New Jersey Accepts Approval Applications for Cannabis Businesses |

New Jersey cannabis regulators announced this week that the state will begin accepting marijuana business license applications starting next month, more than a year after voters in the state legalized the recreational pot in the 2020 general election. At a meeting of the New Jersey Cannabis Regulatory Commission (CRC) Tuesday, officials unveiled requests for adult marijuana growers, processors and testing laboratories.

The agency also announced that it will start accepting applications for recreational cannabis dispensaries from March 15, 2022. Applications for cannabis delivery services, distributors and wholesalers will be accepted at a later date once the regulations for these types of businesses have been drawn up and approved.

Applications from companies owned by women, veterans and minorities will be given priority, as will companies from people arrested for a marijuana offense or living in economically disadvantaged areas or communities with a disproportionate number of cannabis-related arrests. Applications from small businesses with 10 or fewer employees are also given priority.

Regulators have not set a deadline for submitting applications and will instead accept them on an ongoing basis. New cannabis grower licenses issued through February 2023 are capped at 37, but there is no limit to other types of licenses. Adult cannabis business license applications will be available online and the Commission will host an informational webinar for prospective applicants on November 30th.

New Jersey regulators behind schedule

Voters in New Jersey legalized adult cannabis with approval of Question 1 in the November 2020 general election, which was passed with 67 percent of the vote. The law gave the CRC a deadline in September 2021 for accepting applications for business licenses. However, regulators missed the deadline and instead announced that they would set up the process for accepting the applications at a later date.

The legislation also requires that legal sales of recreational cannabis begin in mid-February next year, or within six months of the Commission’s adoption of its original rules. But in September Democratic Governor Phil Murphy said the start of pharmacy sales would likely be delayed as well.

“First or second quarter from a medical dispensary and a little later from a standalone retail store,” Murphy said. “I think there is a very good chance, provided that the medical pharmacies can demonstrate that they have enough supplies for their patients to engage in adult cannabis use before there are actually stand-alone retail stores. but that will come. “

Medical marijuana approved in 2010

Medical marijuana was legalized in New Jersey in 2010, and the first regulated cannabis dispensaries opened two years later. Last month, the CRC announced 14 new licenses for medical marijuana growers and vertically integrated companies. Applications for the new companies were originally submitted in 2019, but the granting of licenses has been delayed by legal action challenging the rules for the process.

The chairman of the CRC, Dianna Houenou, said at the time that the agency had issued five more cultivation permits than originally planned in 2019 due to increasing patient demand for regulated products.

“Current alternative treatment centers have not kept pace with patient needs,” said Houenou. “We keep hearing from patients that prices are too high and that there are too few pharmacies with too few product options. The situation has not changed with the legalization of recreational cannabis. Our priority is with our patients, and an increase in the planned number of medical cannabis suppliers in the market will bring them great benefit. “

Applications for additional medical marijuana dispensaries are also pending with state regulators. At the meeting on Tuesday, the CRC Executive Director said that all applications have already been assessed and the new licenses will be issued as soon as the results are in.

“We’re trying to move this asap,” said Brown.

The commission also took public comments to set guidelines on labeling of regulated cannabis products at this week’s meeting. The witnesses who testified on the matter recommended that the Commission adopt a label with a uniform shape and appearance to warn consumers that a product contains THC. They advised against using wording on the labels because people who do not read English may have difficulty understanding the text.

Regulators also accepted public statements about cannabis edibles that were not previously regulated by the commission. Proponents called for access to edibles for consumers who do not wish to smoke.

“Any form of edible should be allowed as long as government procedures are followed,” said Ken Wolski, co-founder of the Coalition for Medical Marijuana in New Jersey. “Everything a patient needs should be available to him.”