Licensing

An Arkansas judge has blocked officials from issuing the state’s last two cannabis dispensary licenses until a lawsuit alleging racial bias in the application process can be heard.

The Illinois Supreme Court blocked an appeal by a prospective craft cannabis licensee asking the court to lift the state’s hold on new cannabis industry licenses.

Idaho has started to issue hemp licenses and, as the last state in the U.S. to legalize hemp, its producers are looking at the crop as a major economic opportunity.

Connecticut will start accepting applications for adult-use cannabis licenses next month. The first licenses will be for cultivators and retailers seeking social equity licenses.

Looking to combat illegal cannabis grows, Oklahoma lawmakers have introduced a bill to pause new medical cannabis licensing while the industry shores up compliance issues.

Felony charges of theft and commercial bribery related to hemp licenses were brought against Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller’s top political consultant Todd Smith.

Joseph Ori is co-founder of Six Labs, a Michigan-based manufacturer of craft cannabis products.

The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors is planning a $30,000-per-day fine for unlicensed cannabis operations in unincorporated areas of the county.

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) is creating a $200 million fund for social equity applicants looking to join the adult-use cannabis industry.

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.