Yesterday, it became public that Michigan Cannabis Regulatory Agency Executive Director Andrew Brisbo will soon be leaving the agency.

Having spent nearly two decades working in licensing and regulation with the state of Michigan, Director Brisbo served with distinction as the first director of the Michigan Bureau of Medical Marihuana Regulation. Appointed by Governor Gretchen Whitmer to head the CRA in April 2019, Director Brisbo is credited for managing the state’s cannabis policy evolution and the rapid growth of the agency. …
Continue Reading Agency Head Announces Departure: What’s Next for Michigan’s Cannabis Industry

On July 14, 2022, the Michigan Court of Appeals issued a published opinion in Cary Investments, LLC v City of Mount Pleasant—their second interpreting the application and licensing process within the Michigan Regulation and Taxation of Marihuana Act (MRTMA). Cary Investments, LLC is of critical importance for all licensees and prospective licensees who may find themselves facing a competitive or limited municipal license application process, as it details when a denied applicant must file an appeal of a denied application versus when a licensing and application process can be properly challenged in a lawsuit. This case also aims to answer questions that many applicants, prospective applicants, municipalities, and circuit courts have faced concerning the competitive municipal licensing process required by Section 9(4) of the MRTMA. …
Continue Reading Rapid Growth of the Adult-Use Market Is Underscored by New Opinion From Michigan Court of Appeals

MRA - CRA

Effective April 13, 2022, the Michigan Marijuana Regulatory Agency has a new name—the Cannabis Regulatory Agency. On February 11, 2022, Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer issued Executive Order No. 2022-1, which made a number of significant changes to various Michigan administrative agencies.  

Notably, the Executive Order re-named the Marijuana Regulatory Agency to the Cannabis Regulatory Agency (“CRA”) and transferred the regulation and oversight of industrial hemp processing from the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (“MDARD”) to CRA. Regulatory oversight and licensure of industrial hemp cultivation will remain with MDARD. …
Continue Reading Agency Name Change: Meet the Michigan Cannabis Regulatory Agency

Earlier this month, a cannabis company located in Manistee, Michigan, announced that its dispensary workers successfully unionized, marking the first instance of organized labor in the state’s cannabis industry. The company’s dispensary workers are now members of United Food and Commercial Workers Local 876. While Michigan has a long history of unionized workforces, this is a new development for the state’s cannabis industry. Industry employers should take note of some key considerations when managing a union shop.[1]…
Continue Reading Organized Labor Rolls Up To The Michigan Cannabis Industry

On March 24, 2022, the Michigan Marijuana Regulatory Agency (MRA) announced record-breaking sales numbers in Michigan’s adult-use industry for the previous year. In just the second full year of licensed adult-use marijuana operations, the MRA reported that sales of adult-use marijuana exceeded $1.1 billion for fiscal year 2021.

Local governments are set to receive tens of millions of dollars thanks to the revenue-sharing provisions in the Michigan Regulation and Taxation of Marihuana Act (“MRTMA”). The MRTMA establishes a 10% excise tax on the retail sale of adult-use marijuana. Excise tax revenues are dedicated to Michigan schools and roads, and a significant portion is distributed to local municipalities and counties that have adult-use marijuana retailers and microbusinesses in their jurisdictions. …
Continue Reading Michigan Adult-Use Marijuana Sales Exceed $1B in 2021, Creating Millions of Dollars for Schools, Municipalities, and Roads