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The governor of Delaware is touting the state\u2019s first \u201csuccessful\u201d weekend of adult-use marijuana sales<\/a>, with total purchases for medical and recreational cannabis totaling nearly $1 million\u2014and compliance checks demonstrating that the regulated market is operating as intended under the law.<\/p>\n From Friday to Sunday, Delaware saw $903,000 worth of marijuana purchased as licensed retailers and dispensaries, which the governor\u2019s office described as a \u201cmeasurable increase in sales pace that demonstrates robust demand and a successful market launch.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cDelaware\u2019s first weekend of adult-use cannabis sales has shown that our state is ready\u2014and eager\u2014for a well-regulated, responsible market,\u201d Gov. Matt Meyer (D) said in a press release on Wednesday.<\/p>\n \u201cThis moment reflects our commitment to growing Delaware\u2019s economy, strengthening our communities, and prioritizing public health,\u201d he said. \u201cNow, we have a real opportunity to reinvest this revenue directly into neighborhoods across our state, ensuring Delaware becomes a national model for cannabis quality, innovation, and fairness. I\u2019m proud we\u2019re moving thoughtfully and deliberately to get this right for all Delawareans.\u201d<\/p>\n Delaware\u2019s first adult-use marijuana shops officially opened for business on August 1, with a handful of existing medical cannabis operators able to service consumers 21 and older.<\/p>\n This comes about two years after marijuana legalization was enacted into law<\/a>\u00a0under former Gov. John Carney (D).<\/p>\n The current governor\u2019s office provided some additional details about the opening weekend sales, including a breakdown of purchases by product type.<\/p>\n As in other legal states, flower products dominated, reaching $509,042 in sales (or 56 percent of overall sales).That was followed by extracts for vaping ($233,267), infused edibles ($123,768) and pre-rolls with concentrates ($16,212).<\/p>\n The state also emphasized that regulators \u201cconducted routine compliance checks throughout the weekend, finding dispensaries operating within established guidelines,\u201d and there were no reports of \u201csignificant incidents.<\/p>\n \u201cRetailers demonstrated adherence to Delaware\u2019s comprehensive regulatory framework for adult-use cannabis sales,\u201d it said. \u201cThe Office of the Marijuana Commissioner (OCM) continues to monitor sales activity and work closely with licensed operators to ensure ongoing compliance with state regulations on product testing, inventory tracking, and customer verification.\u201d<\/p>\n Officials said revenue from the 15 percent excise tax on adult-use cannabis sales \u201csuggests the program will contribute significantly to funding regulatory oversight, public health initiatives, and community programs throughout the state.\u201d<\/p>\n Delaware Marijuana Commissioner Joshua Sanderlin said<\/a> the state\u2019s \u201ctransition to adult-use cannabis sales has exceeded expectations.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cMore than $900,000 in sales over the first three days reflects not only strong consumer demand, but also the readiness and professionalism of our licensed operators to serve the public safely and responsibly,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n State Department of Safety and Homeland Security Secretary Joshua Bushweller added that the \u201csuccessful launch positions Delaware to realize the economic benefits of regulated cannabis sales while maintaining our commitment to public safety and responsible implementation.\u201d<\/p>\n Ahead of the sales roll-out, the governor last month toured one of the state\u2019s cannabis cultivation facilities, praising the quality of marijuana that\u2019s being produced, which he said will be the \u201cFrench wine of weed.\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n The launch of the legal market comes amid some controversy, however, with\u00a0critics alleging that allowing medical operators to start adult-use sales ahead of other license applicants is unfair<\/a>. There\u2019s also\u00a0ongoing tension between state and local officials over who will ultimately control zoning rules for the new industry<\/a>\u2014a dispute that could have major implications for the rollout of future stores.<\/p>\n Dozens of other would-be retailers that have either already received licenses or are still awaiting issuance will need to wait for further regulatory approvals until they can open their doors\u2014a situation that\u2019s frustrated some advocates.<\/p>\n Eventually 30 stores are planned across the state,\u00a0including 14 in New Castle County, 10 in Sussex County and six in Kent County.<\/p>\n As for zoning restrictions for the stores, the governor said last month that there\u2019s a tension between two competing priorities when it comes to a marijuana-related zoning proposal, SB 75, that\u2019s currently awaiting action on his desk.