California is the most populated state in the U.S., with close to 40 million people. But despite the population size, the state has less than 900 legal dispensaries. The Center for Disease Control estimates that 18% of American’s use marijuana, which means there has clearly been a serious need for more dispensaries in the state!
One of the reasons for so relatively few retail locations is that many municipalities had not been willing to allow them in their jurisdictions. But, after educational campaigns and efforts, this month, mid-term voters in several California cities showed that they are willing to support cannabis commerce in their towns. California voters approved local ballot measures in twelve municipalities this month that will either expand or create retail cannabis markets. Eventually, these new local approval measures should translate to more than 70 new retail licenses in the state, as well as countless other ancillary business opportunities. Most of the new approved locations are centered in Southern California. Los Angeles, which is America’s most populous county, could create 25 new retail licenses. San Diego, which is the country’s fifth-most-populous county, and currently only has approved only five marijuana licenses within it’s jurisdiction, can now create 20 new retail licenses. Orange County is traditionally more conservative, but they have voted approval for what could equate to 10 new retail licenses in locations such as Huntington Beach and Laguna Woods. On the other end of the spectrum, California voters rejected six other ballot measures in the cities of Sacramento, Redondo Beach, Hermosa Beach, Manhattan Beach and El Segundo. Hirsh Jain, who is the Founder of Los Angeles-based cannabis consultancy Ananda Strategy, pointed out that sometimes it’s the way a measure is written that can be the problem. He said, “Even though people may have been OK with legal sales, they were not OK with these measures.” Jain believes that it’s the perception of monopolies or unfair business advantages that can turn voters off. He pointed out that clearly a majority of people support legal cannabis, but well written, balanced measures are needed. He said, “It’s really a wake-up call that we have to sit down and pass public policy that designs regulation, or we’re going to keep having these battles.” Comments are closed.
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