Colorado has begun issuing the first state medical-marijuana business licenses in the nation, the culmination of a more than year-long application process for dispensaries and marijuana- infused-products makers.

The state has issued 11 licenses to businesses in Boulder, Denver, Colorado Springs, Fort Collins and Littleton, according to the state Medical Marijuana Enforcement Division of the Department of Revenue. Another seven have been notified they are likely to receive a license. And the state has sent out letters to local governments for 467 dispensaries and products-makers to double-check that those businesses have local approval — one of the final steps in the licensing process.

The first license to a Denver business was presented Wednesday to Dr. J’s owner Tom Sterlacci at a meeting of an industry workgroup. The presentation received a standing ovation.

“It’s very historic,” Sterlacci said. “Now we’re not standing alone with the feds. We have the city and the state standing with us.”

Medical-marijuana advocates say Colorado’s regulations for cannabis businesses are the most comprehensive in the nation, and they credit the rules’ thoroughness with shielding the businesses from federal raids. John Ingold, The Denver Post