MINNEAPOLIS — When Minnesota's new law allowing hemp-derived THC edibles kicked in July 1, it surprised many, including city and county leaders across the state.
The law set the rules for maximum legal dosages for gummies, packaging, warning labels and the age of purchase. But it was fairly silent on the issue of how and where those products can be sold, and under what circumstances.
It will be up to cities and counties to lay down the ground rules for retailers until lawmakers get the chance to revisit the issue in a future session. Some cities are already beginning that discussion.
"I'm confident it's going to come up Monday night at our council meeting," Bloomington Mayor Tim Busse told KARE 11. "Sometimes legislation’s not perfect and it comes to the cities to make the rules that need to be made. We’re happy to do it."
He said the city staff has been consulting with the Minnesota League of Cities and peer communities to look for ways to regulate the new THC products that will be hitting the market.
Busse said, given Bloomington's history of being ahead of the trends when it comes to tobacco regulations, he's optimistic his fellow city council members will want to protect the public from unintended consequences of the new law.
"I expect it will follow along the lines of what we do with tobacco and alcohol within the city, but there are some other wild cards as well. I know there are other businesses who are looking to add it to their menu of operations," he said.
In Stillwater, you can expect fairly quick action by city leaders to put some rules in place for retailers.
"There are no parameters. We have to make up our own," Mayor Ted Kozlowski said. "And I think the best way to do that is to treat it the same as alcohol and tobacco – where you have to 21 years old, have to show an ID, and it needs to be behind the counter."
Kozlowski said the next question the city needs to answer is where the THC products can be sold and what types of businesses should be allowed to get into the gummy game.
Stillwater's leaders have some extra breathing room, because in November, the city council passed a moratorium on new cannabis-related businesses, in anticipation the state would eventually pass recreational marijuana
"We wanted to get ahead of it. In Stillwater right now, we're not allowing any new CBD or dispensaries or any cannabis-related retail in Stillwater," Kozlowski explained, noting that it's important to preserve the historic charm that makes the city such a popular tourist destination.
"Being such a cool destination, it would be easy to see an influx of a dozen of these shops opening up in and around Stillwater and then very quickly 90 percent of them go out of business and you have empty storefronts," he said.
The new law allows delta-9 THC and delta-8 THC to be sold, as long as the THC content is less than 5 milligrams per serving and 50 milligrams per package.
The Minnesota Board of Pharmacy currently lacks a dedicated laboratory to test products for compliance but is in the process of creating one.
The City of Edina is also preparing to adopt new regulations, according to published reports. Edina's city manager was unavailable for comment Friday.