IDFPR Announces New Rules For Equity Cannabis Applicants

By Benjamin Cox on August 15, 2020 at 12:44pm

The Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation announced yesterday that permanent rules have been adopted for adult use cannabis dispensary licensees to be selected if they have a tied high score on their application for their region.

The approval of these rules allows IDFPR to move forward in awarding the 75 conditional adult use cannabis dispensary licenses that were authorized by the 2019 Cannabis Regulation and Tax Act. Consistent with the new rules, IDFPR will provide a public notice announcing the applicants with tied high scores who, if they meet the requirements in the rules, may participate in the selection process for a conditional license.

Once IDFPR awards a conditional license, the licensee will have 180 days to find a location within its BLS Region to operate. A license to operate cannot be issued if the location is within 1,500 feet of an existing licensed dispensing organization. In addition, application scoring for craft grower, infuser and transporter licenses is being finalized, and the Illinois Department of Agriculture will announce award dates in the near future.

Many of the dates for the licenses were slated for earlier this year, but COVID-19 response has postponed the awarding of the licenses.