Cannabis on Fire: How Debt Financing Harms Small to Midsize Cannabis Companies
Tue / Aug 30th OPINION
Cannabis equity funding has all but dried up — unfortunately, it’s the small to midsize cannabis companies who will be suffering for it.
The concept of social equity deals with justice and fairness within social policy. In the cannabis industry, social equity programs work to supply business aide to those who have been previously incarcerated for doing cannabis business. Learn about social equity in cannabis in the articles and stories below:
Tue / Aug 30th OPINION
Cannabis equity funding has all but dried up — unfortunately, it’s the small to midsize cannabis companies who will be suffering for it.
Fri / Aug 26th
New York has opened the application process for conditional social equity retail licenses and nonprofit organizations that assist justice-involved individuals.
Tue / Aug 23rd
New York City Mayor Eric Adams (D) launched Cannabis NYC this week, which will provide services and licensing assistance to the city’s cannabis social equity applicants.
Tue / Aug 16th
Washington state officials are considering a points-based social equity licensing model that is preferential to individuals who were previously convicted of cannabis-related crimes.
Fri / Aug 12th
Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker (R) signed a package of cannabis industry reform bills which includes provisions for tax reforms, expungement, social equity, and changes to industry fees.
Wed / Aug 10th
Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell proposed legislation this week in partnership with city Councilmember Teresa Mosqueda seeking to establish city-level cannabis social equity licenses.
Tue / Jul 26th
Illinois issued 149 conditional adult-use cannabis licenses on Sunday to social equity applicants; the licensees were selected through a lottery.
Tue / Jul 26th
New York City’s Bronx Community Foundation and the Bronx Defenders have partnered to create the Bronx Cannabis Hub, a centralized effort to assist individuals most affected by cannabis prohibition.
Thu / Jul 14th
Connecticut has awarded 16 recipients the state’s first social equity commercial cannabis licenses; the licensees still have to pay a $3 million fee and pass a background check before receiving their final licenses.
Tue / Jul 12th
Colorado has announced the recipients of its first social equity grant funding generated from cannabis tax revenue.
Thu / Jun 23rd
NBA Hall of Famer Chris Webber’s Social Equity Impact Ventures, LLC has been selected to oversee New York’s $200 million Social Equity Investment Fund.
Wed / Jun 8th
Cannabis for Black Lives, a group of cannabis companies supporting Black-led and adjacent organizations, has raised $170,000 over the last two years to aid communities impacted by the War on Drugs.
Tue / May 24th INTERVIEW
Alejandro Rodriguez is an Adjunct Professor at The Cannabis Law Clinic at the Golden Gate University School of Law in San Francisco, which teaches students about cannabis history, law, and regulatory compliance.
Fri / May 13th
Arizona selected recipients for the state’s 26 widely sought social equity cannabis licenses.
Mon / Apr 25th
New York City Mayor Eric Adams (D) wants to include $4.8 million in his Fiscal Year 2023 Executive Budget for cannabis businesses in communities most impacted by the war on drugs.
Wed / Apr 13th OPINION
This editorial was contributed by Christine De La Rosa, co-founder and CEO of The People’s Ecosystem, a California-based and equity-focused multistate cannabis operator.
Tue / Apr 12th
The Massachusetts Senate passed provisions to create a cannabis social equity fund, license social consumption spaces, and establish a commission to tackle stoned driving.
Wed / Apr 6th
The Detroit, Michigan City Council has finally approved adult-use cannabis licensing measures after a lengthy and controversial challenge over previous residency provisions.
Wed / Apr 6th
A new bill in New York would require multi-state cannabis operators to have a plan to invest in communities disproportionally affected by the war on drugs.
Wed / Mar 30th
A new poll found that the majority of New York voters oppose prioritizing the state’s adult-use cannabis licenses for people previously convicted of a cannabis-related crime.
Tue / Mar 29th
Arizona announced it will be holding its social equity drawing this April for the 26 adult-use cannabis licenses set aside for the program.
Thu / Mar 24th
Tetra Lounge in Denver received the city’s first social equity cannabis hospitality license and intends to have a consumption lounge open for business by 4/20.
Thu / Mar 17th
Illinois won a court order this week to begin issuing new cannabis industry licenses after years of delays; the state also simplified the application process to make social equity cannabis licenses more attainable for communities most affected by the drug war.
Wed / Mar 16th INTERVIEW
Chenae Bullock is Managing Director of Little Beach Harvest, a vertically integrated cannabis operation by the Shinnecock Indian Nation in New York in partnership with TILT Holdings Inc.
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