Multi-state operators Verano Holdings Corp. (VRNO), Trulieve (TCNNF) and PhamaCann are among the nine cannabis companies awarded conditional licenses during phase one of the Texas Compassionate Use Program expansion.
Texas has had a limited, low-THC medicinal program since 2015. The legislature expanded its program this year with the passage of House Bill 46. Twelve new dispensing organization licenses will ultimately be added to the three currently under operation: Surterra Texas, Cansortium Texas and Compassionate Cultivation.
In phase one, nine licenses were announced Dec. 1 from 139 applicants that applied in the May 2023 licensing round, according to the Texas Department of Public Safety. Another three will be selected in April. Press Secretary Sheridan Nolen said in an email that 22 applications were received during a 30-day application period that ended Sept. 15, but only 20 will be considered for the remaining licenses.
Texas is split into 11 public health regions. The conditional licensees this round are:
- Verano Texas, LLC — Region 10
- Trulieve TX Inc. — Region 1
- Texas Patient Access, LLC — Region 3
- Lonestar Compassionate Care Group, LLC — Region 3
- Lone Star Bioscience Inc. — Region 8
- PC TX OPCO LLC, dba PharmaCann — Region 6
- Texa OP, dba TexaRx — Region 11
- Story of Texas, LLC — Region 6
- Dilatso, LLC — Region 2
Final CRB licenses to be issued after further due diligence
None of these businesses are guaranteed to be issued final operation licenses. DPS said the entities will now undergo additional due diligence, including reviews of disciplinary actions, financial suitability, litigation history and any other information required by the department.
A licensee doesn’t need to be incorporated as a Texas-based entity. “However, as part of the department’s due diligence evaluation, we’ll be reviewing the entire corporate structure of the Phase 1 conditional licensees, including any registration requirements by the Texas Secretary of State,” Nolen said.
Once they’ve passed the due diligence evaluation, they’ll be billed the $488,520 dispensing organization license fee, good for two years.
DPS doesn’t release application information, including the names of the applicants, until final licenses are awarded. But Verano and Trulieve released statements upon the announcement of the conditional licenses.
Verano founder and CEO George Archos said the company is “thrilled” to receive a conditional license. Texas would be the 14th state in its portfolio. The Chicago-based company currently has 158 dispensaries and 15 cultivation and processing facilities with more than. 1.1 million square feet of cultivation capacity.
“As the second largest state by size and population, Texas’s medical cannabis program expansion marks a significant step forward for legal cannabis in the U.S., joining a growing number of states and an overwhelming majority of Americans that have embraced the regulated cannabis sector as a job creator and provider of health and wellness benefits for millions every day,” he said.
Trulieve CEO Kim Rivers said, “We are excited to be selected for a coveted Texas Dispensing Organization license and we look forward to working with regulators as we complete the licensing process.”
HB 46 also allows licensed dispensary organizations to have satellite storage locations and expands qualifying medical conditions to include chronic pain, Crohn’s disease and other inflammatory bowel diseases, and a terminal illness for which the patient is receiving hospice or palliative care.
