Oklahoma medical marijuana business owners are asking a judge to bar the state from enforcing residency and zoning laws, arguing they could prevent the companies from operating in the future.
According to the Oklahoman, the cannabis companies want the district court judge from Oklahoma County to block the Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Authority – which regulates MMJ – from enforcing a requirement that MMJ business owners have two years of residency in the state.
The business owners would also like the judge to block the law requiring dispensaries to be sited more than 1,000 feet from preschools and schools.
The OMMA is carrying out laws passed by Oklahoma’s Legislature in 2019.
According to the owners’ lawsuit, the zoning law could put “hundreds, if not thousands” of licensed dispensaries out of business because they are too close to schools.
The lawsuit also states that some of the MMJ business owners moved to the state less than two years ago and are at risk of losing their businesses.