Lawmakers on Tuesday questioned whether there is a shortage of medical marijuana in Arkansas ahead of a looming deadline to award two outstanding cultivation licenses.

The Arkansas Medical Marijuana Commission has until July 10 to decide whether to expand the number of licensed marijuana cultivators from six to eight — the maximum number allowed under the constitutional amendment legalizing medical marijuana, which voters approved in 2016.

If no additional licenses are awarded before the deadline, any applicants on a waiting list for a license will be removed until the commission decides to start the bidding process over from scratch.

The Medical Marijuana Commission has one final meeting scheduled June 30 before the deadline.

After nearly three hours of debate on Tuesday however, lawmakers on the Legislative Council’s state agencies and governmental affairs committee failed to reach a resolution as to what they believe the commission should do.

The chairman of the committee, Sen. Ronald Caldwell, R-Wynne, said it has not been determined whether lawmakers will meet again before the deadline to discuss the issue.

Several committee members expressed frustration at the commission, which they said kept…

Source: https://mmpconnect.com/no-consensus-reached-on-states-cannabis-grower-permits/