Licensing Update: Board Issues Seven More Cultivation Licenses, Discusses Fire Safety

MONTPELIER — In today’s meeting of the Vermont Cannabis Control Board, members approved seven more outdoor cultivation licenses, voted on a summer meeting schedule and discussed fire safety, bringing on Vermont Division of Fire Safety Regional Manager Landon Wheeler for a quick overview of the approval process.

“We are moving faster than almost every other state when it comes to issuing licenses,” said Control Board Chair James Pepper as the meeting opened up. “We are moving fast because we genuinely want cultivators to be able to participate in year one.” With that in mind, he said, the board is prioritizing outdoor cultivators at this point.

“We are moving fast because we genuinely want cultivators to be able to participate in year one.”

The board has received 226 license applications as of today. 62 are incomplete, largely due to minor errors that can be “fixed quickly,” Pepper said. Seven were granted approval and received their licenses. Those seven licensees are:

• Arcadia Cannabis Company LLC
  License Type, Tier: Indoor Cultivator Tier 3
• Snowbird Botanicals LLC
  License Type, Tier: Mixed Cultivator Tier 1 (Small Cultivator)
• Epona Farms, LLC
  License Type, Tier: Indoor Cultivator Tier 1 (Small Cultivator)
• Family Tree, LLC; Family Tree Hemp Company
  License Type, Tier: Mixed Cultivator Tier 3
• Great Brook Homestead
  License Type, Tier: Outdoor Cultivator Tier 1 (Small Cultivator)
• Valley Organics LLC
  License Type, Tier: Indoor Cultivator Tier 1 (Small Cultivator)
• DP Holdings LLC, VT Cannabis Organics
  License Type, Tier: Mixed Cultivator Tier 1 (Small Cultivator)

Compliance Waiver Notes

On compliance Pepper cautioned that granting waivers is “going to be the rare exception, and not the rule,” in particular when it comes to things like insurance and fire safety. “There are a lot of people in these communities that don’t like cannabis, don’t like what we’re doing, and they seize on these types of stumbles to help roll back the market,” he said.

Fire Safety: What to Expect

During the meeting, Vermont Division of Fire Safety Regional Manager Landon Wheeler, the official point of contact for cannabis fire safety in the state, jumped on to share what applicants might expect from the process. He invited anyone who hasn’t already to send him an email to [email protected]  and get the process started.

The very first part of the process is determining whether the building in which you are doing business is a public or non public building. If it’s a nonpublic building, it’s a relatively simple process but still requires a visit from the Fire Marshall and then a letter issued to show to the Control Board.

If it’s a public building, it needs a conditional occupancy permit or an occupancy permit. Licensees may be required to file a construction permit for a fitup in their space.

Wheeler invited licensees to check out the NFPA 2018 edition, available as a free download, at nfpa.org “if you want to give yourself a better idea of the codes and standards we look at.” Fire safety permits can be found on the Vermont Division of Fire Safety page.

He encouraged people to reach out as soon as possible. “Reaching out to us early is absolutely critical,” Wheeler said, noting that his department does not have a process to expedite permits and reviews projects in the order they’re received. He asked that people only call or email him once and assured that he would get back to people within 24-48 hours.

Other Meeting Items

• The board will meet next Monday, June 6 and then switch to a Wednesday 1pm meeting schedule for the reminder of the summer. Dates: June 6, 15, 22, 29; July 6, 13, 20; August 3, 10, 31.
• 5 recommendations for social equity status were approved.

The board also approved three prequalification applications, reminding attendees that the last day for starting a prequalification application is today, May 31. There are 480 in the queue as of today. For prequalification applications in progress, people have until June 14 to complete them, which is when the window will officially be closed.

One social equity status was also denied. That applicant indicated that they were convicted many years ago for a cannabis offense, but the board denied it because they were not incarcerated as a result of the conviction.

Pepper raised issue of the word ‘organics’ in an approved licensee name, and asked board member Kyle Harris whether he thought it would be problematic.

“It’s certainly something I’m concerned about,” Harris said. “I’m not sure this rises to the level  of consumer protection.”

In the discussion, Control Board members made it clear that they are not enforcers of organic standards, which fall under the purview of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). And while a company might be able to use organics in their name, use of the company name on packaging or labeling could create issues. Additionally, the board might need to step in if “it is clear there is misleading labeling.”

Harris addressed listeners directly on this as well: “To everyone listening, I’m sure you’re following the spirit of the law in terms of organic. Do what you want with your inputs but know that use of the word organic on your labeling and packaging will give you problems.”

A few days ago, in an instance where a business name was used that could be “misleading to youth,” the licensee was approved for prequalification but sent a conditional letter saying that they could not use their legal business name on the labeling or packaging. “We may have to do something similar for this organics issue,” Pepper said.

The board went into executive session to discuss one applicant that had a presumptively disqualifying conviction, and another candidate who had something in their past that could “affect their licensure.” In these instances, regulators look for any potential “threat to the function of the market or public safety threat.” All, however, were approved.

Two weeks ago, the Control Board issued its first Vermont cannabis operating license for a social equity Tier One cultivator applicant. Last week, they issued three more cultivator licenses.

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