Licensing

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) has signed into law a bill to issue medical cannabis cultivation licenses to Black farmers. The new law also expands telehealth renewals for medical cannabis patients.

A recent report by Whitney Economics found that just 24.4% of U.S. cannabis companies currently turn a profit, down 42% from the year prior.

Alabama medical cannabis regulators on Friday voted to pause further issuing of medical cannabis licenses in the state after having discovered “potential inconsistencies in the tabulation of scoring data.”

New York regulators on Thursday shut down multiple unlicensed cannabis shops in Ithaca, Binghamton, and New York City. The companies now face fines of up to $10,000 per day they were operating without a license.

Maryland medical cannabis regulators temporarily shut down a Cookies dispensary license, citing multiple violations including a video advertisement that “appeared to show large plumes of medical cannabis smoke being blown from a large gun apparatus into the mouths of persons outside the dispensary.”

Alabama regulators this week licensed the state’s first medical cannabis businesses, issuing four cultivation licenses, four processing licenses, four retailer licenses, five licenses for integrated facilities, three transport licenses, and one testing lab license.

The San Francisco, California Board of Supervisors voted unanimously this week to enact a three-year moratorium on the awarding of new cannabis business licenses.

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul signed a bill last week to extend the state’s provisional cannabis cultivation and processing licenses in response to the continued delays of New York’s adult-use marketplace.

Multistate cannabis operator Trulieve announced on Thursday it will “wind down” its Massachusetts-based operations as part of its broader plan to “preserve cash and improve financial performance.”

The New York Cannabis Control Board voted to settle a lawsuit brought by a Michigan company that has for seven months prevented any new licenses from being awarded in five state regions.

Montana Gov. Greg Gianforte (R) signed a bill this week to extend the state’s moratorium on new cannabis business licenses for another two years.

Delaware lawmakers voted in committee on Tuesday to set a $4.1 million initial budget for rolling out the state’s adult-use cannabis industry.

Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek (D) announced this week that the state’s cannabis companies must now prove that they’ve paid their state taxes before they can receive a license or have an existing license renewed.

Florida lawmakers approved a bill requiring the state Department of Health to issue cannabis cultivation licenses to Black farmers who qualified for the licenses but were left out of the permitting process.

Oregon regulators have granted the state’s first psychedelic medicine treatment center license to Epic Healing Eugene, which plans to start serving patients later this month.

Colorado-based Terrapin said it has canceled its plan to build a production facility in Auburn, New York due to ongoing delays in the state’s licensing process.

Georgia officials issued licenses this week for the state’s first five medical cannabis dispensaries.

New Jersey cannabis regulators on Tuesday reversed their decision to deny the renewal of Curaleaf’s adult-use cannabis license.

Curaleaf chairman Boris Jordan said the company will use “any legal means necessary” to “ensure renewal” of its New Jersey adult-use license; the license is set to expire this Friday after regulators declined its renewal.

New Jersey regulators this week declined to renew Curaleaf’s adult-use cannabis license, citing the recent closure of one of its cultivation facilities (and subsequent layoffs), as well as the company’s clash with unionization and an alleged lack of transparency.

Maryland lawmakers have advanced a measure to see state officials begin issuing adult-use cannabis licenses this summer.

Cannabis “gifting” businesses in Washington D.C. may now apply to become medical cannabis dispensaries under a law that took effect last week.

A New York Appeals Court judge this week narrowed the injunction blocking the licensing of cannabis dispensaries. The move will let the licensing process move forward except in the state’s Finger Lakes region.

A recent proposal in Washington state would create about 100 new retail adult-use cannabis dispensary licenses reserved for social equity applicants.