Twelve cannabis companies are contesting the Alabama Medical Cannabis Commission’s (AMCC) denial of their integrated facility license applications at a meeting on December 12.
Integrated facilities licenses allow recipients to sell, transport, cultivate, process and dispense medical cannabis. By law, companies denied a license initially are allowed to request an investigative hearing with the AMCC.
The 12 integrated facility companies to request an investigative hearing are:
The deadline to request such a hearing was Tuesday. The five companies awarded integrated facilities licenses on December 12 were Trulieve AL, Sustainable Alabama, Wagon Trail Med-Serv, Flowerwood Medical Cannabis and Specialty Medical Products of Alabama.
An AMCC spokesperson told 1819 News on Wednesday all five awardees paid the $50,000 license fee by the deadline on Tuesday.
AMCC awarded 20 licenses to various companies in every category besides integrated facilities at their meeting on December 1. Fourteen companies requested investigative hearings in those categories too.
The law states, "After denial of a license, the commission, upon request, shall provide a public investigative hearing at which the applicant is given the opportunity to present testimony and evidence to establish its suitability for a license. Other testimony and evidence may be presented at the hearing, but the commission's decision must be based on the whole record before the commission and is not limited to testimony and evidence submitted at the public investigative hearing."
Fees required to request an investigative hearing were initially $30,000 to $50,000, depending on the category, but those fee requirements were waived when AMCC passed new rules and procedure changes in October.
The AMCC will likely discuss the process for the upcoming investigative hearings at their meeting on Thursday.
To connect with the author of this story or to comment, email caleb.taylor@1819News.com.
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