Details about a marijuana legalization bill that Connecticut lawmakers and the governor have been negotiating are starting to surface as leadership works to get it to the floor before the end of session next week\u2014and some proposals dealing with social equity are raising eyebrows among advocates.<\/p>\n
House Majority Leader Jason Rojas (D) has been asked about the status of discussions with Gov. Ned Lamont\u2019s (D) office at press briefings almost every day this week, and he\u2019s continually insisted that a deal is imminent. On Thursday he said \u201cwe stand in a pretty good place for drafting up language, getting to the final details on what is a very complicated and comprehensive bill.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAll the drafts are in place, and we\u2019re just waiting for that last sign-off on that remaining detail,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Watch the majority leader give an update on marijuana legalization talks, starting around 23:00 into the video below:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n The talks of late have centered on social equity provisions, but Rojas said negotiators are finding \u201ccommon ground\u201d on issues like ensuring that people most impacted by the drug war are able to participate in the market and setting aside tax revenue for community reinvestment.<\/p>\n In theory, that\u2019s exactly what advocates are looking for. But while legislative language has not yet been released, details about the social equity licensing elements of the legalization deal that CT Post reported<\/a> on Wednesday are already proving contentious.<\/p>\n Specifically, advocates are taking issue with a proposal to make it so those who qualify as equity business applicants would have to partner up with existing medical cannabis firms in the state to learn the trade.<\/p>\n In order to obtain an adult-use license, the state\u2019s four current medical cannabis cultivators could pay a $2 million fee or a reduced payment if they enter into such equity partnerships.<\/p>\n Equity businesses would be defined as those that are owned by people who grew up or live in certain zip codes and who have annual income of less than $250,000. During negotiations, a proposal to give licensing priority to people who\u2019ve faced drug convictions was abandoned, according to CT Post.<\/p>\n All new cultivators would consist of equity applicants, and to obtain a license they would have to pay a $3 million fee\u2014a steep sum, the outlet reported. Existing marijuana companies that enter into partnerships with equity applicants would need to either put $500,000 into an equity fund or devote five percent of floor space and potentially five percent of profits to the partners.<\/p>\n Advocates say the requirement that upstart equity businesses would need to work with\u2014and share profits with\u2014existing big cannabis companies is a non-starter.<\/p>\n \u201cThe flagrant corruption happening here is something the entire nation should be worried about. My home state is considering removing people who were directly impacted from access to the equity programs, but adding multi-billion dollar companies instead,\u201d Jason Ortiz, executive director of Students for Sensible Drug Policy, told Marijuana Moment.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s astounding how far from really understanding this issue our majority leader seems to be,\u201d he said. \u201cThe people who are most impacted are the ones who got arrested, due to racist intent by white politicians and police officers. And now our majority leader wants to let wealthy white corporations dictate the terms of our equity programs? NO deal.\u201d<\/p>\n Here are some additional details about the forthcoming cannabis compromise legislation, according to CT Post<\/a>:\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n Rojas acknowledged during Thursday\u2019s briefing that lawmakers need to work quickly in order to pass the reform before the end of session next week, but he gave only a vague response about when bill text might be released.<\/p>\n \u201cGiven that next Wednesday is our deadline, certainly in advance of Wednesday, but I\u2019m certainly hoping within the next day for sure,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n After that point, the plan is to take the legislation up by the Senate, where the compromise language is expected to be incorporated into a legalization bill backed by the governor that\u2019s moved through two committees<\/a>.<\/p>\n The measure may face pushback from progressive Democrats<\/a> who has signaled that they feel legislative leaders and the governor are moving too quickly and sidestepping important social equity considerations.<\/p>\n Rep. Anne Hughes (D), cochair of the Progressive Caucus, told Marijuana Moment on Tuesday that \u201cwe want to do it right,\u201d and that may mean tackling the reform in a special session\u2014an option opposed by leadership and the governor.<\/p>\n Asked for his latest thinking on the prospects of legalization passing before the end of the session next week, House Speaker Matt Ritter (D) seemed less optimistic on Tuesday than he has in recent briefings, stressing that the legislature still needs to deal with the budget.<\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t know. You can\u2019t get them all right, but we\u2019re working through it. The majority leader is working hard, and I don\u2019t really know,\u201d he said. \u201cThe one thing the legislature does is the budget, and so until you get this wrapped up, it just puts a hold on so many other bills and so many other topics.\u201d<\/p>\n Ritter said last week that he feels there\u2019s a\u00a057-43 chance that the legislation is approved<\/a>, whereas he\u00a0previously gave it a 50-50 chance<\/a>. But it\u2019s uncertain whether he feels those odds have changed given the time restraints and pushback from Democratic members.