Within the most populous city in the most populous state, Los Angeles is striving to bring forth change to create a more equitable cannabis industry.

On Wednesday July 1st, Los Angeles City Council approved an ordinance amending the Los Angeles Municipal Code related to the Licensing and Social Equity Program within Article 4, Chapter X.

What exactly is the Social Equity Program? The City of Los Angeles is one of the few jurisdictions in the US that is attempting to acknowledge and repair the implications of past cannabis policies. This program seeks to “promote equitable ownership and employment opportunities in the cannabis industry in order to decrease disparities in life outcomes for marginalized communities, and to address the disproportionate impacts of the War on Drugs in those communities.”

Some of the immediate policy objectives from the city’s Department of Cannabis Regulation (DCR) include

• Limiting new delivery and retail licenses only to social equity applicants until January 1, 2025
• Granting social equity license applicants temporary approval.
• Allowing cannabis businesses to relocate; currently, they are required to remain in the same location on their application.
• For storefront retailers, the new ordinance adds that after the initial processing of 100 Round 1 social equity applicants, the DCR will process the next 100 Round 1 social equity applicants before moving on to Round 2
• Round 1 involved a first-come, first-serve application processing model. The new ordinance updates Round 2 to a random selection (lottery), improving the transparency and fairness of the application process for pre-verified applicants. (https://mmlg.com/)

With the progress of equitable reform taking place within the cannabis industry, it is important to stay up to date on the additional rules and regulations that apply to your business. Check out the details on California packaging and labeling requirements in the following blog posts: