California’s Attorney General says that the costs of doing business on the legal marijuana market in California are too high. He cites high taxes and compliance barriers which can encourage entrepreneurs to stay in the illegal market.
At a Tuesday event in Fresno, the state Attorney general Rob Bonta (D), said that “the barriers to entry are just too high.” “The costs of staying in business are too high.” We should also temporarily lower taxes.
He continued: “For operators who are trying to comply with the state law, we should reduce the regulatory burden while targeting the illicit market which is undermining them.”
Bonta made his comments as he announced the launch of a new program that will help cities and counties combat illegal marijuana through administrative enforcement, nuisance abatement and other means. He said that fly-by night operators have been able to get away with their illegal activities in the state for too long.
Bonta stated at the event that some people believe they can operate and earn a profit while avoiding the regulatory burdens or tax burdens. “And they have been doing it. They’ve not been shut down. They haven’t been shut down. This is why it’s important to use this tool .”
Fresno was the first Californian city to join the California Department of Justice (CADOJ), Cannabis Administrative Prosecutor Program. This program provides local authorities with CADOJ’s legal support in order to pursue administrative actions.
Bonta stated in a Press Release that CAPP was an innovative program which would allow his office to support local governments better in their collective efforts to combat illegal cannabis activities. “We are confident that the new, cost-effective program we have developed will have dramatic and measurable results.”
The release states that if cited, “illegal operators have the option to shut down their operations voluntarily, or they will be subjected to the elimination of unlicensed commercial marijuana cultivation, or the cessation or unlicensed retail and manufacturing activities, as well an order authorizing recovery of enforcement costs.”
His office stated that the program would provide attorneys with the ability to pursue administrative penalties before local authorities and, if necessary, help develop procedures for administrative enforcement. CADOJ can also, if necessary, “perform administrative work to provide notices. This includes facilitating administrative procedures and assisting with logistics issues by using private process servers and contract code compliance officers and abatement contractor.”
We are partnering with @CityofFresno in order to combat unlicensed and illegal commercial cannabis activity by providing legal assistance through DOJ’s Cannabis Administrative Prosecutor program.
Complex problems demand creative and collaborative solutions. https://t.co/DmVCT4wXHQ pic.twitter.com/OchkMiUPw4
Rob Bonta August 29th, 2023 HTML0
In a press release, it is stated that the program will be self-funded, “as DOJ personnel, in coordination and cooperation with local government, seek to recover costs by fines, enforcement action, stipulated administrative order, settlements, or abatement lien,” according to the press release. As an additional incentive for Fresno to participate, the press release notes that any funds received from the program will be held in trust by the City of Fresno if they exceed the costs of the services provided under the MOU.
Bonta explained in comments first published by California NorML why administrative action was more appealing than criminal sanctions against unlicensed operators.
He said, “When the public’s safety is in danger, we take appropriate aggressive action.” “We will shut down the operations of low-level offenders who don’t deserve to be criminalized, if we can do so through administrative means. This will allow us to support and uplift the licensed cannabis industry.
“The barriers [to entry] [into the California cannabis licensed markets] are too high.” Costs to remain in business are too high. “We should lower taxes, at least temporarily.” AG Bonta announces DOJ’s CAPP program. pic.twitter.com/I8ExZXjBbf
California NORML August 29th, 2023
The Attorney General, who served nearly a decade in the Assembly of California, has also expressed his support for AB1684, which would give local governments more authority to fine cannabis activities without a license immediately.
California law enforcement has struggled for years to control illegal cannabis businesses. Local jurisdictions have sometimes used administrative measures in the past. In the late 2000s and early 2010, cities and towns in California tried to close down a growing number of dispensaries with storefronts and unregulated delivery services. Some businesses continued to operate despite being penalized. They viewed fines as part of the business.
California regulators believe that the high cost of licensing cannabis businesses in the state may be one of the reasons for the illegal growth sites. However, they also point out that many of California’s jurisdictions do not allow marijuana businesses to operate in their area. This increases the demand for illicit goods since the regulated products are expensive and beyond the reach of most consumers.
California cannabis regulators are spending millions of dollars in grant money to expand retail access. This program was launched earlier this summer. The Department of Cannabis Control distributed about $4 million to local authorities in June as an incentive to accelerate licensing of marijuana businesses. This was part of the $20 million total grant program for Local Jurisdictional Access Grants.
Localities who have chosen not to allow marijuana retailers and do not plan on licensing them in the near future are not eligible for grants. The grants are not available to jurisdictions with existing licensing programs, or retailers who have been approved.
Illegal cannabis operations are more likely to violate environmental laws, which can pose health and safety risks. The U.S. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service stated that the illegal pesticides used in California marijuana grows contributed to the listing of two species of spotted owls under the federal Endangered Species Act. The agency said the practice would likely increase with demand for marijuana “if the costs of buying land and acquiring/maintaining permits to legalize a grow operation are too high.”
Last year, a pair of GOP congressmen asked key cabinet officials in the Biden administration to study the environmental impacts of marijuana cultivation–acknowledging both the intensive electrical demand that growing cannabis can involve as well as the role that legalization can play in setting regulations for the plant.
California’s Department of Fish and Wildlife in 2021 will be accepting proposals to create a Cannabis Restoration Grant Program that will help small marijuana growers with environmental cleanup and restoration.
Last year, in an effort to further shrink the illicit cannabis market, the state passed a law that eliminated the state’s cultivation tax.
California has been making efforts to extend its marijuana market outside the borders of the state. Regulators recently requested a formal opinion on whether interstate marijuana commerce could put the state in “significant” risk of federal enforcement actions.
The governor’s request for DCC guidance is an important step. It could trigger the law that he signed last year that allows him to sign agreements with other states that are legal to import and export marijuana.
Gov. Gavin Newsom, a Democrat from California, said in the past that his goal is to have marijuana legalized at the federal level. This would allow the cannabis farmers of Newsom’s state to “legally provide the rest” of the country.
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This photo is courtesy of WeedPornDaily.
The post California’s Attorney General Calls for ‘Lowering of Taxes on Marijuana to Combat the Illicit Market first appeared on Marijuana Moment.
