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Running a cannabis home delivery business is about to get easier in Massachusetts.
The state Cannabis Control Commission voted Wednesday to get rid of the rule requiring two people in every cannabis delivery vehicle, a requirement that some in the industry called unnecessarily onerous.
Under the new regulation, one person can make deliveries so long as the retail value of the cannabis in the vehicle is less than $5,000.
Considering cannabis delivery companies, with far lower start-up costs than many other enterprises such as dispensaries or grow facilities, was seen as an opening for the kind of disenfranchised entrepreneurs that were having difficulty getting into the industry.
But the regulations, one of the few in the country requiring two drivers, were criticized as adding unnecessary costs to the business.
Devin Alexander, the CEO of the delivery company Rolling Releaf, said the long-awaited change was welcome.
“It’s going to slice our payroll in half essentially. Instead of laying people off, we’re just going to buy more vehicles. This is going to help decrease customer wait time, and it’s going to help expand our reach. We’re going to be able to deliver in places that we weren’t able to deliver to before,” he said in an interview with 5 Investigates.
The new regulations also expand the hours deliveries can be made and increase the number of delivery licenses any one person or company can own, among other changes.
The new rule is set to take effect as soon as November 23rd.
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