New Jersey is making headlines with their policy of prioritizing folks with prior cannabis convictions when it comes to working legally in the industry. 

While putting social equity first and allowing people of color and those affected by the War on Drugs a chance to enter the industry is nothing new, this state is taking things one step further and actually giving priority to those with convictions. 

According to a video by VOA News, Tahir Johnson and Jon Dockery, two lifelong friends, have been arrested multiple times for cannabis possession. Now, thanks to this new law, they will be some of the first who will be able to sell cannabis legally in the state. 

The program was set up by New Jersey’s cannabis regulatory commission, and it also creates priority status for other folks, including minority-, woman-, disabled-, and veteran-owned businesses certified as such by the New Jersey Department of the Treasury, and those who have businesses owned by folks located in an impact zone, a low-income area more impacted by the War on Drugs.

Then there is the social equity piece. This includes businesses owned by people who live in economically disadvantaged areas of the state, as well as those who have expunged or non-expunged prior cannabis convictions. 

“Social equity businesses, diversely owned businesses, and impact zone businesses will be prioritized in the licensure process so that their applications are reviewed before other applicants—regardless of when they apply,” the state’s website explains. “Applications from entities that meet criteria for more than one priority status will be reviewed, scored, and approved in accordance with the status of highest priority.” 

Johnson and Dockery received two of the 11 priority licenses given out so far because of prior cannabis convictions. Both men have been arrested multiple times for cannabis possession. 

“We’ve been arrested for cannabis, and now we have a chance to share in the market and the wealth being created here,” Dockery says regarding their second chance and their new foray into the industry. 

According to the ACLU, Black people are four times more likely than whites to be arrested for cannabis use, possession, and sale. This is why many states are taking this disparity into account when it comes to laws and regulation. 

Wesley McWhite of the New Jersey Cannabis Regulatory Commission says in the video, “We wanted to make sure that we are addressing the negative social impact of cannabis prohibition, so it was important to make sure that those who have the most barriers have an easier time getting licenses and into the industry.”

However, not everyone is happy with this rule. Unsurprisingly, a police group spoke out against this allowance. Patrick Phelan of the New York Association of Chiefs of Police feels that doing this is “rewarding if not encouraging criminal activity.”

Of course, this argument ignores the fact that most people would much rather have never gotten a life-impacting cannabis conviction, whether or not it helps them get into the legal industry now, and that the whole point of measures like this is to rebuild a society in which cannabis is a legitimate industry and not a criminal one.  

New Jersey’s closest neighbor, New York, has set aside a social equity fund of $20 million for similar reasons, hoping to rebuild an industry in the image of the folks who were the most impacted. 

While this will in no way completely erase the harm done by the War on Drugs in New Jersey, it is a positive step towards filling the industry with the folks who are already familiar with it and suffered because of illegal cannabis in the past. 

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Rally-goers this week “called for a fairer process to get a marijuana dispensary license in Illinois,” according to local news reports.

Local television station WLS reported that a group gathered Tuesday at the Thompson Center in Chicago to raise objections after Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker announced a lottery earlier this month to award 50 new adult-use cannabis licenses in the state in an effort to “expand opportunities targeted to the communities most impacted by the failed War on Drugs.”

The station reported that the group that organized the rally, known as True Social Equity in Cannabis, “don’t want a lottery to decide who can create a cannabis business in their neighborhood.”

“We are tired of waiting. No more caps, no more lotteries, no more games,” said Jose Lumbreras, one of the rally-goers, as quoted by WLS.

Pritzker’s office announced the forthcoming lottery earlier this month, saying that the state’s Department of Financial and Professional Regulation (IDFPR) would be “filing rules to simplify the cannabis dispensary license application process, remove barriers for social equity applicants, and expand opportunities targeted to the communities most impacted by the failed War on Drugs.”

The department, the governor’s office said at the time, is required by the state’s new cannabis law to “to issue at least 50 new adult use cannabis dispensary licenses by the end of 2022.”

