It’s impossible. It’s impossible.”
By Rebecca Rivas, Missouri Independent
Adolphus Pruitt, one of the most vocal defenders of the marijuana legalization amendment last year when it was criticized for its potential to calcify the lack Black participation in a burgeoning sector, was one of the most vocal critics.
Pruitt and other NAACP leaders from the St. Louis City NAACP insisted that the constitutional amendment create a “microbusiness licensing” program. The intention was to give marijuana licenses to owners of businesses who reside in communities that have suffered from marijuana criminalization for a long time. Studies show that this is mainly Black communities.
Pruitt changed his tone Thursday after he read the fine print of the requirements for the application for a microbusiness license that the state will be releasing on June 6.
Pruitt was “shocked” when he saw a list of ZIP Codes that the state determined qualified for historically high rates of imprisonment for marijuana-related crimes.
Nine of the 121 ZIP Codes listed are located in St. Louis, but none in North St. Louis. North St. Louis is home to about half the Black population in Missouri.
P.O. Boxes have three ZIP codes: two in downtown St. Louis and one in St. Charles. Two P.O. Boxes are located in downtown St. Louis, and one is in St. Charles.
The U.S. Postal Inspection Service and banks are the only two institutions that have “unique” ZIP codes. Postal Inspection Service downtown St. Louis, that have “unique ZIP codes” which are designated for institutions with high mail volume.
Three regular ZIP codes cover an area, including downtown St. Louis which is one of the least residential parts of the city and downtown Clayton. This is also among the wealthiest suburbs, with a household income average of $200,000. The last ZIP code is for St. Charles where 90 percent of the population, according to Census, is Caucasian.
The applicant must prove that they reside within the ZIP code by submitting utility bills, tax bills for personal property or copies of their current mortgage or lease.
Pruitt stated, “Listen to me, you will not find Black people smoking marijuana in Clayton, whether it is legal or illegal. “There’s no way that people from Clayton would have been arrested any more than people from North St. Louis.” It’s impossible.”
Pruitt sent a letter on Thursday to the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services (which oversees the marijuana-program) demanding “immediate corrective action” before the release of the application form in two weeks.
According to proposed marijuana regulations, Missouri will grant 48 microbusiness licenses this fall. The window for filing applications is from July 27 to August 10
Pruitt says that the St. Louis ZIP code is just the beginning of the problem with the “qualifying zip codes” listed in the new state cannabis rules.
35 of the names on this list are P.O. There are unique ZIP codes or P.O. Boxes in the entire state. This includes six state agencies located in Jefferson City, Kansas City Federal Reserve, and University Hospital Medical Complex in Columbia.
Other ZIP codes in the state are located in rural areas with sparse populations.
Amy Moore, the director of the Division of Cannabis Regulation of the State, responded to Pruitt’s concerns in a Friday letter. She said that DHSS still stands behind the list.
She wrote that the drafters of the legislation did not include any mechanism to conduct the required analysis on incarceration rates.
Moore told Pruitt that the Missouri State Highway Patrol had the only complete incarceration dataset that applied equally throughout the state. DHSS based their analysis on this data.
Moore wrote to Pruitt in an email that “we believe the method we used to determine the eligible ZIP code under the incarceration rates criteria is the most efficient mechanism available.” “And during the public rulemaking, we did not receive any alternative suggestions on how to determine the eligible ZIP code.”
The Independent last week asked DHSS about five ZIP codes that correspond to single addresses in downtown St. Louis or P.O. DHSS spokeswoman Lisa Cox explained that P.O. Boxes were included in the list “because they form part of a census tract area.”
According to Lt. Eric Brown of the Missouri Highway Patrol and DHSS, the Missouri Highway Patrol did not provide the ZIP codes for St. Louis to DHSS.
Brown wrote in an email on Friday, “I don’t know how many zip codes weren’t provided by the Patrol.” The best place to find an answer is the DHSS, since it’s the agency that sets the rules.
In Pruitt’s letter to Moore he asked if ZIP codes represent only areas where there are prisons or jails and not the actual places where people live. He thought this might explain why ZIP codes were so prevalent in rural areas.
