CORE-related news & Policy update

JOIN THE CORE EMAIL LIST

To receive updates on CORE-related policy items or to receive invitations to CORE stakeholder meetings, please send an email to cannabis@cityofsacramento.org and request to be added to the CORE email list.

PROPOSALS NOW ACCEPTED FOR CORE ELIGIBILITY VERIFICATION SERVICES
The City of Sacramento is now accepting proposals for a community-based organization that will review and process the eligibility requirements to participate in the Cannabis Opportunity Reinvestment and Equity (CORE) Program. Individuals and businesses can qualify for the CORE Program under five different classifications. The description and eligibility requirements for each classification can be found on the Request for Proposal (RFP). The organization that will be awarded the contract will be responsible for the intake of documents, verification of eligibility requirements, maintaining applicants’ records and providing information and assistance to applicants throughout the verification process. A full description of the scope of services can be also found on the RFP. Once eligibility is verified, individuals and business can then qualify for CORE Program benefits including a waiver of the fee for a cannabis Business Operating Permit (BOP), expedited processing of application, and access to grants and a six-year interest-free loan. Proposals must be submitted through the Planet Bids portal no later than 5 p.m. on March 31, 2023.

PROPOSALS NOW ACCEPTED FOR CORE ELIGIBILITY VERIFICATION SERVICES

The City of Sacramento is now accepting proposals for a community-based organization that will review and process the eligibility requirements to participate in the Cannabis Opportunity Reinvestment and Equity (CORE) Program.

Individuals and businesses can qualify for the CORE Program under five different classifications. The description and eligibility requirements for each classification can be found on the Request for Proposal (RFP). The organization that will be awarded the contract will be responsible for the intake of documents, verification of eligibility requirements, maintaining applicants’ records and providing information and assistance to applicants throughout the verification process. A full description of the scope of services can be also found on the RFP.

Once eligibility is verified, individuals and business can then qualify for CORE Program benefits including a waiver of the fee for a cannabis Business Operating Permit (BOP), expedited processing of application, and access to grants and a six-year interest-free loan.

Proposals must be submitted through the Planet Bids portal no later than 5 p.m. on March 31, 2023.

CANNABIS EQUITY STUDY NOW UNDERWAY
The cannabis equity study commissioned by Council to review and evaluate the City’s cannabis program and the effectiveness of the Cannabis Opportunity Reinvestment and Equity (CORE) Program in achieving the City's goal of increasing equity in the cannabis space is now underway. Following a Request for Proposals (RFP) process, the contract was awarded to Applied Memetics, LLC (AM), a health and research informatics firm certified in the areas of equity-based research, consultative services and public policy recommendations for state and municipal clients. AM will be supported by Drs. William Armaline and Edith Kinney, active researchers, authors, and experts in equity and equity research. Dr. Armaline is the founding Director of the Human Rights Program and an Associate Professor in the Department of Sociology and Interdisciplinary Social Sciences [SISS] at San José State University. Dr. Kinney is an Assistant Professor of Justice Studies at San Jose State University and her research focuses on social movement organizations' role in criminal justice reform. The study , which is anticipated to be completed at the end of November is expected to result in policy recommendations to further the City's goal in promoting equity in the cannabis space and increasing opportunities for program participants. As part of the study, the team will examine data and reports on the War on Drugs and its impacts to the Sacramento communities and analyze the local cannabis industry through information gathering and utilizing the recently-completed comprehensive study on Sacramento's cannabis industry. Through interviews with participants, the study aims to identify barriers to entry and evaluate the program's effectiveness in addressing them. The team's final report will also contain a side by side comparison of equity programs with other jurisdictions, lessons learned and best and emerging practices. More information on the study and the team will be made available at the August CORE stakeholder meeting. (Updated 8.1.22)

CANNABIS EQUITY STUDY NOW UNDERWAY

The cannabis equity study commissioned by Council to review and evaluate the City’s cannabis program and the effectiveness of the Cannabis Opportunity Reinvestment and Equity (CORE) Program in achieving the City's goal of increasing equity in the cannabis space is now underway.

Following a Request for Proposals (RFP) process, the contract was awarded to Applied Memetics, LLC (AM), a health and research informatics firm certified in the areas of equity-based research, consultative services and public policy recommendations for state and municipal clients. AM will be supported by Drs. William Armaline and Edith Kinney, active researchers, authors, and experts in equity and equity research.

Dr. Armaline is the founding Director of the Human Rights Program and an Associate Professor in the Department of Sociology and Interdisciplinary Social Sciences [SISS] at San José State University. Dr. Kinney is an Assistant Professor of Justice Studies at San Jose State University and her research focuses on social movement organizations' role in criminal justice reform.

The study , which is anticipated to be completed at the end of November is expected to result in policy recommendations to further the City's goal in promoting equity in the cannabis space and increasing opportunities for program participants.

As part of the study, the team will examine data and reports on the War on Drugs and its impacts to the Sacramento communities and analyze the local cannabis industry through information gathering and utilizing the recently-completed comprehensive study on Sacramento's cannabis industry. Through interviews with participants, the study aims to identify barriers to entry and evaluate the program's effectiveness in addressing them. The team's final report will also contain a side by side comparison of equity programs with other jurisdictions, lessons learned and best and emerging practices.

More information on the study and the team will be made available at the August CORE stakeholder meeting. (Updated 8.1.22)

CORE 2.0
The CORE 2.0 is a workgroup whose purpose is to develop recommendations to the City Council to make CORE a permanent program. The two-year pilot program was scheduled to sunset in April 2021 but is now extended to April 2022. Read the Council report extending the program here. Meeting notes from previous CORE 2.0 can be viewed by dates below: - October 28, 2020 - December 2, 2020 To participate in future CORE 2.0 discussions, please send an email to cannabis@cityofsacramento.org and request to be added to the CORE 2.0 group discussion list.

CORE 2.0

The CORE 2.0 is a workgroup whose purpose is to develop recommendations to the City Council to make CORE a permanent program. The two-year pilot program was scheduled to sunset in April 2021 but is now extended to April 2022. Read the Council report extending the program here. Meeting notes from previous CORE 2.0 can be viewed by dates below:

- October 28, 2020
- December 2, 2020

To participate in future CORE 2.0 discussions, please send an email to cannabis@cityofsacramento.org and request to be added to the CORE 2.0 group discussion list.