Rhode Island Code of Regulations › Title 230 - Department of Business Regulation › Chapter 80 - Marijuana › Subchapter 05 - Medical Marijuana › Part 1 - Rules and Regulations Related to the Medical Marijuana Program Administered by the Office of Cannabis Regulation at the Department of Business Regulation › Section 230-RICR-80-05-1.1 - Definitions and Authority

Current through June 14, 2024
1.1.1
Definitions
A. The following
				  definitions are for terms used in this Part, including but not limited to many
				  of the relevant definitions from R.I. Gen. Laws §§
											21-28.6-3 and
				  21-28-1.02.
1. "Act" means R.I. Gen. Laws Chapter 21-28.6
				  entitled, "The Edward O. Hawkins and Thomas C. Slater Medical Marijuana Act,"
				  as amended.
2. "Advertising" means
				  the act or practice of calling public attention to one's product or
				  service.
3. "Agent" means an agent
				  of a marijuana establishment licensee including but not limited to "testing
				  agents."
4. "Authorized purchaser"
				  means a natural person who is at least twenty-one (21) years old and who is
				  registered with DOH for the purposes of assisting a qualifying patient in
				  purchasing marijuana from a compassion center. An authorized purchaser may
				  assist no more than one patient and is prohibited from consuming marijuana
				  obtained for the use of the qualifying patient. An authorized purchaser shall
				  be registered with DOH and shall possesses a valid registry identification
				  card.
5. "Cannabis" means all parts
				  of the plant of the genus marijuana, also known as marijuana sativa L., whether
				  growing or not; the seeds thereof; the resin extracted from any part of the
				  plant; and every compound, manufacture, salt, derivative, mixture, or
				  preparation of the plant, its seeds, or resin regardless of cannabinoid content
				  or cannabinoid potency including "marijuana," and "industrial hemp" or
				  "industrial hemp products" which satisfy the requirements of R.I. Gen. Laws
				  Chapter 2-26.
6. "Cannabis testing
				  laboratory" means a third-party analytical testing laboratory licensed by DOH,
				  in coordination with the DBR regulations, to collect and test samples of
				  cannabis.
7. "Cardholder" means a
				  person who has been registered or licensed with DOH or DBR pursuant to the Act
				  and possesses a valid registry identification card or license. As used in this
				  regulation, "cardholder" includes:
a. A
				  registered primary caregiver, or
b.
				  A person registered with DBR as a principal officer, board member, employee,
				  volunteer, or agent of a compassion center, licensed medical marijuana
				  cultivator, cannabis testing lab or any other DBR medical marijuana
				  licensee.
8. "CBD" means
				  cannabidiol, which is a cannabinoid found in the cannabis plant.
9. "Child-Resistant" shall mean packaging in
				  accordance with the Poison Prevention Packaging Act of 1970, 16 C.F.R. Part
				  1700, incorporated below at §
												1.1.7(A)   of this Part.
10. "Commercial unit" means a building or
				  other space within a commercial or industrial building, for use by one business
				  or person and that is rented or owned by that business or person.
11. "Compassion center" means a
				  not-for-profit corporation, subject to the provisions of R.I. Gen. Laws Chapter
				  7-6, and is licensed under R.I. Gen. Laws §
												21-28.6-12, that acquires,
				  possesses, cultivates, manufactures, delivers, transfers, transports, supplies,
				  or dispenses medical marijuana, and or related supplies and education
				  materials, to patient cardholders and/or their registered caregiver, cardholder
				  or authorized purchaser.
12.
				  "Compassion center cardholder" means a principal officer, board member,
				  employee, volunteer, or agent of a compassion center who has registered with
				  DBR and has been issued and possesses a valid registry identification
				  card.
13. "DBR," "Department" or
				  "Office" shall refer to the Office of Cannabis Regulation within the Rhode
				  Island Department of Business Regulation or its successor agency.
14. "DBR regulations" means these
				  Regulations, the Rules and Regulations Related to the Medical Marijuana Program
				  Administered by the Office of Cannabis Regulation at the Department of Business
				  Regulation.
15. "Debilitating
				  medical condition" means:
a. Cancer,
				  glaucoma, positive status for human immunodeficiency virus, acquired immune
				  deficiency syndrome, Hepatitis C, post-traumatic stress disorder, or the
				  treatment of these conditions;
b. A
				  chronic or debilitating disease or medical condition, or its treatment, that
				  produces one or more of the following: cachexia or wasting syndrome; severe,
				  debilitating, chronic pain; severe nausea; seizures, including but not limited
				  to, those characteristic of epilepsy; or severe and persistent muscle spasms,
				  including but not limited to, those characteristic of multiple sclerosis or
				  Crohn's disease; or agitation of Alzheimer's Disease; or c. Any other medical
				  condition or its treatment approved by DOH, as provided for in R.I. Gen. Laws
				  §
													21-28.6-5.
