Licensing

Connecticut has approved the state’s social equity cannabis rules and anticipates beginning to accept industry license applications next month.

Green Thumb Industries Inc. has closed on its acquisition of LeafLine Industries, which owns one of Minnesota’s two vertical licenses, giving GTI a national presence in 15 states.

The California Department of Cannabis Control announced it is now accepting applications for social equity cannabis license fee waivers.

Missouri medical cannabis sales have exceeded $200 million during the program’s first 14 months.

New Mexico’s new adult-use cannabis industry rules include restrictions on retail product samples and guidelines for security measures, proof of water rights, workplace training programs, record-keeping, and more.

The state of Maine and the Maine Cannabis Coalition are appealing a judge’s ruling that dropped the medical cannabis industry’s ban on out-of-state business ownership.

Officials in British Columbia, Canada are helping unlicensed cannabis producers to obtain licenses and participate in the legal marketplace.

New Mexico’s adult-use cannabis system is now “officially up and running” having issued its first three adult-use cannabis licenses.

Former MLB pitcher Matt Garza has received approval to open a retail cannabis dispensary while a company co-owner is facing felony charges for his involvement in an alleged, unrelated scam.

Arizona has received more than 1,500 applications for the state’s 26 cannabis social equity licenses, each worth potentially near $10 million. The licenses will be awarded in a random lottery selection next spring.

The Saint Regis Mohawk Tribe of New York awarded its first cannabis industry conditional cultivation licenses.

Tribes in Montana will be allowed to acquire licenses for high-capacity cannabis cultivation facilities; previously, tribes could only acquire the smallest-capacity grow licenses.

The Rekt Café in Atlantic City, New Jersey — a members-only cannabis consumption lounge — was closed for operating without the required mercantile license and other citations and violations.

An Illinois lawsuit is preventing 118 new cannabis licensees, at least half of which are majority-owned by non-white applicants, from beginning operations.

Florida is set to begin accepting applications in March next year for the single cannabis cultivation license set aside by the state for a Black farmer. The license fee will be more than double the original cost of a cannabis license.

Pennsylvania Democratic Rep. Melissa Shusterman is planning to introduce a bill that would open up 75 medical cannabis cultivation licenses for small businesses and farmers in the state.

Washington regulators forced three licensed cannabis producers to destroy about 13,000 pounds of plants after they were accused of growing more than their licenses allow.

Oregon regulators have started to process cannabis industry licenses again after a three-year pause.

The license of Nevada edibles manufacturer Kindibles was suspended after the company allegedly skirted the state’s lab reporting requirements by adding thousands of products to already-tested batches.

Idaho is now accepting applications for its hemp program after receiving federal approval on November 1. The program will exclude people convicted of a felony drug violation in any state or federal court in the last 10 years.

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has signed legislation expanding the number of people eligible for medical cannabis licenses, including those with cannabis-related criminal charges.

Under a provision in Montana’s adult-use cannabis rules, licensed cannabis companies are not allowed to grow, process, or sell hemp products, which effectively relegates the retail sales of hemp-derived CBD products to gas stations, corner markets, and grocery stores.

The head of New York’s Cannabis Control Board said last week she does not anticipate the state will begin issuing industry licenses until the spring of 2023 at the earliest.

Adult-use cannabis home delivery began in Massachusetts this year but due to new regulations, namely requirements on drivers, vehicles, and surveillance, delivery companies are unable to earn a profit.