Illinois issues 149 cannabis retail licenses

Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker announced Friday that the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR) has granted 149 conditional state licenses for adult-use cannabis retailers to applicants selected in three lotteries, which took place earlier this summer. All selected companies will qualify as social justice applicants under the state’s Cannabis Ordinance and Tax Code, the 2019 bill that legalized adult recreational cannabis nationwide.

“Illinois is leading the fight against the war on drugs like no state has before, and pharmacy ownership, which reflects the diversity of our state, is a product of that commitment,” Pritzker said in a statement from the governor’s office on Friday . “These licenses represent a significant step toward accountability for the decades of injustice that preceded cannabis legalization. Illinois will continue to make good on its promise to put justice at the forefront of this process.”

Retail sales began in Illinois two years ago

Illinois’ Cannabis Regulation and Tax Act was the first legalization measure for adult use of cannabis in the United States to be passed by a state legislature rather than a voter-approved ballot initiative. Adult cannabis sales began in existing medical pharmacies in 2020.

However, the licensing of adult-use cannabis retailers has been marked by setbacks and legal challenges related to the state’s system for licensing recreational cannabis businesses. Much of the controversy has focused on the state’s efforts to ensure that members of communities adversely affected by prohibition and enforcement policies have a path to business ownership in the newly legal adult-use cannabis industry. The first 75 licenses were originally scheduled to be issued in May 2020, but lawsuits have delayed progress several times.

“Since 2019, we have worked diligently to ensure that communities disproportionately harmed by cannabis prohibition and discriminatory law enforcement are included in the adult-use cannabis industry,” said Senate Majority Leader Kimberly A. Lightford. “With the issuance of 149 Conditional Adult Use Dispensing Organization Licenses, Illinois has become a pioneer in minority cannabis ownership and will continue to advance social justice, social justice and inclusion in the marketplace.”

Among the conditional licensees selected through the lottery process, 41% are majority-owned Black, 7% majority-owned White, and 4% majority-owned Latino, while 38% of award winners did not disclose the race of their owners. State officials noted that “Illinois has made and executed the largest commitment of tax revenue from adult cannabis use for community reinvestment, has cleared the most cannabis-related criminal histories, and has the highest minority ownership of any state by demographic.” Property data report/capture the land.”

Licensees have six months to receive final approval

Applicants now have 180 days to secure their business location and receive final licensing approval from state regulators. If conditional licensees are unable to secure a suitable business location within this time, they may request a 180-day extension to complete the process.

“The release of these licenses represents a transformation of the retail side of the Illinois cannabis industry, creating more opportunities for individuals of all backgrounds to take advantage of legalization as employees and ancillary service providers,” said Mario Treto, Jr., Secretary of the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation. “These licensees continue to lay the foundation for a cannabis industry that is more diverse and equitable than any other in the country. I am very proud of our team for their work over the past two years and look forward to working with these new companies [sic] owners during the next stages of licensing.”

Many of the business owners selected as conditional retail licensees for adult use are likely to face challenges raising capital to secure a location and get their operations up and running. Through a separate program administered by the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO), the state offers low-interest loans to qualifying licensed businesses under its Social Equity Cannabis Loan Program.

The first round of social equity license applicants are expected to finalize loan agreements directly with DCEO’s participating lenders in the coming weeks, with the next phase of the loan program beginning in the near future. More information about the Social Justice Cannabis Loan Program is available online. DCEO also funds free licensing and post-licensing technical support through its partners at Oakton Community College, The Trep School, the Women’s Business Development Center, and the University of Illinois Chicago Law School. For more information about these resources and how to access them, visit the program website.

One of the selected conditional applicants, Akele Parnell, a co-owner of Marigrow, plans to open a pharmacy in Chicago’s Lincoln Park neighborhood. The company has already raised the required capital and is ready to move on to the next step in this process.

“We have our funding,” Parnell told Crain Chicago. “Now we have to do a rededication.”

“It was quite a wait. It’s a relief now to have the license in hand,” added Parnell. “We have a lot of work ahead of us.”