Rhode Island’s Cannabis Control Commission on Friday held its first public meeting since a recent court ruling that temporarily paused the process of reviewing and awarding retail cannabis licenses.

Commissioners and staff acknowledged applicants’ and cultivators’ frustration over the abrupt halt to the process that would award 20 new retail licenses as early as May. Commissioner Robert Jacquard said regulators had already begun coordinating with the Rhode Island Lottery on equipment and a location for the selection process.

“Now we are stopped from continuing that process,” he said. “But that does not mean we are stopped from figuring out the best path forward to reach our top priority, which is issuing retail licenses.”

Any details on the commission’s legal strategy will remain hush as it appeals the April 8 order by the U.S. District Court Judge Melissa DuBose temporarily stopping the licensing process.

“Anything used in this public forum can be used against us in the court case,” Mariana Ormonde, chief legal counsel, said at the start of her overview.

Cannabis Control Commission appeals ruling halting license rollout after closed door meeting

The commission is the defendant in three federal lawsuits filed by out-of-state entrepreneurs over the state’s requirement that all cannabis license holders must be majority owned by Rhode Island residents. Plaintiffs in each case argued the residency requirement violated the Dormant Commerce clause of the U.S. Constitution, which prohibits states from engaging in protectionist practices against other states.

Two of those cases date back to May 2024 and were dismissed by DuBose in February of last year, only to be revived in December after Boston’s federal appeals court demanded Rhode Island’s federal court rule based on the merits of the cases.

DuBose in her April 8 ruling found there was a likelihood the three lawsuits would succeed on the merits, which is why she granted the injunction. The state appealed that order Tuesday afternoon, just hours after commissioners met behind closed doors to discuss the cases.

“That is essentially what is stopping all of the commission’s processes at this point,” Ormonde said.

Which has meant 97 applicants continue to sit in limbo. Even before the injunction, applicants have vented frustration over the Cannabis Control Commission’s slow rollout for new licenses in the four years since recreational pot was legalized by the state.

“Time is of the essence,” Sasha Gorski, a cultivator and applicant for a retail shop in Providence, told the commission. “Cultivators and prospective applicants are being harmed every day that this continues. We would like to see things move forward as quickly as possible.”

Applicants and cultivators at Friday’s meeting were overall satisfied with the update provided by the commission on where the case stands — even from some of the panel’s more vocal critics. 

“The explanation was perfect,” Jason Calderon, a cultivator who applied for a retail license in North Kingstown, told Rhode Island Current after the meeting. “At least it lets us know where we are.”

Attorney Allan Fung, the former Republican Cranston mayor and congressional and gubernatorial candidate who represents several retail applicants, did have some suggestions on how the state could try and solve the case during public comment.

One was to have the commission reopen the application process and have it be done on a strictly merit basis so that plaintiffs can’t argue anyone has an unfair advantage. The other suggestion was to provide the plaintiffs with conditional licenses.

“That would moot the lawsuit,” he said.

Jacquard asked Fung to send his recommendations in writing to the commission, so they could further digest the potential strategies.

“They’re very interesting, but take a while to absorb,” Jacquard said.