Hartford County Cannabis

Is Cannabis Cultivation Legal in Hartford County?

Cultivating cannabis in Hartford County for medical and adult use is legal by virtue of the State of Connecticut’s Public Act 12-55 in 2012, the Palliative Use of Marijuana Act, and Public Act 21-1 in 2021, the Responsible and Equitable Regulation of Adult-Use Cannabis Act (RERACA). If 10% of a municipality’s voters request a referendum on whether to allow adult-use cannabis businesses within their jurisdiction, the Act permits the vote.

In Hartford County, adult-use cannabis businesses are allowed in the following municipalities:

• Bloomfield
• Bristol
• Canton
• East Hartford
• East Windsor
• Enfield
• Farmington
• Hartford
• Manchester
• New Britain
• Newington
• South Windsor
• Suffield
• West Hartford

Adult-use cannabis businesses are banned in the following Hartford County municipalities:

• Avon
• Southington

The following Hartford County municipalities have a moratorium on adult-use cannabis businesses:

• Rocky Hill
• Simsbury
• Windsor (moratorium has been extended indefinitely)
• Windsor Locks

Currently, there are no update on the stand of the following Hartford County municipalities on adult-use cannabis businesses:

• Berlin
• Burlington
• East Granby
• Glastonbury
• Hartland
• Marlborough
• Plainville
• Wethersfield

According to RERACA, however, all municipalities must allow the personal home cultivation of cannabis by medical marijuana cardholders aged 18 and above from October 1, 2021, and by any adult aged 21 and above. Each qualified person may have a maximum of three immature plants and three mature plants. If several qualified adults live in the same household, the maximum number of plants they can have there is 12. Cannabis personal home cultivation must be indoors and not seen from outside the home. Personal growers must ensure that minors are unable to access cannabis plants or their byproducts.

Companies that intend to commercially cultivate cannabis in Hartford County municipalities that allow it must first apply for an adult-use cannabis micro-cultivator license or an adult-use cannabis cultivator license with the State of Connecticut’s Department of Consumer Protection (DCP). A licensee can only have either one.

The adult-use cannabis micro-cultivator licensee is permitted to grow cannabis in an area measuring only from 2,000 to 10,000 square feet. The DCP may authorize an expansion to a maximum of 25,000 square feet. If the company wishes to grow more, it may apply for a cultivator license conversion. The initial lottery application fee is $250, with a $500 provisional application fee, and a $1,000 final license fee.

The adult-use cannabis cultivator license is allowed to grow cannabis in an area measuring a minimum of 15,000 square feet but may have more. The initial lottery application fee is $1,000, with a $25,000 provisional application fee, and a $75,000 final license fee.

Current holders of the producer license for cultivating cannabis for medical use only may apply to convert to an expanded producer license to be able to cultivate cannabis for adult use, as well. No new producer licenses are being granted.

All cannabis cultivators may grow their crops outdoors but must keep these hidden from public sight.

Is Cannabis Manufacturing Legal in Hartford County?

Manufacturing medical and adult-use cannabis products in Hartford County is legal as mandated by Public Acts 12-55 and 21-1, but only in the 14 municipalities that allow it, as listed above.

Companies that intend to commercially manufacture medical and adult-use cannabis products in Hartford County municipalities that allow it must first apply with the DCP for the adult-use cannabis product manufacturer license or the adult-use cannabis food and beverage manufacturer license. A company can only hold either one.

The adult-use cannabis product manufacturer licensee is authorized to do cannabis product manufacturing, packaging, and labeling. The lottery application fee is $750, with a $5,000 provisional application fee, and a $25,000 final license fee.

The adult-use cannabis food and beverage manufacturer licensee is authorized to infuse or incorporate cannabis as an ingredient in the foods and beverages it manufactures. The lottery application fee is $250, with a $1,000 provisional application fee, and a $5,000 final license fee.

Medical and adult-use cannabis in the form of foods and beverages are only allowed to contain up to five milligrams of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) in every serving. A packaged product that contains several servings must not contain over 100 milligrams of THC. Beverages must be packaged only in single servings.

Is Cannabis Retail Legal in Hartford County?

Medical and adult-use cannabis retail in Hartford County is legal as stipulated by Public Acts 12-55 and 21-1, but only in the 14 municipalities that voted for it, as named previously.

Companies that intend to sell medical and adult-use cannabis and cannabis products by retail in Hartford County municipalities that welcome them must first obtain from the DCP the adult-use cannabis retailer license or an adult-use cannabis hybrid retailer license. They can only have either one.

The adult-use cannabis retailer licensee may only sell adult-use cannabis to adults aged 21 or older. The adult-use cannabis hybrid retailer licensee may sell both medical cannabis to medical marijuana cardholders and adult-use cannabis to adults aged 21 or older. Both licenses require a $500 lottery application fee, a $5,000 provisional application fee, and a $25,000 final license fee.

No new medical cannabis dispensary licenses are being granted by the DCP. Current medical cannabis dispensary license holders may apply for a license conversion to an adult-use cannabis hybrid retailer license.

According to a report from the DCP, licensed retailers began selling adult-use cannabis and cannabis products on January 10, 2023. Medical marijuana cardholders are allowed to buy a maximum of five ounces of medical cannabis each month. In an update, adults aged 21 and older who are not cardholders can only purchase up to ¼ ounce per transaction.

Only medical marijuana cardholders are allowed to purchase cannabis in sublingual, pill, tablet, capsule, and suppository forms. Medical marijuana cardholders and adults aged 21 and older are allowed to purchase all other forms of cannabis and cannabis products, including cannabis-infused foods and beverages.

