The Maryland Cannabis Administration will hold lottery drawings for its first round of social equity licenses Thursday.
After opening the pool for social equity applications in November, the administration will be selecting up to 179 applicants from more than 1,200 entries that were approved.
To qualify for the lottery, individuals must have lived in an area that’s been disproportionally impacted by the war on drugs for at least five years or attended a public school in a disproportionally affected area, among other criteria.
“We know businesses are excited to join this growing industry and wish all the qualified social equity applicants good luck in the drawings,” Maryland Cannabis Administration Director Will Tilburg said in a news release.
The first round was open from Nov. 13 to Dec.12, and the cannabis agency received more than 1,500 applications during that period. All applicants who met the minimum requirements were then placed in a lottery.
There are 1,269 approved applicants and 84% of them are considered minority- and women-owned businesses. These applicants received notice of the lottery drawing from the administration with their lottery number Thursday.
There are 873 applicants for standard and micro dispensaries, 449 for standard and micro growers, and 192 for standard and microprocessors.
Montgomery County has the largest number of applicants who met the minimum requirements for licensing with 89 applicants with Prince George’s County second with 87.
The Baltimore-area counties with applicants include:
- Baltimore County —78
- Baltimore City — 64
- Anne Arunde County 64
- Harford County — 22
- Carroll County — 18
- Howard County — four
The lottery drawings will be livestreamed on the agency’s website at 9:30 a.m. Thursday.
The administration told The Baltimore Sun that the next round of licensing can be held in May or later, but that it has not been scheduled.
