Understanding the Law
The Responsible and Equitable Regulation of Adult-Use Cannabis Act legalizes personal use and the commercialization of the cannabis industry in the state of Connecticut under specific restrictions
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The full text of the law can be found here:
An Act Concerning the Responsible and Equitable Regulation of Adult-Use Cannabis
Sections of the Law
Adult Use
WIP / Coming Soon
How do I get a past crime expunged?
Business
The state of Connecticut will offer 9 different types of cannabis licenses and registrations for new cannabis establishments*. Half of the licenses will be reserved for social equity applicants. Click the links below to learn more:
What is a social equity applicant?
What types of licenses can I apply for?
What do I need to know to get started?
What is a social equity applicant?
A social equity applicant is either an individual that satisfies the two social equity individual requirements listed below or a business, including joint ventures, where a social equity individual has at least 65% ownership and control.
What's the criteria for a social equity individual?
A social equity individual is one who satisfies the following two criteria:
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Had an average household income of less than three hundred per cent of the state median household income over the three tax years immediately preceding such individual's application
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Was a resident of a disproportionately impacted area for not less than five of the ten years immediately preceding the date of such application or was a resident of a disproportionately impacted area for not less than nine years prior to attaining the age of eighteen
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Do I meet the social equity individual criteria?
Income Requirement
Average household income varies based on family size. The table below lists 300% annual medium income in 2021-2022.
Family Size
300% Median Income
1
$195,135.72
2
$255,177.48
3
$315,219.24
4
$375,261.00
5
$435,302.76
6
$495,344.52
7
$506,602.35
8
$517,860.18
Disproportionately Impacted Areas in CT
Disproportionately impacted areas in CT shown below in blue. This list of disproportionately impacted areas was approved by the Social Equity Council on August 5, 2021. Search an address to see if it falls within a disproportionately impacted area.
What types of licenses can I apply for?
Applications for each license will be available on this elicense portal. There are nine licenses that will be made available to support the full cannabis supply chain:
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Growing
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Cultivator – Cultivates, grows, and propagates the cannabis plant for medical and adult use at an establishment with at least 15,000 square feet of grow space
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Micro-cultivator – Cultivates, grows, and propagates the cannabis plant at an establishment between 2,000 and 10,000 square feet of grow space, prior to any expansion authorized by the commissioner
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Manufacturing
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Product manufacturer – Obtains cannabis to extract and manufacture products; may package and label cannabis manufactured at its establishment, may sell, transfer or transport its own products to a cannabis establish, laboratory or research program
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Food and beverage – Operates a business that acquires cannabis to create food and beverages
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Product packager – Labels and packages cannabis in compliance with state statutes, regulations and policies.
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Sales
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Retailer – Purchases cannabis from producers, cultivators, micro-cultivators, product manufacturers and food and beverage manufacturers to sell cannabis to consumers and research programs
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Hybrid retailer – Sells cannabis to consumers for adult-use and to qualifying patients and caregivers for medical use
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Delivery and Transportation
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Delivery Service – Delivers cannabis from cannabis establishments to consumers, qualifying patients and caregivers, as applicable
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Transporter – Delivers cannabis between cannabis establishments, laboratories, and research programs
There are two lotteries to pick applicants:
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Social equity lottery (see above for requirements for social equity applicants)
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General lottery
The social equity lottery is run first by an outside operator, followed by the general lottery. For each license type, at least half of the licenses will go to Social Equity Applicants.
Process for social equity lottery
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Fill out application as a Social Equity Applicant, pay lottery fee
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An outside lottery operator will run the lottery
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Once the social equity lottery has been run, DCP will share the lottery winners with the Social Equity Council to decide if the applicants qualify as social equity applicants
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If the applicant does qualify, a background check will be run
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If the applicant does not qualify, the applicant can pay the difference for the full lottery fee and enter into the general lottery. If the applicant does not pay the full lottery fee, the application process will end for that applicant, and another application will be picked for the social equity lottery.
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Process for general lottery
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Fill out application and pay lottery fee.
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An outside operator will pick applicants until the Department has filled all of the available licenses for each type.