Maryland Adopts New Marijuana Rules Allowing THC Sublingual Pouches, Licensing Extensions
- The Maryland Cannabis Administration finalized a comprehensive set of marijuana regulations effective September 14, introducing a new category for THC-containing sublingual pouches along with updates to licensing, packaging, cultivation, and dispensary rules.
- The new sublingual pouches, defined as permeable sachets dissolving under the tongue or cheek, can be sold to adults 21+ and qualifying medical patients, with limits of 10 mg THC per serving and 100 mg per package, and must include specific warnings and cannabis symbols on packaging.
- Packaging rules were revised to remove the requirement for “plain” packaging while maintaining opacity and banning youth-appealing elements such as cartoons, neon colors, and mascots to protect minors.
- Additional provisions include extended operational deadlines for conditional licensees, stricter corrective actions for growers with repeated testing failures, worker protections, changes to dispensary operations, and requirements for micro dispensaries to provide health and safety info on delivery orders.
Maryland has finalized a broad package of marijuana regulations that will create a new category of THC-containing sublingual pouches while changing licensing, packaging, cultivation and dispensary requirements across the state’s legal cannabis market.
The Maryland Cannabis Administration adopted the regulations August 13, with the final action published in the September 4 edition of the Maryland Register. The changes take effect September 14. The package was adopted with only nonsubstantive changes from the version proposed in June.
Among the most notable provisions is the creation of a regulated category for cannabis sublingual pouches. The rules define the products as permeable sachets containing concentrated cannabis products that are intended to dissolve in the mouth and be absorbed through the cheek or under the tongue.
The pouches may be sold to adults 21 and older as well as qualifying medical marijuana patients and registered caregivers. Unless specifically authorized otherwise by regulators, the products may contain no more than 10 milligrams of THC per serving and 100 milligrams per package.
Packages must carry a warning stating that the pouches are not intended to be heated, burned or swallowed. Individual pouches must also display Maryland’s universal cannabis symbol or, when marking the pouch itself is impractical, be individually wrapped in packaging bearing the symbol.
The regulations also loosen one existing packaging restriction while expanding protections intended to prevent products from appealing to minors. Cannabis packaging will still be required to be opaque, but the existing requirement that it also be “plain” is being removed. At the same time, the rules specifically prohibit youth-oriented elements including cartoons, animals, neon colors, celebrities, mascots and certain anthropomorphic graphics.
Conditional marijuana licensees will also gain additional time to become operational. The Cannabis Administration will be allowed to approve up to two extensions of as long as six months each for businesses that demonstrate consistent good-faith efforts to establish operations. The existing regulations provided for a one-time extension.
Other provisions establish new corrective and preventive action requirements for growers experiencing repeated testing failures, including contamination investigations and decontamination procedures. Growers must also comply with minimum labor standards and maintain policies addressing discrimination, harassment and retaliation.
The package additionally makes changes to dispensary operations and administrative hearing procedures and allows regulators to require micro dispensaries to provide health and safety information with delivery orders.
The regulations become effective statewide on September 14.