Massachusetts on track to set cannabis consumption lounge rules

Massachusetts could have regulations for cannabis social consumption lounges in place by October.

The state’s Cannabis Control Commission (CCC) plans to vote on the regulations this month before sending them to the Secretary of State to establish an official record, according to the CommonWealth Beacon.

The CCC will accept public comment and hold a public hearing with testimony to be incorporated into a new draft by early September before resubmitting the regulations to the secretary of state.

The agency’s previous goal was to submit the regulations by mid-2025.

“I obviously appreciate that we’re a little behind … the schedule we laid out last December, but I still think we’re making great progress,” Bruce Stebbins, the CCC’s acting chair, told the Beacon.

“It’s a process (that) includes(s) all of the commissioners and all of the staff input as we get further closer to the end.”

After the regulations are finalized, communities will have to opt in to allow social consumption lounges, and the CCC will have to approve licenses before people can purchase marijuana products to consume at a licensed establishment.

“There’s general excitement from the community and the stakeholders that have wanted (social consumption), and I think we’re getting to a point where we’re going to have regulations that will prioritize public health and safety and at the same time will (bring) exciting, new opportunities for potential licensees,” Stebbins told the Beacon.