, and attractive pricing. And by adding to our network, we will be achieving even more scale, which will allow us to continue to lower our cost structure and pass these savings along to our clients.”

Massachusetts Cannabis Control Commission Approves Final Adult Use, Medical Use of Marijuana Regulations and Rescinds Colocated Regulations

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MASSACHUSETTS: The Cannabis Control Commission (Commission) today approved new medical- and adult-use regulations and phased out 935 CMR 502, Colocated Adult-Use and Medical-Use Marijuana Operations, after bringing sufficient parity to the medical- and adult-use regulations.

“I’m excited that the revised medical- and adult-use regulatory revisions poise the Commission to make significant progress in our mission and statutory mandates on equity, patient access, and public health and safety,” Chairman Steven J. Hoffman said. “While we’ve made tremendous headway over the past three years, we now turn to critical work to implement new provisions, including; the increased caregiver/patient ratio, development of guidance documents, rollout of the Delivery Operator application, and a host of provisions establishing a more equitable and safe industry.”

In the coming weeks, the final regulations will be filed with the Secretary of State’s Regulation Division for promulgation and published on the Commission’s website.

Approved policies include:

Medical Use of Marijuana Program

  • Optimizing Patient access and preserving public safety by:
    • Allowing Caregivers to care for up to five Patients with a Canopy not in excess of 500 square feet;
    • Clarifying that Caregivers may seek a waiver to care for more than five Patients but cannot exceed the 500-square-foot limitation;
    • Preventing perceived risk of diversion by requiring Caregivers to create a log-of-growing and make that log available to the Commission upon request;
    • Broadening the types of physicians who can serve as the second physician making the recommendation for pediatric patients;
    • Requiring Certifying Health Care Providers (Providers) to have a plan to provide discounts to low-income Patients;
    • Allowing Patients with certain hardships to renew every two years instead of one year;
    • Permitting Patients to cultivate up to 12 flowering plants without hardship cultivation, and if more are needed, requiring hardship cultivation;
    • Allowing certain out-of-state Patients to be certified and registered as a Patient in Massachusetts; and
    • Restricting Caregivers from participating in paid advertising.

Equity Programming

  • Promoting a more inclusive and diverse industry by:
    • Waiving all Delivery application and license fees for Certified Economic Empowerment Priority Applicants (EEA) and Social Equity Program (SEP) participants in their first year of licensure under the exclusivity period;
    • Reducing annual license fees by 50%, or to $2,500, for EEAs and SEP participants upon renewal and all subsequent years for applicants;
    • Expanding SEP eligibility to certain categories of individuals and EEAs;
    • Requiring majority ownership by SEP participants in order to access license-related benefits, and potentially expanding these program benefits to microbusinesses and minority-owned, veteran-owned, and women-owned businesses; and
    • Clarifying that individuals who are EEAs, whether on their own or as part of a business entity, can apply as part of a new entity with EEA status so long as it continues to meet three or more of the six criteria, at least one of which shall be a majority-equity-ownership criterion.

Delivery

  • Increasing adult-use access and evolving the Delivery license type by:
    • Approving the Delivery Operator license type, which allows licensees to purchase wholesale Finished Marijuana Products with stringent requirements to warehouse;
    • Clarifying the statutory allowance of up to three Retail licenses and the regulatory allowance of up to a combined total of two Marijuana Courier and/or Delivery Operator licenses;
    • Extending the initial exclusivity period to three-years;
    • Allowing Third-Party Technology Platform Providers to contract with an unlimited number of Delivery Licensees;
    • Authorizing Delivery Operator Licensees to white label, or affix a product label that includes the branding (name and logo) of a specific Marijuana Establishment (ME) to a finished marijuana product that was previously produced and packaged by a licensed Product Manufacturer, Cultivator, Microbusiness, or Craft Marijuana Cooperative for sale to consumers;
    • Allowing Delivery Licensees to sell marijuana accessories and ME-branded goods and non-edible items directly to consumers; and
    • Automatically converting existing Pre-Certified “Delivery-Only” applicants to Delivery Courier Applicants.

