MJBizMag October 2020 - 49

marijuana initiative overwhelmingly
favors existing MMJ operators.
The initiative also calls on the state to
issue 26 social equity licenses targeting
minority entrepreneurs. State marijuana
regulators would decide the final rules
governing the program.
Arizona-based Harvest Health &
Recreation and Massachusetts-based
Curaleaf bankrolled the Smart and Safe
ballot initiative and are poised to be big
winners if it passes.
Harvest already has the largest retail
presence in the state with 15 dispensaries
supported by four cultivation sites and
two processing facilities.
Harvest CEO Steve White told analysts
during an earnings call in August that
the company is expanding its cultivation
and processing capacity in preparation
for adult-use marijuana legalization.
" You're not going to see what you saw
in Illinois, where people are running out
of product, " White said.
Voters narrowly defeated an adultuse
measure in 2016, but support for
legalizing recreational marijuana keeps
increasing, so the industry is optimistic
the initiative will pass this time around.
Initiative: Legalize a regulated,
commercial adult-use marijuana market.
Sponsor: Smart and Safe Arizona
License opportunities:
* Arizona has issued roughly
130 vertical medical marijuana
licenses to companies that would be
eligible to receive recreational MJ
licenses as long as their operations
are in good standing.
* Additional licenses would be
available in counties that don't have
at least two MMJ dispensaries.
* Twenty-six social equity
licenses would be available to
entrepreneurs living in communities
disproportionately affected by the
war on drugs through a program
to be developed by the state health
department.
Likelihood of passage: 51% of
registered voters said they would vote
for the initiative while 41% would
vote against it, according to a poll
conducted in September by Monmouth
University.
This margin shrinks among likely
voters in a " high-turnout scenario "
to 49% for and 43% against. And it
disappears in a " low-turnout scenario "
of 47% for and 47% against.
MISSISSIPPI
BALLOT MEASURE: Initiative 65,
Initiative 65A
* Additional recreational marijuana
licenses could be granted based on
a 1:10 ratio with pharmacies in the
state. For example, if the number
of pharmacies statewide grows
by 100, then the state could issue
an additional 10 retail adult-use
licenses.
Tax rate: 16% tax on the retail sale of
adult-use marijuana products.
Other important business factors:
* The initiative would set up a
recreational program quickly
by allowing existing medical
marijuana operators to apply for
dual licenses between Jan. 19, 2021,
and March 9, 2021. The state would
then have 60 days to issue a license
from the time an application
was filed.
* Not-for-profit MMJ businesses
would have the option of converting
to for-profit status.
* Potency of infused edibles would be
limited to 10 milligrams of
THC per serving, 100 milligrams
per package.
* The state would be required to adopt
rules for delivery no later than
Jan. 1, 2025, though it could happen
as soon as Jan. 1, 2023.
POPULATION: 2.9 million
PROJECTED FIRST-YEAR SALES:
$240 million-$265 million*
PROJECTED 2024 SALES:
$750 million-$800 million*
* Figures are for Initiative 65 only.
Mississippi medical marijuana industry
advocates hope their state will be
the second in the Deep South to
legalize MMJ.
A strong vote of support, industry
experts say, also could influence
neighboring states such as Alabama,
which has yet to legalize MMJ. But
legalization advocates in Mississippi
face a battle because of a restrictive
competing initiative that triggers a
tougher voting threshold for passage.
Citizen advocates put forth a businessfriendly
measure (Initiative 65) in this
conservative state, but then lawmakers
countered with a measure that is
largely undefined but would limit
licenses and allow just terminally ill
patients to smoke medical marijuana
(Initiative 65A).
" It's just another attempt (by the
Legislature) to kill medical marijuana, "
said Jamie Grantham, communications
director for the citizen-led Medical
Marijuana 2020 Campaign.
With competing measures on
the ballot, voters will be asked two
questions: Whether MMJ should be
legalized and, if so, which initiative the
voter favors.
An initiative must receive at least
40% of all votes to pass, according
to the state's election rules. In other
words, a strong majority will need to
answer yes to the first question about
legalizing medical marijuana and then
clearly support one initiative over
another.
Details of the citizen initiative:
Initiative: Legalize a commercial
medical marijuana market through a
constitutional amendment.
Sponsor: Mississippians for
Compassionate Care
October 2020 | mjbizdaily.com 49
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MJBizMag October 2020

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