Is Cannabis Delivery Legal in Hartford County?

Delivering medical and adult-use cannabis and cannabis products throughout Hartford County is legal because RERACA prohibits its banning by any municipality. However, delivery must be done by a DCP-licensed adult-use cannabis delivery service or an adult-use cannabis transporter.

The adult-use cannabis delivery service licensee is authorized to deliver cannabis and cannabis products purchased from licensed retailers by medical marijuana cardholders or adults aged 21 and above. It comes with a $250 lottery application fee, a $1,000 provisional application fee, and a $5,000 final license fee.

The adult-use cannabis transporter licensee is authorized to deliver cannabis and cannabis products among licensed cannabis businesses only. It requires the same fees.

Up to 30 days from the time that the first five licensed adult-use cannabis delivery services start operating, RERACA permits currently existing medical cannabis dispensaries to deliver medical cannabis purchases to medical cannabis cardholders.

How to Get a Medical Marijuana Card in Hartford County

Residents of Hartford County may apply for a medical marijuana card from the State of Connecticut’s Medical Marijuana Program provided they are not prison inmates. They must be being treated by an eligible medical doctor, physician assistant, or advanced practice registered nurse for the listed qualifying debilitating conditions.

Adult applicants must have been diagnosed to have one of the following illnesses:

• Terminal illness
• Glaucoma
• Parkinson’s disease
• Cancer
• HIV/AIDS
• Epilepsy
• Severe psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis
• Multiple sclerosis
• Damage to the spinal cord with intractable spasticity
• Wasting syndrome
• Irreversible spinal cord injury with intractable spasticity
• Cachexia
• Crohn's disease
• PTSD
• Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
• Complex regional pain syndrome, Type I and Type II
• Cerebral palsy
• Fibromyalgia with spasticity or neuropathic pain
• Cystic fibrosis
• Uncontrolled intractable seizure disorder
• Postherpetic neuralgia
• Severe rheumatoid arthritis
• Intractable headache syndromes
• Post-laminectomy syndrome with chronic radiculopathy
• Neuropathic facial pain
• Hydrocephalus with intractable headache
• Osteogenesis imperfecta
• Degenerative spinal disorders with chronic neuropathic pain
• Ulcerative colitis
• Muscular dystrophy
• Median Arcuate Ligament Syndrome (MALS)
• Vulvodynia and vulvar burning
• Interstitial cystitis
• Intractable neuropathic pain unresponsive to standard medical treatments
• Tourette Syndrome
• Sickle cell disease
• Chronic Pain of at least 6 months from a chronic condition
• Ehlers-Danlos syndrome with chronic pain
• Chronic pancreatitis
• Huntington's Disease with movement disorders

Applicants under the age of 18 must have been diagnosed to have one of the following medical conditions:

• Terminal illness
• Cerebral palsy
• Irreversible spinal cord injury with intractable spasticity
• Uncontrolled intractable seizure disorder
• Muscular dystrophy
• Cystic fibrosis
• Severe epilepsy
• Intractable neuropathic pain unresponsive to standard medical treatments
• Tourette syndrome unresponsive to standard medical treatment
• Osteogenesis imperfecta
• Chronic pancreatitis with recalcitrant pain

The eligible health practitioner must create a Business Network Account on the Medical Marijuana Program’s online registration system and post the email address and primary telephone number of the patient and any needed caregiver.

If the patient is a minor, two eligible health practitioners must be involved, of which one must be currently managing the patient’s treatment for the diagnosed illness. One of the eligible health practitioners will provide the online certification while the other must provide a letter of certification to the patient’s parents or guardian stating that medical marijuana treatment is in the patient’s best interest.

The patient must continue the registration process online by also creating a Business Network Account using the same address. This necessitates the uploading of proofs of identity and state residency, as well as details of any needed caregiver. There is a $100 patient registration fee and a $25 caregiver registration fee.

The adult patient or caregiver will receive the medical cannabis card in the mail. Patients who are minors will not be given cards. The caregiver’s card will be used in purchasing medical cannabis and the underaged patient’s records will be checked on the registry online.

Further information may be requested from the DCP through these channels:

Phone: (860) 713-6066

E-mail: dcp.mmp@ct.gov

How Has Cannabis Legalization Impacted the Economy of Hartford County?

The DCP reports that only adult-use cannabis is taxed. Since retail sales began in January 2023, the total sales of adult-use cannabis throughout the State of Connecticut reached $5.1 million. Total sales of medical cannabis, meanwhile, reached $8.2 million within that time frame.

There are three types of taxes that adult-use cannabis and cannabis products are subject to. There is a 10% to 15% tax meted according to the THC content of the item, a state sales tax of 6.35%, and a sales tax of 3% for the city or town where the cannabis or cannabis product was bought. Hartford County will, therefore, earn sales tax revenues only in the 14 municipalities that allow adult-use cannabis businesses.

The Effects of Cannabis Legalization on Crime Rates in Hartford County

Medical cannabis in the State of Connecticut was legalized in 2012, and adult-use cannabis was legalized in 2021.

Data from the Crime in Connecticut Arrest Trends report of the Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection Crimes Analysis Unit shows that in 2012, the earliest data available, there were 10,338 arrests for drug abuse violations and 9,276 DUI arrests in the state. These decreased in 2021 to 3,597 arrests for drug abuse violations and 6,173 DUI arrests in the state.