Arizona’s social equity cannabis program is taking shape

Politicians in Arizona last week unveiled rules for a social justice cannabis program that aims to give communities hardest hit by cannabis bans opportunities in the state’s newly regulated recreational cannabis market.

The Arizona Daily Star reported that the state’s Department of Health released the final draft of its social justice program report last Thursday.

According to Daily Star, the “major changes” issued by the department include “clarifying the transferability of a social justice license” by “preventing applicants from entering into prior agreements with major retailers to sell or license one Applicant ”. . “

The Department of Health has also voted to lower the initial application fee from $ 5,000 to $ 4,000, according to the Daily Star.

The social justice program seeks to “promote the ownership and operation of licensed marijuana facilities by individuals in communities disproportionately affected by the enforcement of previous marijuana laws,” according to the state health department.

“Social equity license holders must comply with all laws and rules that govern adult marijuana facility licensing, including obtaining an operating permit prior to opening their retail location,” the department stated. “In addition, social justice license holders must develop and implement policies to document how the marijuana facility will benefit one or more communities disproportionately affected by enforcement of previous Arizona marijuana laws.”

The program grew out of Proposition 207, passed by voters in Arizona last year, which legalized recreational marijuana use for adults in the state. Proposition 207 also included a requirement for the state to “encourage the ownership and operation of marijuana facilities and marijuana testing facilities by individuals in communities disproportionately affected by the enforcement of previous marijuana laws.”

The program will issue 26 licenses and the department said it will start accepting applications in December.

Applicants must meet all of the requirements for the program, including the following: The application must list “any person who is an officer or director of the applicant organization”; “[no] one can be the chief executive officer or member of the board of directors for more than two applications ”; “Every senior official or director must certify that he or she has no felony excluded”; “At least 51% of the ownership of the applicant organization must be owned by the officer (s) or board member who have completed a training course required by the department and meet at least 3 of the 4 social justice requirements”; and “Documentation must be provided confirming that these individuals cannot be removed from their positions without their written consent or a court order.”

In addition to the social justice program, the state’s new marijuana law also provides an appeal for those previously arrested for cannabis.

In August, the Superior Court of Arizona in Maricopa County stated that “an average of 650 people per week petition the Superior Court of Arizona in Maricopa County to remove convictions for marijuana crimes.”

The district stated that Proposition 207 “residents can petition the court to have their marijuana convictions overturned.”

“Since filing began in July 2021, the Superior Court of Arizona in Maricopa County has approved 3,643 requests for deletion,” the court said in a statement. “When a court grants a motion to delete a marijuana-related criminal complaint, the case files and prosecution records are sealed, the conviction and judgment are overturned, along with any outstanding court debts related to the overturned charges and civil rights of the defendant will be restored on the marijuana-related charges. “