State Cannabis Agencies Offer License Fee Deferrals
May 14, 2020
by Lauren Mendelsohn and Omar Figueroa
Today, the three primary licensing agencies in California (the Bureau of Cannabis Control within the Department of Consumer Affairs, CalCannabis Cultivation Licensing within the Department of Food & Agriculture, and the Manufactured Cannabis Safety Branch within the California Department of Public Health) announced via a media release that they will be offering cannabis licensees whose license expires between now and June 30 the ability to defer payment of their license fees for 60 days. The purpose of this is to offer some financial assistance to cannabis businesses, who are unable to access federal or banking-dependent COVID19 relief due to the fact that cannabis is still listed as a Schedule I controlled substance under federal law.
Last month, our office sent a letter to the three cannabis licensing agencies and Governor Newsom’s office requesting that this kind of relief be offered, and we are glad to learn that our request was not made in vain. Although the relief announced today is limited in scope — for example, refunds will not be provided for anyone who already paid their license fees, and the ability to request a deferral will only last for a few weeks — it is possible that this relief may get extended or expanded over time.
The media release also highlights other avenues of relief for struggling cannabis businesses including:
- Small business interest-free deferral of sales/use tax up to $50,000 for businesses with less than $5 million in taxable sales
- 90-day extension on all businesses filing a return for less than $1 million in taxes
Another avenue for relief mentioned in the media release is regulatory relief. Licensees who are unable to comply with a licensing requirement due to the pandemic are encouraged to submit a disaster relief request to their respective licensing authority. The release noted that to “provide immediate assistance to licensees, licensing authorities have been providing relief from certain regulatory provisions unrelated to fees since the time of the first stay-at-home orders.”
An example of regulatory relief unrelated to fees in conjunction with stay-at-home orders is allowing curbside pickup, which was never contemplated in the regulations, but which is considered a safer alternative for both customers and businesses in terms of reducing the likelihood that pathogens will spread inside the store.
The Bureau of Cannabis Control has approved such relief for numerous licensees in light of the ongoing public health crisis, and has published a webpage with FAQs and instructions for how to request disaster relief. The Manufactured Cannabis Safety Branch has published a similar webpage as well, and has created a specific regulatory relief request form. CDFA’s CalCannabis licensing branch has not created a specific page for COVID-19 on their website; however, they also provided instructions on how to request disaster relief to licensees via a news alert.
This is a developing story — stay tuned to our blog for more information.
This post is provided as a public educational service and is not intended as legal advice. For specific questions about cannabis and hemp laws and regulations in California, please contact our office at (707) 829-0215 or info@omarfigueroa.com to schedule a confidential legal consultation.