But opening a tribal dispensary in a non-medical state like North Carolina would be a precedent-setting action-and it’s unclear whether the Cherokee tribe will wait until the state legalizes medical before opening its dispensary. The Foxwoods-adjacent store may not cause much concern among state or federal officials, because Connecticut is now adult-legal. Earlier this month, the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians Tribal Council voted to legalize medical marijuana on Cherokee land. In other legal states, tribes typically tax cannabis at a rate comparable to the state, but the tax revenue goes to the tribe, not the state. Native American tribes are not bound by state law, and do not require a state cannabis license. But the North Carolina Compassionate Care Act, a bill to legalize medical cannabis, is currently making progress in the state legislature. The state hasn’t even legalized medical marijuana yet. In North Carolina, all cannabis is strictly prohibited.

Retail sales in state-licensed stores are expected to begin in the summer of 2022. On July 1, 2021, it became legal for all adults 21 and older to possess up to 1.5 ounces of marijuana.

Connecticut legalized adult-use cannabis earlier this year.

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