Who’s a “certified applicant” underneath Oregon’s new marijuana license reassignment program?
First, some context. House Bill 4016, which launched the reassignment idea, represents a sea change for Oregon’s licensed marijuana trade. The invoice presently awaits signature by the Governor, and nobody is betting it received’t turn out to be regulation. Our tackle all of Oregon’s new hashish legal guidelines is right here and our tackle HB 4016 is right here.
These posts briefly talk about Part 4 of HB 4016, which trade watchers have learn to handle social fairness points in Oregon’s marijuana licensing regime. However does it? Will it? This put up takes a more in-depth have a look at Part 4, which provides the Oregon Liquor & Hashish Fee (OLCC), the facility to undertake guidelines to assign licenses to certified candidates underneath Oregon’s new marijuana license project program.
OLCC and social fairness
The social fairness element of marijuana licensing is essential as a result of communities most impacted by the Conflict on Medication typically discover themselves unable to enter regulated markets. Entry to these markets more and more is determined by entry to capital and political connections.
We’re conscious of not less than one particular person in Oregon who would qualify as a social fairness utility underneath any definition, and who sunk their life financial savings into securing a license from the OLCC after receiving a number of written assurances from the OLCC that their utility can be processed, solely to have the rug pulled out from underneath them on account of HB 4016.
The OLCC is culpable right here. And never simply due to the representations it made to this particular person. It’s no secret the OLCC lobbied for the continued moratorium on producer licenses and its extension to different license sorts. Surely the moratorium will increase limitations to coming into the Oregon hashish market. Now the one method to enter the Oregon marijuana market is to purchase a license. This favors these with present licenses and monied pursuits over social fairness candidates.
As defined beneath, I consider Part 4 will show a failure for social fairness except the OLCC begins taking fairness severely. Let’s study the textual content of Part 4, which is able to turn out to be operative on July 1, 2022.
MARIJUANA LICENSE ASSIGNMENT PROGRAM
SECTION 4.
(1) The Oregon Liquor and Hashish Fee could undertake guidelines to determine a program to assign expired, relinquished or in any other case suspended licenses issued underneath ORS 475C.005 to 475C.525 to certified candidates.
(2) In establishing and working this system described in subsection (1) of this part, the fee could seek the advice of with different state businesses, together with the Governor’s workplace, because the fee determines is critical.
(3) The fee could undertake different guidelines as essential to hold out this part.
Part 4 doesn’t really require the OLCC to do something
Part 4 says solely that the OLCC “could” set up a program to assign licenses to certified candidates. Nothing compels the OLCC to take action. And Part 4 doesn’t impose any timeline on the OLCC to determine a program for certified candidates to obtain a license underneath a brand new project program.
Though we count on the OLCC to work to determine a license project program for certified candidates, we doubt a program will spring into help within the close to time period. (Let’s hope we’re unsuitable.)
Delay in doing so will go away social fairness candidates, ostensibly whom Part 4 is to learn, within the lurch for an undetermined period of time. Many of those individuals are paying industrial leases or mortgages with little to no prospect of acquiring a license absent an project program. So delay by the OLCC in establishing an project program for licensed candidates works to the detriment of social fairness candidates.
Part 4 doesn’t outline “certified applicant” by any means
Conspicuously absent from Part 4 is any legislative steerage to the OLCC on who’s eligible as a professional applicant within the license project program, or upon what standards the OLCC could assign a license. The legislature has given the OLCC carte blanche; the dearth of statutory steerage means challenges to guidelines and choices by the OLCC are probably doomed. And since Part 4 says nothing about social fairness, the extent to which the OLCC really consists of that idea in its license project program for certified candidates is solely unclear.
Whether or not and when the license project program really advantages certified social fairness candidates is an open query
Look, the purpose of this put up is to not castigate the Legislature or the OLCC. (Okay, it type of is.) It’s simply that many people within the trade have severe issues in regards to the long-term impacts of the moratorium on the Oregon leisure marijuana program.
By dashing HB 4016 into regulation the Legislature has accomplished a disservice to many Oregonians who search to enter a $1 billion market—whether or not as social candidates or in any other case. In the meantime the OLCC has been given broad authority to award folks licenses to enter this market underneath the project program with few, if any, restrictions on the train of its discretion.
In conclusion, we strongly consider the OLCC ought to direct assets and a spotlight to addressing fairness points inside the Oregon marijuana trade. The brand new license project program for certified candidates should be place on the entrance burner. And it should occur instantly.