District residents soon won't need to travel to other states for medical marijuana. Legalized in D.C. last year, the program is steamrolling ahead with a panel that will sift through applications for cultivators and dispensaries.

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“Organic Wellness,” “Luscious Leaves” and “Emerald Chalice” are among over 80 businesses hoping for a coveted spot; there will be 10 cultivation centers and five dispensaries.

Mayor Vince Gray and other D.C. officials are still wary of the feds interfering, as District laws are subject to congressional approval. Although medical marijuana is legal in 16 states, federal prosecutors have "basically looked the other way," according to a 2009 memo issued by U.S. Deputy Attorney General David W. Ogden, the Washington Times reports.

The District and like-minded states might not continue to be so lucky. A Department of Justice letter sent last week to the Drug Enforcement Administration and the U.S. Attorneys Office reads,

Persons who are in the business of cultivating, selling or distributing marijuana, and those who knowingly facilitate such activities, are in violation of the Controlled Substances Act, regardless of state law. Consistent with resource constraints and the discretion you may exercise in your district, such persons are subject to federal enforcement action, including potential prosecution. State laws or local ordinances are not a defense to civil or criminal enforcement of federal law with respect to such conduct, including enforcement of the CSA.

So let's hurry up and get these pot shops open before the feds decide to shut them down.