The Missouri Independent
Two Missouri social-equity licensees connected to a Michigan company that used Craigslist to recruit applicants have appealed the state’s decision to revoke their dispensary licenses.
The Michigan company, Canna Zoned, was behind two of the 16 microbusiness dispensary licenses issued by lottery in October — Frankenstein Enemy LLC in Columbia and Seashore Rhythm LLC in Arnold. Both licenses were revoked on March 27.
Their appeals will be argued before the Administrative Hearing Commission on Sept. 26.
Missouri’s microbusiness license program is meant to boost opportunities in the industry for businesses in disadvantaged communities, and it was part of the constitutional amendment to legalize recreational marijuana that voters passed in 2022.
The program is designed to provide a path to larger facility ownership for individuals who might not otherwise easily access that opportunity, such as having a net worth of less than $250,000 or veterans with a service-connected disability.
The microbusiness license must always be majority owned and operated by individuals who meet these eligibility criteria.
According to the revocation notices for the Canna Zoned-backed licensees, cannabis regulators were unable to verify the licenses would be owned and operated by eligible individuals.
Canna Zoned’s owner, Jeffrey Yatooma, was listed as the “designated contact” for the two licenses, and the purported owners of the licenses told the state they did not know who Yatooma was, according to the notices.
“While owning and operating a license may include contracting for management services or consulting services, the lack of knowledge, control, agency or decision-making demonstrated by the individual used to meet eligibility does not meet even the most liberal understanding of owning and operating a business,” the letter from Missouri regulators states.
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Companies tied to out-of-state firms appeal revocation of social-equity cannabis licenses
