Maryland’s Adult-Use Cannabis Licensing Round Draws 1,700+ Applicants

With Maryland already showing signs of a billion-dollar cannabis market for 2024, the opportunity is not going unnoticed by those who want a chance to participate.

Currently, only the state’s existing medical operators are serving adult-use customers who gained legal access to roughly 100 licensed dispensaries that transitioned to expanded sales in July.

But 1,708 aspiring entrepreneurs threw their names in the hat for a social equity cannabis business licensing round during a 30-day application window that closed Dec. 12, according to the Maryland Cannabis Administration (MCA). This round was exclusively open to qualifying social equity applicants.

Notably, with 179 licenses available in this round, about 10% of these applicants will gain a pathway into the state’s lucrative industry, including only a 3% chance to win in one licensing category.

Source: Maryland Cannabis Administration

“The large volume of applications submitted prior to yesterday’s deadline demonstrates the significant interest in the cannabis industry in Maryland,” MCA Acting Director Will Tilburg said Wednesday. “It is also a testament to the comprehensive outreach and education efforts made by the administration and our partners at the Office of Social Equity to potential social equity applicants.”

The MCA is now tasked with reviewing each application to determine whether it meets the minimum requirements for licensing before conducting lotteries based on region or county for each licensing type. This lottery process is scheduled to take place on or before Jan. 1, 2024.

To qualify, applicants must have at least 65% ownership of the business and must have lived or attended public school in an area disproportionately impacted by cannabis prohibition or attended a four-year institution of higher education in Maryland where at least 40% of students enrolled were eligible for a Pell Grant, according to MCA.

A total of 1,441 applicants, or 84% of all submissions, self-reported that they were minority- or women-owned businesses, according to MCA. Of these, a total of 870 applicants reported they were Black-owned businesses, 268 reported as Asian owners, and 56 reported as Hispanic or Latino owners.

Montgomery County (104), Prince George’s County (99), Baltimore County (83), Baltimore City (72) and Anne Arundel County (71) received the most standard dispensary applications. These are also the most populated counties in the state, each with more than 500,000 people.