Michigan pot shops can stay open several months beyond initial deadline

By Violet Ikonomova

May 30, 2018 at 2:40 pm

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Michigan pot shops can stay open several months beyond initial deadline

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Locally approved marijuana dispensaries that have applied for licensing under new rules can now stay open three months past an initial June 15 deadline as they wait for their license requests to be processed. The Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs today granted the applicant businesses permission to operate until Sept. 15, in a move designed to ensure marijuana patients can continue to get their medicine while the state prepares to issue licenses. The deadline to apply for a license was Feb. 15.

“Extending the deadline to Sept. 15 will make sure that this law is implemented correctly and assure that potential licensees are thoroughly reviewed,” Licensing and Regulatory Affairs Director Shelly Edgerton says in a news release. “It is important that we ensure that medical marihuana patients have continued access to their medicine.”

Applicants initially had to shutdown by a deadline of June 15 or risk jeopardizing their chance of being granted a business license. Law enforcement action was also a possibility.

The state is still going through the lengthy applications and has yet to issue any licenses. LARA says the 92-day extension will give the pot licensing body “enough time to investigate and authorize facility operator licenses.”