SEATTLE – The Washington State Liquor Cannabis Board is considering a point system that would give people convicted of a drug-related crime and did prison time – preferential treatment when applying for retail cannabis license.
If adopted, the City of Seattle will adopt the same rules and set aside $1 million dollars in grant money to help them get started.
The potential rule for the state and ordinance for the city are part of an effort to create a social equity license for people who were adversely affected by the war on drugs.
“We recognize the disproportionality of the war on drugs on the black community,” said Brianna Thomas, Labor Relations Policy Advisor to Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell.
Back in the early days of the war on drugs, the mere possession of a marijuana cigarette could land someone in jail or prison for months, if not years.
Times have changed.
In 2020, state lawmakers created the Washington State Legislative Task Force on Social Equity in Cannabis. Its purpose was to make recommendations to the Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board on the issuance of retail cannabis licenses, of which there are a limited number.
One of the recommendations was to give preferential treatment to someone who was arrested, convicted and punished for a drug related crime who may now want to make money legally selling marijuana. [Read More @ Fox13]
Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *
Name *
Email *
Website
Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.
Comment *
Notify me of follow-up comments by email.
Notify me of new posts by email.
Δ
Mandating “true owners’ identity disclosure” to prevent using shell companies to conceal criminal revenue, the Corporate Transparency Act creates myriad cannabis industry headaches. By Steve Schain Mandating “true owners’ identity…
Recreational marijuana has been legal in Ohio for more than three months, but many public employers are not changing their policies and still prohibit workers from consuming the drug in…
When the state of Minnesota legalized adult-use cannabis last year, legislators made a subtle change to the books: they struck most mentions of “marijuana” and swapped it out for “cannabis.”…
Salisbury, Massachusetts-based Root & Bloom is a locally and independently owned producer of quality cannabis products whose relatively recent entrance into a quickly maturing Massachusetts market has resulted in a…