Oregon to Allow Retail Marijuana Sales at Existing Medical Marijuana Dispensaries

[caption id="attachment_9038" align="alignright" width="250"] Gov. Kate Brown[/caption]

Oregon Gov. Kate Brown signed a bill Monday that would enable adult residents of the state to legally purchase marijuana starting in October. The private use, possession, and cultivation of marijuana became legal this past July, but the state has not begun accepting applications for retail permits. In order to effectively limit the operational scope of illicit market actors before a regulated system is established, representatives from both parties agreed to allow customers to purchase marijuana, tax free, from medical marijuana facilities.

"The bill ... passed with significant bipartisan support in both chambers after a great deal of work by an implementation working group," said Brown's spokeswoman Kristen Grainger.

The law is explicitly temporary and will only allow non-patients to purchase marijuana until December 31, 2016. Applications for retail dispensaries are likely to be accepted starting in January 2016. Oregonians can expect the first adult retail shops to open next autumn.