California officials will next month begin accepting applications for their Cannabis Equity Grants Program. The grants are part of a state effort to use cannabis taxes to fund equity programs that benefit those who have been disproportionately affected by the drug-war.
A description of the program states that its purpose is to “advance economic justice for populations, communities and local jurisdictions impacted by the War on Drugs and cannabis prohibition by providing support to the local jurisdictions in California as they promote equity and eliminate barriers for equity program applicants to enter the newly-regulated cannabis industry.”
The newly published 19-page solicitation includes the final details of program eligibility, funding and application scoring criteria, as well as other aspects, for the 15 million grant program. A guide for potential applicants explains how to use an online portal, which municipalities must use, in order to submit their electronic applications.
According to the announcement, the grants “are intended to advance economic justice for those most affected by cannabis criminalization or poverty by supporting local jurisdictions in their efforts to promote equity and remove barriers to the newly-regulated cannabis industry by equity program applicants and licencees.”
Applications must be submitted before December 14 via the Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development website. The grants are expected to be announced on January 22, 2024.
The money from the program is used to fund local programs that provide technical support, regulatory assistance and help with securing start-up capital for equity applicants and licensees. According to a Description on the California Grants Portal, the grants will “further the stated intention of the AUMA” by reducing the barriers to licensure in the regulated industries. The state will benefit from this type of support by increasing the number of people who are involved in the legal cannabis industry.
The grants for the last fiscal year were announced in February and went to 16 counties and cities across the state. Grants ranged from $350,000 to Oakland to nearly $2.5 million for San Diego County.
In a separate grant program, the state Department of Cannabis Control announced that they would double the amount of money made available to localities in order to accelerate the opening of cannabis retailers within their jurisdictions.
DCC announced the first-of its-kind program back in February. In June, it granted $4.1 million to 18 jurisdictions. In the second phase of the program, regulators will offer up to $150k per retail license approved by a city and up to $300k per social equity license. Prior to this, awards were only limited to $75,000 or $150,000.
State Attorney General Rob Bonta, (D), addressed these topics at an August press briefing.
Last month, the application round for an $48million grant program for community reinvestment was closed. The program, funded by state marijuana taxes, awards between $600,000.00 and $3,000,000.00 to support job placements, legal assistance and treatment of mental and substance abuse disorders.
GO-Biz reported in May that the state has already awarded more $50 million in marijuana taxes-funded community reinvestment grant.
DCC also recently awarded nearly 20 million dollars in grants funded by marijuana taxes to 16 academic institutions for the study of cannabis, including novel cannabinoids such as delta-8 THC, and the genetics “legacy strains” from the state.
California has also taken steps to extend its marijuana market outside of the state’s boundaries. Regulators recently requested a formal opinion by the state attorney general’s office about whether allowing marijuana commerce between states would place the state at a “significant risk” for federal enforcement actions.
Documents obtained by Marijuana Moment recently show that the state attorney general’s office has solicited input from local governments and cannabis industry groups in order to finalize this opinion.
Gov. Gavin Newsom, a Democrat from California, recently signed into law several marijuana-related laws. One of them was a bill that would prohibit employers from asking about previous cannabis use. He vetoed other legislation as well, such as a proposal that would have legalized cannabis cafes.
He also vetoed another bill that would’ve legalized the possession of certain psychedelics including psilocybin. He did however sign a bill that allows doctors to begin prescribing certain drugs, such as psilocybin or MDMA, immediately if they are federally rescheduled.
Newsom surprised some harm reduction advocates last session when he vetoed Wiener’s bill that would have set up a pilot program for overdose prevention sites in the state.
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The post California to Open New $15 million Marijuana Equity grant Round for Local Jurisdictions Next month appeared initially on Marijuana Moment.
