Katelyn Baker
Well-Known Member
Business experts shared investment advice with a crowd of mostly African American cannabis entrepreneurs Monday at a conference in Oakland set up to help people of color succeed as state law forces California's multibillion-dollar industry above ground.
The conference's organizers - former San Francisco Mayor Willie Brown, Harborside Health Center dispensary chief Steve DeAngelo, and California NAACP President Alice Huffman - want to ensure that black and Latino people are not left behind as the marijuana industry transforms amid expanding regulation and an anticipated boom if voters legalize recreational marijuana on Nov. 8.
"It won't turn into a white industry because some of us who are at the base won't let that happen," Brown, a Chronicle columnist, said following a speech in which he compared cannabis to the flourishing tech sector.
The "Opportunities in Legal Cannabis" conference drew some local lawmakers who have been engaged in a fierce political battle at Oakland City Hall over Oakland's pot ordinance, which includes guaranteed pot permits for businesses owned by people who were jailed on marijuana convictions in Oakland during the past decade or have lived for at least two years in one of six East Oakland neighborhoods that saw high marijuana arrests in 2013. Some City Council members who approved the criteria in May have had second thoughts amid criticism that the law will choke off business.
Next week, the council will vote on whether to rewrite the pot laws. Meanwhile, a new controversy has emerged over a proposal to amend the ordinance to require all Oakland pot businesses to hand over 25 percent of their profits to the city in exchange for a permit to operate.
Although Oakland's pot laws were not on the agenda when dozens of participants gathered Monday at Yoshi's jazz club, they were a topic of interest. To some, the fight in Oakland shows how hard it is to ensure racial equity in an emerging economic sector - especially for a product that has long been illegal.
"I'm really proud of Oakland for being the first city anywhere to make a commitment to diversity, but I have some concerns that some of these proposals will have the effect of dampening the growth of the industry," DeAngelo said.
He said the idea for Oakland to take a quarter of profits is "just not feasible."
"Every lawyer I've talked to says that measure would be thrown out for being unconstitutional," DeAngelo said.
State Assemblyman Rob Bonta, D-Oakland, has said the proposal would run afoul of state laws that prohibit public entities, like cities, from having an ownership stake in businesses.
DeAngelo also took issue with the city ordinance that sets aside half of Oakland's pot permits for people who meet the narrow "equity" requirements.
The City Council had lofty intentions when it approved the equity permit program in May: to right the wrongs of a U.S. war on drugs that critics say has disproportionately harmed African Americans and Latinos.
DeAngelo, a formerly incarcerated drug felon, applauded Oakland for trying to redress injustices of the past and attempting to bring more low-income blacks and Latinos into an industry where most of the visible leaders are white. But he said the equity permit program could easily backfire.
"The lack of diversity in the cannabis industry is a real problem; it's something that has to be addressed," he said. "And I think we're still working out the best way to do that."
Councilwoman Desley Brooks, who devised the equity permit program and the proposal for all cannabis businesses to hand over a portion of profits to the city, attended the conference Monday.
Oakland's pot laws were supposed to go up for a vote during a special city council meeting on Nov. 14, but Brooks fast-tracked them to Nov. 1 - just days before a contentious election in which five council seats are up for grabs. Councilman Larry Reid and Noel Gallo, who are both running for re-election, are co-sponsors of the 25 percent ownership proposal.
Councilwoman Rebecca Kaplan, who is fighting a tight election race with Mayor Libby Schaaf's former adviser Peggy Moore, said she opposes Brooks' 25 percent proposal. She declined to comment on the equity permit program, saying the council will receive a legal analysis from the city attorney before it votes next Tuesday.
Kaplan and Moore attended the conference.
Other attendees expressed disgust that Oakland's pot laws have become a form of political gamesmanship.
"People are fed up, and some are moving to other cities because they're tired of the bickering at City Hall," said Robert Brackins, a founding member of the mentorship group 100 Black Men of the Bay Area.
Brackins adamantly opposes the 25 percent ownership proposal and said he wants to see the equity permit program expanded. Mostly, he is angry that a political fight between council members has kept the city from releasing permit applications for new cannabis businesses. State law requires that every pot business have a city permit and a license from the state by 2018.
"It's not fair that they're holding up stuff," he said. "I'm tired of this whole mess."
