TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – September 23, 2021
is under fire because it has still not issued a medical marijuana license to a Black farmer.
Lawmakers grilled the department to find out what is responsible for the delay on Thursday.
When the Legislature passed its medical marijuana law in 2017,
one grower’s license was reserved for a Black farmer.
“So that the medical marijuana licenses in our state would have equity,”
said state Sen. Darryl Rouson.
Rouson called the Department of Health before the Senate Agriculture Committee
to explain why the Black farmer’s license isn’t among the 22 that have already been issued.
“Years have passed since this Legislature spoke,” said Rouson.
The department blamed the delay on a lawsuit challenging
the state’s seed-to-sale requirement for license holders.
The state Supreme Court finally ruled in the state’s favor in May.
said Christopher Ferguson, director of the Office of Medical Marijuana Use.
Meanwhile, The Florida Black Farmers Wait.
