Talking Joints Memo looks at the numbers and does the math..
In August 2022, the Massachusetts Cannabis Social Equity Trust Fund was established via An Act Relative to Equity in the Cannabis Industry. This legislation created a grant program to assist SEs funded by a portion of the marijuana sales tax receipts. The fund is administered by the Executive Office of Economic Development (EOED). Due to legislative errors, the fund was off to a delayed start and in early 2024 provided small grants to cannabis licensees as the EOED awaited their promised funding.
On Monday, Dec. 23, the EOED notified 180 SEs that they will receive a slice of an upcoming $26 million disbursement from the fund, broken into two general grant groups—small dollar (pre-licensure) up to $25,000, and those for licensed operators, which start at $50,000. To help applicants, it will provide small-dollar grants to 111 pre-license SEs to help them with planning and deposits for things like real estate, with 108 of those 111 pre-license SEs receiving the full $25,000 and the other three received $13,000, $17,000, and $20,000, respectively.
This all comes after a number of setbacks for the fund, followed by an initial round of assistance in April—50 grants to cannabis social equity businesses in 28 communities, totaling $2,350,000, through the Cannabis Social Equity Trust Fund.
Read full article and se charts etc at
By The Numbers: Massachusetts To Disburse $26 Million In Social Equity Grants
