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THE CANNABIS CONTROL Commission on Thursday extended the period of time that licenses for cannabis delivery are restricted to social equity applicants by one year but punted the decision on whether to extend further, citing a need for more data collection.
Delivery licenses have been restricted to those who qualify for license categories targeted toward individuals impacted by the war on drugs during a 3-year “exclusivity period.” It’s approaching the end of that period, but social equity delivery businesses have argued that the exclusivity period must be extended because the commission has only last fall removed a cumbersome rule that mandated that every delivery must be completed by two drivers. Many in the industry have said that the two-driver rule made the business model unsustainable and that the period must be extended until the social equity businesses were able to be profitable.
The commission has until April 1, 2026, to make a decision on whether to extend the exclusivity period past the one-year extension that was voted on today. Commissioners need more data to see whether the goals of the exclusivity period – to promote the full participation in the cannabis industry delivery of people from communities that have previously been disproportionately harmed by marijuana prohibition – have been met in order to extend the exclusivity period further.
The commission faced criticism from the industry and even the state’s inspector general for how long it took for the two-driver rule to be removed.
“Chairman Hoffman said we were the guinea pigs of delivery,” said Chris Fevry, the co-owner of Dris Delivery, in a public meeting in October 2024, advocating for the removal of the two-driver rule, referencing the past chair of the commission, Steven Hoffman. “Thankfully, we didn’t die in the experiment. We’ve been close to it.”
In the same October public meeting, Fevry also advocated increasing the exclusivity period.
“An extension is necessary because you almost killed the guinea pig in the experiment,” said Fevry. The guinea pig needs time to recover from the damage that was done by the two-driver rule.”
The commission’s regulations require that data on the rates of participation of people of color and those harmed by the war on drugs be collected throughout the exclusivity period. It also directs commission to evaluate the financial feasibility of the “continued participation in the regulated Marijuana industry by communities that have previously been disproportionately harmed by Marijuana prohibition and enforcement of the law if [the] exclusivity period ends.”
At its Thursday meeting, the commission directed the staff to prepare a report with this data by September 11, 2025.
Michael Baker, the commission’s deputy general counsel, said the agency needed more time to evaluate the impact of removing the two-driver rule on the delivery businesses.
Commissioner Kimberly Roy asked Baker if the commission has been collecting this data the entire time or if it will be done retroactively.
Baker said that data had been collected the entire time. However, when Roy asked if the commission had goals and metrics to share with the public, Baker said, “Not at this point.”
Roy pushed further and asked if the reason why the commission can’t raise the period above one year on the public meeting is because there isn’t a report yet.
“I wouldn’t characterize it in that way,” said Baker. “The regulations allow for a 12-month extension. If you wanted to go past 12 months as a set term of 36 months or 24 months, then you would have to opine on whether full participation has been met from communities that have been disproportionately harmed. [The staff] is seeking an extension to get you more data to make that determination.”
Roy questioned whether the decision to increase the exclusivity period without adequate data could open the commission up to litigation if there isn’t a good basis for the extension.
“We were all early in our tenure when this exclusivity period started,” said Bruce Stebbins, the current acting chair of the commission. “There was litigation that was threatened against the commission for this exclusivity period. Making sure at the end of the day that we come up with a sound reason for an extension – if we get to that point, we want it to be able to fend off any potential legal challenges.”
“}]] Cannabis commission extends period in which cannabis delivery licenses are only available to social equity businesses by a year but is punting on decision of whether to extend it further until the agency can collect more data. Read More
