More than 2,000 entrepreneurs applied for the chance to be awarded one of 57 microbusiness licenses up for grabs in Missouri’s second round of cannabis dispensary license drawings.
The state Department of Health and Senior Services anticipated a potential uptick in applications, and received almost 500 more than in the first round of applications in August, said spokesperson Lisa Cox.
“Only the top drawn applicants are subject to department review; therefore, the amount of application submissions doesn’t necessarily affect our operations,” Cox said. “We were fully prepared for whatever number of applications we received.”
Microbusiness dispensary licenses are awarded through a random lottery-style drawing. During this round, 33 microbusiness wholesale and 24 microbusiness dispensary facility licenses will be issued no later than August. Nine of those spots are left over from the first round of drawings.
People are also reading…
Costs still rise by millions for St. Louis convention center. ‘When does it end?’
17 shot, 3 killed in weekend of mayhem in St. Louis
Pet food maker Purina too ‘woke’ for Missouri Republican. So she ‘fires’ her employer.
Fallout continues for wealthy St. Louis couple accused of poisoning neighbor’s trees
The microbusiness licenses are mandated by the amendment voters approved in 2022 that made recreational cannabis legal in Missouri. These dispensary licenses allow people from marginalized or underrepresented populations to participate in the legal marijuana market, which has brought in over $1.5 billion in revenue and created more than 11,000 new jobs since adult-use sales began in February 2023, according to state figures.
The dispensary application portal was most recently open between April 15 and April 29. The state health department said it reviewed 2,083 applications, including 734 wholesale applications and 1,349 dispensary applications.
Mitch Meyers, founder of BeLeaf Medical, said Missouri is in a sweet spot, with no concern for oversaturation thanks to license limits. Plus, the state constitution outlines that each of Missouri’s eight U.S. congressional districts would have 24 dispensary applications approved for licenses.
“They’re allocating in a contained system,” she said. She compared Missouri’s system to Oklahoma’s, which didn’t cap the number of medical cannabis licenses distributed.
“It’s a complete loser of a program,” Meyers said. “Missouri is the little darling in the U.S.”
Information about the selected applicants is slated to be published before the end of June, Cox said.
To be eligible for a microbusiness license, owners must meet one of the following criteria: have a net worth less than $250,000 and an income below 250% of the federal poverty level; have been affected by non-violent marijuana drug charges; reside in certain disadvantaged ZIP codes; be a veteran with a service-connected disability; have graduated from a school district that was unaccredited; or have lived in a ZIP code with an unaccredited school district.
The third and last round of microbusiness licenses will be drawn in 2025.
H/T: www.stltoday.com
