logo
Medical Cannabis Kentucky
FILE - Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear responds to a question during an interview, Dec. 19, 2023, in Frankfort, Ky. Kentucky will use a lottery system to award an initial round of licenses to businesses competing to participate in the state's startup medical cannabis program, Beshear announced Thursday, April 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Timothy D. Easley, File)

Kentucky governor announces lottery to award initial round of medical cannabis business licenses

Gov. Andy Beshear says Kentucky will use a lottery to award licenses to businesses competing to participate in the state’s startup medical cannabis program

By BRUCE SCHREINER
Published - Apr 18, 2024, 06:09 PM ET
Last Updated - Apr 18, 2024, 06:30 PM EDT

FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) — Kentucky will use a lottery system to award an initial round of licenses to businesses competing to participate in the state's startup medical cannabis program, Gov. Andy Beshear announced Thursday.

The governor called it a fair way to give each applicant that clears the screening process an opportunity to land a license for the program, which launches statewide at the start of 2025.

The lottery, set for October, should remove any temptation to lobby in an effort to “get a leg up in different ways that we don’t want to see,” Beshear said at his weekly news conference.

“It reduces or eliminates litigation, and it creates a more fair process, not one where people bid against each other and only then the big companies can be a part of it,” the governor said. “But one that provides at least a chance for everyone who can meet the criteria.”

Our Offices
  • 10kInfo, Inc.
    13555 SE 36th St
    Bellevue, WA 98006
  • 10kInfo Data Solutions, Pvt Ltd.
    Claywork Create
    11 km, Arakere Bannerghatta Rd, Omkar Nagar, Arekere,
    Bengaluru, Karnataka 560076
4.2 12182024