Minnesota judge reinstates lottery for adult-use cannabis social equity licenses

A Minnesota judge has ordered the state’s cannabis regulators to hold a lottery to issue business licenses to qualified social equity applicants after growing fears the lotto might be canceled altogether.

Ramsey County District Court Judge Stephen Smith ruled on Friday that social equity applicants for adult-use marijuana licenses suffered a “public wrong” and the state’s Office of Cannabis Management (OCM) had a legal obligation to conduct the lottery, according to The Minnesota Star Tribune.

Smith had halted the lottery in November after some applicants that had been denied access filed a lawsuit claiming the process lacked clear criteria and didn’t allow for appeals.

The OCM, in advance of the November ruling, warned that any postponement could ultimately doom a lottery, citing costs and logistics.

The agency put those concerns to rest on Sunday in a statement to the Star Tribune.

“With the adoption of the rules governing Minnesota’s cannabis industry imminent, OCM expects to be able to begin issuing licenses to qualified social equity applicants in a matter of weeks,” the agency’s statement said.

“There are currently more than a thousand qualified applicants for social equity licenses who are first in line to receive business licenses, and OCM has been clear since November that any delay to the lottery would prove fatal to the preapproval process.”

In all, regulators received 3,529 applications for one of 10 adult-use license types as of March 24, according to state data.

Almost half the applications – 1,741 – were submitted by social equity candidates, according to the OCM.

Minnesota legalized recreational marijuana in 2023, and operators and advocates had hoped adult-use sales would be up and running by now.