The Missouri Supreme Court heard arguments in a case that might force state medical marijuana regulators to make public MMJ business license applications, a request made by a company that was denied cultivation permits.
According to the Missouri Independent, the state’s high court will decide whether application confidentiality – written into the state ballot measure that legalized MMJ in 2018 – should be nullified so that those who lost out on permits can compare their applications to license winners during appeals.
The case was brought by California-based Kings Garden Midwest, which didn’t win either of its submitted cultivation applications.
The company sought an appeal partly because it contended its two applications were identical but received different regulatory scores.
Lower courts have already ruled in favour of Kings Garden Midwest.
However, the state Department of Health and Senior Services (DHSS) oversees MMJ licensing and has refused to disclose the winning applications, citing a confidentiality clause in the 2018 ballot measure, which amended the state constitution.
The DHSS wrote in a court filing that “many, perhaps most” of the 758 license appeals are still pending before the state agency has requested MMJ license application paperwork.
Disclaimer: https://mjbizdaily.com/missouri-high-court-to-decide-if-medical-marijuana-business-applications-can-be-disclosed
