Ellen Komp

A large wildfire consumes vegetation in a rural area, with flames and thick smoke filling the sky. The fire is close to a fenced-off path or road, and green bushes are visible in the foreground. Highlighting the necessity of disaster preparedness, the scene is chaotic and dangerous. CA Norml

How Cannabis Companies Can Prepare for Disasters

By Lauren Mendelsohn, Esq.
[email protected]

A large wildfire consumes vegetation in a rural area, with flames and thick smoke filling the sky. The fire is close to a fenced-off path or road, and green bushes are visible in the foreground. Highlighting the necessity of disaster preparedness, the scene is chaotic and dangerous. CA NormlIf 2020 has taught Californians anything, it’s the importance of being prepared for and knowing how to respond to disasters and unexpected events. How can cannabis companies prepare for and respond to emergencies like wildfires, power outages, earthquakes, and infectious disease outbreaks? This blog post aims to provide some guidance in this area.

Have Written Emergency Plans Ready

All employers in California, including cannabis businesses, must prepare, maintain and implement a number of written plans that lay out the company’s protocols for responding to emergencies.…

A modern, spacious retail store interior with a long counter lined with pendant lights. Four display tables on wheels are in the foreground, each holding framed signs. Reminiscent of trendy California cannabis businesses, the store features a stylish black and white decor with a partial tiled wall. CA Norml

California Cities and Counties Vote to Open Cannabis Businesses

 

A modern, spacious retail store interior with a long counter lined with pendant lights. Four display tables on wheels are in the foreground, each holding framed signs. Reminiscent of trendy California cannabis businesses, the store features a stylish black and white decor with a partial tiled wall. CA NormlThe Apothecarium cannabis store in Berkeley, CA.

November 4, 2020 – As all marijuana reform measures in other states (Arizona, Mississippi, Montana, New Jersey, and South Dakota) won voter approval in the November 3 election, voters across California approved nearly all of the local measures to allow, tax and regulate cannabis sales in their cities or counties.

Of 38 ballot measures in 36 cities or counties across the state on the November ballot, only six are losing at the ballot box, while most are winning by large margins.…

Image with the acronym "NORML" in bold, black letters at the top, and the phrase "SMOKE THE VOTE" in white, capitalized letters below it. The background features a close-up image of green cannabis leaves. Don't miss the California Cannabis Voter Guide for the 2020 Election on November 3. CA Norml

California Cannabis Voter Guide to November 3, 2020 Election

 

Image with the acronym "NORML" in bold, black letters at the top, and the phrase "SMOKE THE VOTE" in white, capitalized letters below it. The background features a close-up image of green cannabis leaves. Don't miss the California Cannabis Voter Guide for the 2020 Election on November 3. CA Norml

Find cannabis-friendly candidates and measures at all levels of government: local, state and federal.  

LOCAL RACES • LOCAL BALLOT MEASURES • STATE PROPOSITIONS
KEY CONGRESSIONAL RACES • KEY STATE LEGISLATIVE RACES

Visit NORML’s Smoke the Vote Guide and enter in your zip code or address to find Congressional candidates, as well as candidates for the State Senate and Assembly in your district. Some key races are described below.

Watch a walkthrough of Cal NORML and NORML’s Smoke the Vote guides, from our Sept.…

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Local Cannabis Ballot Measures Lead to Licensing

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Californians are voting on 38 ballot measures addressing cannabis in 36 cities or counties across the state on the November 2020 ballot. Most measures would allow local officials to impose taxes on cannabis businesses, ranging from 1.25% up to 10%. For cultivation, most localities seek to place a square footage tax ranging from $0.5 – $25. Trinity County, by contrast, seeks to tax by weight of flower and leaves, while Calaveras voters will decide whether to move from a weight-based tax to a square footage-based one.…

Banner image with text: "Hemp Staff - Cannabis/Hemp Recruiting & Training." Background features cannabis leaves. A banner along the bottom reads, "Click Here for Surviving in the 2020 Style Cannabis Industry. CA Norml

Surviving the Cannabis Industry 2020 Style

by Rosie Yagielo, COO, HempStaff

Banner image with text: "Hemp Staff - Cannabis/Hemp Recruiting & Training." Background features cannabis leaves. A banner along the bottom reads, "Click Here for Surviving in the 2020 Style Cannabis Industry. CA Norml

Cannabis businesses are now legal to some degree in 34 states. Between medical and adult-use programs, entrepreneurs, big and small, have an opportunity to get involved in today’s fastest growing industry. From micro growers to mom and pop owned dispensary, everyone has a chance to be successful with the right team and of course, the right amount of capital.

But 2020 has not been kind to the financial stability of this country. While cannabis continues to be deemed essential, there is no doubt you have heard the latest news about big cannabis firms still laying off employees from entry level positions to C-Level executives.…

A modern, multi-story building under construction with exposed concrete and scaffolding is seen, set against a vibrant blue sky with a few clouds in West Hollywood. A tall yellow crane signals active construction work, underscoring the city's growth amid its progressive initiatives like the smoking ban. CA Norml

West Hollywood Exempts Cannabis from Smoking Ban in New Apartment Buildings

A modern, multi-story building under construction with exposed concrete and scaffolding is seen, set against a vibrant blue sky with a few clouds in West Hollywood. A tall yellow crane signals active construction work, underscoring the city's growth amid its progressive initiatives like the smoking ban. CA Norml

 

UPDATE August 17, 2020 –  Thanks to vocal protests by local cannabis advocates,  the West Hollywood city council voted 3-2 to drop cannabis from a proposed anti-smoking ordinance that  sought to ban smoking and vaping in  all new multi-family units.  John Duran led the pro-cannabis forces on the council, joined by council members Laurie Mesiter and John D’Amico, who had originally sponsored the ordinance.  The council vowed to keep studying the issue, possibly revisiting it in a years’ time. 

