Webinar recording: The Municipal Role in Licensing Cannabis Retailers

AUMA and AAMDC recently hosted Robert Pape, Director of Compliance with the Alberta Gaming and Liquor Commission (AGLC), at a webinar that provided a short overview of the newly released cannabis regulation and applicant requirements for provincially issued retail cannabis store licenses. As the provincial requirements include approved municipal development permits and city business licences (or written approval of the municipality), the majority of the session was dedicated to answering questions about municipal responsibilities in this process, and in legalization in general.

With respect to the question on whether a store that sells cannabis accessories be required to lock up their accessories like a licensed store, Mr. Pape had the following clarification to pass along:

• Stores that sell cannabis accessories that are not licensed to sell cannabis itself will still need to comply with applicable federal legislation. Failure to do so would be a federal offence.
• AGLC believes that the police would deal with unlicensed locations that fail to comply with federal legislation; however, these discussions have yet to take place.

If you missed the webinar, you can access the recording, the presentation, and the speaking notes. You can also find more information about AUMA’s advocacy on cannabis, and AGLC’s application process for cannabis retailers.