South Dakota has issued its first three medical cannabis dispensary licenses to retailers in Wagner, Watertown and Keystone, according to a South Dakota Public Broadcasting report.

The licenses went to Custom Touch in Wagner, Dakota Dispensaries in Watertown and Puffy’s in Keystone, according to the state’s website.

South Dakota must still license medical cannabis cultivators, manufacturers and testing facilities, and the Department of Health is continuing to process applications, South Dakota Public Broadcasting reported.

The state’s voters approved medical and adult-use cannabis legalization measures in the November 2020 election, although the South Dakota Supreme Court has since overturned the adult-use initiative, ruling that it violated the state’s single-subject rule.

South Dakota lawmakers are currently considering several proposed bills on medical and adult-use cannabis during the 2022 legislative session, which kicked off Jan. 11.

STURGIS — Puffy’s LLC and Northern Hills Alternative Health have been awarded provisional medical cannabis dispensary licenses from the city of Sturgis.

The Puffy’s dispensary would be located at 1337 Main Street just to the west of the Loud American Roadhouse. The Northern Hills Alternative Health location is at 2715 Lazelle at the mouth of Boulder Canyon.

The city offered two licenses for dispensaries and unlimited licenses for cannabis manufacturing and testing. They received 18 applications for the two dispensary licenses prior to the deadline on Nov. 23.

It was then the responsibility of City Finance Officer Fay Bueno to open the applications and determine if they were complete.

The Cannabis Industry Association of South Dakota, along with Toronto-based company Business of Cannabis, gathered a group of medical and recreational marijuana advocates from South Dakota and beyond to discuss the current state and future of cannabis.

The event was CIASD’s first. The organization plans to continue hosting events both online and in person for its members and those who pay to participate. The association, founded after the successful campaigns for Amendment A (legalizing recreational marijuana, currently under litigation) and Initiated Measure 26 (legalizing medicinal marijuana), is dedicated to making sure South Dakota extends its business-friendly attitudes to the marijuana industry.