ENROLLED ORIGINAL
A RESOLUTION
25-231
IN THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
July 11, 2023
To declare the existence of an emergency with respect to the need to allow the Alcoholic
Beverage and Cannabis Board (“ABC Board”) to issue temporary non-resident
registration identification cards that are valid for periods between 3 days and no longer
than one year in length, allow licensed testing laboratories to receive and test samples of
medical cannabis products from qualifying patients, allow licensed testing laboratories to
conduct quality assurance or research and development testing for cultivation centers and
manufacturers, amend the definition of a social equity applicant to include arrests and
convictions of qualifying family members for a cannabis or drug offense, expand the list
of eligible family members under the social equity applicant definition to include siblings
and grandparents, clarify that existing licensed cultivation centers and retailers, and
applicants that scored 150 points or more during the open application period that
occurred between November 29, 2021, and March 28, 2022, that are authorized by statute
to receive a cultivation center, manufacturer, or retailer license apart from a designated
open application period are not counted in calculating the 50% set aside requirement,
clarify that the five cultivation center registration applicants that scored 150 points or
more during the same open application period shall automatically receive a manufacturer
license provided they pay the annual fee and register with the ABC Board, allow the
Alcoholic Beverage and Cannabis Administration to issue conditional licenses to testing
laboratory applicants, and to waive the application fee for testing laboratory licenses.
RESOLVED, BY THE COUNCIL OF THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA, That this
resolution may be cited as the “Medical Cannabis Clarification and Non-Resident Patient Access
Emergency Declaration Resolution of 2023”.
Sec. 2. (a) There exists an immediate need to expand non-resident patient access at
licensed retailers by making temporary non-resident patient registrations valid for periods other
than 30 days.
(b) Non-resident access to medical cannabis is critical for visiting patients. Between
October 20, 2022, and June 29, 2023, the Alcoholic Beverage and Cannabis Administration
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(“ABCA”) has issued approximately 13,489 temporary non-resident patient registrations. Non-
resident temporary registrations have been issued to patients from all 50 states and
approximately 33 countries. However, currently temporary non-resident patient registrations can
only be issued for a 30-day period. This has resulted in requests from some visiting patients and
stakeholders to be able to purchase a less expensive 3-day non-resident patient registration as
they are only visiting the District for the weekend. Other non-resident patients and stakeholders
have asked to be able to purchase a temporary non-resident patient registration that is valid for
longer than a 30-day period as they are visiting the District for longer than 30 days. Allowing
ABCA to issue temporary non-resident patient cards that are between 3 days and one year in
length addresses both needs.
(c) There exists an immediate need to expand the definition of a social equity applicant to
include arrests and convictions of qualifying family members for a cannabis or drug-related
offense and add siblings and grandparents to the list of eligible family members.
(d) The first open application period implementing the Medical Cannabis Amendment
Act of 2022, which took effect on March 22, 2023, ends on June 30, 2023, and is limited to
social equity applicants. As of June 27, 2023, ABCA has received 11 complete medical cannabis
facility applications from social equity applicants for either a cultivation center, manufacturer, or
courier license. All 11 complete social equity applications filed with ABCA by June 27, 2023,
are from returning citizens. None of the 11 social equity applications are from an eligible family
member applicant with a qualifying family member who was incarcerated for a cannabis or drug-
related offense.
(e) While the current social equity definition includes a returning citizen applicant’s
arrest, conviction, or incarceration for a cannabis or drug related offense, an eligible family
member is only permitted to apply if the qualifying returning citizen was incarcerated for a
cannabis or drug related offense. This inconsistency is addressed by including arrests and
convictions of qualifying family members for a cannabis or drug offense. The list of eligible
family members has also been expanded to add siblings and grandparents as a person’s arrest,
conviction, or incarceration for a cannabis or drug related offense can have a significant financial
and emotional impact on other immediate family members.
(f) The open application period for cultivation center, manufacturer, and courier licenses
for non-social equity applicants begins on August 29, 2023. The Medical Cannabis Amendment
Act of 2022 requires, with minor exceptions, that at least 50% of all cultivation center,
manufacturer, and courier licenses be set aside for social equity applicants. There exists an
immediate need to clarify that the number of cultivation center, manufacturer, and courier
licenses available to non-social equity applicants beginning on August 29, 2023, is based upon
the number of Alcoholic Beverage and Cannabis Board (“ABC Board”) approved social equity
applicants for the open application period ending June 30, 2023, and does not take into account
cultivation center, manufacturer, and retailer applicants that are statutorily permitted to be filed
with ABCA apart from a designated open application period.
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(g) There is an immediate need to clarify that the 5 cultivation center registration
applicants that scored 150 points or more during the ABC Board open application period that
occurred between November 29, 2021, and March 28, 2022, are automatically eligible to receive
a manufacturer license provided they pay the annual fee and register with the ABC Board. This
will help to shorten the timeline necessary for these 5 cultivation centers to increase the
production of and the availability of medical cannabis products in the District.
(h) Four of the 5 cultivation center registration applicants that scored 150 points or more
during the open application period have been designated by the Department of Small and Local
Business Development as a Medical Cannabis Certified Business Enterprise with an equity
impact enterprise certification subcategory.
(i) In a medical cannabis marketplace, products are tested for moisture content,
cannabinoid potency, microbial contamination, pesticides, and other items to ensure that the
product is safe and the patient can make an informed purchase. Despite years of effort to attract
testing laboratory licensees, we currently do not have any testing laboratories operating in the
District to test medical cannabis products from cultivation centers or manufacturers. To
incentivize applications for testing laboratories, there exists an immediate need to waive the
application fee, to allow ABCA to issue conditional licenses to successful testing laboratory
applicants, to allow a licensed testing laboratory to test samples of medical cannabis products
from qualifying patients and to allow cultivation centers and manufacturers to submit product
samples to a testing laboratory for purposes of quality assurance or research and development.
Sec. 3. The Council determines that the circumstances enumerated in section 2 constitute
emergency circumstances, making it necessary that the Medical Cannabis Clarification and Non-
Resident Patient Access Emergency Amendment Act of 2023 be adopted after a single reading.
Sec. 4. This resolution shall take effect immediately.
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