Moore told Pruitt that the correction facilities had not distorted data.
These ZIP codes contain six of Missouri’s 15 prisons, but the other six are not.
Pruitt stated that both Downtown St. Louis, and Clayton have jails. Moore replied, “…they were on the list regardless of whether they had a jail population or not.
Pruitt stated that if Downtown St. Louis, Clayton, and St. Charles are the only regular ZIP codes in which people can qualify for microbusiness licensing under this category “I believe it’s time to challenge and litigate, because it shouldn’t be the case.”
Peter Merideth of St. Louis, a Democratic Rep. who is a member of a House Committee that reviews the new cannabis regulations, has said he “definitely” will be investigating this.
Meredith stated that “if the ZIP codes were supposed to identify communities most harmed by the criminalization of marijuana and they don’t include those communities, then we have a serious problem.” It’s more worrying if ZIP codes include places where no one lives.
Nimrod chapel Jr., the president of Missouri NAACP was one of those who opposed the legalization amendment last year because he did not believe that the supporters would deliver on their promises of greater social equality.
Chapel stated, “This is what we feared.” When I look at the [ZIP codes], I cannot tell if there will be any Blacks affected. Rural Missouri, however, has large swaths where the microgrow will be permitted. That doesn’t seem fair.”
Microbusiness outreach for applicants
The lack of information and outreach about the program is another concern for Pruitt and Chapel, as well as others who work with potential applicants.
Chapel stated that he had spoken to people from St. Joe all the way to the Bootheel and no one knew anything about eligibility requirements, application processes or anything else.
According to Missouri law, DHSS was required to hire a Chief Equity Officer for its Marijuana Program by the end of February. This position is meant to meet the requirements of social and economic equality set forth in Missouri’s new marijuana laws.
Abigail Vivas is now the chief equity officer and oversees microbusiness licensing program. Vivas has not been made available to The Independent for an interview despite repeated requests.
The law requires that the chief equity office create and promote educational programs around the licensing process, and the available support and resources to individuals who apply for microbusiness licences.
Cox told the Independent in an email that Vivas is “building a community of individuals and groups to help spread the word about the training and technical assistance programs to those who are eligible.”
Cox stated that these opportunities for assistance include a series in-person workshops and technical assistance throughout the state during the next two month period. Resources and events will be available soon online.
Denise McCracken is an attorney at D.B. McCracken Law, a McCracken Law firm that works with clients to prepare them for the application process and is preparing them to apply to Vivas’ office, says she hasn’t seen any outreach so far from Vivas’s office. Pruitt hasn’t either.
The applicant must meet at least one of the following eight requirements.
- A net worth less than $250,000. Gross household income is below poverty level three times in the past 10 years.
- A disability resulting from military service;
- An arrest for a non-violent marijuana offense at least one year before legalization, or being the spouse or guardian to such a person.
- Live in a place with high unemployment or poverty
- If you live in a region with historically high marijuana imprisonment rates, it may be worth considering moving.
- Graduate from a school district that is not accredited
- Or live in a school district that has not been accredited for three out of the five previous years.
She said that applicants must provide evidence of their eligibility in each category. However, it is not always obvious what will be considered, as shown by the ZIP code list.
McCracken stated that it would be helpful if DHSS had a preapplication process, where people could submit their evidence and check if DHSS found it acceptable.
According to law, the department must issue the first batch of microbusiness permits within 300 days of the 8th of December, or a minimum 48.
DHSS announced in late April that it would accept applications for microbusinesses earlier, i.e. in July rather than September.
The department will then issue 48 more licenses 270 days later, after the equity officer has ensured that the licenses were issued to the eligible applicants. Then, at the mark of 548 days, the department will issue another 48 licenses. This will bring the total up to 144 at least by early 2025.
Each round will see at least six licenses granted in each of the eight congressional districts. This includes at least two dispensaries, and at least four wholesale facilities.
Pruitt stated that the licenses were intended to give people of “lower socioeconomic standing” the chance to own cannabis businesses.
He said that the constitutional intent behind the amendment was clear in regard to microlicense recipients. “And the current rule-making with respect to ZIP code does not pass muster,” he said.
The Missouri Independent first published this story.
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