DALTON, Mass. — The Planning Board last week questioned whether the state is requiring the town to adjust its cannabis bylaws if dispensaries, medical or retailer, and cultivation centers are only permitted by special permit.  

 

The town does not have any dispensaries and has only received a couple of inquiries over the years, which were not pursued aside from the initial phone contact. 

 

To comply with these new regulations, the town might have to change the clause in its bylaws to stipulate that it will only take applications from equitable businesses for the next three years.

 

Board members questioned the need to change its bylaws because there has been little interest in establishing cannabis in the town. 

 

"I don't think we have to do anything with this as long as we don't allow. If we don't allow any cannabis facilities in town, they're not permitted," Planner Zack McCain said during the meeting.  

 

If the state does not require it, the board can revisit changing the bylaw once someone interested in opening a business in town requests it, he said. 

 

The Cannabis Control Commission voted on May 9 to approve a number of regulations in an effort to make it easier for people harmed by marijuana prohibition and enforcement to enter the industry. 

 

"The commission implemented policies and procedures that are helping lower barriers to entry, ease the transition from the legacy marketplace, and harness private sector innovation to speed change," the commission's video on Faces of Equity said. 

 

Opening a cannabis dispensary costs $1.5 million, which was not obtainable by those who were disproportionately impacted by the war on drugs and those from communities with low median net worth. 

 

The Cannabis Control Commission established regulations and programs to help those from the legacy market enter the industry, which was dominated by larger companies for many years following the substance's legalization. 

 

The commission provides municipalities with three options to adopt the commission's model bylaw. 

 

This model has been characterized as having an "unrealistic timeline," containing "questions regarding conflicting governance, various ambiguities and burdensome requirements for cities and towns" by the state Municipal Association and state Municipal Lawyers Association. 

 

"The second is to adopt a bylaw that allows only equity businesses for three years," Town Manager Thomas Hutcheson wrote in the New Cannabis Requirements sheet. 

 

"The third is to create a local process for approving equity applicants on a one-on-one basis and approving non-equity applications only after an equity business has been established, and always ensuring that the number of equity businesses is the same or more than non-equity business." 

 

According to Hutcheson the simplest and more direct solution is the second option, Town Planner Janko Tomasic said. 

 

Due to the limited number of inquiries the town has received, Hutcheson said in the document that he does not see how the second option would harm business opportunities in any serious way. 

 

Background 

 

According to the commission's International Cannabis Policy Study, "cannabis cultivation and use were legal under federal and state laws throughout most of modern American history."

 

From 1850 to 1941, it was also included in the U.S. Pharmacopeia, an official list of public standards for recognized medicinal products. However, with the development of other pharmaceuticals, its use decreased. 

 

Despite that, the 20th century brought social reform that "aimed to reduce recreational use of many substances, including cannabis."

 

The increase in the drug's usage between 1910 and 1920 led to 29 states, including Massachusetts, to pass laws prohibiting the possession or sale of cannabis.

 

From the 1940s to the '70s, there were changes in federal policies criminalizing marihuana use, sales, and cultivation, medical or otherwise. 

 

In 1971, President Richard Nixon declared a "War on Drugs," proclaiming drug use as "America's public enemy number one." 

 

The National Commission on Marijuana and Drug Abuse, which Nixon appointed to study the drug issue, recommended that cannabis be decriminalized, yet the report findings were ignored because "getting tough on crime won votes," the commission said in its video on Faces of Equity.

 

These efforts to combat the supply chain of illegal drugs that contributed to substance use disorders actually resulted in policies and "systematic changes in the criminal justice system that to this day disproportionality impact people of color," the commission's International Cannabis Policy Study said. 

 

"Clearly, a new and better approach is needed, a way to address systemic racism, a path forward to improve not just the lives of affected individuals, but bring economic vibrancy to whole communities," the video on Faces of Equity said. 

 

"Legalizing marijuana was a good start, but just the beginning of a journey towards greater justice and prosperity." 

 

"As of March 2022, there has been significant movement on the federal level regarding cannabis reform," the study said. 

 

However, due to stringent regulations restricting those with drug offenses from being part of the cannabis industry, inflated prices due to the type of business, and financial burdens, the legacy market was pushed aside for larger companies. 

 

"It is, frankly, ludicrous for people in pinstripe suits to pretend that they were experts on selling cannabis when they only got in post-legalization, there are people who have done this and risked their whole lives. How do we lean on the skills of those individuals who were in the legacy market," Tito Jackson, Apex Noire founder and CEO, said in the commission's video.