Rules Committee approves cannabis code 'cleanup' but equity advocates press for Community Reinvestment Fund funding

The Rules Committee on Nov. 18 amended and forwarded a package of technical changes to the city's cannabis regulations, while members of equity and community groups pressed officials to fund the Community Reinvestment Fund and expand pathways for equity applicants.

Marissa Rodriguez, director of the Office of Cannabis, told the committee the ordinance is “cleanup legislation” designed to align local rules with state law: it creates a local cannabis nursery permit that mirrors the state category, and it removes the local cooperative-permit option because that state-level option is no longer available.

Rodriguez also said the ordinance clarifies permit-processing order and would require cannabis distributors to notify the Office within 48 hours if products fail testing. The office said the changes are administrative and that it will revisit broader policy issues in a separate "Cannabis 3" package anticipated this winter.

Numerous equity applicants and community representatives urged the committee to prioritize funding for the Office of Cannabis Community Reinvestment Fund, which speakers said has not yet been dispersed. Claudio Douglas and others said cooperatives are an important ownership pathway; one speaker said the loss of the cooperative option narrows tools for hundreds of equity applicants. Equity advocates asked the city to release funds and provide more Office of Cannabis staffing to process a queue of roughly 300 applicants.

Supervisor Walton and other supervisors said the committee was bound to align the local ordinance with state law but acknowledged the equity concerns and encouraged work on funding and implementation. The committee duplicated the file to separate a name-change matter and forwarded the amended file with a positive recommendation to the full Board.