With Connecticut’s new marijuana laws going into effect today, applications are being accepted for appointments to the Social Equity Council, which will review and accept cannabis-related business licenses submitted by social equity applicants.
Applicants must be individuals whose household income falls below 300% of the state median, and who have lived in a disproportionately impacted area for at least five years before applying for a license, or for nine years before reaching age 18.
House Speaker Matt Ritter (D-Hartford) and House Majority Leader Jason Rojas (D-East Hartford) will each appoint one member to the 15-person council.
Candidates for Ritter’s slot must have worked in social justice or civil rights for at least five years, while those seeking Rojas’ approval must have at least five years of professional experience in economic development focused on aiding minority-owned businesses.
No member of the council can have any management or financial interest in the cultivation, manufacture, sale, transportation, delivery or testing of cannabis in Connecticut.
Other appointments will be made by Gov. Ned Lamont and the General Assembly’s Black and Puerto Rican Caucus chair.
“We are seeking applications from qualified individuals who want to shape Connecticut’s newly-established cannabis market and steer it in the direction of equity and prosperity for those who have been harmed the most by cannabis prohibition,” Ritter and Rojas said in a joint statement. “The Council will help mold the cannabis industry in Connecticut into an equitable market that begins the work of righting decades of damage sanctioned by state policy enacted during the failed war on drugs.”
Applicants for the speaker and House majority leader’s appointments can click here. Applications must be submitted before July 9.
