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Public commenter urges Cincinnati to restrict cannabis tax dollars to communities harmed by criminalization
Summary
At the Budget & Finance Committee meeting, public commenter David Whitehead asked council to place anticipated cannabis revenue (estimated at about $3.4 million) into a restricted fund targeted at communities disproportionately affected by cannabis criminalization and to use independent oversight for allocations.
David Whitehead, the meeting's sole public commenter, urged the committee to restrict the city's share of cannabis-related revenue to programs that directly benefit communities previously harmed by criminalization. Whitehead said estimates from the Columbus finance office put the city's allocation at about $3,400,000 and asked the council to avoid returning that money to the general fund.
"I'm asking this council to be as diligent as the Columbus City Council and making sure that these funds are restricted," Whitehead said, recommending a restricted fund with oversight by an independent body selected by title rather than names so allocations would endure across administrations. He said city data such as a 15-community plan and historic redlining maps could identify neighborhoods with documented harms.
No formal action on cannabis revenue restrictions was taken in the committee; council members later referenced cannabis revenue in broader budget debate but did not adopt a binding allocation or create a restricted fund during this meeting.
