With all the buzz around Medical Marijuana (MMJ), many wonder how these laws actually work in practice and who enforces them. In 2008, Michigan began passing a series of laws making it possible to sell and use marijuana for medical purposes. But once these laws passed, many questions surfaced about how these laws were going to affect Michigan residents and how they would be enforced.  It is easier to understand how the laws are enforced if their function and impact on Michigan residents is understood.

The Bureau of Medical Marihuana Regulation Licensing Board (BMMR) met on July 12, 2018 to discuss the prequalification applications of 19 commercial medical marijuana applicants. During the meeting the, the Licensing Board also issued the first MMFLA commercial licenses and reviewed the overall status of medical marijuana business applications received by the Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA). In attendance were all 5 Board members, as well as LARA Director Brisbo and a LARA staff attorney.  The July meeting follows last month’s scheduled meeting that was cancelled due to undisclosed board member scheduling conflicts. As a result, the Licensing Board reviewed more applications than in previous board meetings.

Talking to some prospective clients, their eyes light up when discussing the profit potential of Marijuana facilities. Sometimes, I swear I can literally see dollar signs in their eyes. They want to dive in with a huge operation (whether it be a multiple Class C grow facility, a mega-provisioning center, or a large processing center) and are expecting massive profits, just by way of getting into the industry early.  

Almost every single day we either hear about a new municipal opportunities for businesses looking to site medical marijuana provisioning centers, growing facilities, or processing centers, or we are asked some version of the question “which municipality is best for me MMFLA facility?”  While many have attempted to keep track of “who’s in” and “who’s out”—including LARA itself even the easiest to read maps and lists can quickly become overwhelming in the context of choosing the “best” property and location for your medical marijuana business.  As more municipalities opt-in to the MMFLA, marijuana companies have more and more properties and municipalities to choose from, which makes identifying the best property for your marijuana business more and more difficult.

Many potential clients ask us whether it is simply too late to get a Michigan cannabis business license. This concern is especially prevalent among dispensary—i.e. “provisioning center”—clients.  This is likely due to the fact that since the enactment of the Medical Marihuana Facilities Licensing Act (MMFLA) and the Emergency Rules, there have been many hyped up “deadlines” that have come and passed.  Not only that, but many cities (e.g. Lansing) had their own application deadlines for provisioning center applications. With all of these state and municipal deadlines, it can seem like the clock always seems to be ticking down to a deadline.  

As a Michigan Marijuana Business lawyer, I have a unique perspective on the industry.  My job requires me to talk to dozens of medical marijuana business groups, investors looking at the Michigan marijuana market space, cannabis accountants, political consultants, and other Marijuana lawyers, many of whom are happy to speculate about the future of Michigan’s marijuana industry.  This article attempts to translate my knowledge and perspective into 5 predictions about the future of the Michigan cannabis industry.

Setting yourself up for a successful medical marijuana business requires more than just savvy business sense and knowledge of the Michigan marijuana industry.  As with many retail stores, even well-run marijuana provisioning centers won’t be able to survive without a good location. Based on our experience with helping clients find locations for their Michigan dispensaries, these are our top 6 tips for siting your Michigan Medical Marijuana Dispensary.

Marijuana is coming to the Michigan electoral ballot this November, and we have been getting questions daily from medical marijuana clients and prospective marijuana business owners about what the ballot initiate says, what makes it different than the current law, and how they can prepare their business for the law’s eventual passage.  With the ballot expected to pass by a wide margin, it is important for Michigan business owners to know what the ballot initiative says and how it will affect the state’s Marijuana industry.

After witnessing a LARA provisioning center inspection firsthand, I thought it would be good idea to provide an overview to dispensary owners and processors of what constitutes compliant products and packaging for processed Marijuana products and what LARA inspectors are looking for when they conduct a provisioning center inspection. There has not been much written on the subject, and as a result, non-compliant packaging is rampant throughout Michigan dispensaries. Processed Marijuana goods with non-compliant packaging will need to be taken off the shelves and either re-packaged, thrown away, or returned to the processor. It is therefore important that both processors and dispensary owners understand what constitutes compliant packaging and products and what does not.

