Maryland Cannabis Administration Awards First-In-The-Nation Social Equity Business Licenses

On Thursday, March 14, the Maryland Cannabis Administration conducted a lottery for 174 social equity business licenses across micro and standard grower, processor, and dispensary categories. The lottery, which was live-streamed on the Maryland Cannabis Administration’s website, is the first application round in the nation that is designated exclusively for social equity applicants across all license types and categories.

“The social equity license lottery expands Maryland’s cannabis industry and provides social equity businesses with new economic opportunities in the State,” said Maryland Cannabis Administration Director Will Tilburg. “I would like to thank the Moore-Miller Administration, the Maryland General Assembly, and the Office of Social Equity for their continued support in this process.”

Source: Maryland Cannabis Administration

 

“The lottery results affirm our commitment to fostering diversity and inclusion within the cannabis industry. We are proud to see a significant representation of Black individuals and women among the selected applicants,” said Office of Social Equity Executive Director Audrey Johnson. “This milestone underscores our ongoing dedication to providing access for Marylanders who were most harmed by the war on drugs.”

Next Steps

The MCA will verify the material aspects of each application before awarding licenses. In addition, the MCA will verify any claims regarding social equity ownership and control made in the application as part of the review process. Applicants selected in the lottery received additional information on the review process following the lottery drawings.

Individuals whose applications did not win a license in the lottery received information on future licensing rounds and other opportunities to be involved in Maryland’s cannabis industry. The Maryland Cannabis Administration will allow these applicants to enter into subsequent drawings without paying an additional fee.

As previously reported on Conduit Street, the MCA recently launched a Medical and Adult-Use Data Dashboard. The data dashboard provides site visitors with interactive maps, sales and volume figures, and graphs that allow users to explore a wide range of data formatted in aggregate sales, licensing, and patient data.

Click here for previous cannabis-related Conduit Street coverage.