Cal NORML worked with local advocates, led by Jackie Subeck, Karen O’Keefe of MPP, LA NORML, and Legal Cannabis for Consumer Safety in organizing opposition to the ban.  …

A woman in a dark blazer stands on stage, smiling and holding her hand to her chest. The background features blurred, dark blue elements and indistinct text. She appears to be speaking or acknowledging an audience, reminiscent of Kamala Harris when she was introduced as Biden's running mate. CA Norml

Biden Picks CA Senator Kamala Harris as Running Mate

A woman in a dark blazer stands on stage, smiling and holding her hand to her chest. The background features blurred, dark blue elements and indistinct text. She appears to be speaking or acknowledging an audience, reminiscent of Kamala Harris when she was introduced as Biden's running mate. CA NormlPresumptive Democratic Presidential nominee Joe Biden has named California Senator Kamala Harris as his Vice Presidential pick.

As San Francisco’s District Attorney and California’s Attorney General, Harris upheld California’s medical marijuana law. Since being elected to the Senate, she has come on strong for federal marijuana law reform as the Senate sponsor of the Marijuana Opportunity, Reinvestment, and Expungement (MORE) Act to remove marijuana from the Controlled Substances Act, enabling states to set their own marijuana policies and reinvesting funds in communities of color that have been impacted by laws against marijuana.…

A line graph titled "Racial Disparity in California Marijuana Arrests / 100K population" displays data from 2013 to 2019. It uses two colored areas: blue for Black/White and orange for Hispanic/White. Both metrics increase over time, with blue consistently above orange. CA Norml

Racial Arrest Disparities Increase as Marijuana Arrests Decline in California

A line graph titled "CA Marijuana Arrests, 2011-2019" displays arrest trends in California from 2011 to 2019. Felony (red), misdemeanor (blue), and total arrests (green) all show a downward trend, with total arrests decreasing most significantly, highlighting changes in marijuana arrest policies. CA Norml

July 14, 2020 – Arrest data released by the California Dept. of Justice show there were 1,181 felony marijuana arrests in California in 2019, down 27% from 2018 (1,617 arrests) and the lowest number since 1954.

Latinos accounted for 493 or 41.7% of arrests; blacks for 263 (22.3%) and whites for 252 (21.3%).  Males were 87.9% of those arrested for felonies, and juvenile felony arrests numbered 91.

2019’s misdemeanor marijuana arrests were down slightly in 2019: they numbered 3,769, versus 3,835 in 2018.Hispanics…

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Countering the Myths of Cannabis Banking

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By Dama Financial

Myth 1: It is illegal for Banks to serve Cannabis-related Businesses because marijuana is illegal under federal law.

The Controlled Substances Act (“CSA”) makes it illegal under federal law to manufacture, distribute, or dispense marijuana. However, 10 states plus Washington D.C. have fully legalized marijuana and 33 states have legalized it for medical uses.

In 2014, the U.S. Treasury acknowledged banking relationships between financial institutions and legal cannabis-related businesses (CRBs) through its release of FinCen guidance. The guidance stated that serving CRBs was a risk-based decision, and expressed that thorough customer due diligence is a critical aspect of making an assessment and whether a CRB implicates the Cole Memo priorities or violates state law.…

Illustration of a white hand and a Black hand passing a joint. The Black hand is wearing a handcuff. Text reads, "Black people are 264% MORE likely than white people to be ARRESTED for cannabis possession, even though they use at similar rates." This highlights the urgent need for racial justice in cannabis policies. CA Norml

Racial Justice, Equity, and Cannabis Addressed at Cal NORML’s July 1 Meeting

Illustration of a white hand and a Black hand passing a joint. The Black hand is wearing a handcuff. Text reads, "Black people are 264% MORE likely than white people to be ARRESTED for cannabis possession, even though they use at similar rates." This highlights the urgent need for racial justice in cannabis policies. CA Norml

RACIAL JUSTICE, EQUITY, AND CANNABIS IN CALIFORNIA

Wednesday, July 1 • 4 PM

Listen to audio of the meeting:
Part 1
Part 2 (starts with attorney Roxanne Mosley) 70120.m4a

 

Find out how you can support racial justice and equity in the cannabis industry in your city or county, and at the state level in California. Our panelists will talk about their projects and issues that remain for communities impacted by the war on drugs in a post-legalization world.

Our panelists are: 

– Amber Senter, Supernova Women, NCIA’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee
– Lanese Martin, The Hood Incubator
– Ramon Garcia, Original Equity Group and PadreMu
– Attorney Roxanne Mosley


Amber Senter

A person with short curly hair and a broad smile, wearing a black blazer and black shirt, poses in front of an orange wooden background, symbolizing the vibrant spirit of racial justice. CA NormlAmber Senter is founder and CEO of Breeze Distro, a house of infused cannabis product brands and distribution located in Oakland, as well as CEO of Shady Pines Box Club, a cannabis subscription box available in California. 

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