It’s happening more often that you’d think – LARA and the Bureau of Medical Marihuana Regulation (BMMR) are denying Part 1 prequalification applications at pretty much every licensing board meeting. These reasons have varied from the failure to provide all requested material to issues with the applicant’s “character” and integrity. So what happens if your application has been denied for a Michigan medical marijuana business license? This article will discuss the MMFLA appeals process and what to do if you MMFLA commercial license application is denied by the Medical Marihuana Licensing Board.

The Bureau of Medical Marihuana Regulation (BMMR) met this past week to discuss the prequalification applications of 19 commercial medical marijuana applicants, as well as the overall status of medical marijuana business applications received by the Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA).

The first question asked to Mr. Brisbo was essentially “what gives you the right to do this without any legislation?” His response was that CBD is a derivative of the cannabis sativa plant, and that CBD would now be included in this definition, even if produced from a hemp plant with little to no THC. He said that the federal definition of Marijuana, which finds that cannabis sativa with less than 0.3% THC is not considered regulated Marijuana, is only incorporated into the Michigan’s hemp laws but not its marijuana laws. For its marijuana laws, there is no “THC qualifier”, so in Michigan, any derivative of the cannabis sativa plant other than from sterilized seeds, oil from seeds, and mature stalks is considered a controlled substance.

Yesterday, May 30th, 2018, the Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (“LARA”) made the decision to extend the June 15th deadline requiring all provisioning centers to either have a license under the Medical Marihuana Facilities Licensing Act (“MMFLA”) or shut down. This decision does not come as a surprise to many as it appeared that LARA and the Licensing Board would not have been able to issue a single provisioning center operating license before June 15th, meaning all dispensaries would have needed to shut down.

Michigan medical marijuana companies seeking investors need to know that negotiating a successful pre-revenue investment will almost certainly be a “give and take” process. Because U.S.-based banks and credit unions refuse to lend to Michigan Marijuana growers, processors and provisioning centers, and traditional private equity has, for the most part, shied away from investing in the Michigan market, most Michigan cannabis companies in need of capital must look to private investors to fund their companies.

One of the biggest components of the Medical Marihuana Facilities Licensing Act (MMFLA) Part 2 application is the “facility plan”. However, as the Part 2 application is a complete overview of your proposed marijuana business, you might be wondering what else could be involved in preparing a facility plan?

 On May 17, 2018, the Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA) released inspection guides for all 5 license types under the MMFLA (i.e. provisioning centers, growers, secured transporters, processing centers, and safety compliance centers).  These guides serve as the definitive checklist that all Michigan medical marijuana facilities must follow in order to be approved for a Michigan medical marijuana business license.

 Based on the statutory definitions related to “marihuana” found in the Michigan Public Health Code, the Michigan Medical Marihuana Act, and the Medical Marihuana Facilities Licensing Act, any extracts of marihuana or extracts of the marihuana plant will continue to be treated as marihuana. That means that the possession, purchase, or sale of marihuana or any marihuana product – including CBD – must be done in compliance with the MMMA and MMFLA.

For Part 2 applications, the focus of the application centers on business specifications. You will have to show extensive documentation. This documentation includes a lease or deed for the business property, employee information, and proof of financial responsibility – meaning that you can show enough money, either in cash, securities, insurance policies or bonds, to cover liability for bodily injury that may result from the manufacture, distribution, transportation or sale of adulterated marijuana products.

Currently Michigan’s marijuana laws are governed by the Medical Marihuana Facilities Licensing Act (MMFLA), which dictates who can grow, sell, transport, test, and process marijuana and hemp products in the state of Michigan. The language of the RMLA initiative is substantially less restrictive on who can have a license to grow or sell marijuana compared to MMFLA. The RMLA makes it tougher for municipalities to limit the amount of facilities in their city or township, which has the overall effect of loosening up the State’s licensing laws.

Not Everyone’s Getting a Michigan Medical Marijuana License

The passage of the Medical Marihuana Facilities Licensing Act (MMFLA), which created a commercial licensing structure for Michigan Medical Marijuana businesses, required support from both Republicans and Democrats to pass. On the one side, Democrats favored a more open, less regulated market similar to Oregon’s medical marijuana law, which would allow all but the most unsavory characters to obtain a license. On the other side, Republicans wanted a highly regulated system with only a few large, licensed players—similar to the Ohio ballot initiative that was voted down in 2015.