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Cannabis Social Equity Fund News Coverage Policy Press State Legislation

Recap + Guest Opinion: Please Advance The Social Equity Trust Fund Fix | Talking Joints Memo

The group Equitable Opportunities Now, which “educates and empowers people of color to become active participants in the Massachusetts legal cannabis market,” is on top of the situation, and has sent two letters to Beacon Hill lawmakers this month outlining the situation as well as the stakes.

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Cannabis Control Commission Municipal Licensing Equity News Coverage Policy Press

Cannabis Control Commission votes to put new restrictions on payments to municipalities | Worcester Telegram & Gazette

Members of Equitable Opportunities Now, an organization that supports people of color becoming active in the cannabis industry, praised the commission for its focus in reviewing and passing the regulations despite facing massive challenges…

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Cannabis Control Commission Municipal Licensing Equity News Coverage Policy Press

Lawsuit, Scandals, And Audit Aside, Massachusetts Regulators Approve Major Changes | The Bluntness

Even with all of the rigmarole surrounding regulators at the moment, some advocates and watchdogs went out of their way to praise the body this past week. The group Equitable Opportunities Now, which “educates and empowers people of color to become active participants in the Massachusetts legal cannabis market,” said the new “HCA and municipal equity rules will create new opportunities for communities harmed by the war on drugs.”

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Cannabis Social Equity Fund News Coverage Policy Press State Legislation

Guest Opinion: Black And Brown Cannabis Entrepreneurs Can’t Afford To Keep Waiting | Talking Joints Memo

The investments and policy decisions we make now will have a lasting impact on whether we create a truly equitable industry.

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Cannabis Social Equity Fund News Coverage Policy Press State Legislation

Guest Opinion: Where Is Mass Cannabis Tax Revenue Going? | Talking Joints Memo

Are we equitably reinvesting cannabis revenue in communities harmed by the war on drugs?

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Cannabis Control Commission News Coverage Policy Press

Regulators agree to new approach on cannabis cafés | State House News Service via The Boston Globe

State House News Service Reporter Chris Linski provided great wire coverage of the CCC’s decision to eliminate the existing social consumption pilot program and focus on long-term, statewide, comprehensive regulations, […]

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Cannabis Control Commission News Coverage Policy Press

Cannabis Control Commission adopts new approach to licensing social consumption sites | GBH News

With the pilot program now off the table, Camargo said commissioners are inviting public outreach on social consumption before it dives into the formal regulatory process. She said they’ll talk to officials from other states where marijuana is legal and host listening sessions, including a virtual one coming up in June.

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Cannabis Control Commission News Coverage Policy Press

Mass. Regulators Vote To Scrap Social Cannabis Consumption Pilot Program | Talking Joints Memo

Following an hour-long discussion on the matter, commissioners voted to abandon the pilot program. Instead, the CCC will devise a universal framework for all applicants in any municipality that decides to “opt into social consumption license types, either through a ballot question or ordinance” after those types are established by the CCC.

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Cannabis Control Commission News Coverage Policy Press

Equity-Focused Nonprofit Publishes Open Letter To CCC About Social Consumption | Talking Joints Memo

“Policies crafted with the best of intentions, burdened by lack of support and/or overly onerous restrictions, don’t yield the intended result.”

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Cannabis Control Commission Cannabis Social Equity Fund Municipal Licensing Equity News Coverage Policy Press State Legislation

Cannabis Confidential: Lawmakers pass landmark legislation enhancing equity in the industry | Worcester Magazine

“Massachusetts made history with a nation-leading economic empowerment law when they legalized cannabis with Question 4, and nearly six years later, Legislators today made history with this vital — and overdue — grant and loan fund,” said Equitable Opportunities Now Co-Founder and Question 4 Co-Author Shanel Lindsay