Pot workshop makes ‘history’

A Cannabis and Social Equity workshop held virtually on June 15 was, as National City City Attorney Charles Bell said, “history in the making for us as a body” as the city delves into how to develop a cannabis business plan that benefits everyone in the community.

The workshop was born from public hearings the city held prior to a vote allowing the city to regulate the sales of commercial cannabis, as well as a related vote on zoning changes to allow for marijuana cultivation and dispensaries.

When those votes passed in May, National City Mayor Alejandra Sotelo-Solis said the city needed to have local control over an inevitable business addition to the community.

Bell opened Tuesday’s workshop with a primer of information on understanding social equity and said it is important to “recognize the disproportionate impact that cannabis enforcement policies have had on minority communities” such as a disproportionately higher rate of cannabis-related arrests in Black communities than white.

As the city creates a plan to move forward with a cannabis business development plan, Bell said, it must do so with cannabis social equity.

The city attorney explained basic information on the Cannabis Equity Grants Program, a 2018 California state interagency agreement between the governor’s office of business and economic development. That state grant program aims to aid local equity programs with technical support, regulatory compliance assistance, and assistance with securing the capital necessary to begin a legitimate and legal cannabis business in an effort to reduce illicit cannabis market.

Under the grants program, Bell said, cities and counties are eligible for funding to assist with equity and potentially grow city employment opportunities and community reinvestment, while license applicants receive direct assistance such as technical help and application fee waivers.

“There are also disadvantages to an equity program,” Bell said, most of which stem from unintended consequences such as predatory practices, eligibility criteria manipulation, sunk costs for equity applicants, financial barriers, and intense competition to secure a finite number of licenses with a limited availability of properties.

Following Bell’s overview of cannabis social equity and the grants program, Economic Development Specialist Megan Gamwell split the roughly 50-60 participants into four breakout rooms to address Economic Empowerment, Community Reinvestment, Restorative Justice, and Education and Research.

Across all four groups, there were suggestions to reinvest revenue from the new business fees and taxes back into arts programs, work with the school district to develop music programs, and generally support the community.

Bell said his group “focused more on concerns that do not tie directly to cannabis equity” such as educational programs for children, internship programs and educating youth about potential dangers” but also business entrepreneurship.

Another group discussed the definition of a “healing process” and ultimately talked about wanting more money spent on expungement and advocacy, as well as discrediting the idea that cannabis does not have medicinal value.

Deputy City Attorney Gabriella Torres said her group discussed investing in the environment to benefit the health of residents.

“We also want to make sure licenses are given to minority-owned business owners and residents who have lived in the city for several years,” Torres said. That point was later drilled home by City Council Member Ron Morrison who observed that the majority of the attendees were “cannabis-industry people and outsiders”.

Morrison also took issue with how the city appears to be seeking ways to spend potential cannabis-related revenue rather than adding it into the general fund along with franchise fees from other industries to help balance the city’s budget as leaders proposed when the possibility of cannabis business development was first broached in 2019.

The next meeting on new cannabis development is slated for Aug. 10.

More information will be available at www.nationalcityca.gov prior to the meeting. A video recording of Tuesday’s forum is also available for viewing.