News Moderator: Katelyn Baker 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: Pot Entrepreneurs Get Business Advice In Oakland
Author: Rachel Swan
Contact: SFGate
Photo Credit: Liz Hafalia
Website: SFGate
The conference's organizers - former San Francisco Mayor Willie Brown, Harborside Health Center dispensary chief Steve DeAngelo, and California NAACP President Alice Huffman - want to ensure that black and Latino people are not left behind as the marijuana industry transforms amid expanding regulation and an anticipated boom if voters legalize recreational marijuana on Nov. 8.
"It won't turn into a white industry because some of us who are at the base won't let that happen," Brown, a Chronicle columnist, said following a speech in which he compared cannabis to the flourishing tech sector.
The "Opportunities in Legal Cannabis" conference drew some local lawmakers who have been engaged in a fierce political battle at Oakland City Hall over Oakland's pot ordinance, which includes guaranteed pot permits for businesses owned by people who were jailed on marijuana convictions in Oakland during the past decade or have lived for at least two years in one of six East Oakland neighborhoods that saw high marijuana arrests in 2013. Some City Council members who approved the criteria in May have had second thoughts amid criticism that the law will choke off business.
Next week, the council will vote on whether to rewrite the pot laws. Meanwhile, a new controversy has emerged over a proposal to amend the ordinance to require all Oakland pot businesses to hand over 25 percent of their profits to the city in exchange for a permit to operate.
Although Oakland's pot laws were not on the agenda when dozens of participants gathered Monday at Yoshi's jazz club, they were a topic of interest. To some, the fight in Oakland shows how hard it is to ensure racial equity in an emerging economic sector - especially for a product that has long been illegal.
"I'm really proud of Oakland for being the first city anywhere to make a commitment to diversity, but I have some concerns that some of these proposals will have the effect of dampening the growth of the industry," DeAngelo said.
He said the idea for Oakland to take a quarter of profits is "just not feasible."
"Every lawyer I've talked to says that measure would be thrown out for being unconstitutional," DeAngelo said.
State Assemblyman Rob Bonta, D-Oakland, has said the proposal would run afoul of state laws that prohibit public entities, like cities, from having an ownership stake in businesses.
DeAngelo also took issue with the city ordinance that sets aside half of Oakland's pot permits for people who meet the narrow "equity" requirements.
The City Council had lofty intentions when it approved the equity permit program in May: to right the wrongs of a U.S. war on drugs that critics say has disproportionately harmed African Americans and Latinos.
DeAngelo, a formerly incarcerated drug felon, applauded Oakland for trying to redress injustices of the past and attempting to bring more low-income blacks and Latinos into an industry where most of the visible leaders are white. But he said the equity permit program could easily backfire.
"The lack of diversity in the cannabis industry is a real problem; it's something that has to be addressed," he said. "And I think we're still working out the best way to do that."
Councilwoman Desley Brooks, who devised the equity permit program and the proposal for all cannabis businesses to hand over a portion of profits to the city, attended the conference Monday.
Oakland's pot laws were supposed to go up for a vote during a special city council meeting on Nov. 14, but Brooks fast-tracked them to Nov. 1 - just days before a contentious election in which five council seats are up for grabs. Councilman Larry Reid and Noel Gallo, who are both running for re-election, are co-sponsors of the 25 percent ownership proposal.
Councilwoman Rebecca Kaplan, who is fighting a tight election race with Mayor Libby Schaaf's former adviser Peggy Moore, said she opposes Brooks' 25 percent proposal. She declined to comment on the equity permit program, saying the council will receive a legal analysis from the city attorney before it votes next Tuesday.
Kaplan and Moore attended the conference.
Other attendees expressed disgust that Oakland's pot laws have become a form of political gamesmanship.
"People are fed up, and some are moving to other cities because they're tired of the bickering at City Hall," said Robert Brackins, a founding member of the mentorship group 100 Black Men of the Bay Area.
Brackins adamantly opposes the 25 percent ownership proposal and said he wants to see the equity permit program expanded. Mostly, he is angry that a political fight between council members has kept the city from releasing permit applications for new cannabis businesses. State law requires that every pot business have a city permit and a license from the state by 2018.
"It's not fair that they're holding up stuff," he said. "I'm tired of this whole mess."
News Moderator: Katelyn Baker 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: Pot Entrepreneurs Get Business Advice In Oakland
Author: Rachel Swan
Contact: SFGate
Photo Credit: Liz Hafalia
Website: SFGate
