Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Cannabis Policy topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Cannabis operators urge council to lower taxes, extend equity program and streamline fees
Summary
Operators and equity stakeholders said high taxes and fees are driving businesses underground and asked the council to consider tax reductions and an extension of the social-equity program through 2031.
Multiple cannabis business owners and equity-program operators urged the council during the public-comment period to reduce city tax rates, streamline local fees and extend the city's social-equity program to align with the state timetable.
Speakers described an industry struggling with unpaid tax liabilities and competition from illegal operators. One operator said legal cannabis retailers in the city collectively owe roughly $280 million in delayed city taxes and another $1 billion in state liabilities; speakers said those burdens and a 10% city tax rate make it difficult to compete with illicit sellers. "We need lower taxes so legal stores can compete," a cannabis operator told the council in Spanish during public comment.
Requested actions: Commenters asked the council to place a measure on the ballot to reduce local cannabis taxes, to extend the equity program to 2031 so provisional license holders can transition without losing eligibility, and to review local recovery-of-cost charges that some operators said have multiplied administrative fees (one speaker cited an example where a DBA cost $30 but a city process cost $500).
Why it matters: Operators said high city taxes, fees and enforcement against illegal storefronts affect small equity operators disproportionately and that aligning local timelines with state programs would stabilize the sector.
Council response: Councilmembers heard the requests and were asked by speakers to place the measures on a future agenda. No council vote on tax or program changes occurred during the meeting; speakers asked the council to formally take up a petition or motion to begin that process.
