Updated June 9, 2020, 3:05 p.m.
Five days after announcing it was releasing new rules, today the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulations released tie breaking rules for the award of 75 dispensary licenses. The emergency rules, an extension of the emergency rule filed December 9, 2019, would distribute licenses by lot to applicants with equal scores from the license awarding process.
Original story from June 5, 2020 below
Just over one month past the statutory deadline for announcing 75 new cannabis dispensary licenses, a press release from Illinois’ Department of Financial and Professional Regulation announced the agency had filed tie breaking rules for applicants competing for the licenses. While the release states the rules can be found on the agency website, the rules aren’t there or in the Illinois Register of new rules. The agency did not respond to a request for a copy of the new rules either.
In the press release, Toi Hutchinson, Senior Advisor for Cannabis Control to Gov. Pritzker, touted the importance of the new tie breaking rules.
“Governor Pritzker has made it clear the state’s new industry is about more than revenue, it’s about ensuring communities that have been left out and left behind have new opportunity. These rules will allow IDFPR to continue the process of awarding licenses. We look forward to issuing licenses in the coming months and conducting the disparity study to determine if any additional equity measures need to be taken.”
Originally expected to announce the application winners by April 30, the State of Illinois has not provided guidance for when applications will be approved. On the original deadline day, Governor J.B. Pritzker issued Executive Order 2020-34, vacating the deadline. A tie breaking plan was part of a cannabis bill that passed the Illinois Senate last month, but the measure failed to pass the House. The legislated plan would have created a lottery for tie breakers.
Over 700 applicants submitted applications on January 2, 2020, with over 4,000 license applications for one of 75 cannabis dispensary licenses distributed across the state.
