A Massachusetts bicameral conference committee approved a compromise cannabis bill Monday that would double the adult marijuana possession limit from one to two ounces—the same reform Colorado adopted in 2021—and significantly restructure the state's Cannabis Control Commission (CCC).
Sen. Adam Gómez (D) and Rep. Daniel M. Donahue (D), who co-chaired the committee and also lead the legislature's Joint Cannabis Policy Committee, said they expect both chambers to pass the bill this week before it heads to Gov. Maura Healey (D) for her signature.
Under H.4206, the CCC would shrink from five to three members, with the governor gaining sole appointment authority—replacing a system that also involved the attorney general and treasurer. One commissioner must have a social justice background; the other two must have backgrounds in public health, public safety, social justice, consumer regulations, or cannabis production and distribution. The bill raises the per-entity license cap from three to six and increases the equity ownership threshold used for counting toward that cap from 10 percent to 20 percent. Regulators would also be required to maintain a list of cannabis businesses that have left debts unpaid for more than 60 days, barring other operators from transacting with them until those debts are cleared.
The bill's advancement comes as marijuana businesses have filed a lawsuit seeking to keep a rollback initiative off the November ballot. That measure would repeal commercial recreational sales and home cultivation while still allowing adults 21 and older to possess up to one ounce; possession of one to two ounces would be decriminalized with a $100 fine, and gifting between adults and medical sales would remain legal. The legislature has until May 5 to act on the proposal; if it declines, the campaign must collect at least 12,429 certified signatures by July 1 to qualify for the ballot. A Bay State Poll from the University of Hampshire's States of Opinion Project found a majority of Massachusetts adults oppose the rollback measure.
The legislative activity follows Massachusetts surpassing $9 billion in adult-use cannabis sales since its market launched in 2018. A CCC report found that 84 percent of past-year marijuana users obtained cannabis from a licensed source.
