The Turlock City Council voted during its last meeting to accept the recommendations of the Cannabis Ad-Hoc Committee, then voted to put a proposed cannabis tax on the November ballot.
The ad-hoc committee, comprised of council members Cassandra Abram (District 3) and Kevin Bixel (District 1), along with Planning Commission members Matthew Davis and Jim Reape, recommended that the city council end the program’s pilot status and move toward a permanent ordinance.
The five-year pilot program allows for the regulation of cannabis businesses through a development agreement and a conditional-use permit process. The program allows up to four cannabis dispensaries within the city and an unspecified number of commercial manufacturing, testing and distribution businesses.
Turlock’s four cannabis retailers are Firehouse Cannabis Dispensary, Perfect Union Weed Dispensary, National Healing Center Cannabis Dispensary, and the soon-to-open Evergreen Market.
“Other jurisdictions are moving toward a tax,” said city manager Reagan Wilson. “From an administration perspective a tax is much easier to administer. From a staff-time perspective, it’s a heck of a lot less staff time once you get a tax in place.”
To get a tax in place, of course, it must go before voters. That leaves just 50 days — the deadline is June 23 — for the city to complete all the administrative work required to get an item on the ballot.
“I’ve gotten everything structured to this point, but I haven’t executed any contracts to move forward without direction from council,” said city financial director Isaac Moreno. “Staff and management are ready to go and get that done. It does take public hearings to get that done, so we do have a tight window.”
Abram, who chaired the ad-hoc committee, reported that one member of the committee said he was not interested in regulating cannabis any more than alcohol is regulated.
“With cannabis being a relatively new market and one that still has, unfortunately, a very active illegal market, jurisdictions such as ours have a very fine line to walk between regulating and over-regulating, which makes it harder for legal enterprise and drives people to the illegal enterprise,” said Abram “It’s the recommendation of the committee to move toward a special business permit rather than the development agreement and CUP because each of those components has its own problems.”
Under the development agreements, cannabis retailers pay the city a public benefit amount of no less than $25,000 per month or 5.25 percent of its gross receipts. That minimum public benefit amount increases to $35,000 after one year and then $45,000 after the fourth year of the agreement.
That puts a tremendous burden on the retailer. Hypothetically, a retailer could have $0 in gross receipts and would still be on the hook for $25K
The city garnered $1,156,315 in fiscal year 2020-21, saw a modest increase to $1,254,381 the following year, and was right around $1.2 million again for 2022-23.
Both council votes were 4-1, with Mayor Amy Bublak opposing each time.
Marijuana has long been listed under the Controlled Substances Act as a Schedule I drug, alongside heroin, LSD and ecstasy. Schedule I drugs are illegal under federal law.
A 23-year veteran of law enforcement, Bublak has been a staunch opponent of cannabis-related issues because of the Schedule I status.
According to the Associated Press, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration is said to be ready to reclassify marijuana as a less dangerous drug, a shift that could have ripple effects across the country.
