A Guide to Local Cannabis Equity

SOMA Action’s Racial Justice - Cannabis Equity Initiative has been working hard behind the scenes as part of South Orange’s Cannabis Task Force. Together with the NAACP Oranges & Maplewood, we have spent the last several months advocating for equitable local policies in South Orange’s cannabis legislation and are confident that much of it will be included in the ordinance. On October 21 at 7:00 p.m., the township’s administration will be hosting a virtual Cannabis Legislation Community Discussion to share their plans with the public. 

It’s important that a regulated cannabis industry is leveraged in such a way that it creates a path to repairing the disproportionate and generational harm done to Black and brown communities during marijuana’s prohibition. To that end, we’ve put together the following guide to the points of equity that we have been speaking about so that you can be informed and voice support for these issues at the virtual community discussion, as well as in your community.

Local License

Joe Johnson of the ACLU has indicated that in addition to the cannabis license issued by the state, a local license can be used to protect a municipality’s cannabis market from being run by corporate cannabis (also called multi-state operators, or MSOs). Provided that the cost of this local license will not create a barrier to entry, this is a method for South Orange to gain greater control over an equitable distribution of licenses by prioritizing social equity applicants.

Possible uses for the 2% tax

New Jersey’s legislation directs 70% of the state’s tax revenue from cannabis sales to “impact zones,” which are municipalities that have been disproportionately and negatively impacted by the War on Drugs, which is great! But impacted families also live in non-impact zones like South Orange, yet our town will not be receiving any of those funds. South Orange will be imposing a 2% tax on local cannabis sales with a 1% tax on wholesalers. While the legislation will not designate this tax revenue to a specific program, it’s important that the township officials hear from the public about how you would like to see these funds reinvested in the community. 

Strong and equitable Community Benefit Agreement requirements

When a cannabis establishment would like to open in a particular municipality, they will propose an agreement with the municipality that they will provide resources and opportunities to programs and organizations that meaningfully reinvest in the community. Please voice your support for the town to consider cannabis license applicants that have the strongest and most equitable Community Benefit Agreements.

A publicly funded Incubator program

An Incubator program is a cannabis education center that can be publicly funded. People who are in the process of launching a cannabis business can use this center as a workspace and receive free technical and legal assistance. While well-funded corporate cannabis businesses have access to these resources, they can be a barrier to entry for small businesses, so an Incubator program is a solution to this problem of inequity.

Equitable Employment

An important aspect of equity in cannabis is employment. We have made recommendations that each licensee (cannabis business) in town must make efforts to ensure that at least 25% of their employees meet one or more of the following criteria: has a prior cannabis conviction, is a member of an impacted family (which means that an immediate family member has had a cannabis conviction), is low-income, or is a current or past resident of an impact zone. We have also requested that South Orange publish an annual report that will show factors that quantify equity: the number of local licenses issued to impacted individuals, the number of local licenses issued to minorities, the percentage of cannabis employees who are re-entry candidates (formerly incarcerated), and the percentage of cannabis business ownership and management who are minorities.

Now that you know more about how a municipality can work toward equity in cannabis, show your support for it in South Orange at the virtual community discussion on October 21! The link to the community discussion can be found HERE. Please register in advance. Thank you!