Cannabis leaves frame the County of San Diego graphic for the cannabis program, a wheel with 4 segments of different colors: Social Equity Program, Regulatory Requirements, Environmental Impact Report, and Licensing and Permitting. In the center, a circle reads "Socially Equitable Cannabis Program."

By Shelby Huffaker, MPH | Chair, San Diego Chapter of Americans for Safe Access

On January 30, 2025, the County of San Diego opened the required 60-day public comment period for its draft Cannabis Environmental Impact Report (EIR). Input from medical cannabis patients, advocates, and stakeholders is needed to ensure safe access is secured in the County.

Background

The EIR assesses potential environmental impacts of proposed regulatory changes in the County’s cannabis program. Alongside the Socially Equitable Cannabis Program (SECP), which offers support for qualified applicants to start or secure employment in cannabis businesses, these regulatory changes will be essential to opening additional cannabis businesses in the unincorporated areas of the County. Updates will include revising policies to permit new and expanded commercial cannabis operations and establishing local licensing and permitting structures for cannabis business operations.

After the public comment period has closed, the final EIR will be introduced and presented to the Planning Commission over the summer. Following their recommendation, it will then be presented to the Board of Supervisors (BOS) for their consideration and certification. Finally, the BOS will vote on whether or not to adopt the Cannabis Program.

Why It Matters

Safe Access for Patients and Consumers

Currently, safe access to licensed retailers in San Diego County is hampered by stringent caps on the number of licenses available and zoning restrictions. Within the unincorporated County, where over half a million people reside, there are just five licensed cannabis facilities; this equates to 1 licensed cannabis business for every 100,000 residents. As a result, many medical cannabis patients and consumers may need to travel long distances to access regulated products. For individuals living with mobility restrictions, people who cannot drive, or others with limited transportation options, the challenges to safe access are compounded. Due to these barriers to access along with the high prices for legal cannabis, consumers may instead turn to unlicensed operators, which outcompete with the licensed market and comprise twice as many cannabis product sales in California ($8 billion in sales annually). Meanwhile, an analysis found that California cannabis consumers overwhelmingly prefer to shop from legal sources when they are accessible.

If pharmacies were as difficult to access as licensed cannabis businesses, this lack of access would be viewed as a public health crisis (almost half of U.S. residents live within 1 mile of a pharmacy; three-quarters live within 2 miles). However, due to long-standing stigma and misinformation about cannabis, there is severe and consistent pushback whenever attempts to expand the number of licenses in a jurisdiction are introduced, underscoring the need for medical cannabis patients, consumers, and other stakeholders to voice support for increasing the number of licenses available and reforming excessively restrictive zoning laws that limit where these businesses can operate. A similar premise holds true for other types of cannabis business licenses, such as cultivation, manufacturing, processing, and distribution licenses, all of which are equally vital components of the regulated supply chain.

Revenue Generation

As mentioned previously, the unlicensed cannabis market currently outcompetes the licensed market by a wide margin. An extensive amount of government resources have been spent trying to eradicate illicit operators, and yet, the unregulated market is as strong as ever. Reasons for this disparity include high barriers to entry into the legal market, license caps and zoning restrictions included as well as high operational costs (the cost of obtaining a medical cannabis license in the County is $49,460 alone) and a complex legal environment. As a result, jurisdictions are not realizing the full revenue-generating potential of cannabis legalization. This lost revenue is particularly important as COVID-era monies run dry.

Reducing the barriers to entry into the legal market will encourage more would-be unlicensed operators to pursue legal channels, allowing the County to collect taxes on cannabis purchases that would otherwise occur through the unregulated market or neighboring jurisdictions. The City of Vista serves as an example of the benefits that an expanded legal cannabis market can have for local economies.

Cannabis Social Equity

In order for the County’s Socially Equitable Cannabis Program (SECP) to realize its full potential, license caps will need to be expanded and zoning restrictions eased so that additional licenses can be created for applicants. The SECP is an important step toward repairing the harms caused by the failed War on Drugs, which has led to the disproportionate criminalization of people of color despite similar rates of use. To highlight this, the County of San Diego’s cannabis Social Equity Assessment revealed that between 2012-2017, Black people were arrested for cannabis-related charges at 4.85 times the rate as white people, Pacific Islanders at 3.08 times the rate, and Latinés at 2.17 times the rate. Additionally, Indigenous people were arrested at a rate 30% higher than white people.

The lasting impacts of incarceration are severe and include loss of opportunities related to employment, education, housing, and capital. Incarceration deprives individuals and communities of invaluable time with loved ones and is associated with poor health outcomes (e.g., HIV, substance use disorders). Communities that are disproportionately targeted by law enforcement also receive less economic investment. The purpose of the SECP is to provide “an equitable path to cannabis business ownership and employment” for individuals from communities targeted by Drug War policies and create an environment for restorative justice.

How to Weigh In

The County will be holding several virtual and in-person opportunities for members of the public to weigh in on the draft cannabis EIR. Several are listed below; however, please always refer to the County’s website for the most up-to-date information on upcoming events and opportunities for public comment.

Virtual Meetings:

Wednesday, February 5 at 6:00 PM
Thursday, February 6 at 6:00 PM
Wednesday, February 12 at 6:00 PM

Zoom Link for Virtual Meetings:

https://us06web.zoom.us/j/84368497586?pwd=RVAZurGJyguieIv4Mo2IkuqgRq1zob.1

In-Person Open Houses:

February 25, 2025, 5:30 P.M. to 7:30 P.M., Lakeside County Library, 12428 Woodside Avenue, Lakeside, CA 92040
February 26, 2025, 5:30 P.M. to 7:30 P.M., Valley Center County Library, 29200 Cole Grade Road, Valley Center, CA 92082