Licensed dispensaries can start selling legal marijuana in July

The state Department of Health said it has received the $75,000 licensing fee from each of the eight candidates selected to open Hawaii’s first medical marijuana dispensaries.

DOH spokeswoman Janice Okubo said the state is verifying the payments and will confirm the awarding of the licenses this week. The Health Department also said it expects to release the scores of each applicant.

Big Island farmer Richard Ha is among the list of prominent local businessmen — including former Maui Land &Pineapple CEO David Cole, insurance executive Colbert Matsumoto and Richard Lim, former director of the state Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism — who won medical marijuana dispensary licenses last month, beating out dozens of others including actor Woody Harrelson.

The eight licensed businesses can begin selling medical cannabis legally for the first time in Hawaii on July 15. Aloha Green Holdings Inc., Manoa Botanicals and TCG Retro Market 1 LLC were selected to open dispensaries on Oahu. Hawaiian Ethos and Lau Ola were chosen for the Big Island, and Maui Wellness Group and Pono Life Sciences Maui were selected for Maui. One company, Green Aloha, was selected to open dispensaries on Kauai.

A four-member panel reviewed 66 applications for dispensary licenses. The applicants had to pay a nonrefundable $5,000 application fee.

Aside from the licensing fee, applicants were required to have $1 million cash, plus $100,000 for each dispensary location. The department must inspect facilities before they can open.