“From day one, Illinois has been dedicated to leading the nation in an equity-centric approach to legalizing cannabis, and these proposed changes to the application process will make it much easier for social equity applicants to pursue licenses.” Pritzker, a Democrat, said in a statement at the time. “I appreciate all the feedback we have received from stakeholders since the start of the cannabis program, whose work informed this proposal and is continuing to make Illinois’ growing cannabis industry the most equitable in the nation.”

In the press release earlier this month, the Pritzker administration touted that “the new legal cannabis industry reflects the diversity of the state,” saying that: “100% of craft grow, infuser, and transporter licensee applicants managed by the Illinois Department of Agriculture qualified as social equity applicants”; “67% of said applicants live in areas disproportionately impacted by the failed War on Drugs”; “15% have been personally involved with the justice system”; and “five percent have a family member involved with the justice system.”

“We are committed to an inclusive and equitable cannabis program that continues to build on its successes while also recognizing and taking steps to improve it further,” Mario Treto, Jr., the acting secretary of the state’s Department of Financial and Professional Regulation, said earlier this month. “We look forward to introducing even more participants to Illinois’ adult-use cannabis program and encourage all feedback to help ensure we continue to grow the program together.”

But Juan Aguirre, one of the organizers for True Social Equity in Cannabis, said that applicants “have been devastated by what should have been a solution from the legacy market to the legal market. Instead, their life savings have been devastated; their time, their hop, their efforts have been in vain.”

Under the new rules proposed by Priztker, “applicants will be able to apply online with certain basic information (such as the name of the organization, list of principal officers, contact information, and a $250 fee).”

Pritzker’s office said that the Department of Financial and Professional Regulation also plans to to issue 55 conditional licenses to be distributed across the existing 17 BLS Regions detailed in the state’s new recreational cannabis law.

One of the organizers at the rally in Chicago told WLS that the proposal from Pritzker is “a great start to addressing some of the harm caused by the War on Drugs and those harmed by the original process.”

“I think the 55 for $250 is a good start, but we are far from equity,” the organizer, JR Fleming, said, as quoted by the station.

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Cannabis regulators in New York revealed that at least 100 of the state’s first licenses for adult-use cannabis retailers will go to applicants with past pot-related convictions. The policy, which was announced on Thursday by New York Governor Kathy Hochul, would also apply to applicants with family members convicted of cannabis-related offenses.

Chris Alexander, the executive director of the New York Office of Cannabis Management, told the New York Times that by concentrating on “those who otherwise would have been left behind,” the state is in a “position to do something that has not been done before.” He said that he expects between 100 and 200 of the first recreational dispensary licenses will be issued to applicants with convictions for cannabis-related offenses or to those with “a parent, guardian, child, spouse or dependent” with such a conviction.

“These ‘justice involved’ individuals will be eligible for four-year conditional retail licenses to sell cannabis in the adult-use market,” explained Michelle Bodian, co-chair of the hemp and cannabinoids department of the law firm Vicente Sederberg. 

“Creating an initial licensing round that prioritizes these individuals is intended to give them a first-mover advantage that helps them capitalize on what is expected to become one of the largest legal cannabis markets in the world. It is critical that those individuals and communities most heavily impacted by cannabis prohibition be given an opportunity to participate in this new industry.”

Under the Marijuana Regulation and Taxation Act, the landmark recreational cannabis legalization bill passed in New York last year, half of the state’s cannabis licenses for retailers, cultivators, processors and other other businesses were reserved for women, minorities, distressed farmers, veterans and “individuals who have lived in communities disproportionally impacted” by the failed War on Drugs. Alexander said that giving social equity applicants a head start over more well-funded applicants will give them a chance to succeed in a competitive market.

“I could press the green button right now and have 40 dispensaries online,” said Alexander, referring to the state’s existing medical cannabis retailers. “But instead we’ve decided that the folks who have been most impacted actually have the space and the real runway to participate in a meaningful way.”

$200 Million Social Equity Fund in New York

New York policy makers’ decision to reserve recreational cannabis retail licenses for those with pot convictions is not the first step they have taken to foster an equitable cannabis industry in the state. In January, Hochul set aside $200 million in the state budget to create a fund to help social equity applicants meet some of the costs of starting a business.

