Ala. Admin. Code r. 80-10-21-.17 - Application for Processor or Handler Licensing; Criteria and Procedure for Evaluation

(1) The department shall apply the criteria established in paragraphs (a) through (n) of this subsection in evaluating applications for a processor or handler licensing agreement:

(a) In accordance with this administrative regulation, the applicant shall submit a complete application with all required components and attachments.

(b) An applicant who has been a program participant previously, the applicant shall comply with the responsibility to submit any reports required by these regulations.

(c) All involved business entities shall be registered and in good standing with the Alabama Secretary of State.

(d) The applicant's processing sites, handling sites, and storage sites, shall be located in the State of Alabama.

(e) The criminal background check report indicates that, within ten (10) years from the date when the background check was issued, the applicant shall not have:

1. A felony conviction relating to a controlled substance under State or Federal law; provide however, that an exception applies to a person who was lawfully growing Hemp under the 2014 Farm Bill before December 20, 2018, and whose conviction also occurred before that date. If the applicant is an entity, all Key Participants of the entity are subject to this requirement.

2. Any other felony or misdemeanor conviction which affects the grower's competency to hold a license to grow, handle or process hemp.

(f) The processing or handling plan shall be compliant with state and federal law.

(g) The applicant's planned activities shall remain compliant with state law and the department policy.

(h) The applicant shall have a hemp acquisition plan.

(i) The applicant shall have a hemp grow plan that is compliant with state and federal law.

(j) The applicant shall have adequate facilities, or plans to acquire adequate facilities sufficiently soon enough, to comply with the issuance of a license.

(k) In the past, including those times when the applicant was not a participant in the department's program, the applicant shall have demonstrated a willingness to comply with the department's rules, instructions from department staff, and instructions from representatives of ALEA and other law enforcement agencies.

(l) The applicant shall not be delinquent in making any required reports or payments to the department in connection with the applicant's participation in the program or other programs within the department.

(m) The applicant shall not have any unpaid fines or civil penalties owed to the department.

(n) The applicant shall not have made and shall not make any false statements or representations to a representative of the department or a law enforcement agency.

(2) The department may conditionally approve an application for a processor or handler licensing agreement if the application satisfies the criteria established in this administrative regulation.

(3) The department shall notify applicants whether the application has been denied or conditionally approved. A person shall not be a participant in the department's program until the applicant and the department have executed a processor or handler licensing agreement following the applicant's completion of the department's mandatory orientation session.

Notes

Ala. Admin. Code r. 80-10-21-.17

Adopted by Alabama Administrative Monthly Volume XL, Issue No. 02, November 30, 2021, eff. 1/14/2022. Amended by Alabama Administrative Monthly Volume XL, Issue No. 08, May 31, 2022, eff. 7/15/2022.

Author: N. Gunter Guy, Jr.

Statutory Authority: Code of Ala. 1975, § 2-8-383.