by Rick Thompson/September 29, 2017
LANSING- The picture is slowly becoming clearer as to how people will be able to apply for medical marijuana business licenses in Michigan’s new program, and how much it will cost.
In a press release issued today, September 29, The Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs and their subdivision, the Bureau of Medical Marihuana Regulation, issued a press release outlining details of the new licensing program and a fee schedule for certain license types.
Application fees cover the cost of administration in processing paperwork, and are estimated based on the number of application received. The chart of fees applying to all applicants, which could change over time, is reproduced here:
# of Applicants Fee
500 $8,000
1,000 $6,000
1,500 $5,000
2,000 $4,500
Other licensing fees apply to specific types of licenses: cultivation, distribution, processing, transport and testing. Those are not yet determined.
Registration fees, or regulatory assessment, for all levels of licenses are included in a second chart from LARA. A Class A cultivation license is guaranteed at $10,000.00 by the language of the MMFLA.
A Class A cultivation licensee will pay a $10,000 fee, unless the state receives more than 1,800 applications for this license, in which case the fee will drop to $9,000.
A Class B (1,000 plant) or Class C (1,500 plant) cultivation license applicant pays the same as a secure transporter, a processor or a provisioning center. If there are 300 or less applicants the fee will be $57,000 per application; if 301-600 applications are received the fee will be $28,000; if 601-1200 application are received the fee drops to $14,000; and if 1,201-1,800 applications are received the fee drops to $9,000.
Safety Compliance Facilities, also known as testing laboratories, pay no registration fee under the new LARA information.
The new FAQ contains much more information regarding the process, and even includes many questions for which no answer yet exists. Read the entire document at the LARA website HERE.