No.

See Appendix A to Chapter 3 of AMCC’s Administrative Rules and Regulations.

Yes. §20-2A-53(a)(8) Establishes annual license fees for each type of license, provided the fee shall be not less than ten thousand dollars ($10,000) and not more than fifty thousand dollars ($50,000), depending on the category of license.

No.  538-x-3-.03-1 No person or entity may apply for more than one category of license at a time; an applicant who withdraws an application may reapply, so long as the application is timely, in accordance with Rule 538-x-3-.05.

Yes. The AMCC rules require an applicant, at the time of application, to show proof of authorization for the applicant to occupy the property where each facility is proposed to be located. The rules also require additional information specific to each proposed facility. See Rule 538-x-3-.05-3.m.(12).

No. The AMCC rules require the applicant, at the time of application, to submit plans demonstrating that its operations will, prior to issuance of a license, satisfy the requirements established by the rules. The applicant, at the time of application, must provide an estimated construction completion date for each facility (if applicable), and the number of days, if awarded a license, within which the applicant reasonably projects it will commence operations as to each facility identified in the application.

Alabama law provides that at least one-fourth of all licenses for cultivators, processors, secure transporters, dispensaries, and state testing laboratories, and at least one-fifth of all licenses for integrated facilities, be awarded to business entities that are (1) at least 51 percent owned by members of a minority group or, in the case of a corporation, at least 51 percent of the shares of the corporation are owned by members of a minority group, and (2) managed and controlled by members of a minority group in its daily operations. “Minority group” is defined as individuals of African American, Native American, Asian, or Hispanic descent. Ala. Code § 20-2A-51(b)

No. The integrity of the application and licensing process is of paramount importance to the Commission and will not be compromised. Throughout the application process, applicants (including all employees, agents and representatives of applicants and any other individual acting on an applicant’s behalf) must not initiate communication with any member of the Commission or any AMCC staff, officials, or representatives regarding the application, except through the email listed in the contact information provided below. See Rule 538-x-3-.04.

The non-refundable application fee of $2,500 must be paid, via the online licensing portal, when the applicant files its business application. The deadline to file a business application is December 30, 2022.

The AMCC does not license employees of cannabis business licensees. However, the AMCC rules require employees of licensees to satisfy annual training and continuing education requirements, and, in some cases, to satisfy certain requirements regarding eligibility, education, experience and/or professional certification. Additionally, after the issuance of business licenses, all employees of a business licensee must undergo a pre-employment background check and be registered to the AMCC website.

Records indicating residency in Alabama (during the relevant period) may include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Homestead Exemption Records
• Income Tax Documents
• Alabama Voter Registration Records
• Alabama Motor Vehicle Registration Records
• Residential Lease Agreements
• Insurance Records

The relevant time period is the 15-year period preceding the date of application. (Example: If an application is filed on December 1, 2022, then the relevant time period is December 1, 2007 – November 30, 2022).

For each individual who is a member of a minority group, and who owns, manages and controls the daily operations of the applicant’s business, the applicant must provide at least one of the following items:

• Birth Certificate that includes race
• Military records or other government issued documents that includes race

• Each owner of an applicant
• Each shareholder of an applicant
• Each director of an applicant
• Each board member of an applicant
• Each individual with an economic interest in an applicant (including each individual who has a direct or indirect ownership interest in an entity that has an ownership interest in an applicant)

State criminal background checks are conducted by the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency (ALEA) and national criminal background checks are conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). Specific instructions and request forms are included in FORM C: State Background Check (ALEA) and FORM D: National Background Check (FBI). These forms are available on the AMCC website at https://amcc.alabama.gov/cannabis-business-applicants/#resources.

The applicant is required to use a predesigned form for some exhibits. In such cases, the exhibit description directs the applicant to the appropriate form. Exhibit descriptions are provided in Section 3.2 of the Application Guide. The Application Guide, specific to the type of license being applied for, and all pre-designed forms are available on the AMCC website at https://amcc.alabama.gov/cannabis-business-applicants/#resources.

Yes. Exhibit descriptions are provided in Section 3.2 of the Application Guide and an exhibit template is provided in the Appendix of the Application Guide. The Application Guide, specific to the type of license being applied for, and a Mircosoft Word version of the exhibit template are available on the AMCC website at https://amcc.alabama.gov/cannabis-business-applicants/#resources.

In developing exhibit descriptions, AMCC has, to the greatest extent possible, removed any duplicative language and requests for exhibits. Any information that, in identical format, is required as part of multiple exhibits must be included in each applicable exhibit (i.e., do not reference material in one exhibit that is provided in another exhibit).

Yes. Exhibit descriptions, including applicable page limits, are provided in Section 3.2 of the Application Guide. The Application Guide, specific to the type of license being applied for, is available on the AMCC website at https://amcc.alabama.gov/cannabis-business-applicants/#resources.

The review, evaluation, and scoring of applications will be completed in three phases, each of which may be conducted by the Commission, one or more independent consultants selected by the Commission, or a combination of the two. The review, evaluation, and scoring process is presented in detail in Section 2 of the Application Guide. The Application Guide, specific to the type of license being applied for, is available on the AMCC website at https://amcc.alabama.gov/cannabis-business-applicants/#resources.

Yes. Not more than once during an offering period, absent extenuating circumstances, an applicant having previously filed an application may file an amended application. The deadline to file an amended application, absent extenuating circumstances, is December 30, 2022, and the fee is $1,250. See Rule 538-x-3-.06-1. – 9.

