Massachusetts Cannabis Social Equity Trainings Set to Resume After Year-Long Delay

The Massachusetts Cannabis Control Commission (CCC) plans to resume the state’s cannabis social equity training program this fall after a year-long delay caused by budget constraints, the CommonWealth Beacon reports.

Regulators approved 229 individuals for the trainings last year, but the process halted abruptly after the Legislature failed to allocate proper funding. State officials now plan to resume the program for the approved applicants on September 8 and will begin accepting additional applicants starting August 1.

Passed by voters in 2016, the state’s cannabis legalization law requires a social equity program that includes cannabis industry trainings, guidance for navigating the industry’s many regulatory hurdles, networking opportunities for approved applicants, and fee waivers to help cannabis business owners or employees enter the industry, the report said.

The CCC’s Acting Chair Bruce Stebbins told the Beacon that he appreciated officials’ efforts to carry on the program despite funding-related uncertainties.

Kevin Gilnack, the deputy director of Equitable Opportunities Now, said in the report that while he appreciates the difficulties faced by regulators, “it’s definitely frustrating to those who were really eager to get into the industry and looking at this [training program] as their pathway into it.”

“I think the important thing is that we figure out a way to make sure that future social equity program participants aren’t held back by these funding challenges. It would be great to see the Legislature actually set up automatic funding so that regardless of what else is going on, social equity will remain a priority that actually gets fulfilled every year.” — Gilnack, to the Beacon

Meanwhile, Gov. Maura Healey (D) last year awarded 50 grants totaling $2,350,000 to cannabis social equity businesses through the state’s Cannabis Social Equity Trust Fund.