Delaware to open application process for legal Weed businesses two weeks ahead of schedule
Delaware to Open Online Applications for Recreational Marijuana Businesses on August 19.
Delaware will begin accepting online applications for the state’s recreational marijuana business on Monday, Aug. 19 − two weeks ahead of schedule.
The application process for all aspects of the recreational cannabis industry will remain open until September 30, 2024.
Eligible applicants will be entered into a lottery overseen by the commissioner that is scheduled for late October. Licenses will then be issued beginning in November, according to the state Office of the Marijuana Commissioner.
There are 125 total licenses available:
- 60 cultivation facility licenses.
- 30 product manufacturing facility licenses.
- 30 retail store licenses.
- Five testing facility licenses.
These licenses also include opportunities for social equity and “microbusiness applicants,” and are distributed by county, according to the commissioner’s office.
Application requirements
To access assistance and resources for the application process, prospective applicants are encouraged to visit the office’s website, which provides detailed guidance including “a document matrix and application templates.”
All applications must include the following in proposed operation plans:
- Comprehensive business plan, including an annual budget and financial statements.
- Safety and security plans addressing the safety, security and prevention of product diversion.
- Operational, training and staffing plans, which should include a plan outlining diversity goals and a plan to provide a “safe, healthy, and economically beneficial working environment” for employees.
- Regulatory history disclosure that includes any “criminal, civil or regulatory history related to entities previously controlled or managed by the applicant or its managing officers,” according to the commissioner.
Those seeking licenses to operate a marijuana cultivation or product manufacturing facility must also submit:
- An environmental and sustainability plan detailing how the operator will minimize “environmental impact and resource use,” like water conservation and organic cultivation methods.
- A quality assurance plan that outlines written policies and procedures for comprehensive quality assurance.
