Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker on Friday signed a law delaying retail pot shops as marijuana activists protested the move.



The new law does not affect personal possession and home-growing of marijuana products, provisions of a law passed by voters in November legalizing recreational pot.



But the law Baker signed delays by six months key dates for when the Cannabis Control Commission can issue licenses. For example, the state treasurer was required to appoint members of Cannabis Control Commission, the regulatory agency that would license the retail shops, by March 1, 2017, and that's now been pushed to September 2017. That pushes the opening of retail pot shops to mid-2018 at the very least.

Sen. Rosenberg defends lawmakers rushing bill delaying pot shops



The bill also delays when the Cannabis Control Commission must have its initial regulations in place to March 15, 2018, from September 15, 2017.



Baker's office notified reporters of the bill signing as a small band of protesters gathered outside the State House to protest the delay.



Marijuana advocates have called the delay unnecessary, while lawmakers like Senate President Stanley Rosenberg, who rushed the bill to the governor's desk earlier this week, defended the delay as "reasonable."

Many lawmakers opposed the legalization of marijuana, as did Gov. Baker, who campaigned against the ballot measure voters ended up endorsing in November.

The pot delay law also calls for a baseline study on marijuana use.

The Department of Public Health is tasked with choosing a research outfit to look at patterns of use, consumption methods, incidents of impaired driving and hospitalization related to marijuana, along with the economic and fiscal impact of legalization for state and local government. The deadline for the report's findings is July 1, 2018.