“New York’s legalized cannabis industry is in development, with the State expecting to issue licenses for adult recreational use,” the governor’s office wrote in a handbook detailing her budget proposals. “But the rise of what is estimated to be a $4.2 billion industry must create opportunities for all New Yorkers, particularly those from historically marginalized communities.” 

The fund is designed to help social equity applicants locate, rent and renovate commercial properties for development into recreational cannabis dispensaries. George Mancheril, CEO of Bespoke Financial, told High Times that the fund and this week’s announcement that initial retail licenses will be reserved for those with cannabis convictions “levels the playing field.” He contrasted New York’s plan with California, where social equity provisions have so far failed to make significant progress in creating a diverse cannabis industry.

“In California’s social equity program, we too often see licenses awarded to those negatively affected by the war on drugs but then they are set up for failure by being granted a license but not equipped with the capital to compete with their well funded competitors,” Mancheril said. “This NY social equity program is a great example of the learnings from previous states’ shortcomings to continue to improve the effectiveness of empowering these entrepreneurs.”

The decision by New York regulators to set aside recreational retail licenses for social equity applicants was applauded by cannabis activists and representatives of the legal cannabis industry. Kassandra Frederique, the executive director of the Drug Policy Alliance, said that New York “is taking a big swing” with the initiative.

“We don’t know what’s going to work,” she said, but “the thing that New York is showing here is that they’re willing to try and they’re willing to do things differently. . . . This is a real try towards achieving equity.”

Matt Hawkins, managing partner and founder of cannabis private equity firm Entourage Effect Capital, characterized the policy as “a step in the right direction to help legitimize the cannabis industry.” 

“New York is creating professional opportunities for people who have previous marijuana convictions and were impacted by The War on Drugs,” Hawkins told High Times in an email. “It is encouraging for the state to take a strong stance on this.”

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Regulators in New Jersey on Tuesday moved to award 30 new licenses for new medical cannabis dispensaries, a significant expansion of a program that has seen slow growth.

The state’s Cannabis Regulatory Commission voted to “more than [double] the number of retail locations for a growing pool of patients who for years complained about long commutes to obtain legal cannabis,” NJ.com reported.

The regulatory panel distributed the 30 licenses evenly throughout the Garden State, awarding “10 each in the central, northern and southern regions of the state,” according to the website.

The expansion will result in a significant uptick to the 23 dispensaries currently serving patients throughout the state. Those stores serve “an average of 5,300 patients per retail site,” NJ.com reported, and there “are about 5,000 patients enrolling every month—a pace that has not abated even with the prospect of a legal market for adult users opening in 2022.”

In October, the New Jersey Cannabis Regulatory Commission “accepted the recommendation to approve 14 of the 2019 medicinal cannabis business applications that had been previously held up due to a court-ordered stay of the review process,” with “10 applications for cultivation permits and four applications for vertically integrated permits” approved to “begin preparations to serve New Jersey’s medicinal cannabis patients.” Due to increased patient need, “five more cultivation permits were awarded than had been planned in 2019,” the commission said.

“The current alternative treatment centers have not kept pace with patient need,” said Dianna Houenou, the chairwoman of the Cannabis Regulatory Commission. “We constantly hear from patients that prices are too high and that there are too few dispensaries with too few product options. The situation has not changed with the legalization of recreational cannabis. Our priority is to our patients and increasing the planned number of medicinal cannabis operators in the market will greatly benefit them.” 

Last year, New Jersey voters approved a constitutional amendment at the ballot legalizing recreational cannabis use for adults. NJ.com reported that while the 30 licenses approved on Tuesday are for medical cannabis dispensaries, if those businesses so choose, “they will have a head start in expanding their customer base to adults 21 and over once the legal market opens some time in 2022.”

Despite the voters’ approval of the amendment, “a bill outlining the legitimate market did not reach Governor Phil Murphy’s desk until February,” the website explained, and the commission “did not introduce the first round of regulations needed to run until August.”