16. "DEM" means the Rhode Island Department
				  of Environmental Management or its successor agency.
17. "Department of Public Safety" or "RISP"
				  means the Rhode Island Department of Public Safety, Division of State Police,
				  or its successor agency.
18. "DOH"
				  means the Rhode Island Department of Health or its successor agency.
19. "DOH regulations" means the Rules and
				  Regulations related to the Medical Marijuana Program Administered by the
				  Department of Health, 216-RICR- 20-10-3, as the same may be amended from time
				  to time, and the DOH Testing Regulations.
20. "DOH testing regulations" means the
				  testing requirements, standards, and procedures for conduct of testing through
				  "approved third party testing providers" to be promulgated by DOH, including
				  but not limited to 216-RICR- 60-05-6.
21. "Dwelling unit" means the room, or group
				  of rooms, within a residential dwelling used or intended for use by one family
				  or household, or by no more than (3) unrelated individuals, with facilities for
				  living, sleeping, sanitation, cooking, and eating.
22. "Handbill" means a flyer, leaflet or
				  sheet that advertises marijuana.
23. "Interest holders" or "Key persons" means
				  with respect to an applicant or licensed entity, the following persons or
				  entities:
a. All persons and/or entities with
				  any ownership interest with respect to the applicant/licensee, including parent
				  companies if the applicant licensee is a subsidiary of another entity, and
b. All officers, directors,
				  members, managers or agents of the applicant/licensee, and any other entities
				  described in §
													1.1(A)(23) (a)   of this Part, and
c. All persons or entities with managing or
				  operational control with respect to the applicant/licensee, its operation, any
				  other entities described in §§
													1.1(A)(23)(a) and (b)   of this Part, the
				  license and/or licensed facilities whether they have an ownership interest or
				  not, and
d. All investors or other
				  persons or entities with any financial interest with respect to the
				  applicant/licensee, any other entities described in §§
													1.1(A)(23)(a),
				  (b) and (c)   of this Part, its operations, the license, and/or licensed
				  facilities, whether they have ownership interest or not, and
e. All persons or entities that hold
				  interest(s) arising under shared management companies, management agreements,
				  or other agreements that afford third-party management or operational control
				  with respect to the applicant/licensee, its operations, the license and/or the
				  licensed facilities, and
f. To the
				  extent that any Interest Holder is an entity (corporation, partnership, LLC,
				  etc.), all Interest Holders in that entity and all Interest Holders therein
				  down to the individual person level.
24. "Licensed cooperative cultivation" means
				  a cooperative cultivation that is required to obtain a license from DBR
				  pursuant to R.I. Gen. Laws §
												21-28.6-14.
25. "Licensed medical marijuana cultivator"
				  means a person or entity, as identified in R.I. Gen. Laws §
												43-3-6, who has been licensed by
				  DBR to cultivate medical marijuana pursuant to R.I. Gen. Laws §
												21-28.6-16.
26. "Marijuana" means all parts of the plant
				  cannabis sativa L., whether growing or not; the seeds of the plant; the resin
				  extracted from any part of the plant; and every compound, manufacture, salt,
				  derivative, mixture, or preparation of the plant, its seeds or resin, but shall
				  not include the mature stalks of the plant, fiber produced from the stalks, oil
				  or cake made from the seeds of the plant, any other compound, manufacture,
				  salt, derivative, mixture, or preparation of mature stalks, (except the resin
				  extracted from it), fiber, oil or cake, or the sterilized seed from the plant
				  which is incapable of germination. Marijuana shall not include hemp as defined
				  in R.I. Gen. Laws §
												2-26-3. Marijuana sub-categories
				  include but are not limited to:
a. "Mature
				  marijuana plant" means a marijuana plant that has flowers or buds that are
				  readily observable by an unaided visual examination.
b. "Immature marijuana plant" means a
				  marijuana plant, rooted or unrooted with no observable flowers or
				  buds.
c. "Plant" means collectively
				  or independently "mature marijuana plants" and/or "immature marijuana plants"
				  as the context requires.
d.
