DENVER, CO - April 25, 2016: High Level, a medical marijuana shop on Colfax Ave in Denver. Colfax was once called the "longest, wicked street in America" by Playboy Magazine. (Vince Chandler, The Denver Post)

First challenges filed over Arkansas medical marijuana licenses

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — Arkansas regulators are receiving a flurry of challenges to the licensing of the state’s first medical marijuana growers.

The Arkansas Medical Marijuana Commission announced last month the five companies that scored high enough to receive a license to grow medical marijuana. The cultivation licenses are expected to officially be issued at Wednesday’s commission meeting.

The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reports that an unsuccessful applicant filed a letter of protest with the commission Monday, requesting it refrain from issuing the licenses because the scoring process was flawed.

The Department of Finance and Administration also says it’s reviewing the tax status of those associated with the winning applicants amid delinquency concerns.

David Couch is the attorney who drafted the constitutional amendment legalizing medical marijuana. He says industry experts expect more challenges in coming days.

Information from: Arkansas Democrat-Gazette