Medical cannabis has been legal in Oklahoma since April, 2015, when House Bill 2154 legalized the sale of CBD oil with less than .3% THC. It wasn’t until June 2018 that voters approved State Question 788 legalizing the possession and use of marijuana for medical patients.
Oklahoma launched the Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Authority, implemented a regulatory scheme and began licensing growers, processors, and dispensaries by late August 25 of 2018.
A measure known as the “unity bill” which was supported by various factions of the cannabis industry received bipartisan support in the state House and Senate and was signed into law in March of 2019.
The new law includes guidelines for inventory testing and tracking, advertising, packaging and labeling, and other provisions. Under the measure, products will be tested for pesticides, THC, terpenoid potency and heavy metals. It also prohibits producers from using images on packaging other than their business name logos and product images, and specifies that packaging must include a universal THC symbol and state the potency of the product.
Most importantly, the bill now requires the state to implement a seed-to-sale system for tracking batch numbers, product types, sales details, and other inventory information.
Application information and requirements for licenses are available at omma.ok.gov.
The Oklahoma State Department of Health established the Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Authority (OMMA) to oversee the medical marijuana program. This office receives all licensing applications related to medical marijuana, including patients, caregivers, growers, processors, dispensaries, and researchers.
Oklahoma law places no limit for the number of licenses that can be held by any entity or individual. Each dispensary location must have a separate license. However, you may use the same background check of owners for multiple license applications. If multiple licenses are owned by one entity, they must be registered under a special status with the OBNDD.
As of March 11, state regulators had approved licenses for 1,109 dispensaries, 1,972 growers and 553 processors. At that time, a total of 63,647 patients had qualified to for access to medical marijuana.
Once the application has been submitted, it will be reviewed by the OMMA. If it is deemed complete and meets all requirements, an approval letter with your license will be mailed within 14 days of the application submission date.
If an application is incomplete due to unclear or missing information or documents, you will receive email correspondence letting you know what information is missing and you’ll be able to log into your account to make corrections.
If an application is reviewed and denied because all requirements have not been met, a denial letter stating the reason(s) for denial will be mailed within 14 days of submission.
Licenses are valid for one year from the date issued, unless the license is revoked by OMMA. A license may be renewed before it expires.
Applications and payment will be collected at omma.ok.gov. Applicants must pay a non-refundable fee of $2,500 via Visa, MasterCard, or Discover credit or debit card. An additional credit card processing fee will be added to the transaction. The application fee will not be refunded for applications not approved.
Licensees are required to be registered with the Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs Control (OBNDD).
Applicants for commercial licenses must meet the following basic requirements:
For a detailed list of all required documents and information, OMMA has provided a Commercial License Checklist.
Prior to issuance of any dispensary, grower, or processor license, applicants must undergo an Oklahoma state criminal history background check within thirty days prior to the application for the license.
Title 63 O.S. § 425(G) prohibits medical marijuana dispensaries from operating within one thousand (1,000) feet of public or private schools. Applicants for a dispensary license must attest and submit supporting documentation which demonstrates the premises of a potential business site will be 1,000 feet from any public or private school.
This distance is measured by the straight-line (shortest) distance from the nearest point of the location of the dispensary to any entrance of a school. It is not measured by walking or driving distance.
Any school building that holds classes or activities for students, such as field houses or agriculture buildings, is included in this restriction.
It is the responsibility of the applicant/licensee to ensure the dispensary is not within 1,000 feet of any applicable school building entrance. Applicants with questions about schools near their location may want to contact the local school district. Applicants are encouraged to review the Proof of Distance from a School document and use multiple tools and resources to ensure compliance with this requirement.
If this distance is less than 1,000 feet, the dispensary application will be denied and the application fee will not be refunded.
Commercial license applicants will be asked to provide Global Positioning System (GPS) Coordinates of their location. The purpose of providing the coordinates is to provide a consistent way of documenting the location of licensed medical marijuana sites.
Commercial licensees who wish to update contact information, location, and/or ownership information may now do so through the OMMA application portal. Submit a change request by logging into the OMMA application portal and selecting “Create New Application” and then “Business License Update.” You will then select the “Create Application” button to fill out and submit the update request.
OMMA will respond with a request for more information or an approval/denial. Incomplete or improperly submitted requests will be rejected. Changes that affect a licensee’s qualifications for licensure may result in the loss of license.
Licensees who want to voluntarily surrender their license may do so by completing the form available at the link below and returning their license to OMMA.
Business Licensees: Surrender of License Form and Instructions
The Oklahoma Department of Health will have oversight and auditing powers over all of Oklahoma’s commercial medical marijuana operations. Oklahoma cannabis regulations can be found here:
Regulations specific to each type of license can be found in these sections:
The OMMA developed a monthly reporting template that must be submitted on the 15th day of every month. The monthly reporting template includes:
All records must be maintained for at least seven years after the date of recording. These records must be accessible to auditors within 15 days of being requested.
Failure to submit a monthly report and correct this deficiency within 30 days of written notice from OMMA will result in license revocation.
A dispensary will be subjected to penalties for non-patient sales and/or gross discrepancies in inventory tracking that cannot be explained. The first offence will come with a fee of $5,000 and a second offense (in a two-year period) will result in a revocation of license.
All questions regarding monthly reporting should be directed to OMMACompliance@ok.gov.
Commercial licensees may be required to obtain a nursery grower and/or dealer license from the Oklahoma Department of Agriculture. Visit the Oklahoma Department of Agriculture website or call 405-522-5971 for more information regarding the requirements and process for submitting applications.
Sales tax permits must be obtained after OMMA issues a commercial entity license. Note that dispensaries will be required to report two sources of tax to the Oklahoma Tax Commission: sales tax and the 7% gross receipts tax. For more information, visit the Oklahoma Tax Commission website or call (405) 521-3160.
Grower, Processor, and Dispensary applicants must register with the Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs Control (OBNDD) after receiving a license from OMMA. See 63 O.S. §§ 2-101 & 2-302.
This is required by law before any medical marijuana or medical marijuana products are present at the business.See OAC 475:10-1-9(a).
*IMPORTANT NOTE: Businesses with multiple licenses at multiple sites and/or multiple license types should contact OBNDD to determine the correct registration process. Depending on the specific situation of the business, the necessary registration type may differ from what is noted above.
For more information, contact the OBNDD registration department at (405) 521-2885 or visit the OBNDD Registration Website.
Dispensaries and processors licensed by the Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Authority (OMMA) are required to obtain a food license if they produce or sell any edible medical marijuana products. This license is not obtained through OMMA. For information on how to obtain your food license, please review the Food Licensing Fact Sheet or visit: food.health.ok.gov.
Governor Fallin signed the Food Safety Standards Board rules on December 20, 2018. These added rules within 310:681-5-8.1. Food Safety Standards for Processors, which are available at the link below. To view the full emergency rules, please visit the “Rules and Regulations” page. For more information about the new requirements, please visit the “Food Safety Standards Board” page.
The Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Authority