Ownership & Control

  • Tightening stringent ownership and control measures further by:
    • Requiring EEAs to report to the Commission all changes of ownership and control and upon renewal and certifying to the Commission that the requisite ownership and control has been maintained by the requisite class of people identified on the EEA’s certification;
    • Preventing monopolies with the addition of safeguards between Third-Party Technology Platforms and Delivery Licensees by explicitly prohibiting:
      • monopolization or attempts at monopolization;
      • inducements;
      • direct or indirect investments from Third-Party Technology Platforms; and
      • restricting determinations of product and licensee placement on an app to objective, customer-oriented criteria.
    • Updating the definition of Persons or Entities with Direct Control by encompassing the equivalent of a Director in a business entity such as a Limited Liability Company, which has Managers in lieu of a Board of Directors, and setting a specific dollar amount with respect to what the Commission considers “significant contracts;” and
    • Confirming that EEAs hold majority ownership (51% or more) over the license to maintain priority status.

Product Database

  • Ensuring that the public is knowledgeable of the hallmarks of legally sourced products, preventing underage access, and lowering the risk of purchasing illicit products by adopting a requirement that Marijuana Establishments, including Delivery Operators, and MTCs comply with the Product Database requirement, just as adult-use licensees must.

Advertising and Branding

  • Modifying advertising and branding regulations by:
    • Allowing of branding sponsorships at certain events, with continued prohibitions on activities that target underage participants or entrants; and
    • Approving targeted advertising through mechanisms such as geofencing, provided they retain documentation of audience composition data related to these marketing activities.

Testing

  • Increasing testing accountability for licencees by:
    • Allowing marijuana products that fail initial contaminant screens to be:
      • Reanalyzed;
      • Remediated and retested by at least the original Independent Testing Laboratory, and a different Independent Testing Laboratory; or
      • Licensees may attempt remediation of a batch that has failed a second test prior to disposal or destruction.
    • Adding new pesticides to the list of pesticides currently required of Independent Testing Laboratory protocols; and
    • Requiring continued testing for vitamin E acetate and a secondary screen for heavy metals from finished vapes.

Video recordings of the Commission’s previous policy discussions and public hearings regarding the new regulations are available on Facebook and YouTube.

Massachusetts Marijuana Retailers Surpass $1 Billion In Gross Sales

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Milestone reached nearly two years after adult-use sales started in Massachusetts; progress continues to achieve industry goals

MASSACHUSETTS: Adult-use Marijuana Retailers in Massachusetts have now tallied more than $1 billion in gross sales, according to information reported in the state’s mandatory seed-to-sale tracking system, the Cannabis Control Commission announced Tuesday.

At close of business on Friday, October 30, aggregate data recorded in Metrc by 80 Marijuana Retailers operating statewide reached $1,000,521,905, coming nearly two years after the first two adult-use stores on the East Coast opened their doors November 20, 2018.

“This sales milestone represents licensees’ ability to successfully support a safe, accessible, and effective adult-use industry, and I am pleased the resulting tax benefits will have a significant impact on communities throughout the Commonwealth,” Commission Chairman Steven J. Hoffman said. “These numbers also speak to Commission licensing and enforcement staff working around the clock to make sure these businesses and their products comply with all of our regulations, especially the health and safety provisions. Each year, as this marketplace matures, the public will continue to see progress on state mandates and Commission objectives, including our commitment to equity, and the steps we have taken in 2020 are evidence of that.”

Source: Cannabis Control Commission’s Open Data Platform

Over the first year of adult-use sales, from November 2018 to November 2019, 33 Marijuana Retailers generated $393.7 million in gross sales, before licensees ultimately tallied $444.9 million for the full calendar year of 2019.

Since January 1, 2020, Marijuana Establishments have already surpassed those figures, generating $539 million in gross sales despite two months of closures as a result of the COVID-19 public health emergency in Massachusetts. During the pandemic, the Commission has implemented numerous protocols, including social distancing requirements, sanitation measures, and curbside service at licensed locations throughout the state that put first the health and safety of employees, patients, and consumers, while also supporting Marijuana Establishments’ ongoing operations. Read more at MassCannabisControl.com/COVID19.

Licensing, Agents, and Equity

Since Massachusetts’ first two Marijuana Retailers opened in 2018, 82 more have received notices from the Commission to commence operations statewide and are in the process of opening. Another 201 Marijuana Retailers with provisional or final license approval are completing the Commission’s inspection and compliance procedures towards that end.

In total, the Commission has licensed 688 Marijuana Establishments, including Cultivators, Product Manufacturers, Independent Testing Laboratories, Microbusinesses, and more. Currently, 40 Cultivators are open for business, with the capacity to grow up to a maximum of 1.26 million square feet of canopy in the Commonwealth.

