CHICAGO (AP) — Illinois will hold an extra lottery to give six applicants an opportunity to operate marijuana retail stores after they were wrongly denied fair chances to win earlier.
Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s senior cannabis adviser, Toi Hutchinson, said Friday that a “data entry” error caused the problem during this summer’s lotteries to grant 185 new licenses. The additional licenses are authorized by Illinois legislation that permits up to 500 new licenses.
The Chicago Tribune reports that the six applicants won’t be assured of selection in the extra lottery. But the digitized system would recreate what should have been their odds of winning originally.
The awarding process has run into a host of obstacles, including a flurry of lawsuits from applicants.
