The state of Alabama recently released critical deadlines for businesses seeking a medical cannabis license. To apply for a license, businesses must first submit a Request for Business Application by October 17, 2022. The application form will not be publicly available, thus any prospective applicant must request a copy of the application before the October 17 deadline. Applications will then be mailed to requesters on October 24, 2022. Applicants must submit their completed applications to the state by December 30, 2022, along with a nonrefundable application fee of $2,500. After time to make corrections and a public comment period, winners of initial licenses will be announced on June 12, 2023.
Through this application cycle, Alabama will license up to five integrated facilities, each of which will be licensed to cultivate cannabis, process cannabis into medical cannabis, dispense and sell medical cannabis as permitted under state law, transport cannabis or medical cannabis between its facilities, and sell or transfer medical cannabis to a dispensary.
Additionally, the state will issue five other types of licenses: cultivator, processor, secure transporter, state testing laboratory and dispensary licenses. The state will issue up to twelve cultivation licenses, four processor licenses, and four dispensary licenses (but each dispensary licensee may operate up to three dispensing sites). The state has not imposed any limits on the number of secure transporter or state testing laboratory licenses. Under current rules, no person or entity may apply for more than one category of license at a time.
Alabama became the 37th state to legalize the use of cannabis products for medical purposes when Governor Kay Ivey signed a bill into law in May 2021. Dispensaries can only be located in cities, towns, and counties that have authorized them through a resolution or ordinance by a council or county commission, a list of which is available on the Alabama Medical Cannabis Commission's website. Under Alabama's program, doctors who receive training in medical cannabis will be authorized to recommend the products for a list of qualifying conditions.
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