7.5 years into legalization: Maine's cannabis landscape in 2024

Maine's journey with legal cannabis continues to unfold, and the state has seen significant progress since voters approved adult-use legalization in 2016. Here's a snapshot of the key aspects of Maine's cannabis landscape:

Adult-Use Cannabis:

• Personal Use and Cultivation:
• Possession: Adults 21 and older can possess up to 2.5 ounces of a combination of cannabis flower, concentrates, and products, and  up to 5 grams of cannabis concentrate. 
• Home Cultivation: Individuals can cultivate up to three mature cannabis plants at their private residence or on another adult’s property with written permission. It is important to note that municipalities can opt-out of allowing home cultivation, so checking local regulations is crucial. 
• Retail Sales: The industry has flourished, with over 170 licensed retail stores currently operating across the state, according to the Office of Marijuana Policy (OMP). This substantial increase from the initial 37 in 2021 demonstrates the expanding market and consumer demand. 
• Regulations: The regulatory framework continues to evolve. In 2022, the OMP implemented new rules aimed at enhancing product safety and consumer protection. These changes included stricter testing requirements and packaging standards.
• Taxes and Revenue: Since the inception of adult-use sales, Maine has collected over $500 million in tax revenue from cannabis sales. These funds are allocated towards various state programs, including education and infrastructure.

Medical Cannabis:

• Qualifying: Maine’s medical cannabis law has significantly expanded over the years. There is no longer a specific list of qualifying conditions. Doctors can issue a certification using this online servicefor any qualifying condition.
• Patient Access: Patients can cultivate their own cannabis, purchase cannabis at a medical cannabis dispensary or adult use store, or can access cannabis via designated caregivers.  

Reform Work Isn’t Done

Although cannabis has been legal for several years in Maine, the state’s cannabis laws lag behind several others in important areas of cannabis justice and liberty. After voters approved legalization in 2016, the legislature rewrote the peoples’ law, removing important non-discrimination protections and on-site consumption. Several cannabis policy bills have been introduced in 2024, many of which would restore the will of voters. Issues being debated  include:

• Employment and non-discrimination protections (LD1311): While Maine voters legalized adult-use cannabis, they included protections to prevent cannabis workers from being fired for off-hours cannabis use and to otherwise stop cannabis consumers’ lives from being ruined. The legislature repealed those protections, and advocates are pushing to restore them.
• On-site consumption (LD1952): Despite its inclusion in the voter initiative, Maine lawmakers prohibited  on-site consumption of cannabis during implementation. This issue remains a point of discussion, with some advocating for its inclusion in future regulations.
• Expungements (LD1789): As with most other legalization states, discussions surrounding cannabis expungement are gaining traction in Maine. Legislative proposals aim to provide individuals with past cannabis convictions a chance to clear their records and create a more equitable cannabis ecosystem.

Maine's cannabis landscape must prioritize justice and equity, upholding the will of the voters who established a legal cannabis market. MPP remains committed to ensuring responsible regulations and public safety measures are implemented fairly and exclusively, offering all Mainers the opportunity to benefit from this evolving space.

Historic victory in 2016: The Yes on 1 Campaign

The Marijuana Policy Project has been involved in crafting sensible cannabis policies in Maine since 2009. MPP helped draft and finance the 2009 ballot initiative that improved and expanded Maine’s medical cannabis program. In 2013 and 2014, we ran winning campaigns in Portland and South Portland to make small amounts of cannabis legal for adults 21 and over. These initiatives paved the way for a 2016 statewide initiative to tax and regulate cannabis like alcohol.

To lay the groundwork for statewide legalization, MPP hired David Boyer in January 2013. (David was on the MPP team until August 2019. Post-legalization, he worked on implementation and assisted with other states.) The local initiatives in 2013 and 2014 generated enormous earned media and allowed the campaign to educate voters about cannabis and the failure of prohibition policies.

Beginning in 2015, MPP formed a roundtable of advocates, members of the cannabis industry, lawyers, and lawmakers to draft the statewide initiative to legalize cannabis for adults in Maine, “An Act to Regulate and Tax Marijuana.” Another group, Legalize Maine, also launched a ballot initiative campaign, and both groups began collecting signatures in spring 2015. Urged by advocates and campaign volunteers on both sides, the two groups came to an agreement to work together: MPP would run the campaign using Legalize Maine’s initiative language.

With the campaigns united, over 100,000 signatures were submitted to the Maine Secretary of State’s office on February 1, 2016. The campaign received bad news a month later when the Secretary of State’s office announced it did not qualify for the November ballot. The state disqualified almost 30,000 signatures because a notary’s signature did not exactly match the notary’s signature on file — a handwriting technicality.

The campaign immediately announced its intention to appeal the decision and filed a lawsuit in March 2016. After making the case to the court, the judge ruled in favor and ordered the Secretary of State to re-review the signatures. In late April, the state announced that our campaign did collect enough signatures, and we qualified for the ballot! In Maine, ballot question order is random, and our campaign was lucky enough to win the coveted first question, thus becoming “Yes on 1: Regulate & Tax Marijuana.”

The campaign aired several different television ads. One of the most memorable ads featured former Cumberland County Sheriff Mark Dion voicing his support of Question 1. Ending cannabis prohibition to free up law enforcement resources was a central message of the campaign. Another key message was the millions in tax revenue that could be generated by taxing and regulating cannabis. And, there was an ad focused on pro-legalization Mainers who had been misled about the details of the initiative.

MPP’s Matthew Schweich and David Boyer managed the Yes on 1 Campaign. The Portland Press Herald, the ACLU of Maine, NORML, and numerous elected officials across Maine endorsed it. The campaign was a combination of effective TV and online advertising bolstered by on-the-ground campaigning. Volunteers across the state made phone calls, went door to door, and submitted letters-to-the editor in support of Question 1.

Question 1 turned out to be a real nail-biter, passing with 50.26% of the vote. Opponents went on to request a recount, which took place for two weeks in December. Ultimately, the Maine Secretary of State certificated Question 1’s victory by a margin of 3,995 votes — truly, every vote counts.

Timeline of cannabis policy reform in Maine

1976 – Maine’s legislature decriminalized possession of small amounts of cannabis.

1999 – Voters approved a ballot initiative legalizing medical cannabis for patients suffering from serious health issues.

2009 – Voters approved a ballot initiative expanding the state's existing medical cannabis program.

2016 – Voters approved a ballot initiative legalizing possession and cultivation of cannabis for adults and establishing a regulated cannabis market.

2020 – Regulated adult-use sales begin on October 9, 2020.

Stay connected

To stay updated on the status of marijuana policy reform in Maine, be sure to subscribe to MPP's alerts, if you haven't done so already.