The commission “will start accepting applications for the adult-use market from cultivators, manufacturers and testing labs for the recreational market on December 15, and from dispensaries on March 15,” according to the website.

In February, Murphy signed a bill officially ending the prohibition on pot in New Jersey.

“Our current marijuana prohibition laws have failed every test of social justice, which is why for years I’ve strongly supported the legalization of adult-use cannabis. Maintaining a status quo that allows tens of thousands, disproportionately people of color, to be arrested in New Jersey each year for low-level drug offenses is unjust and indefensible,” Murphy said in a statement after signing the legislation into law. 

“This November, New Jerseyans voted overwhelmingly in support of creating a well-regulated adult-use cannabis market. Although this process has taken longer than anticipated, I believe it is ending in the right place and will ultimately serve as a national model.”

The new law, Murphy said, “will establish an industry that brings equity and economic opportunity to our communities, while establishing minimum standards for safe products and allowing law enforcement to focus their resources on real public safety matters.”

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After a series of delays and legal obstacles, the state of Rhode Island finally appears ready to dole out new licenses for medical marijuana dispensaries.

The state’s Department of Business Regulation announced last week that it will commence a lottery this Friday for five new dispensary licenses. 

In what local television station WPRI described as a “highly choreographed” event, the lottery will take place at the Rhode Island Department of Administration in the capital city of Providence, with limited general seating available to the general public. The lottery will also be livestreamed via Zoom.

The licenses will be awarded to dispensaries from five different geographic zones. WPRI has more details on the event: “A total of 37 applications from 23 companies will be in play for the five coveted licenses. The lottery balls have already been inspected and weighed by experts at the University of Rhode Island and sealed in a briefcase sealed with bomb squad tape since April 30, according to the state’s director of cannabis regulation, Matt Santacroce, who showed the briefcase to reporters Friday morning. A second, practice set of balls was used to demonstrate the procedure.”

The announcement comes on the heels of delays to the lottery process. The lottery was originally scheduled to be held in the first week of August, but that was postponed due to an appeal lodged by an applicant who had been rejected.

Matthew Santacroce, chief of the Office of Cannabis Regulation within the Department of Business Regulation, told the Providence Journal at the time that the lottery would not be conducted “until that appeal has run its course.” 

That still has not been resolved, however. WPRI reported that “an appeal hearing date has still not been set,” and that Santacroce “declined to comment on the ongoing appeal procedure.”

The appeal is being levied by a company called Atlas Enterprises Inc., which “had applied to open a dispensary in Newport, where such businesses are banned by local ordinance,” according to WPRI.

Rhode Island legalized medical cannabis in 2006, when the state legislature passed the Edward O. Hawkins and Thomas C. Slater Medical Marijuana Act. Lawmakers in the state overrode the veto of then-Republican Governor Don Carcieri to get the law over the line. 

Patients in Rhode Island can acquire a prescription if they have one of several qualifying conditions, via the state’s Department of Health: Cancer or the treatment of this condition; Glaucoma or the treatment of this condition; Positive status for Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) or the treatment of this condition; Acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) or the treatment of this condition; and Hepatitis C or the treatment of this condition.

But 25 years after that law passed, the Providence Journal noted that the state still has only three medical marijuana dispensaries.

It may not be long for adults in the Ocean State to legally acquire some weed. In June, the Rhode Island state Senate passed a bill legalizing recreational pot use. The bill was pushed by Democratic lawmakers, including state Senate Majority Leader Joshua Miller.

“It is a historic day, as it is the first time a bill to legalize and regulate cannabis has reached the floor of either legislative chamber in Rhode Island,” Miller said after the bill’s passage. “It is important that we act expeditiously to enact a regulatory framework.”

Lawmakers have continued to iron out the terms of the legislation in the months since, and last week, WPRI reported that legislative leaders “are inching closer to a agreement on legalizing recreational marijuana, but have still not settled on what sort of governing body will oversee, regulate and issue retail licenses in the potentially lucrative market for legal cannabis.”

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