The rules governing Minnesota’s adult-use cannabis industry are formally adopted and in effect, after being approved by an administrative law judge and published in the State Register on Monday, April 14.
Download the rules as sent to the administrative law judge.
Read the press release announcing the publishing of final cannabis rules in the State Register and the press release announcing the ALJ’s approval of the final draft rules.
This important milestone sets up the final step in launching Minnesota’s cannabis market, allowing OCM to begin issuing business licenses to applicants who have completed all necessary steps in the application process.
Rulemaking is a multistep process involving substantial public input, where state offices propose detailed rules to implement Minnesota Statutes. In drafting the rules, OCM conducted a series of surveys that focused on specific rulemaking topics and held meetings with partners and interested parties, including cannabis management offices from other states.
OCM shared a preliminary draft of the proposed rules with the public seeking feedback in summer 2024. After incorporating changes based on that feedback, the office submitted a Notice of Intent to Adopt Expedited Rules on Jan. 7, 2025, and posted its formal draft for public comment for 30 days from Jan. 13 to Feb. 12. After incorporating additional changes based on public comments, OCM submitted the final draft rules to an administrative law judge (ALJ) with the Office of Administrative Hearings on March 25. The ALJ approved the rules without changes on April 2. Upon approval, the final rules were published in the State Register on April 14, as the State Register publishes on Mondays, putting the rules into effect.
