Purpose

The bill addresses the regulation of cannabis businesses in Minnesota, focusing on modifying employee stock ownership plans and the number of licenses a person or business can hold.

Main Provisions

• Employee Stock Ownership Plans (ESOPs): Defines and clarifies the role of trustees in overseeing assets within cannabis businesses organized under ESOPs. The trustee holds a fiduciary duty to manage these assets for the beneficiaries.
• License Limitations: Outlines rules on the number of cannabis-related business licenses an individual or entity can hold, including exceptions for individuals connected to ESOPs and specific roles within businesses.
• Types of Licenses: Details restrictions and allowances for holding multiple licenses across different cannabis business categories, such as cultivators, manufacturers, retailers, wholesalers, and transporters. It elaborates on what combinations of licenses are permissible.

Significant Changes

• Control and Ownership Definitions: Provides updated definitions for what constitutes control and ownership within a cannabis business, specifying percentages of ownership and the roles and rights of individuals connected to the business.
• Expansion of License Restrictions: Adds restrictions on the number of cannabis business licenses an entity can hold in a given area, including city and county level for retail licenses.
• License Allocation for ESOPs: Exempts ESOP-related trusts and certain employees or officers of ESOP-owned businesses from typical license limitations, offering them more flexibility in ownership compared to general entities.

Relevant Terms

• Cannabis business
• Employee stock ownership plan (ESOP)
• License limitations
• Trustee
• True party of interest