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, the governor said recently that he and legislative leaders are having \u201cgood, strong negotiations,\u201d and there\u2019s \u201cbroad agreement\u201d on policies concerning public health and safety. There\u2019s \u201cgrowing agreement\u201d with respect to using marijuana tax revenue to reinvest in communities disproportionately harmed by prohibition.<\/p>\n If a legalization measure isn\u2019t enacted this year, Lamont said last month that the issue could ultimately go before voters.<\/p>\n \u201cMarijuana is sort of interesting to me. When it goes to a vote of the people through some sort of a referendum, it passes overwhelmingly. When it goes through a legislature and a lot of telephone calls are made, it\u2019s slim or doesn\u2019t pass,\u201d the governor said. \u201cWe\u2019re trying to do it through the legislature. Folks are elected to make a decision, and we\u2019ll see where it goes. If it doesn\u2019t, we\u2019ll probably end up in a referendum.\u201d<\/p>\n Ritter similarly said last year that if the legislature isn\u2019t able to pass a legalization bill, he will move to put\u00a0a question on the state\u2019s 2022 ballot that would leave the matter to voters<\/a>.<\/p>\n According to recent polling, if legalization did go before voters, it would pass.<\/p>\n Sixty-four percent of residents in the state favor legalizing cannabis for adult use, a survey from Sacred Heart University that was released last week found.<\/p>\n A competing legalization measure from Rep. Robyn Porter (D), which is favored by many legalization advocates for its focus on social equity, was\u00a0approved in the Labor and Public Employees Committee<\/a>\u00a0in March.<\/p>\n Lamont, who convened an informal work group in recent months to\u00a0make recommendations on the policy change<\/a>, initially described his legalization plan as a \u201ccomprehensive framework for the cultivation, manufacture, sale, possession, use, and taxation of cannabis that prioritizes public health, public safety, and social justice.\u201d<\/p>\n But while advocates have strongly criticized the governor\u2019s plan as inadequate when it comes to equity provisions, Ritter said in March that\u00a0\u201coptimism abounds\u201d as lawmakers work to merge proposals<\/a>\u00a0into a final legalization bill.<\/p>\n Rojas also said that \u201cin principle, equity is important to both the administration and the legislature, and we\u2019re going to work through those details.\u201d<\/p>\n To that end, the majority leader said that working groups have been formed in the Democratic caucuses of the legislature to go through the governor\u2019s proposal and the committee-approved reform bill.<\/p>\n In February, a Lamont administration official stressed during a hearing in the House Judiciary Committee that Lamont\u2019s proposal it is \u201cnot a final bill,\u201d and\u00a0they want activists \u201cat the table\u201d<\/a>\u00a0to further inform the legislation.<\/p>\n The legislature has considered legalization proposals on several occasions in recent years, including a bill that Democrats\u00a0introduced last year on the governor\u2019s behalf<\/a>. Those bills stalled, however.<\/p>\n Lamont\u00a0reiterated his support for legalizing marijuana<\/a>\u00a0during his annual State of the State address in January, stating that he would be working with the legislature to advance the reform this session.<\/p>\n The governor has compared the\u00a0need for regional coordination on marijuana policy<\/a>\u00a0to the coronavirus response, stating that officials have \u201cgot to think regionally when it comes to how we deal with the pandemic\u2014and I think we have to think regionally when it comes to marijuana, as well.\u201d<\/p>\n He also said that legalization in Connecticut could\u00a0potentially reduce the spread of COVID-19<\/a>\u00a0by limiting out-of-state trips to purchase legal cannabis in neighboring states such as Massachusetts and New Jersey.<\/p>\n Illinois Continued Record-Breaking Marijuana Sales Streak In May, State Officials Report<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n Photo courtesy of Brian Shamblen<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n The post New Connecticut Marijuana Legalization Bill Details Draw Pushback From Equity Advocates<\/a> appeared first on Marijuana Moment<\/a>.<\/p>\n
Details about a marijuana legalization bill that Connecticut lawmakers and the governor have been negotiating are starting to surface as leadership works to get it to the floor before the end of session next week\u2014and some proposals dealing with social equity are raising eyebrows among advocates. House Majority Leader JasonContinue Reading<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":458,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"false","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[18,81,126],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48068"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/458"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=48068"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48068\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":48069,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48068\/revisions\/48069"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=48068"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=48068"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=48068"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}\n
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\nRead More: New Connecticut Marijuana Legalization Bill Details Draw Pushback From Equity Advocates<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"