Delaware marijuana regulators said this week that the state is rolling head-long toward a recreational market launch with background checks of companies that won permits following a second cannabis license lottery in December.
Winners were given until Feb. 10 to submit income tax documents, signed releases for info from all financial institutions, long-term debt disclosures, documented business history, fingerprinting and more. Background checks are mandatory for any individual who owns a 10% stake or more in any of the 125 license winners, according to a press release from the Office of the Marijuana Commissioner.
The background checks are being performed by the state Marijuana Enforcement Unit and the Division of Alcohol and Tobacco Enforcement, which is awaiting final permission from the Federal Bureau of Investigation to perform fingerprinting.
Once background checks are complete for licensees, they’ll be granted conditional licenses and will have to be up and running within 18 months, the OMC said.
What’s not clear is exactly when the new market may launch. The state had previously targeted next month for its recreational marijuana sales debut, but the OMC said that the 13 preexisting medical dispensaries are still in the midst of transitioning to adult-use capabilities, with their conversion licenses “not yet active.”
In addition, the state will make grant funds available to social equity license recipients beginning in March, with “detailed application procedures” to be “mailed directly to eligible applicants.”
The 125 licensees were chosen from a pool of 1,271 applicants, including 529 that applied for the 15 “open” retail permits that were available to all comers. That lottery was held in December. Another 15 social equity retailers were chosen by lottery in October, along with most of the rest of the license winners.
Out of the 125 permit winners, 44 were women, the OMC said, including 35 Black women, 19 Asian women, six Hispanic women and seven that identified their race as “other.”
When the adult-use market will fully launch in the state remains unknown. Read More