An applicant may petition the Commission to amend an application based on extenuating circumstances. Such petition must be received on or before March 3, 2023, and proposed amendments based on extenuating circumstances must be received on or before March 24, 2023. The fee for filing and amended application based on extenuating circumstances is $2,500. See Rule 538-x-3-.06-10. – 14.

Yes. The Commission, on February 13, 2023, will issue a Notice of Deficiency to any applicant whose original or amended application filing is deficient. See Rule 538-x-3-.08-1.

Deficiencies include, but are not limited to, the following: corrupted or illegible file materials, incomplete applications (i.e., missing required documentation), improperly formatted or labeled materials, and typographical errors preventing reasonable understanding of one or more of the applicant’s statements. See Rule 538-x-3-.08-2.

Note: An applicant’s failure to satisfy a “Pass/Fail” item (See Application Guide, Section 2.2 – Pass/Fail Items) shall not be considered an application deficiency; instead, failure to satisfy a “Pass/Fail” item shall make an applicant ineligible for a license.

The deadline to file a Cannabis Business License Application is 4:00 p.m. CT on December 30, 2022. A complete timeline for the application and licensing process is available in the Appendix to Chapter 3 of the AMCC Rules.

• Each individual with a direct ownership interest in the applicant
• Each individual with an indirect or direct ownership interest in an entity that has an ownership interest in the applicant

An individual’s ownership percentage in an applicant depends on whether the individual has a direct ownership interest in the applicant or an ownership interest (direct or indirect) through an entity that has an ownership interest in the applicant.

If the individual has a direct ownership interest in the applicant, then the ownership percentage in the applicant is equal to the individual’s percentage of direct ownership (Example: An individual has a 40% ownership interest in the applicant).

If the individual has an ownership interest in an entity that has an ownership interest in the applicant, then the individual’s ownership percentage in the applicant is based on the individual’s ownership percentage in the ownership entity and the ownership entity’s ownership percentage in the applicant (Example: An individual has a 40% ownership interest in an entity that has 20% ownership interest in an applicant. The individual has an 8% ownership interest in the applicant).

The applicant should de-identify the exhibits to the extent that such de-identification does not create confusion with the application materials. Likewise, any de-identification should be neutral as to the review, evaluation and scoring of the application.

No.

Yes, unless a form must be notarized, in which case an original wet ink signature is required.

As provided by Rule 538-x-3-.13, the Commission will make applicant names and application contents available for public inspection following the date on which the Commission deems applications formally submitted (slated to take place at the Commission meeting on April 13, 2023).

Alabama law and the AMCC administrative rules require that a resolution or ordinance must be passed to affirmatively allow a dispensing site in the local jurisdiction where such a facility is proposed by an applicant. There may be other restrictions imposed at the local level (i.e., zoning codes) that would limit or prohibit operation of some, or all, facilities proposed by an applicant, either specifically (i.e., cannabis-related facilities are limited or prohibited) or generally (i.e., no business or industrial activities permitted in a residential zone). The applicant must show that, as to each facility, it has all necessary local approvals and that there are no encumbrances to operating a facility proposed in the application.

Possessory interest means that the applicant has or will have, after the satisfaction of certain conditions, the right to possess the item (i.e., vehicles, equipment, machinery) in question. The rules require documentation showing possessory interest. The documentation must show whether the applicant has a current possessory interest (i.e., owns or leases) or a future possessory interest (i.e., contingent upon certain conditions and how possession will accrue upon satisfaction of said conditions).

There is no definition of the terms “commercial horticulture” and “agronomic production” in Alabama’s medical cannabis Act. The Commission will broadly construe those terms to include experience in those respective fields. Certifications, business documents, employment/position verifications, and licenses would be some examples of appropriate documentation, so long as they sufficiently identify and are connected to the individual and/or entity owners of the applicant who are claiming such relevant experience.

No. AMCC offers no preference as to the response/ proposed by an applicant. AMCC is unable to answer how a particular response/approach will be scored, as compared to any other response/approach or any other application(s).

$2,000,000. See Ala. Code § 20-2A-53(a)(2).

Photographs, graphics, and visual aids may be used as a substantive part of an exhibit response. They should not, however, be made part of the formatting of the exhibit (i.e., as borders, for design or aesthetic purposes only).

No. The verification statement on the cover page is the Applicant’s verification of the accuracy and completeness of the entire exhibit. The cover page verification must be completed by an individual who has authority to act on behalf of the Applicant. Any verification or verified statement required as part of an exhibit should be separately verified as required within the exhibit.

A dispensary applicant is limited to proposing 3 dispensing sites and an integrated facility applicant is limited to proposing 5 dispensing sites. There is no requirement for the applicant to propose a facility for the maximum number of dispensing sites. However, one factor that the Commission may consider in awarding a license is “[t]he extent to which an Applicant, if awarded a license, anticipates fully utilizing its license authorization and/or the number of its permitted facilities.” Rule 538-x-3-.11(3)(h).

No.

Yes. The minimum A-rating required of surety providing the Integrated Facility Performance Bond may be satisfied with a rating in the “A” range (i.e., A- or higher).

Blueprints and floorplans must be 8.5” x 11” page size so as to not affect the remainder of the PDF document in which they are contained. However, the blueprint/floorplan pages should be such that they can be zoomed/magnified without any feature of the drawing losing scale, detail, resolution or clarity.

The Alabama Department of Agriculture and Industries (ADAI) recommends following the Hemp Pest Management Guide published by Extension. Any further questions relating to pesticide usage should be directed to ADAI.