Tag: Marijuana Legalization

Rhode Island, Maryland, and Missouri Legalize Adult-Use Cannabis in 2022

By: Colene King

2022 has been another banner year for the ongoing fight to end marijuana prohibition in the United States. The list of legal states just keeps growing, with three states joining in on the movement this year. Rhode Island started off the year with signing the legislation to legalize the personal use and sale of marijuana to adults 21 and over. Then, last month’s primary election welcomed the two newest states to legalize the adult-use of marijuana for 21 and over. On November 8th voters in Arkansas, Maryland, Missouri, North Dakota, and South Dakota took to the polls to decide on their state’s future of legal cannabis for adults. Of the 5 states, 2 of them passed the initiative! We would like to congratulate the residents of Rhode Island, Maryland, and Missouri on becoming the 19th , 20th , and 21st states to legalize adult-use marijuana in the US. 2022 has shown great progress for our country’s future of legal marijuana for all Americans.  

Rhode Island kicked off the year with signing the legalization legislation in May, seeing their first adult-use cannabis sales on December 1st. Nearly 85% of the municipalities in the small state opted in for legal sales, one of the highest in the country. ‘The Ocean State’ is projected to see $80 million in sales within the first year and $300 million by their fourth year. (Casacchia, 2022)

Maryland passed the referendum with 66% of voters in support of legalization. Voters were asked a simple question on their November 8th ballot “Do you favor the legalization of the use of cannabis by an individual who is at least 21 years of age on or after July 1st, 2023, in the state of Maryland?” (Jaeger, 2022) Beginning July 1st of 2023, Marylanders who are 21 and over will legally be able to consume, possess, and grow marijuana. The state is projected to generate as much as $600 million in its first year as a legal market and possibly reaching $1 billion by its fourth year. (Roberts, 2022)

In Missouri, the bill passed with a much closer margin, 53% to 47% in favor of legalization. This makes the ‘Show-Me State’ the 21st state to legalize cannabis. Some projections suggest sales could reach as high as $550 million in the first year, and potentially as high as $800 million – $900 million by the fourth year. (MJBizDaily Staff, 2022) Beginning December 8th, existing cannabis companies can start applying to switch their business to adult-use. The applications must be reviewed and responded to within sixty days of submission in accordance with legislation. In short,  Missouri could log their first adult-use marijuana sales as early as February of 2023.

Before any state can start selling the product to the public, they have to build a regulated market. Sometimes, creating these regulations can take years for states to agree upon; sometimes, it will only take a few months. The deciding factor is dependent upon how motivated the state is to begin receiving tax revenue from legal sales.

One of the highest priority items for any cannabis operator to consider is ‘how to secure an establishment. Every state requires the creation, adaptation, installation, and maintenance of a security plan: protecting staff & customers as well as securing product & cash are of the utmost importance.

A security plan should:

  • Detect, delay, and deter burglaries
  • Protect employees, customers, product, equipment, and cash
  • Protect against natural disasters
  • Deter against theft of cash and product
  • Prevent internal diversion
  • Be scalable – able to expand with the business

We offer many solutions to help safeguard an operation from potential loss of assets: Bullet rated glass, modular vaults and doors, DEA compliant safes and cages, cash management systems, just to name a few. 

  • Cash management systems enable retailers to reduce loss and optimize in-store labor. These systems are easily adaptable to existing POS systems and surveillance cameras –  promoting end-to-end security.

Our modular vaults and vault doors are perfect for new construction but are also able to be retrofit into existing buildings. These modular vaults are available at a fraction of the cost of poured concrete vaults. Protect your high valued product and cash with one of our modular vault systems. https://www.klsecurity.com/products/vaults-and-doors.html

  • These cages are designed and built to meet DEA physical security requirements. They can be customized to your facility and tailored to an existing security system. With locking doors, self-closers, and access control locks, these secure cages will keep your product safe.

The legalization of marijuana is widely gaining momentum across the country. The majority of Americans are in agreement. According to a study done by Pew Research Center in October, 88% of Americans believe that marijuana should be legal for medical and recreational use by adults (59%) or that it should be legal for medical use only (30%). (GREEN, 2022) This means that only 1 in 10 Americans believe marijuana should remain illegal.

Source: Pew Research Center survey of U.S. adults conducted Oct. 10-16, 2022

Now is the opportune time to assemble your security plan. Let our experts help you. KL Security focuses on facility security – vaults, cages, cash management safes, high security safes, etc.


Sources:

https://mjbizdaily.com/rhode-island-set-to-launch-recreational-cannabis-market-thursday-dec-1/

https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2022/11/22/americans-overwhelmingly-say-marijuana-should-be-legal-for-medical-or-recreational-use/

https://www.marijuanamoment.net/maryland-voters-approve-marijuana-legalization-referendum-on-ballot/

https://mjbizdaily.com/missouri-could-begin-recreational-marijuana-sales-by-early-february/

https://mjbizdaily.com/us-marijuana-election-wins-maryland-missouri-but-losses-

Arizona One Step Closer to Recreational Marijuana Market

By Shelley Swearingen | August 11, 2020



Earlier this year, Arizonans banned together in an attempt legalize marijuana. Marijuana is currently legal for medicinal use in the state, but residents would like to see access made available for all adults.


The issue was set to be voted on within the November ballot. A petition was submitted earlier this year by constituents; the initiative required 237,645 signatures and Smart and Safe Arizona (the group spearheading the initiative) acquired 420,000.


Opposition to this proposal was met by Arizonans for Health and Public Safety, a group backed by the Center for Arizona Policy (conservative group that supports ‘right-wing’ legislation). It’s safe to assume this group is also anti-cannabis legislation of any kind, but attacked the proposal on the basis that it doesn’t adequately address cannabis sales tax increases, driving under the influence, or marijuana potency. It also claimed the initiative is ‘confusing and deceptive’.  Based on these theories, the group filed a lawsuit challenging the pro-cannabis initiative.


And late last week, this suit was rejected. A Superior Court Judge ruled the provisions had be addressed sufficiently and found the initiative was not lacking. The judge found their claims to be unfounded. This was a huge win to the voters of Arizona. For now, the issue of legalizing marijuana for all adult Arizonans will be resolved in November by voters.


The recreational market is proposed to favor existing medical marijuana operators and also designate 26 new licenses specifically for social equity applicants.


Using data from the US Census Bureau and assuming the Arizona market would resemble the Illinois market, we can figure that Arizona might have had $170,322,000 in sales (so far) in 2020. That would have brought in over $27,000,000 in tax dollars for the state.*

Here at KL Security, we observe and implement a holistic approach to cannabis facility compliance and safety. We assist dispensaries, pharmacies, secure transporters, craft growers, large scale growers, and testing facilities in achieving revenue goals through protecting assets. We assist with security planning and SOPs for security protocols that prevent diversion of cash and cannabis products at all steps within a marijuana business’s lifetime: from licensing to successful operation to inspections. If you need assistance with the security portion of an application, want to learn how to make your operation safer, or are concerned about compliance – contact the consultants at KL Security at 866-867-0306 or at [email protected]. 


Information has been gathered from sources deemed reliable but not guaranteed and is subject to change without notice.


*9,900,000 estimated adults in Illinois and $300,000,000 in sales (YTD Jan-Aug 2020) equated to roughly $30.3 spent per adult resident.5,677,400 estimated adults in Arizona = $170,322,000

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