The leaders of the Legislative Black Caucus of Maryland are strongly pushing for more diversity within the legal marijuana industry. Marijuana has contributed to the mass incarceration of African-Americans and there seems to be a lack of black faces within the legal realm of the billion dollar industry.  

These black leaders in Maryland have introduced bills that will ultimately "change the membership of the 16-person Maryland Medical Cannabis Commission to better reflect the diversity of the state while requiring the agency to rescore applications for cultivation licenses and give extra weight to black-owned businesses," according to The Washington Post. Despite provisions in 2014 that called for more diversity among growers, most operations are still led by white executives.

While the details of the legislation are still being drafted, it's said to kill the commission outright and recreate it as a division of the state health department. The attorney general's office has responded to the matter saying, "State officials must demonstrate racial disparities in the medical marijuana industry or similar industries before offering racial preferences in licensing. The cannabis commission is hiring a consultant to advise on whether to conduct such a study," according to The Washington Post.

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