Vermont industry urges lawmakers to ease testing, licensing and retail rules to shore up small growers and patients

At a roundtable convened by the Government Operations & Military Affairs committee, cannabis growers, retailers and patient advocates urged lawmakers to change testing rules, licensing fees and retail policies that they said are squeezing small Vermont producers and limiting patient access.

Speakers said the adult-use market's structure — from multi-tiered cultivation licenses and annual product registration to testing requirements and local "opt in" rules for retail — is creating oversupply, high compliance costs and crowded retail markets in towns such as Burlington and Morrisville. They called on legislators to use the forthcoming miscellaneous cannabis bill and rulemaking processes to address those issues.

The case for change: why it matters

Small, outdoor farmers and patient advocates said current policy favors large indoor producers, raises costs for small operators and leaves patients with limited, sometimes pricier, options. "I pay $8,500," said Lieutenant Governor John Rogers, Farmers Underground, describing his outdoor tier-4 license fee. "A good tier 1 grower indoor can grow the same amount of value that I can." Testifiers added that costly, frequent testing and busy product-registration workflows make small operations economically precarious.

What industry and patient witnesses asked for

Testing and product safety: Multiple witnesses asked the Cannabis Control Board and lawmakers to reconsider Aspergillus testing and other pathogen/pesticide protocols. Tito Byrne, co-founder of Burn Legacy and Burn Gallery, told the committee that "Aspergillus is everywhere" and criticized the testing regime as both scientifically shaky and expensive; he said the initial Aspergillus test costs $126 and that follow-up testing can raise the bill to about $378 for a single lot. Jessie Lynn Dolan, a registered nurse and medical cannabis advocate, urged reestablishing a medical advisory panel and stronger medical education for retail staff, and warned that an app the Cannabis Control Board recommended for patient education — CANify — "does not seem to be enough." She also said the medical hotline that previously staffed nurses closed in April 2024.

Licensing, tiers and fees: Testimony said the five-tier cultivation structure and low fees for large indoor operations have contributed to oversupply. Nick Smith, co-owner of Emerald Visions, proposed increasing fees for larger indoor licenses and even expanding the tier system from five to 10 steps so larger operations pay substantially more. Several speakers asked legislators to revisit the opt-in local licensing model and consider switching to opt-out so retail would diffuse geographically instead of concentrating in a few towns.

Market structure and direct sales: Retailers and cultivators urged permitting direct-to-consumer sales or limited "farmer's market" style events so small farms can capture retail value. Ashley Sorrentino of New England Cannabis Partners and others backed directing tax revenue to equity and business development programs; Sorrentino said she supports using "at least $1,000,000 of the cannabis excise revenue to go to the cannabis business development fund" and allocating 25% of a recommended fund to the Land Access and Opportunity Board.

Administrative burdens: Several speakers asked for longer license and ID cycles. Sam Bellavance of Sunset Lake CBD told the committee that Vermont currently has about 4,746 registered products requiring annual review, creating an administrative backlog; he proposed switching product registration to a biannual cycle. Nathan Liberty of Green Mountain Scientific and others recommended extending license and employee ID renewals to two years to reduce repeated annual paperwork.

Medical program concerns: Patient advocates pressed for clearer medical-program rules and easier access to medical cards. Michelle Chapman of Highly Rooted and Jessie Lynn Dolan said medical professionals are often reluctant to sign patient paperwork and asked for an advisory panel to assess qualifying conditions and help patients who cannot obtain a physician endorsement.

Public consumption and tourism: Retail owners argued that Vermont's public-consumption rules are stricter than alcohol or tobacco rules and hurt tourism. Bailey Evans, owner of Higher Elevation, said, "Vermont is missing out on major tourism revenue stream by allowing public consumption laws to discourage cannabis tourism," and urged lawmakers to align public-consumption rules with tobacco or alcohol standards to create legal, safe consumption spaces for renters, visitors and medical patients.

Other operational requests: Testimony included proposals to allow curbside or limited delivery service for vulnerable customers, raise plant-count limits for registered medical growers, change THC caps and potency rules that some witnesses said penalize small producers, and review packaging rules that send manufacturers to overseas glass suppliers.

Committee response and next steps

Committee members said the draft of a miscellaneous cannabis bill is being prepared and that Representative Lucy Boyden was identified as a primary point of contact for stakeholders as lawmakers draft statutory changes and consider rulemaking authority. No formal votes or motions were taken at the roundtable; the session was a fact‑gathering hearing to inform legislative drafting and board rulemaking.

The roundtable drew a mix of cultivators, manufacturers, retailers and patient advocates and underscored competing priorities for safety, market stability and equity as Vermont's regulated adult‑use market matures.