The Commission is also in the process of finalizing changes to its adult-use regulations that will support home delivery of marijuana and marijuana products, after launching the initial license applications for adult-use Delivery-Only operators in May. To further the agency’s mission of ensuring industry participation by communities that have been disproportionately harmed by marijuana prohibition, the evolving Marijuana Courier and Marijuana Delivery Operator license types will be exclusively available to certified Economic Empowerment Applicants (EEAs) and Social Equity Program (SEP) Participants for a minimum of three years. So far, the Commission has issued two Delivery-Only—or Marijuana Courier—licenses to such applicants and pre-certified 47 more who are interested in offering delivery services in Massachusetts.

To date, two EEA licensees, two SEP licensees, and five Disadvantaged Business Enterprises (DBE) – or state-certified minority-, woman-, or veteran-owned companies – have opened. Additionally, the Commission has issued provisional licenses to 14 more EEAs, 21 more SEP Participants, and 87 DBEs that represent they have attended the state’s Supplier Diversity Office class and received expedited review from the Commission. Another four provisional licenses have gone to applicants who maintain both EEA status and participate in SEP, while seven more provisional licenses have gone to SEP Participants who are also DBE certified.

As of October, across all categories of licenses, the adult-use cannabis industry in Massachusetts consists of nearly 10,300 active Marijuana Establishment Agent registrations, up from 6,700 in November 2019. Of those, approximately 33 percent identify as female and 66 percent identify as male, while 74.2 percent of registered and proposed agents identify as White, 6.7 percent identify as Hispanic, Latino, or Spanish, and 5.9 percent identify as Black or African American.

This spring, the Commission’s first cohort of 143 SEP Participants received technical assistance and training across four teaching tracks. For the second cohort, 285 applicants qualified and now have access to technical assistance and training that started in July and continues through this winter. Participants who are approved for the program based on three criteria receive automatic program benefits, such as expedited application review by the Commission’s licensing team, certain fee waivers, and exclusive access to license types such as the Marijuana Courier and Marijuana Delivery Operator licenses.

Public Health, Safety, and Research

Throughout 2020, the Commission has continued to lead on initiatives that prioritize the public health and safety of Massachusetts residents and increase patient and consumer awareness. As part of its multimillion-dollar campaign, More About Marijuana, which has traditionally focused on responsible use and preventing youth access, the Commission has incorporated new educational materials about the dangers of home manufacturing, COVID-19 safety tips for cannabis consumers, and the risks of vaping, in response to statutory requirements and recent health emergencies.

The Commission issued three industrywide emergency orders over the past year in response to reported occurrences of e-cigarette, or vaping, product use-associated lung injury (EVALI) in the Commonwealth and across the nation. Staff also surveyed licensees to understand the ingredients and sources of additives used in licensed products, published multiple sets of testing results pertaining to regulated vapes—effectively clearing their use of Vitamin E acetate—and issued new packaging, labeling, and testing requirements, including the testing of finished vaping products to protect consumers against hazardous additives and contaminants. This summer, the Commission’s Second Amended Quarantine Order Applying to Vaporizer Products provided several options for licensees to address previously quarantined products manufactured prior to December 12, 2019:

  • Voluntarily disposing of vaporizer products;
  • Releasing vaporizer products from quarantine for sale if first retested or remediated; or
  • Repurposing quarantined vaporizer products into other marijuana products after reclaiming marijuana oil from the quarantined product.

The Commission continues to develop a product database that will enable law enforcement, state and local officials, such as school administrators, and parents, to determine whether products that may be illegally diverted into the hands of youth and/or the public came from a licensed source or the illicit market.

Finally, the Commission released five comprehensive research reports in the past year which focus on youth usage, preliminary industry assessment, the impact of legalization, the state of the data, and the effectiveness of the Commission’s public awareness campaign. Work is underway to conduct a baseline assessment of impacts to the healthcare system, adult-use cannabis behaviors, the utility in using public safety data to assess social equity provisions, legal and illicit market cannabis use behaviors, cannabis-related disciplinary actions in schools, as well as continuing the primary collected surveys included in the Marijuana Baseline Health Study.

Additional information about the Commission’s sales, licensing, and equity data is available by visiting MassCannabisControl.Com, by contacting the Commission by phone (774-415-0200) or email (Commission@CCCMass.Com), or following the agency on Facebook and Twitter.

MCR Labs ‘Ask An Expert’ Virtual Event Seeks To Clear Up Mass. Cannabis Confusion

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Cannabis experts will weigh in on questions submitted by members of the general public as part of a virtual panel discussion hosted by MCR Labs on October 28.

