While Pennsylvania struggles to legalize, Delaware opens applications for marijuana licenses

Another Pennsylvania border state gets closer to legal weed sales as Delaware prepares to issue 125 business licenses for the cultivation, manufacturing, testing, and retail sale of recreational-use marijuana.

Starting Monday, Aug. 19, the Office of the Marijuana Commissioner (OMC) will accept applications for these licenses. Applicants have until Monday, Sept. 30, to submit their proposals.

“It feels good to hit that deadline and we’ve had a lot of deadlines in this process,” said Delaware’s marijuana commissioner, Robert Coupe. “We’re actually two weeks ahead, as Delaware law instructed us to begin accepting applications by Sept. 1. It took a lot of work to get here.”

The state plans to issue 60 licenses for marijuana cultivation, 30 for manufacturing, 30 for retail stores, and five licenses for testing products. More than a third of those licenses are set aside as “social equity” licenses for prospective operators who were convicted of marijuana-related offenses or live in what is considered a “disproportionately impacted area” by the OMC. Additional licenses will be earmarked for small business owners.

The OMC will evaluate applications on a pass/fail basis. Successful applicants will then be entered into a random lottery, which will take place at the end of October, Coupe said. There will be 33 drawings for licenses based on the license type, county, size of the operation, and if the applicant qualifies for social equity or microbusiness licenses.

Selected applicants will start receiving their licenses on Nov. 1, 2024, Coupe said, with the expectation that the industry will be up and running by April 1, 2025.

Medical marijuana operators must go through a separate licensing process to convert their medical licenses into recreational ones. Coupe said an additional 32 adult-use marijuana licenses will be generated from those conversions, which are expected to be completed by mid-September.

While Delaware is moving forward with legal marijuana sales, the timeline for legalization in neighboring Pennsylvania remains uncertain. Pennsylvania lawmakers failed to reach a consensus before this summer’s fiscal budget deadline. The state could potentially earn an estimated $41 million in tax revenue in its first year of legal sales, according to the state’s Independent Fiscal Office.

Applications will be accepted online at de-dshs.my.site.com/OMC.

Click “Log in” at the top right of the page and then “Sign up” on the following page to create an account. Use this account to apply for a license and upload the necessary documents. The deadline to apply is Sept. 30.

Applicants must submit a government-issued ID, Delaware business license, capitalization table, staff and employee training plan, operating plan, safety plans, and a comprehensive business plan, among other documents depending on license type.

The OMC has a step-by-step guide available online. For more information visit omc.delaware.gov/licensing.

At the end of October, the OMC will host a lottery to select licensees. Licensees will be notified starting Nov. 1.

Application fees range from $1,000 to $5,000 depending on the license, with the actual license fee ranging from $3,000 to $10,000. However, social equity and microbusiness applicants will receive discounted fees.

Marijuana cultivation facility: 60 licenses available

Marijuana product manufacturing facility: 30 licenses available

Retail marijuana store: 30 licenses available

Marijuana testing facility: 5 licenses available