Maine election officers have authorized a poll initiative that, if handed, would remove the state’s roughly $250 million adult-use hashish business and impose strict new testing requirements on medical hashish to start amassing signatures.
It’s the second ongoing citizen marketing campaign to cancel a authorized hashish business in New England.
An identical effort in Massachusetts just lately claimed to have collected sufficient signatures to advance previous an preliminary stage amid accusations of elections fraud.
Maine medical marijuana would stay however with new guidelines
The Maine Secretary of State on Dec. 8 authorized the Act to Amend the Hashish Legalization Act and the Maine Medical Use of Hashish Act to start amassing signatures.
If it qualifies for the poll and is authorized by a majority vote, Maine’s adult-use hashish business would sundown on Jan. 1, 2028.
Present operators might transition again to medical marijuana, and private use and possession of as much as 2.5 ounces would stay authorized, as would medical marijuana.
Nevertheless, it will additionally require hashish sufferers and caregivers to submit their merchandise for testing and adjust to track-and-trace necessities.
That’s not presently required within the Maine medical marijuana market.
About 6% of Maine adult-use hashish that’s examined fails for banned contaminants, in line with the Maine Morning Star.
To qualify for the poll, the petition should acquire roughly 68,000 legitimate signatures from registered voters by early February.
State information point out Colin Mack of Brunswick because the sponsor. Mack didn’t reply to a request for remark from the Morning Star.
Maine authorized hashish gross sales growing
Annual hashish gross sales on the state’s 266 licensed adult-use shops and medical marijuana dispensaries reached almost $244 million in 2024, in line with the state Workplace of Hashish Coverage.
Annual gross sales are on tempo to barely exceed that in 2025.
Maine legalized adult-use hashish in 2016.
