Nevada lawmakers have green-lighted permanent rules for the state’s adult-use cannabis industry.
The state’s Legislative Commission voted unanimously to approve the 258-page regulations without formal debate.
Nevada began recreational cannabis sales under emergency rules in July 2017 after voters approved adult-use marijuana sales in 2016.
According to The Nevada Independent, producers without retail licenses were some of the loudest critics of the new rules.
Here’s what you need to know:
- MJ business owners with cultivation-only licenses were hoping to see the rules changed so they would have an equal chance at securing licenses to open retail businesses. Without that ability, they now believe they might go out of business.
- Their main concern is that vertically integrated businesses will create an “oligopoly” in the market, only buying the cannabis they produce and eliminating the stand-alone growers from the market.
- According to The Independent, critics say the new rules give preference to existing retail license owners for additional licenses, rather than the growers who could also benefit from them.
- Under the emergency rules, the state’s industry has thrived, averaging $1 million in sales per day in the first six months.
