Ala. Admin. Code r. 538-X-3-.11

Current through Register Vol. 42, No. 11, August 30, 2024

Section 538-X-3-.11 - Criteria For Awarding Licenses - Standards, Procedures And Requirements

(1) The number of licenses awarded as to each category of Applicant shall be in accordance with provisions of the Act, to the extent licenses regarding any particular category are limited. In no event shall the Commission award a license, as to any category, in excess of any limitation provided in the Act.

(2) In every instance, the primary consideration of the Commission in awarding any license shall be the merits of the application submitted, including, but not limited to the Applicant's solvency, stability, suitability, capability, projected efficiency, and experience, both in relation to any baseline set by the Commission as well as in comparison with other Applicants.

(3) The Commission's criteria for granting licenses, or increasing the number of a specific category of license to grant, shall include, but shall not necessarily be limited to, the following factors:

(a) The population of the state,

(b) The number of active or anticipated registered qualified patients,

(c) Market demand for medical cannabis,

(d) The unemployment rate of the state,

(e) The need for agricultural and other business opportunities in communities,

(f) Access to health care,

(g) Infrastructure,

(h) The extent to which an Applicant, if awarded a license, anticipates fully utilizing its license authorization and/or the number of its permitted facilities,

(i) The anticipated time within which an Applicant projects being able to commence operations and/or reach full capacity as to its operations,

(j) The measures, if any, an Applicant is willing to take in seeking to minimize costs to patients,

(k) The existing or projected distribution of licenses in a category across the State,

(l) Providing the greatest benefits to the residents of Alabama, and

(m) The racial and economic makeup of Alabama.

(n) Providing variety within licensees' business models, so as to foster a diversity of approaches to doing business, engage creative or innovative ways of achieving business goals and serving the citizens of Alabama, and increase choice to patients and caregivers.

(4) The weight to be given to any particular factor, in determining whether to award a license, is discretionary with the Commission, and the Commission need not weigh any particular factor more or less than others considered. In accordance with § 20-2A-51(b), Code of Ala. 1975, (as amended), the Commission shall ensure that at least one fifth of all integrated facility licenses in Alabama, and at least one fourth of licenses in all other categories, are awarded to business entities at least 51% of which are owned by members of a minority group, or, in the case of corporations, at least 51% of the shares of the corporation are owned by members of a minority group, and are managed and controlled by members of a minority group in its daily operations. In the event that death, resignation, attrition, dissolution, bankruptcy or any other eventuality should cause the number of 51% minority-owned integrated facilities to fall below one fifth of the total number of such integrated facilities, or as to all other categories, one fourth of the total number of such licensees, the Commission shall, at the next opportunity to award a license, prioritize awarding a license to a qualified company that fulfills the 51% minority-owned goal set forth in the Act. The foregoing goal of the Act does not pretermit the requirement that the applicant must demonstrate compliance with all applicable rules, regulations, criteria and statutory guidelines as set forth herein.

(5) In addition to the foregoing considerations, in determining whether to award a license, the Commission may consider the following factors:

(a) The integrity, moral character, and reputation; personal and business ethics; financial ability and experience; and responsibility or means to operate or maintain a facility of the Applicant and of any other individual that meets either of the following:

1. Controls, directly or indirectly, the Applicant;

2. Is controlled, directly or indirectly, by the Applicant or by a person who controls, directly or indirectly, the Applicant.

(b) The financial ability of the Applicant to maintain required financial guarantees.

(c) The nature, quality, and tenor of the Applicant's interactions with the Commission and AMCC personnel during the current or in any previous application process.

(d) The sources and total amount of the Applicant's capitalization to operate and maintain the proposed facility.

(e) Whether an owner, director, board member, or individual with a controlling interest in the Applicant has been indicted for, charged with, arrested for, convicted of, pled guilty or nolo contendere to, or forfeited bail concerning, or had expunged any relevant criminal offense under the laws of any jurisdiction, either felony or misdemeanor, not including traffic violations, regardless of whether the offense has been expunged, pardoned, or reversed on appeal or otherwise. See 538-X-3-.05 -3.c.

(f) Whether the Applicant has filed, or had filed against it, a proceeding for bankruptcy within the past seven years.

(g) Whether the Applicant has been served with a complaint or other notice filed with any court or public agency regarding payment of any tax required under federal, state, or local law that has been delinquent for one or more years.

(h) Whether the Applicant has a history of noncompliance with any regulatory requirements in this state or any other jurisdiction.

(i) Whether at the time of application the Applicant is, or in the past 10 years has been, a defendant in litigation involving its business practices.

(j) The Applicant's ability to capitalize and conduct operations as proposed in its business plan, including business experience in related fields.

(k) The Applicant's history of business activities as it applies to the specific license for which the applicant is seeking licensure.

(l) The Applicant's history of business activities as it applies to licenses applied for or awarded in other jurisdictions.

(m) The proposed location of all proposed medical cannabis facilities as being suitable for all activities, not inconsistent with applicable zoning, and the Applicant's ability to serve an identifiable geographic area.

(n) Whether the Applicant meets other standards or requirements established under the Act or these Rules. (See § 20-2A-56(c)(1) -(12), Code of Ala. 1975, (as amended)

(6) In the absence of other determinative factors set forth herein, where two or more Applicants at the threshold for being awarded a license or not have earned average scores (as set forth in paragraph 2 of 538-x-3-.08) within one percentile point of each other, the Commission may, in its discretion, utilize a lottery or tie-breaking system among affected Applicants, to select which one or ones of such affected Applicants should be awarded a license.

Ala. Admin. Code r. 538-X-3-.11

Adopted by Alabama Administrative Monthly Volume XL, Issue No. 11, August 31, 2022, eff. 10/15/2022.

Author: William H. Webster

Statutory Authority:Code of Ala. 1975, §§ 20-2A-22, as amended.