New Jersey Administrative Code › Title 17 - TREASURY - GENERAL › Chapter 30 - PERSONAL USE CANNABIS RULES › Subchapter 7 - CANNABIS BUSINESS CONDITIONAL AND ANNUAL LICENSING PROCESS › Section 17:30-7.10 - Annual cannabis business license application

Current through Register Vol. 56, No. 14, July 15, 2024
(a) An applicant for an annual license shall
				submit a complete, separate application, on forms prescribed by the Commission,
				for each cannabis business license requested and for each physical address and
				cannabis business premises at which a license applicant seeks to
				operate.
(b) A license applicant
				shall disclose and submit, as part of the annual license applications process,
				the following materials for the Commission's evaluation:
1. The Federal and State tax identification
				numbers for the license applicant;
2. Documentation of a valid Business
				Registration Certificate on file with the Division of Revenue and Enterprise
				Services in the Department of the Treasury;
3. Information about the license applicant,
				including its legal name, and any registered alternate name;
4. A copy of the documents reflecting the
				formation of the license applicant entity, including, but not limited to,
				articles of incorporation or organization, charter, bylaws, stock issuance
				records, operating agreements, partnership agreements, other formation
				documents filed with the Secretary of State, and any other documents that
				govern the legal and ownership structure of the entity;
5. If applicable, documents from the Federal
				or State government recognizing the license applicant entity's nonprofit
				status;
6. A description of the
				proposed location and its surrounding area, including the following:
i. The mailing and physical address of the
				license applicant's proposed location;
ii. A description of the suitability or
				advantages of the proposed location;
iii. A site plan of the proposed location,
				including a floor plan, which may optionally include renderings, architectural
				plans, or engineering plans;
7. Evidence of compliance with local codes
				and ordinances including, but not limited to:
i. The distance from the closest church,
				synagogue, temple, or other place used exclusively for religious worship;
				or
ii. The distance to the closest
				school, playground, park, or child daycare facility;
8. Zoning approval, which shall consist of a
				letter or affidavit from appropriate officials of the municipality stating that
				the location will conform to municipal zoning requirements allowing for
				activities related to the operations of the proposed cannabis business, and any
				variances granted concerning the operation of a cannabis business;
9. Proof of local support, which shall be
				demonstrated by a resolution adopted by the municipality's governing body, or
				where the municipality has no governing body, a written letter of support from
				the municipality's executive;
10.
				Documentation demonstrating that the license applicant will have final control
				of the premises upon approval of the application. Documentation includes, but
				is not limited to, a lease agreement, contract for sale, title, deed, or
				similar documentation;
11. Where a
				license applicant will lease the premises, certification from the landlord that
				the landlord is aware that the tenant's use of the premises will involve
				activities associated with operations as a cannabis business.
i. An application for an annual license that
				does not include such certification shall be disqualified from
				consideration;
12. The
				plan by which the license applicant intends to obtain appropriate liability
				insurance coverage for the proposed cannabis business;
13. Evidence supporting any of the following
				bonus point categories, as applicable:
i.
				License applicants that are party to a collective bargaining agreement with a
				bona fide labor organization that currently represents, or is actively seeking
				to represent, cannabis workers in New Jersey;
ii. License applicants that are party to a
				collective bargaining agreement with a bona fide labor organization that
				currently represents cannabis workers in another state;
iii. License applicants that submit a signed
				project labor agreement with a bona fide building trades labor organization for
				the construction or retrofit of the facilities associated with the license
				applicant;
iv. License applicants
				that submit a signed project labor agreement with a bona fide labor
				organization for any other applicable project associated with the license
				applicant; or
v. License applicants
				that include at least one owner lawfully residing in New Jersey for at least
				five years as of the date of the application;
14. An operating plan, including, as
				applicable, a cultivation, manufacturing, retail sale, wholesaling,
				distributing, or delivery services operating plan pursuant to
				N.J.S.A.
				24:6I-36.d(1)(b)(i), (ii), and
				(iii);
15. A business and financial
				plan;
16. An environmental impact
				plan, which shall, at a minimum, include consideration of sustainable
				alternatives to single-use plastic packaging, efforts to minimize water usage,
				and any other factor required by the Commission in a notice of application
				acceptance published in the New Jersey Register issued pursuant to
				N.J.A.C.
				17:30-6.1;
17. A safety and security plan that conforms
				with N.J.A.C. 17:30-9.10;
18. A community impact or social
				responsibility plan;
19. A
				workforce development and job creation plan, which may include an optional
				diversity plan;
20. Standard
				operating procedures for:
i. Adverse event
				reporting;
ii. Quality assurance
				and quality control;
iii. Recall of
				cannabis items, as needed or directed;
iv. Packaging and labeling;
v. Inventory control, storage, and diversion
				prevention;
vi.
				Recordkeeping;
vii. Waste
				disposal/sanitation;
viii.
				Cultivation, manufacturing, retail sale, delivery, and/or secure transport, as
				applicable, based on the class of license sought;
ix. Accounting and tax compliance;
				and
x. The reporting of test
				results, as applicable, based on the class of license sought.
21. An attestation signed by a
				bona fide labor organization stating that the license applicant has entered
				into a labor peace agreement with a bona fide labor organization.
i. This requirement does not apply to a
				microbusiness applying for an annual license;
22. If a license applicant intends to enter
				into, or has entered into, a partnership with a re-entry program for the
				purpose of identifying and promoting employment opportunities for currently or
				formerly incarcerated people at the cannabis business, the details of such
				partnership including:
i. The name of the
				re-entry program;
ii. The
				employment or training opportunities at the license applicant's cannabis
				business that will be made available to the re-entry population;
iii. Any other initiatives the license
				applicant will undertake to provide support and assistance to the re-entry
				population; and
iv. The training
				and support offered or provided for the advancement of the re-entry
				population;
23. An
				affidavit that the statements included in the application are true and correct,
				sworn by the license applicant's representative;
24. An authorization to release all
				information pertaining to the license applicant, as requested by the
				Commission, signed by the license applicant's representative;
25. A waiver of liability for any damages
				results to the license holder from any disclosure or publication in any manner,
				other than a willfully unlawful disclosure or publication, of any information
				acquired during the licensing process, signed by the license applicant's
				representative; and
26. Any other
				information the Commission deems relevant in determining whether to grant a
				license to the applicant.