				  "Unusable marijuana" means marijuana seeds, stalks, unusable roots and shall
				  not count towards any weight-based possession limits established in the
				  Act.
e. "Usable marijuana" means
				  the leaves and flowers of the marijuana plant, and any mixture or preparation
				  thereof, but does not include the sterilized seeds, stalks, and roots of the
				  plant.
f. "Dried marijuana" means
				  the leaves and flowers of the marijuana plant after the wet harvested leaves
				  and flowers of the marijuana plant have undergone the drying process and may be
				  capable of combustion.
(1) A batch of dried
				  marijuana means marijuana that is cultivated utilizing the same growing
				  practices, harvested within a 72-hour period at the same location and cured
				  under uniform conditions.
(2) A
				  batch of dried marijuana shall not exceed 10 pounds for the purpose of sampling
				  for required testing and shall not consist of more than one strain, cultivars,
				  or genetic composition.
g. "Wet marijuana" means the harvested leaves
				  and flowers of the marijuana plant before they have reached a dry state.
				  Pursuant to §
													1.14   of this Part, marijuana that has been dried and shall be
				  assumed to have yielded twenty percent (20%) of the weight of the wet
				  marijuana.
h. "Marijuana infused
				  products" means product infused with medical marijuana or an extract of medical
				  marijuana that is intended for use or consumption other than by smoking or
				  vaping, including but not limited to ingestible and edible products.
(1) "Medical edibles" or "Edible" means any
				  product consumed orally that is not otherwise considered an ingestible and is
				  approved for sale by DBR.
(2)
				  "Medical ingestible" or "Ingestible" means any topical, transdermal patch,
				  tincture, capsule or other non-edible product approved for sale by
				  DBR.
i. "Concentrate,"
				  synonymous with "extract," is any type of medical marijuana product that is
				  refined from usable marijuana into a more homogenized form of usable marijuana
				  including but not limited to hash, supercritical CO2 oil, hash oil, shatter,
				  budder, wax, infused butter, and rosin.
27. "Medical marijuana" means marijuana and
				  marijuana products which satisfy the requirements of R.I. Gen. Laws Chapter
				  21-28.6 and have been given the designation of "medical marijuana" by DBR due
				  to dose, potency, form or other characteristic. Medical marijuana products are
				  only available for use by patient cardholders and may only be sold to or
				  possessed by patient cardholders, or their registered caregiver, or authorized
				  purchaser in accordance with the Act. Medical marijuana may not be sold to,
				  possessed by, manufactured by, or used except as permitted under R.I. Gen. Laws
				  Chapter 21-28.6 and any regulations promulgated thereunder.
28. "Medical marijuana emporium" means any
				  establishment, facility or club, whether operated for-profit or nonprofit, or
				  any commercial unit, at which the sale, distribution, transfer or use of
				  medical marijuana or medical marijuana products is proposed and/or occurs to,
				  by or among registered patients, registered caregivers, authorized purchaser
				  cardholders or any other person. This shall not include a compassion center
				  regulated and licensed by DBR pursuant to the terms of R.I. Gen. Laws Chapter
				  21-28.6.
29. "Marijuana
				  establishment licensee" means any person or entity licensed by DBR or DOH under
				  the Act whose license permits it to engage in or conduct activities in
				  connection with the medical marijuana program. "Marijuana establishment
				  licensees" shall include compassion centers, medical marijuana cultivators, and
				  cannabis testing laboratories.
30.
				  "Material financial interest or control" means:
a. Any ownership interest, regardless of the
				  size of the holding, and including any ownership interest through a subsidiary
				  or affiliate;
b. Trusteeship,
				  mortgage, guarantor, endorser or surety relationship, or loan relationship,
				  except that loan relationship for the purposes of this definition shall exclude
				  accounts payable and accounts receivable on account of a medical marijuana
				  purchase order;
c. Any other
				  beneficial financial interest as determined by DBR such that the holder bears
				  the risk of loss (other than as an insurer) or has an opportunity to gain
				  profit from the operation or sale of the regulated medical marijuana business;
				  and/or
d. Managerial or operational
				  control, including but not limited to interlocking directors or officers or
				  through a management agreement.
31. "Medical marijuana plant tag set" or
				  "plant tag" or "plant tag certificate" means any tag, identifier or
				  registration certificate or inventory tracking system authorized or issued by
				  DBR or which DBR requires be used for the lawful possession and cultivation of
				  medical marijuana plants in accordance with R.I. Gen. Laws Chapter 21-28.6.
a. A "plant set" or "set" is defined as one
				  (1) mature plant and one (1) immature plant.
