COLUMBIA- Roughly 40% of applicants for marijuana microbusiness licenses in Missouri were from out of state, according to a report from the Division of Cannabis Regulation Wednesday.
Those states were California, Michigan, Louisiana and Arizona. The report also indicates another category with 372 applications from other states.
Chief Equity Officer Division of Cannabis Regulation Abigail Vivas said that the portfolio of applicants isn’t surprising.
“We got out-of-state applicants as we expected. There’s nothing in the constitution that bars those individuals from applying for a license in our state. I know that’s a concern for people but it’s beyond our control,” Vivas said.
Vivas put together the inaugural report.
“This is the first of its kind for us, so the microbusiness program was started by the [passing] of Amendment 3 last fall and so this is the first time we’ve done this in our state.”
According to the Department of Health and Senior Services, microbusiness licenses are “designed to allow marginalized or under-represented individuals/ [small businesses] to participate in the legal marijuana market.”
Dan Viets, the Missouri coordinator for the National Organization for Reform of Marijuana Laws, said microbusiness are unique.
“Microbusinesses are fundamentally different from regular licenses because they are of a limited capacity. A far smaller number of plants can be grown with a micro-cultivation license. A micro-retailer is limited to a smaller operation,” Viets said.
The report also detailed licenses up for revocation.
Some of eligibility requirements are:
- Have a net worth of less than $250,000
- Have a valid service-connect disability card
- Be an individual who has been related to or arrested for a marijuana offense
- Reside in a ZIP Code where…
- 30% of the population is below the federal poverty level
- Rate of unemployment is 50% higher than the state average
- Historic rate of incarceration for marijuana offenses is 50%
- Graduated from a school district that was unaccredited.
The Missouri constitution states that micro businesses must meet at least one of these criteria. Viets helped write this criteria and says the goal is to get more people involved.
“It was our hope in drafting the criteria for these licenses that they would give an opportunity to people of limited financial means and frankly, people of a more diverse background,” he said.
Forty eight micro business were issued licenses in October. Per department criteria, the Division conducted a review within 60 days of applications being awarded. This review is meant to certify that the applicants are eligible.
Eleven of the licenses could be revoked for not meeting the criteria. Applicants can provide the DHSS with additional information to try to reverse it’s decision. However, revoked licenses will be available in the next application period.
The report also broke down what areas applicants have applied from in the state and what type of license they applied for. The fourth congressional district, home to Columbia, had the most applicants.
Wholesale licenses refer to cultivation and manufacturing. Retail licenses are dispensary licenses and is the storefront to be able to sell to patients and consumers.
“Two-thirds of our applications were for our dispensaries and about one-third was for wholesale,” Vivas said. “Which is interesting since there’s more license available for wholesale than there is for dispensary licenses.”
Vivas said she can see potential applicants using this information for future rounds of application.
“I could see people saying ‘I’ll try to apply in that district as opposed to one that had more applications this round,” she said
In a press release Wednesday, the Department said it will issue roughly 96 additional microbusiness licenses in two separate lotteries. Vivas expects the first to be March of this year and March, 2025.
There are mandated minimum numbers of licenses the state has to issue. Currently, the state is only issuing the minimum but Viets hopes this will change in the future.
“Just as we see micro-breweries and we see small family-owned vineyards producing wine,” he said. “There is always going to be a market for small, but well-crafted products in the cannabis industry.”
H/T: www.komu.com
