California state officials are touting benefits of the Local Jurisdiction Assistance Grant Program, which has allocated nearly $100 million to aid jurisdictions in transitioning provisional cannabis licenses into annual licenses.
The Department of Cannabis Control (DCC), which is administering the allocation, noted 17 cities and counties were awarded grant funding in amounts ranging from $400,000 to $22 million and indicated a significant number of the provisional licenses represented small, equity, and legacy cannabis businesses.
“The local jurisdictions receiving grants incorporated innovative approaches to meet the specific needs of their license communities, which is exactly what we were hoping for when developing this program,” DCC Director Nicole Elliott said. “Significant funding is being directed to process improvements and environmental assessments, both of which will help the state and local governments achieve short- and long-term goals.”
The 17 eligible jurisdictions include the top eight jurisdictions with the highest number of provisional cultivation licenses or the top eight jurisdictions with the highest number of provisional manufacturing licenses, as well as the top eight jurisdictions allowing all other cannabis activities with the highest provisional licenses – excluding events.
DCC is responsible for licensing and regulating commercial cannabis activity within California. The agency works closely with stakeholders that include businesses and local jurisdictions to create legal cannabis industry sustainability and an equitable marketplace.