On election day the Show-Me state and Maryland joined a growing list of US states where recreational marijuana is now legal for adults. In a move that can only be viewed with envy by cannabis operators in New York state officials have announced an ambitious goal of starting recreational cannabis sales by February 2023.
Missouri voters approved Amendment Five with a comfortable 53% of the vote on November 8th. It’s been only two years since the first medical cannabis dispensary opened its doors on October 17th, 2020. If sales do indeed begin in February, it will be the fastest turnaround from the start of medical cannabis sales to recreational sales beginning of any state program by some distance. Arizona quickly converted its medical market to recreational sales after voters approved an initiative in 2020; sales began by the end of January but had a mature medical market in existence for many years previous.
What will the new market look like for cannabis operators?
194 medical dispensary licenses approved to operate with 182 currently operational in geographically divided into eight districts around the state. Existing medical marijuana dispensaries will also be first in line to start serving adult consumers with dual licenses. Applications open on December 8th and officials have 60 days to approve or deny.
The Missouri Division of Cannabis Regulation under the Department of Health and Senior Services will also be accepting applications in June of 2023 for 144 micro-business licenses. These licenses will be determined through a lottery system, with priority given to low-income applicants and people who have been disproportionately impacted by drug criminalization.
A maximum of 62 cultivation facilities and 88 manufacturers will be initially permitted under the law.
The initiative will impose a six percent tax on recreational cannabis sales.
Regulators can create rules around advertising, but they cannot be any more stringent than existing restrictions on alcohol marketing.
Local jurisdictions will be able to opt out of permitting cannabis microbusinesses or retailers from operating in their area if voters approve the ban on the ballot.
Midwestern Cannabis Powerhouse?
Missouri’s medical cannabis program brought in just over $160 M in total sales in its first twelve months of operation and quickly accelerated from there. As of September 2022, another $378 M had accumulated. Projections vary but most expect Missouri to exceed total sales of $1 Billion within three years of adult-use sales beginning.
Tourism and out-of-state residents
Illinois shares a large border with Missouri and since opening its cannabis market consistently reports more than 30% of its sales are from out-of-state residents from surrounding prohibited states. More than half of Kansas residents live near the border with Missouri with no legal access to cannabis. Iowa, Kentucky, and Tennessee fall into the same category. Each of these states has debated and so far turned down the opportunity to legalize medical or adult cannabis – will Missouri’s successful cannabis marketplace show them the way?
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