32. "Medical marijuana program tracking
				  system" means any system(s) designated by DBR and/or DOH designed and used to
				  record and track all "seed to sale" activities and transactions which may
				  include the use of unique identifiers. The Medical Marijuana Program Tracking
				  System may also be used for registration, licensing, and tagging applications,
				  renewals, change of information, and communications, as well as to record
				  and/or report any other additional information directed by DBR and/or
				  DOH.
33. "Medical use" means the
				  acquisition, possession, cultivation, manufacture, use, delivery, transfer, or
				  transportation of medical marijuana or paraphernalia relating to the
				  consumption of marijuana to alleviate a patient cardholder's debilitating
				  medical condition or symptoms associated with the medical condition in
				  accordance with the provisions of R.I. Gen. Laws Chapter 21-28.6.
34. "Print media" means any publication made
				  physically available.
35. "Process
				  validation" means the collection and evaluation of data from the process design
				  stage throughout production, which establishes scientific evidence that a
				  process is capable of consistently delivering quality products.
36. "Qualifying patient" means a person who
				  has been certified by a practitioner as having a debilitating medical condition
				  and is a resident of Rhode Island.
37. "Quarantine" means the storage and/or
				  identification of marijuana, marijuana product, medical marijuana or medical
				  marijuana product, to prevent distribution or transfer of the product, in a
				  physically separate area clearly identified for such use or through other
				  procedures as defined by DBR.
38.
				  "Radio" means a system for transmitting sound without visual images, and
				  includes broadcast, cable, on-demand, satellite or internet programming. Radio
				  includes any audio programming downloaded or streamed via the internet such as
				  podcasts.
39. "Related party
				  transactions" means and includes, but is not limited to, transactions between
				  and/or among:
a. An entity/applicant/licensee
				  and its principal owners, management, key persons/interest holders and/or
				  parent, affiliates, or members of "any person within his or her family," as
				  defined in 520-RICR- 00-00-1.3;
b.
				  Parties with which the entity/applicant/licensee may deal if one party controls
				  or can materially influence the management or operating policies of the other
				  to an extent that one of the transacting parties might be prevented from fully
				  pursuing its own separate interests; or
c. Other parties that can materially
				  influence the management or operating policies of the transacting parties or
				  that have an ownership interest in one of the transacting parties and can
				  materially influence the other to an extent that one or more of the transacting
				  parties might be prevented from fully pursuing its own separate
				  interests.
40. "Registry
				  identification card" means a document issued by DOH or DBR, as applicable, that
				  identifies a person as a registered qualifying patient, a registered primary
				  caregiver, or authorized purchaser, or a document issued by DBR or DOH that
				  identifies a person as a registered principal officer, board member, employee,
				  volunteer, or agent of a compassion center, licensed medical marijuana
				  cultivator, cannabis testing lab or any other marijuana establishment
				  licensee.
41. "Seed to sale" means
				  all medical marijuana program regulated activities and transactions from point
				  of origin to the point of sale. Seed to sale activities and transactions
				  include but are not limited to: all cultivation, harvest, processing,
				  manufacturing, and packaging and labeling; all purchases, acquisitions or third
				  party supply of marijuana; all sales and dispensing transactions; any other
				  transfers of marijuana as permitted by the Act and any regulations promulgated
				  thereunder; any instances of destruction of marijuana; and testing compliance
				  tracking.
42. "Television" means a
				  system for transmitting visual images and sound that are reproduced on screens,
				  and includes broadcast, cable, on-demand, satellite, or internet programming.
				  Television includes any video programming downloaded or streamed via the
				  internet.
43. "Testing agent" means
				  an employee of an approved cannabis testing laboratory or other entity who
				  performs independent testing of medical marijuana and/or marijuana products in
				  accordance with the DOH Testing Regulations.
44. "THCA" means tetrahydrocannabinolic acid,
				  which is a cannabinoid found in the cannabis plant.
45. "THC" means delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol,
				  which is a psychoactive cannabinoid found in the cannabis plant.
46. "Total potential THC" means the potential
				  amount of total THC found in a cannabis plant or product by using the equation
				  Total Potential THC = (.877 x THCA%) + THC% or another equation or methodology
				  approved by DBR and/or DOH.
47.
				  "Volunteer" is a registration that only applies to compassion centers and shall
				  be limited to compassion center persons whose volunteer activities and use of
				  compassion center resources is strictly limited to participation in educational
				  programming conducted for compassion center cardholders and registered
				  qualifying patients, primary caregivers, and authorized purchasers. Volunteers
				  shall not be permitted to be otherwise involved in the growth, cultivation,
				  weighing, packaging or labeling, manufacturing, processing, dispensing or sale
				  of medical marijuana.