Adult possession and use of cannabis has been legal in Maryland since Maryland’s Cannabis Reform Act (“CRA”) took effect in July 2023. The CRA established the Maryland Cannabis Administration (“MCA”) and tasked it with regulating Maryland’s cannabis industry. The MCA has since modeled the way states can implement technical standards, regulatory oversight, and social equity within a growing cannabis market.
On the technical side, the MCA established a first-in-the-nation cannabis reference laboratory managed by a state cannabis regulatory agency that is dedicated exclusively to cannabis oversight. The reference lab is responsible for developing and maintaining testing methodologies for cannabis potency, homogeneity, detection and quantification of contaminants, and solvents. The lab is also responsible for conducting compliance testing of samples taken from Maryland’s independent (i.e., privately-run) cannabis testing labs. Pursuant to its obligations under the CRA, the MCA operates a public data dashboard on its website that reports information related to sales, licenses, and other important metrics.
As the MCA advances the cannabis market with an eye towards technical compliance and transparency, the financial aspect of the market is similarly moving forward. The MCA’s dashboard reports over $755M YTD cannabis market sales as of October 2024. In August 2024, adult- and medical-use sales collectively exceeded $100M, and there were over 1.4M reported dispensary transactions. Total market sales have steadily increased since July 2023 and exceeded $1.302B as of August 2024.
Regarding social equity and community-based initiatives, Maryland Governor Wes Moore reported in July 2023 that 53.7% of 205 applicants selected for Maryland cannabis business licenses self-reported as majority black or African American owned, and 76.2% self-reported majority minority ownership. The MCA has reportedly collected over $40M in fees from licensed cannabis businesses to support the Community Reinvestment and Repair Fund, which provides support to low-income communities and those disproportionately impacted by cannabis criminalization. Similarly, the MCA has partnered with the Maryland Department of Labor to implement the Cannabis Workforce Development Program (“CWDP”), which is a program that prioritizes workplace training for individuals whose lives have been impacted by cannabis-related offenses. For eligible participants, the CWDP’s training includes eight instructor-led, self-paced virtual courses followed by two days of hands-on occupational training.
Current and aspiring cannabis licensees should remain apprised of the MCA’s operations and should contact counsel for any business needs.
References
Governor Wes Moore Press Releases:
https://governor.maryland.gov/news/press/pages/governor-moore-announces-more-than-11-billion-in-total-sales-during-for-first-year-of-cannabis-legalization.aspx
https://governor.maryland.gov/news/press/pages/governor-moore-announces-launch-of-cannabis-workforce-development-program.aspx
MCA Reference Lab/Independent Labs:
https://cannabis.maryland.gov/Documents/2024%20News%20Releases/Maryland%20Cannabis%20Administration%20Establishes%20State%20Reference%20Laboratory,%20%20First-in-the-nation%20for%20a%20Cannabis%20Regulatory%20Authority.pdf
https://cannabis.maryland.gov/Documents/2024%20Industry%20Licensees/ITL_Certification_Info_2-26-2024.pdf
MCA Data Dashboard:
https://cannabis.maryland.gov/Pages/Data-Dashboard.aspx
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