MASSACHUSETTS:  MCR Labs is organizing a virtual panel discussion for members of the public to submit cannabis-related questions to four experts with backgrounds in cannabis testing, research, medicine, and cultivation in order to help new and experienced cannabis consumers expand their knowledge of a complex and often misunderstood plant.

“Even though it’s legal here in Massachusetts, cannabis is still scary and confusing to some and complicated or overwhelming to others,” said MCR Labs President and founder Michael Kahn. “We’re trying to create more opportunities for everyone to get real answers from legitimate sources since there’s still a lot of misinformation being spread about cannabis and marijuana.”

The virtual event, titled “Ask an Expert,” will feature qualified cannabis professionals from a variety of fields and specialties. The panel discussion will include Scott Churchill, Director of Scientific Operations at MCR Labs, a cannabis testing laboratory; Dr. Marion McNabb, President of the Cannabis Center of Excellence, a research and advocacy group; Dr. Benjamin Caplan, Chief Medical Officer at the CED Clinic, a medical cannabis clinic; and Noni Goldman, Co-Founder of Four Trees Management Co., a consulting firm and tier 1 cultivation provisional licensee.

By bringing together experts with a diverse array of backgrounds, the MCR Labs’ outreach team hopes to enable a broad selection of individuals with any level of cannabis knowledge to hear answers to questions ranging from highly complex to basic and introductory.

“COVID-19 has created a significant lack of educational events geared toward cannabis at the same time that many are exploring using, growing, or even joining the industry for the first time,” said MCR Labs Event & Outreach Specialist Melissa Kenton. “So, we’re trying something new for us by hosting this online event because no matter what’s happening with the virus, education is critical to helping people explore cannabis safely.”

The event will take place on Wednesday, Oct. 28 starting at 11 a.m. Attendees can register in advance at https://tinyurl.com/MCRLabsAskExpertEvent. Those with questions for the panel can submit them via any of MCR Labs social media accounts by messaging @mcrlabs on most platforms or by emailing the outreach team directly at news@mcrlabs.com.

Massachusetts Cannabis Control Commission Approves Policy Changes To Proposed Regulations for Adult Use Delivery in Massachusetts

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MASSACHUSETTS:  Following a public comment period that closed October 15, the Cannabis Control Commission  on Tuesday approved additional policy changes to its draft regulations that establish two Marijuana Establishment types authorized to provide limited delivery services to adult-use cannabis consumers in the Commonwealth. A final vote on all modifications to Massachusetts’ adult and medical use of marijuana regulations will occur at a subsequent public meeting slated for October 29.

Previously referred to as Limited Delivery Licenses and Wholesale Delivery Licenses, the newly categorized Marijuana Courier and Marijuana Delivery Operator license types discussed Tuesday aim to further the Commission’s mission to ensure meaningful participation in the legal cannabis industry by communities that have been disproportionately harmed by marijuana prohibition and to satisfy consumer demand that is currently being met by illicit market participants. The Commission’s draft delivery regulations specify that both license types will be exclusively available to Certified Economic Empowerment Priority Applicants (EEAs) and Social Equity Program (SEP) Participants for a minimum of three years, with the exclusivity period beginning once the first Marijuana Delivery Operator commences operations.

To that end, among the additional delivery changes approved Tuesday, Commissioners put in place operations restrictions, modified caps on ownership and control, and limits to financial relationships with third-party technology platform providers in order to prevent entities from dominating this emerging delivery market segment. They include:

  • Requiring that marijuana products out for distribution by a delivery licensee will be associated with a specific, individual order to prevent entities from operating as mobile warehouses or retail stores;
  • Deeming a third-party technology platform provider with any financial interest— including but not limited to, a delivery agreement or other agreement for services—in a delivery license as a person or entity having direct control over that license, and limiting such control by those providers to one delivery license;
  • Preventing a single entity from holding direct or indirect control over more than two Marijuana Delivery Operator or Marijuana Courier licenses, under the Commission’s three Marijuana Retailer or Delivery License cap, and restricting a single Marijuana Delivery Operator to maintaining one warehouse as their principal place of business or operations;
  • Underscoring that the Commission shall maintain on its website its publicly available and searchable source of information about all operating licensees and include delivery licensees; and
  • Revisiting the provisions for Marijuana Delivery Operators two years after the first entity commences operations in the Commonwealth to study the competitiveness and concentration of the license type, and if necessary, responding with further regulatory changes or guidance.

