§ 7–1671.06a. Unlicensed establishments transition.

*NOTE: This section includes amendments by emergency legislation that will expire on May 1, 2025. To view the text of this section after the expiration of all emergency and temporary legislation affecting this section, click this link: Past Permanent Version.*

*NOTE: This section includes amendments by emergency legislation that will expire on February 11, 2025. To view the text of this section after the expiration of all emergency and temporary legislation affecting this section, click this link: Past Permanent Version.*

(a)(1) No earlier than 180 calendar days after March 22, 2023, ABCA shall make additional cultivation center, retailer, and internet retailer licenses available to unlicensed establishments for a 90-calendar day open application period.

(2) To be eligible to apply for a cultivation center license during the 90-calendar day open application period, an unlicensed establishment shall demonstrate to the satisfaction of ABCA that the unlicensed establishment:

(A) Is not located:

(i) Within a residential district; or

(ii) Within 300 feet of a preschool, primary or secondary school, or recreation center;

(B) Facility at which cultivation will take place is suitable for the cultivation of cannabis, including being sufficient in size, power allocation, air exchange and air flow;

(D) Has a valid certificate of occupancy issued prior to the date on which the application is submitted;

(E) Has been in operation since December 31, 2022 at the latest; and

(F) Can demonstrate that business taxes were paid to the District of Columbia for each year following the issuance of a certificate of occupancy or business license, if applicable.

(3) To be eligible to apply for a retailer license during the 90-calendar day open application period, an unlicensed establishment shall demonstrate to the satisfaction of ABCA that the unlicensed establishment:

(A) Is not located:

(i) Within a residential district;

(ii) Within 300 feet of a preschool, primary or secondary school, or recreation center; or

(iii) Within 400 feet of an existing retailer;

(B) Has a valid, active business license issued on or before December 31, 2022;

(D) Has been in operation since December 31, 2022, at the latest; and

(E) Can demonstrate that business taxes were paid to the District of Columbia for each year following the issuance of a certificate of occupancy or business license, if applicable.

(4) To be eligible to apply for an internet retailer license during the 90-calendar day open application period, an unlicensed establishment shall demonstrate to the satisfaction of ABCA that the unlicensed establishment:

(A) Is not open to the public and not located:

(i) Within a residential district; or

(ii) Within 300 feet of a preschool, primary or secondary school, or recreation center;

(B) Has a valid, active business license issued on or before December 31, 2022;

(D) Has been in operation since December 31, 2022, at the latest; and

(E) Can demonstrate that business taxes were paid to the District of Columbia for each year following the issuance of a certificate of occupancy or business license, if applicable.

(b) An unlicensed establishment may relocate its operations to a compliant location prior to the filing of an application under this section but shall not relocate its business to an address different from the address provided in the application for purposes of complying with the location requirements of this section.

(c) For purposes of this section, the 300-foot restrictions shall not apply where the main entrance to the preschool, primary or secondary school, or recreation center, or the nearest property line of the school or recreation center, is actually on or occupies ground zoned commercial or industrial according to the official atlases of the Zoning Commission of the District of Columbia.

(c-1)(1) An unlicensed establishment that applied for a retailer license under subsection (a)(3) of this section may be allowed to change the location of the retailer facility on its application within 180 days after the effective date of the Medical Cannabis Clarification and Program Enforcement Amendment Act of 2024, passed on 2nd reading on October 1, 2024 (Enrolled version of Bill 25-581), without negatively affecting the status of the application; provided, that:

(A) The location of the establishment in the original application filed with ABCA was within 300 feet of a preschool, primary or secondary school, or recreation center; and

(B) The main entrance to the preschool, primary or secondary school, or recreation center or the nearest property line of the school or recreation center is actually on or occupies ground zoned commercial or industrial according to the official atlases of the Zoning Commission of the District of Columbia.

(2) An unlicensed establishment that elects to change the location of its facility pursuant to paragraph (1) shall not locate its new facility:

(A) Within a residential district;

(B) Within 400 feet of a preschool, primary or secondary school, or recreation center; or

(d)(1) In determining whether a retailer application filed by an unlicensed establishment is eligible to be approved, the ABC Board shall ensure that the retailer application will not be located within 400 feet of a previously submitted retailer application filed by another applicant during the 90-calendar day open application period.

(2) Consistent with this subsection, ABCA shall proceed forward with the application filed by the unlicensed establishment that is first in time. If that application is subsequently denied, ABCA shall proceed with the application that is second in time, third in time, et cetera, until an application is approved.

(e)(1) At least half of all licenses issued to unlicensed establishments shall be issued to social equity applicants.

(2) Straw ownership for purposes of meeting the ownership requirement of this subsection is prohibited. A person or business who is found to have willfully asserted straw ownership shall have the person's or business's license revoked and be subject to a civil penalty of not more than $30,000.

(f) Unregistered establishments shall not apply for a conditional license in order to meet the requirements of this subsection during the 90-calendar day open application period.

(g) ABCA shall post a list of unlicensed establishments that applied for a retailer or internet retailer license during the 90-calendar day open application period to its website and provide a copy of the list to the Director of the Department of Licensing and Consumer Protection.

(h)(1) The ABC Board shall provide notice of complete and eligible cultivation center, retailer, and internet retailer license applications received from unlicensed establishments to the Ward Councilmember, and any affected ANC, for a 45-day public comment period. The ABC Board may, at the request of both an affected ANC and the applicant, extend the ANC's protest petition deadline by up to an additional 30 calendar days for the sole purpose of allowing the ANC to vote on whether to support or protest the license application. The ABC Board may, on a motion of any party or on its own motion, also continue a hearing to permit an affected ANC to vote on a material issue in the hearing.

(2) An affected ANC may protest the issuance of the license.

(3) The ABC Board shall hold a contested case protest hearing within 120 days of receiving a timely protest from an affected ANC pursuant to paragraph (2) of this subsection.

(i) The grounds for a protest filed by an affected Advisory Neighborhood Commission shall relate to the impact of the unlicensed establishment on:

(1) Peace, order, and quiet of the relevant area;

(2) Residential parking needs and vehicular and pedestrian safety; and

(3) Real property values.