Good news for any businesses or people looking to apply in Maryland for an adult use cannabis license. The Maryland cannabis administration MCA will open up the social equity application formal on November 13th. Please note that social equity applicants will be able to apply for social equity approvals with the MCA.
In order to complete the social equity verification, the MCA has created a licensing portal where applicants can complete the forms without a fee. This portal is scheduled to open on September 8th and close on November 7th, so interested Social equity applicants should prepare the approval process now. Please follow this link to determine if you qualify for a social equity approval with the MCA. Here is a graphic from the MCA to assist you:
Once approved, the social equity applicant can submit the approvals as part of their application. Social equity applicants still must apply and be granted a place in the lottery for a retail license, but other types of licenses are not subject to the lottery.
For applicants other than retails, man the MCA has divided the state into the western region, southern region, central region, and eastern region. There are both standard and micro licenses available for the remaining social equity approved growers and processors. The MCA has identified the number of licenses for each available region. Please follow this link to see the identified jurisdictions and number of licenses available in each such jurisdiction.
Here is a timeline showing the planned rollout of MCA’s social equity applications.
If you have questions about the social equity application round, or subsequent rounds that are not social equity driven, kindly contact our law firm for the latest information on how to move your business forward.