The Commission also approved policy changes that bring the adult-use delivery regulations in line with sister state agency requirements for commercial vehicles and tax collection, including:

  • Requiring that commercial vehicles used to transport or deliver marijuana or marijuana products must comply with applicable Registry of Motor Vehicle (RMV) requirements, but may not include any additional external marking that indicates the vehicle is being used to transport or deliver marijuana or marijuana products;
  • Clarifying that although Marijuana Delivery Operators are not considered Marijuana Retailers under the Commission’s regulations, they must register as a vendor with the Department of Revenue (DOR) and collect and remit marijuana retail taxes in accordance with DOR regulations.

The Commission’s development of Marijuana Courier and Marijuana Delivery Operator licenses follows the promulgation of a Delivery-Only, Delivery Endorsement, and pre-certification licensing process in 2019 which received substantial public feedback during the agency’s current regulatory review period. The Marijuana Courier model represents an evolution of the Delivery-Only License the Commission had previously approved in 2019, and maintains those policies and provisions in order to keep barriers to industry entry low and support participation by applicants with limited capital.

In direct response to public comment received during the initial 2020 regulatory review period, the Commission approved the Marijuana Delivery Operator license authorizing businesses to purchase marijuana and finished marijuana products at wholesale from Cultivators, Craft Marijuana Cooperatives, Product Manufacturers, and Microbusinesses, and sell individual orders directly to consumers. By expanding the delivery operations available to licensees, the Commission also has adopted additional compliance requirements for Marijuana Delivery Operators pertaining to wholesaling, warehousing, white labeling, and sales.

During Tuesday’s meeting the Commission acknowledged the important role of municipalities allowing for delivery licensees to operate within their borders, including the local control provisions in state law. Under the Commission’s draft regulations, licensed delivery service will be able to occur within:

  • A municipality which the delivery licensee has identified as its place of business;
  • Any municipality which allows for adult-use retail within its borders; or
  • Any municipality which, after receiving notice from the Commission, has then notified the Commission that delivery may operate within its borders.

Marijuana Retailers and Micro businesses with Delivery Endorsements will be required to inform their host municipality law enforcement authorities, including police and fire departments, about plans to deliver marijuana and marijuana products directly to consumers.

Tuesday’s session followed multiple public meetings and public comment periods held in June, July, August, and September covering proposed changes across both sets of Commission regulations. To review regulatory drafts, meeting summaries, or minutes from those discussions, visit MassCannabisControl.com. To access video recordings of previous meetings, visit the Commission’s Facebook or YouTube channels. After the Commission reconvenes October 29 to vote on the final adult and medical use of marijuana regulatory changes, those provisions will be submitted to the Secretary of State’s Office for their review and promulgation.

Curaleaf Opens New Cannabis Dispensary In Clearwater, Florida

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New Location Marks Curaleaf’s 29th Storefront in Florida and 89th Nationwide

FLORIDA: Curaleaf Holdings, a leading vertically integrated cannabis operator in the United States and one of the largest cannabis operators in Florida, announced today that it has opened a new dispensary in Clearwater, Florida, marking its 29th retail location in the state.Curaleaf Clearwater, located at 2082 Gulf to Bay Boulevard, will carry a wide range of Curaleaf and Select brand products. Select, known as America’s #1 cannabis oil brand now available in 12 states, launched earlier this month in Florida with Select Elite Live, the brand’s new enhanced live resin product, which combines high-quality THC oil and live resin high-terpene extract. The company also recently launched the first-to-market Curaleaf sublingual tablets. The Clearwater location is the first of three new medical dispensaries the company plans to open in the market this quarter.

“Curaleaf remains committed to the Florida market and its patients by providing high-quality medical cannabis products and new consumption formats that make cannabis accessible for all,” said Joe Bayern, President at Curaleaf. “We are thrilled to open Clearwater and support the health and wellness needs of more Floridians.”

Florida’s continued growth in patient registration makes it one of the nation’s fastest-growing medical cannabis markets in the country. Currently, there are over 394,000 medical patients enrolled in the Florida program – about 1.8% of the state’s population – with approximately 5,000 new patients joining each week.

In response to COVID-19, Curaleaf continues to implement new policies and procedures, including curbside services and contactless and cashless payment through approved credit and debit card services, to keep patients, customers and employees safe during this time. To see Curaleaf’s dispensary locations in Florida, please visit www.curaleaf.com/locations/#florida.

