The Cannabis Control Commission unanimously approved regulations governing sites where people could consume marijuana products in social settings but it may take a while for sites to be established.
The rules outline how marijuana can be legally consumed at events and social settings, authorizing businesses with licenses to let customers use their products on site whether it’s at lounges, dispensaries or yoga studios.
“Today we honored the will of the Massachusetts voters, and they voted for this in 2016. Here we are, almost in 2026 and we got it across the finish line,” commissioner Kimberly Roy said during a press conference after the vote. “Today is another milestone in the Massachusetts cannabis industry.”
Commission Chair Shannon O’Brien agreed.
“The important thing is, this is the will of the voters,” O’Brien said. “Some people may have some concerns, because this is a little bit of a brave new world. We don’t really know. We know what our local pub looks like, but we don’t really understand what this looks like.”
Commissioners estimate that businesses can begin serving cannabis on-site in up to 18 months. That is based on the rollout of cannabis delivery licenses when it took six months until a licensee filed an application. Once the applications were received, it took 11 additional months before the licensees began operating.
Commission staff expect the regulations will be filed with the secretary of state by Dec. 19 and promulgated on Jan. 2, 2026.
Municipalities must opt in to allowing social consumption businesses and develop their own standards of practice. Roy said several communities have expressed interest in allowing social consumption including Cambridge, Chelsea, Fitchburg, Somerville, Haverhill, Holyoke, Provincetown and Worcester.
Commission Chair Shannon O’Brien said the commission would also continue work with municipalities over the next six months to gauge which ones would opt in.
“I’m hoping that some of these things can go more quickly,” O’Brien said. “But there is a lot of work to do with the municipalities to make sure that they are ready, because there’s going to be a lot of regulatory framework that is going to be controlled by municipalities, a lot of applications that’s going to be managed by them.”
Commissioners are also part of several working groups including one for local advisory to help city and town leaders with the regulations, public awareness and a group focused on responsible vendor training.
Three different types of social consumption licenses are available under the regulations. One is a “supplemental” license for existing marijuana businesses to offer customers to consume products they have purchased on-site; a “hospitality” license category would allow for on-site consumption at new or existing non-cannabis businesses like yoga studios or theaters; and an “event organizer” license category would allow for temporary on-site consumption at events like rallies and festivals.
O’Brien said the regulations have been changed from the draft released in late July to get rid of “unnecessary regulatory burdens,” allow retailers to bring in more revenue and help businesses to take care of consumers if they are over-served.
For example, O’Brien said the approved regulations allow retailers to sell shelf-stable snacks, which offers a new form of revenue. Also, retailers can offer what’s called “THC inhibitors,” which can help reduce symptoms and reactions for those who feel like they’ve consumed too much marijuana.
The regulations require licensees to offer customers food and ban alcohol sales within the same area so there is no “co-mingling” of substances. Alcohol can be sold under the same roof as cannabis, but they must be sold in different areas, Roy said.
Roy noted there are several provisions aimed at ensuring safe cannabis consumption.
These include training “budtenders,” or those serving cannabis on site, to recognize signs of impairment. Also, the sale of cannabis products must end 30 minutes before a business closes and licensees must have approved transportation plans to help customers who may be too impaired to drive home. Licensees also have to get a public safety plan approved by both the commission and local officials.
Commissioner Bruce Stebbins said that during listening sessions on the proposed regulations, “there was a chorus” from public health and safety stakeholders to train those working at consumption sites. Specifically, they wanted training for recognizing impaired customers, how to help those who might have an adverse reaction to cannabis and checking customer identifications.
Stebbins said social consumption will offer economic opportunities for the state.
“I’m excited, obviously, the opportunity to create more jobs, obviously the opportunity for more revenue for cities and towns and the Commonwealth, the opportunity for maybe more consumers to venture into the marketplace and try out different products,” he said. “And I also look at a tremendous opportunity for the tourism and hospitality community. We have folks that flock to Boston and Massachusetts as a tourist, some come from countries or states that don’t allow cannabis use.”
Social consumption sites were envisioned under the 2016 marijuana voter law.
Commissioners previously planned to vote on the regulations in September. That timeline was pushed back to November and then to Christmas. In September, O’Brien’s return to the CCC pushed back the finalization of the long-awaited rules. Then in November, the vote was pushed again so commissioner Carrie Benedon, who was appointed in November, could have time to catch up on the proposed regulations.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.
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