More Florida Black farmers can get marijuana licenses under a new health law

At least three additional Black farmers could be in line for medical marijuana licenses as part of a wide-ranging Department of Health law that Gov. Ron DeSantis signed this week. The legislation (SB 1582) can help at least three Black farmers who sought licenses but were deemed ineligible to apply by state officials. Lawmakers passed the bill in March, the second year in a row they have signed off on efforts to expand the number of licenses for Black farmers. The cannabis industry has mushroomed since voters approved a 2016 constitutional amendment broadly authorizing medical marijuana. A law passed in 2017 that provided an overall framework for the industry required health officials to issue a license to a Black farmer with ties to decades-old litigation about discriminatory lending practices by federal officials, known as the “Pigford” cases. The law also required prospective licensees to show they had conducted business in Florida for at least five consecutive years before applying. State health officials began accepting applications for the Black farmer license in March 2022 and six months later announced they intended to award the license to Suwannee County-based farmer Terry Donnell Gwinn. All of the 11 other applicants who lost out...