Product packager applications will be forwarded to Consumer Protection for next steps in licensure process
HARTFORD (September 26, 2022) — Connecticut’s Social Equity Council (SEC), which was developed to ensure the equity of the state’s adult-use cannabis program, voted on Monday to approve social equity status for one lottery applicant for cannabis business. The council also approved four Equity Joint Ventures (EJV).
“I am excited we have approved the social equity applicants in the product packager license category,” said Ginne-Rae Clay, SEC Executive Director. “These approvals bring us closer to the opening of the cannabis market.”
The approved applicants include:
1 product packager application
4 Equity Joint Ventures (Not subject to the lottery process)
The approved applications for the product packagers will be sent to the Department of Consumer Protection (DCP) for further processing.
The SEC also denied equity status for one hybrid retailer and two equity joint ventures. EJVs are not subject to the lottery, and if denied, applicants may re-submit their application for licensure to the Department of Consumer Protection. The law was amended this year to allow licensed DIA cultivators, medical producers and medical dispensaries to create up to two equity joint ventures.
The Council approved five lottery applications for social equity status at the previous meeting.
All applicants seeking social equity status are first reviewed by the auditing and accounting firm of CohnReznick, a third-party reviewer hired by the SEC to create a comprehensive review system.
Cannabis was approved for adult-use on July 1, 2021. Adult-use cannabis retail sales are anticipated to begin in the state by the end of 2022. For information about Adult-Use Cannabis, visit www.ct.gov/cannabis.
