State regulators have reached a settlement with a Vermont company that sued over retail advertising restrictions on cannabis products.
Flora Cannabis filed the lawsuit last year against the state's Cannabis Control Board. The Middlebury retailer argued the board’s advertising rules were unreasonably strict and an infringement on free speech.
Under the settlement, which has yet to receive court approval, cannabis stores would still need the board to sign off on all ads. But if the board fails to make a decision within five days, stores could proceed with the ads.
In another change, stores would now be able to promote their products on social media as long as no pictures are used. And they would no longer need the board’s approval to run in-store promotions of products.
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The settlement also calls for a simplified health warning for broadcast cannabis ads.
James Pepper, chair of the Cannabis Control Board, called the agreement a “good compromise.”
"Overall we're going to just decrease the administrative burden for the licensees, and we haven't opened the floodgates to social media advertising — you know, targeted advertising towards kids,” he said.
The owner of Flora Cannabis, Dave Silberman, said he’ll be pushing for more changes when the Vermont Legislature reconvenes next year.
"We've succeeded in making some incremental change here and then come January we'll be right back in the Legislature talking to them again about why it is that it is important to respect the constitutional rights of businesses."
