Connecticut residents head to Massachusetts to buy recreational marijuana following legalization

Although recreational marijuana is now legal in Connecticut, stores won't open until next year - so some are going over state lines to buy it.

News 12 Staff

Jul 1, 2021, 6:53 PM

Updated 1,189 days ago

Share:

Although recreational marijuana is now legal in Connecticut, stores won't open until next year - so some are going over state lines to buy it.
INSA is a retail cannabis shop in Springfield, Massachusetts - but it feels more like an Apple store complete with "bud-tenders."
Just like Connecticut, the marijuana industry in Massachusetts is steered toward "social equity" applicants - but the process can be mired in delays.
"It took us three years - four years, rather - before we were operating, so if that's any testament to how difficult it is to get it up and running," says INSA CEO Peter Gallagher.
So far, police in Massachusetts have reported few issues with "drugged" driving. Recreational marijuana is sold in sealed bags, and how much you can buy is limited.
"You can only buy up to 28 grams a day, or its equivalency," says a worker.
Also, the recreational marijuana comes with a warning - crossing state lines with cannabis still violates federal law.
"If you ask me specifically, 'Hey, is it OK for me to take this over the border?' Then we'll explain to them, 'You know, it's not,'" says INSA COO Pat Gottschlicht.
Retail sales won't start in Connecticut for at least another year.
Massachusetts has 341 cannabis stores, but only one-fourth are considered "Disadvantaged Business Enterprises." Those businesses are owned by ethnic minorities, women, LGBTQIA+ owners and veterans.