It's still another four and a half months until cannabis can legally be sold in brick and mortar stores in Ontario, but the provincial government is already getting prepared for the rollout.
Late Wednesday, the PC government announced a detailed list of some of the strict regulations coming into play for the licensing and operation of private cannabis stores - which will legally be allowed to open on April 1, 2019.
A release states that the regulations will be in place to "protect children and youth, keep communities and roads safe and combat the illegal market."
The newly announced regulations include the following:
- Stores must be a minimum distance of 150 metres away from schools, including both public and private schools, as well as federally-funded First Nation schools off-reserve.
- Retailers can't allow anyone under the age of 19 to enter their stores.
- There will be specific instances in which applicants will be denied a licence, such as if they have previous cannabis-related criminal offences, or if they were illegally operating a store within the province after October 17 - the day cannabis was legalized across the country.
- There will be a prohibition on issuing licences to individuals or organizations with links to organized crime.
- Those applying for a licence must show their tax compliance status as proof of being in good standing with the government.
- All private recreational cannabis retail storefronts are required to be stand-alone stores only.
- Anyone with a store authorization, all managers and all employees must complete an approved training course to ensure they're selling cannabis responsibly.
Once open, business hours will be between 9:00 a.m. and 11:00 p.m., any day of the week, parallel to the hours at LCBO and Beer Store locations.
The application process for private cannabis stores will begin next month, on December 17.