How to get medical marijuana business license in MS

One stipulation of the Mississippi Medical Cannabis Act could provide local entrepreneurs a leg up.

Gov. Tate Reeves passed the law last February and licensing will begin in June. For the first six months of cultivation and processing facility licensing, the licensee will have to have ties to Mississippi.

The license requires showing proof the business owner has been a resident of Mississippi for at least three years and a citizen of the United States for at least three years prior to the application date.

If a business entity, for instance an LLC, applies for a license, at least 35% of the equity ownership interests in the business must be held by people who have been residents of Mississippi and citizens of the United States for at least three years.

The stipulation ends on Dec 31, 2022.

How to get a medical marijuana business license

To acquire a medical marijuana business license, a person must:

• Be at least 21 years old.

• Not have a revoked license for a cannabis cultivation facility, cannabis processing facility, medical marijuana dispensary, medical marijuana transportation business or medical marijuana disposal business.

• Not be convicted of a disqualifying felony.

• Be in good standing with any professional or occupational license owned.

• Submit a sworn statement indicating they are the actual owner of the business and intended to carry on the business for themselves, not as an agent for another business.

• Have no outstanding taxes owed to the state.

• Not be a state Congressperson or the spouse of one.

Disqualifying felony offenses include any convictions of violent crimes, violation of a state or federal controlled substances law, including “the service of any term of probation, incarceration or supervised release within the previous five years and the offender has not committed another similar offense since the conviction.”

For a business to acquire a license, the applicant must be legally authorized to submit an application on behalf of the business and meet the requirements listed above. The business cannot have any other medical marijuana business in its vicinity and can only operate in areas where local government did not opt out.

Micro-cultivators or micro-processors have to meet the requirements listed above. A micro-cultivator has a facility that is 1,000 square feet or less. A micro-processor has a facility that processes less than 2,000 pounds of dried biomass cannabis material annually.

If run by a business, 100% of the micro-cultivator’s or micro-processor’s owners must be residents of Mississippi and citizens of the United States for at least three consecutive years before the application date. Businesses have to submit a list of principal officers and board members and proof of their citizenship.

This story was originally published May 19, 2022 8:00 AM.