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U.S. NEWS Monday 15 april 2019

Nevada may be forced to reveal

marijuana-license criteria

By KEN RITTER ate unanimously passed a “But I’m saying that if they
Associated Press measure to let officials re- had, the process is opaque
LAS VEGAS (AP) — Nevada lease taxpayer information enough to provide cover
faces complaints about se- now labeled confidential. for it.”
crecy in awarding licenses The proposal heads next to His 11 clients already won
to sell marijuana in the the Assembly. some dispensary licenses in
state’s booming legal mar- Plans are underway to re- 2017, after Nevada voters
ketplace, boiling over into lease the names of all appli- in 2016 approved broad
lawsuits and legislation that cants and licensees once access to cannabis, and In this April 20, 2018, file photo, a customer shops for marijuana
appear poised to pry open the measure becomes law, are seeking more.q at the Exhale Nevada dispensary in Las Vegas.
the process. said Ky Plaskon, spokesman Associated Press
Several companies have for the state Department of
sued the state tax depart- Taxation, which regulates
ment, arguing that no one the licensing process.
knows for sure the criteria Gov. Steve Sisolak on Friday
officials use to award new acknowledged “the frus-
licenses. trations of many marijuana
They complain the state license applicants with the
releases no information current licensing process”
about who seeks and re- and endorsed the legisla-
ceives permission to sell tion that he said “would
cannabis to adults, many shed light on the method-
of them tourists, in the near- ology used ... in granting
ly 2-year-old market. licenses.”
They will ask a judge Mon- Sisolak, a Democrat, was
day to freeze the granting elected last November
of marijuana dispensary while calling for a state
licenses, at least temporar- marijuana regulatory pro-
ily, until the courts decide gram similar to the Nevada
whether it’s “arbitrary and Gaming Control Board,
capricious and violates the which regulates casino
constitution,” one lawsuit licensing. He has an ad-
says. visory panel studying the
The hearing will focus on a formation of a Cannabis
second wave of dispensa- Compliance Board.
ries approved in Decem- Hundreds of millions of dol-
ber to open into an evolv- lars are at stake, and fig-
ing regulatory environment ures show that sales are
where local lawmakers are booming.
considering allowing pot In the first year after broad
lounges on or near the Las marijuana sales began in
Vegas Strip. July 2017, 61 dispensaries
The companies say Ne- statewide reported nearly
vada unconstitutionally $425 million in recreational
picked winners and losers pot sales. Medical mari-
from 462 applicants for 61 juana sales totaled an ad-
new dispensary, cultiva- ditional $105 million.
tion, laboratory and pro- Nevada reaped $42.5 mil-
duction licenses. lion in taxes on adult sales,
“Licenses that admit a se- with about $27.5 million
lect few to such a lucrative going to an account for
enterprise must be made schools.
in a way that is open and In the last six months of
transparent,” said attor- 2018, all dispensaries re-
ney Vincent Savarese, who ported $884 million in sales
wrote the constitutional and the state took in al-
challenge on behalf of Se- most $72 million in taxes on
renity Wellness Center and recreational sales, Plaskon
10 other companies that said. There are now 65 mar-
were turned away. ijuana stores statewide.
“The point is to remove the Monday’s court hearing in
marijuana trade from crimi- Clark County District Court
nal enterprises, cartels and is expected to draw attor-
mobsters and street deal- neys involved in six lawsuits
ers, and to ensure that they filed against the state Taxa-
don’t have participation in tion Department on behalf
the legal marijuana indus- of dozens of companies.
try,” he said. “I’m not saying anybody
The court arguments come corruptly got a license,”
days after the state Sen- Savarese said.