Maine Drops Residency Requirement Over Constitutionality Concerns

When Maine enacted the Marijuana Legalization Act in 2018 the legislature included one of the most stringent residency requirements in the nation. In order to obtain a license, an applicant had to be majority owned by individuals who were Maine residents for the past four years. Earlier this week Maine's Attorney General conceded that the residency requirement was likely unconstitutional and Maine's Office of Marijuana Policy announced that it would no longer enforce the requirement.

The Attorney General's Office announced its position on the residency requirement in response to a recent lawsuit. Wellness Connection, a major player in Maine's medical marijuana market, sued the state in federal court, arguing that the requirement violated the dormant Commerce Clause of the U.S. Constitution. The Attorney General stated that the requirement was not likely to survive the constitutional challenge and that he would no longer defend the provision.