Burns & Levinson Hosts Third Annual State of the Cannabis Industry Conference In Boston October 23, 2019

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Capital markets, investments, M&A and regulatory issues will be key topics at event

MASSACHUSETTS: Burns & Levinson will host its third annual “State of the Cannabis Industry” conference, which will focus on capital markets, investments, M&A, and regulatory issues in the rapidly growing multi-billion dollar cannabis industry. The conference will be held on October 23, 2019 from 7:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. at the Westin Waltham Boston hotel.

The event, which is also sponsored by CohnReznick and KushCo Holdings, will feature an interview with Commissioner Steven Hoffman, Chairman of the Massachusetts Cannabis Control Commission, in an exclusive one-on-one Q&A with Frank A. Segall, co-chair of the Cannabis Business & Law Advisory Group at Burns & Levinson. This is the second year that Hoffman has participated in this high-profile event, and the two will discuss current and future issues in the Massachusetts cannabis industry.

B&L Speakers 2019

Keynote speakers include: Dan Fireman, founder of Fireman Capital Partners, and Karen Munkacy, MD, founder and CEO of Garden Remedies. 

“Cannabis is already a multi-billion dollar industry, and its growth is projected to increase at an exponential and unprecedented rate in the coming years. This is opening up significant business opportunities in the capital markets, investments and M&A areas to invest in and acquire cannabis and cannabis-related companies,” said Segall. “We want to help the investment and business community understand the risks and rewards, and give them the strategies they need to take advantage of these opportunities,” added Scott Moskol, who co-chairs Burns’ Cannabis Business & Law Advisory Group with Segall.

Past “State of the Cannabis Industry” conferences have focused on banking and institutional investing in the cannabis space.

Burns & Levinson was the first major Boston corporate law firm to develop a cannabis business practice, and has been advising cannabis businesses, entrepreneurs and investors across the country for over six years. Burns helps clients navigate the complex legal and business framework that surrounds the rapidly growing marijuana industry in the U.S. The firm has unrivaled experience in cannabis business formation and corporate structuring, M&A, cannabis and hemp/CBD banking issues and debt financing; fund formation, debt and equity financing; real estate acquisitions and leasing; labor and employment issues; intellectual property protection; 280E taxation issues; and cannabis litigation.

For more information about the conference and to register click here. For information on sponsorship opportunities, please contact Kristen Weller at kweller@burnslev.com.

 

Cannapreneur Partners Appoints Former American Express Senior Manager Doug Lennick To Executive Board

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MASSACHUSETTS: Cannapreneur Partners, the Westborough, Mass-based holding company finding the cannabis world’s 1% outlier entrepreneurs and industry investment opportunities currently in the middle of a $150 million fundraise round open to investors, has announced the appointment of Doug Lennick to their Executive Board of Directors. 

Lennick is world-renowned for innovative approaches to developing high performance in individuals and organizations, and is an expert in creating practical applications of human behavior that have yielded great success factors for his clients and partners alike in financial services and other industries.

Lennick is a certified financial planner (CFP) and a behavioral financial advisor (BFA) and served as Executive Vice President for American Express Financial Advisors (now Ameriprise Financial), where he led an organization of 17,000 to tremendous success.  Lennick has been the author or co-author of six books translated across 13 languages and has been referenced in the best sellers Working with Emotional Intelligence and Power of Purpose.

“Michael Scott is one of the world’s best at combining entrepreneurial expertise with the passion to make a difference. I am confident Cannapreneur Partners will make a difference, and that’s why I accepted this Board position,” said Lennick.

Lennick currently serves as CEO and co-founder of think2perform, a 15+ year-old professional coaching, leadership consulting, and business development services firm that improves the decision-making skills and performance of individuals and organizations. In November 2000, Lennick was honored by Columbia University’s Center for Social and Emotional Education, and is a Fellow at the Carlson Executive Development Center, Carlson School of Management, and University of Minnesota. He is also a member of the prestigious Consortium for Research on Emotional Intelligence in Organizations.

Michael Scott, Chairman and co-founder of Cannapreneur Partners, says: “I am truly humbled and excited to have Doug, a long time mentor, not only join as a Board Director but also as a strategic, values and purpose driven advisor to our company. Doug and I both see the tremendous value the medicinal side of cannabis can bring to the world.”

Scott notes the chasm between the potential applications and deeper understanding of cannabis as a medicine and where the legal industry currently is, means the opportunity to infuse smart capital and strategic operational excellence is now.

Says Scott: “I am very confident with Doug joining the team as a thought leader we will make a significant, meaningful impact in the cannabis industry.”