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Director's office to recommend denying petition to create 'qualified remnants' registry for social equity licenses
Summary
A petition from Ash Shoden of Grown Folks 502 LLC asked the LCB to create a registry and certificate for 'qualified remnants' to receive social equity licenses; Daniel Jacobs said the director's office will recommend denying the petition because existing rules do not bar contractors from reusing prior application materials and the proposal would require legislative funding and statutory changes.
The Liquor and Cannabis Board will consider a petition for rulemaking at its full board meeting tomorrow after staff previewed the request during the caucus session on Dec. 2. Daniel Jacobs, presenting on behalf of the director’s office, said the office will recommend denying the petition submitted Nov. 6 by Ash Shoden on behalf of Grown Folks 502 LLC.
“ The director's office is going to recommend denying the petition because existing rules do not expressly prohibit the contractor from using previous application materials during future eligibility periods,” Jacobs said. The petition asks the board to identify and formally recognize applicants the petitioner calls “qualified remnants,” create a registry and issue certificates confirming status, direct social equity licenses that open up due to revocation, surrender or cancellation to those individuals before opening a new social equity window, and conduct affirmative outreach to these people from prior social equity rounds.
Jacobs told the board that several elements of the proposal would require additional funding for IT infrastructure and other resources that the agency does not currently have, and that some proposed changes are more appropriately considered by the legislature. “Because one of the main concerns brought up by the petitioner is the redundancy in time and effort that folks who've already applied need to take to submit all these materials again,” Jacobs said, staff will note that the contractor can already save prior application materials and reuse them under the current rule structure.
Board members did not request more information during the caucus; the chair said he had watched the petition's YouTube video and, as an individual member, was inclined to accept the director's office recommendation to deny and suggested petitioners approach the legislature. Jacobs clarified that he was not formally telling petitioners to approach the legislature but that the matter appears to require statutory change and legislative funding if it were to be implemented without changing the current social equity process.
Next step: the full board will take a vote on the petition at its meeting tomorrow; the caucus session did not record a final board vote.