<\/p>\n The bill would\u00a0overrule local zoning authority and make it easier for cannabis businesses to set up shop<\/a>.<\/p>\n On one hand, the governor said he\u2019d like to roll out the state\u2019s legal cannabis program as quickly as possible. On the other, as a former county executive, he said it\u2019s important municipal governments retain control over local land use decisions.<\/p>\n Two lawmakers who led the push to legalize marijuana are separately seeking input from consumers and businesses about the market launch. Paradee, the sponsor of SB 75, and House Majority Whip Rep. Ed Osienski (D)\u2014the primary sponsor of the state\u2019s 2023 legalization bills\u2014put out a new online form this month for residents to share thoughts and feedback about the cannabis program anonymously<\/a>.<\/p>\n The idea is to identify any hiccups that lawmakers might need to address when they return for next year\u2019s legislative session.<\/p>\n OCM initially projected that recreational sales would start by March, but complications related to securing an FBI fingerprint background check service code delayed the implementation. Lawmakers passed a bill in April to resolve the issue, and the FBI subsequently issued the code that the stat\u2019s marijuana law requires<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u2014 Late last year, OMC held a series of\u00a0licensing lotteries for cannabis business<\/a>\u00a0to start serving adult consumers.<\/p>\n A total of 125 licenses will ultimately be issued, including 30 retailers, 60 cultivators, 30 manufacturers and five testing labs. Last year, regulators also detailed what portion of each category is reserved for social equity applicants, microbusinesses and general open licenses.<\/p>\n Regulators have also been\u00a0rolling out a series of proposed regulations to stand up the forthcoming adult-use cannabis industry<\/a>.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, Carney raised eyebrows in January after making a questionable claim that\u00a0\u201cnobody\u201d wants cannabis shops in their neighborhoods<\/a>, even if there\u2019s consensus that criminalization doesn\u2019t work.<\/p>\n The then-governor\u00a0last year signed several additional marijuana bills into law<\/a>, including measures that would allow existing medical cannabis businesses in the state to begin recreational sales on an expedited basis, transfer regulatory authority for the medical program and make technical changes to marijuana statutes.<\/p>\n The dual licensing legislation is meant to\u00a0allow recreational sales to begin months earlier than planned<\/a>, though critics say the legislation would give an unfair market advantage to larger, more dominant businesses already operating in multiple states.<\/p>\n In October, Carney also gave final approval to legislation to enact state-level protections for\u00a0banks that provide services to licensed marijuana businesses<\/a>.<\/p>\n Delaware\u2019s\u00a0medical marijuana program is also being significantly expanded<\/a>\u00a0under a law that officially took effect last July.<\/p>\n The policy change removes limitations for patient eligibility based on a specific set of qualifying health conditions. Instead, doctors will be able to issue cannabis recommendations for any condition they see fit.<\/p>\n The law also allows patients over the age of 65 to self-certify for medical cannabis access without the need for a doctor\u2019s recommendation.<\/p>\n Photo courtesy of Mike Latimer.<\/em><\/p>\n The post Delaware Governor Touts Nearly $1 Million In Marijuana Sales During State\u2019s First Weekend Of Adult-Use Market<\/a> appeared first on Marijuana Moment<\/a>.<\/p>\n
The governor of Delaware is touting the state\u2019s first \u201csuccessful\u201d weekend of adult-use marijuana sales, with total purchases for medical and recreational cannabis totaling nearly $1 million\u2014and compliance checks demonstrating that the regulated market is operating as intended under the law. From Friday to Sunday, Delaware saw $903,000 worth ofContinue Reading<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":458,"featured_media":82618,"comment_status":"false","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[18,81],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/82617"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/458"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=82617"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/82617\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":82619,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/82617\/revisions\/82619"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/82618"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=82617"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=82617"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=82617"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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