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Recent Analysis and Reporting on Measure A (formerly known as HCRI)
News Articles
Recent Reporting on Measure A
Cannabis collapse hits county budget, forcing cost-cutting measures
A particularly uncertain aspect of the county’s economic future is the status of the cannabis industry.It’s been helped by the excise tax suspension but during a public comment period, Natalynne DeLapp of the Humboldt County Growers Alliance said a mix of “over-supply, over-regulation and over-taxation” continues to drive a cannabis industry decline.
“It’s having a direct impact on our economy, as evidenced by shuttered businesses in Eastern and Southern Humboldt – overall taxable sales tax rates are down 10 percent on average in Humboldt County,” she continued. DeLapp added that there’s a “gigantic unknown” for the cannabis industry next year, as a ballot measure, the Humboldt County Cannabis Reform Initiative, is set for the March 2024 election.
The ballot measure includes a variety of new restrictions that farmers oppose, including a 10,000 square-foot limit on cultivation area size and a ban on expanding current farm operations. DeLapp said if it passes, “I don’t know if you’ll even have a viable, taxable industry.”
Source: Mad River Union, June 19, 2023. Author: Daniel Mintz
HCGA responds to inaccurate claims by HCRI proponents, clarifies Initiative’s existential threat to small farmers
The letter from HCGA’s attorney Nicholas Sanders addresses two election law issues raised in the proponents’ April 20 letter. First, it provides the county with the correct legal analysis demonstrating that the production and dissemination of the Planning Department’s analysis of the HCRI is permissible and proper.
Second, it demonstrates that if passed, critical sections of the HCRI would be extremely difficult or impossible to amend, locking the public and the Board of Supervisors out of the ability to resolve the problems identified in the Planning Department’s analysis.
Source: HCGA.CO, March 18, 2023. Author: HCGA
Clarifications on Election Law Issues Raised In April 20, 2023 Letter from HCRI Proponent's attorney
First, it provides the County with the correct legal analysis demonstrating that production and dissemination of the Analysis is permissible and proper, and that public officials are permitted to make their opinions about the Initiative known at public meetings and hearings.
Second, this letter highlights the difficulty in determining whether and how the Initiative may be amended. Third, the Initiative does not have the clear purpose of protecting small farmers. If the Initiative were to pass, then its myriad problems could not be easily remedied without an additional vote of the People.
Source: HCGA.CO, March 16, 2023. Author: Nicholas Sanders
County Cannabis Measure Puts Farmers in 'Mass Grave'
[County Planning Director John] Ford said that if successful at the ballot box, the measure could upend the county’s cannabis industry after farmers "did exactly what the county asked them to do" by seeking to comply with emerging legalization.
Their quest for legality included spending "thousands and thousands of dollars to improve their properties and address the conditions that the county’s placed on them," Ford said. But if the measure’s provisions are enacted, farmers "may be forced to make a decision to discontinue their activity," he continued.
Source: Mad River Union, March 16, 2023. Author: Daniel Mintz
An Industry on Edge. Reform initiative headed for ballot would dramatically overhaul cannabis regulation in Humboldt
Tom Wheeler, whose organization the Environmental Protection Information Center (EPIC) has officially come out opposing the initiative said "I would like to see revisions to the county's ordinance, or new ordinances, come by the same way as the old ones, which was through that grueling, exhausting process where there are tradeoffs and we work together. I just think that's a better way of making laws."
Source: North Coast Journal, March 16, 2023. Author: Thadeus Greenson
Humboldt County Cannabis Farmers Blast ‘Misleading’ Ballot Initiative That Would Impose New Restrictions on Cultivators
Planning and Building Director John Ford highlighted numerous issues and "unintended consequences" outlined in the initiative...
"[Permit holders] could not install new water tanks, they could not install the solar facilities; a lot of potential environmental enhancements would not be able to be installed [under this initiative],' Ford said. "We believe that the county has been successful in allowing people to step into the legal market. Humboldt County has traditionally not been a legal market, and we can only speculate in terms of what people would do if their primary legal form of cultivation were to be taken away..."
Approximately 50 community members spoke during the two-hour public comment period, all of whom spoke against the initiative in one way or another.
Source: Lost Coast Outpost, March 8, 2023. Author: Isabella Vanderheiden
For or Against? In 2024, the Controversial Cannabis Reform Initiative Is on the Ballot for Humboldt County Voters
Ford said, “[If the initiative passed it] would now require all roads be Category Four, and not all roads in the county are...”
Owner of DTN Engineering, David Nicoletti, told us he believes the Initiative, if passed, would have a much worse financial impact on cultivators than HCGA’s estimation.
He explained, “Based on current prices of labor and supplies, I would say it’s closer to $200,000-$250,000 per mile… particularly in Rancho, Mad River, and Salmon Creek, where it can cost much more.”
Nicoletti not only helped over 200 county residents with their engineering needs, he also assisted Cal Fire when they amended their requirements for stabilizing dirt roads. He has extensive experience developing agricultural roads as a county engineer in North Dakota, and has helped many cannabis farmers.
When asked how many farms Nicoletti has worked with who would meet the Category 4 standard, as laid out in the HCRI, Nicoletti said, “Not a single farm.” He added, “I cringe at this initiative.”
Source: Redheaded Blackbelt, November 14, 2022. Author: Nichole Norris
Public Opinion
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Humboldt County Cannabis Farmers Blast ‘Misleading’ Ballot Initiative That Would Impose New Restrictions on Cultivators; Supervisors Form an Ad Hoc Committee to Work on Alternatives
Dozens of impassioned cannabis farmers and allied community members spoke out during Tuesday’s Humboldt County Board of Supervisors meeting to urge the board to shoot down an initiative that would restrict commercial cannabis cultivation across the county.
Source: Lost Coast Outpost, March 8, 2023. Author: Isabella Vanderheiden.
An Industry on Edge. HCRI would dramatically overhaul cannabis regulations.
The Humboldt County cannabis industry is on edge, with an initiative slated to come before voters next year that would dramatically reshape cultivation regulations, capping the number and limiting the size of farms, and overhauling how the county's primary cash crop can be grown moving forward.
Source: North Coast Journal, March 16, 2023. Author: Thadeus Greenson.
Press Releases
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Humboldt County Cannabis Farmers Blast ‘Misleading’ Ballot Initiative That Would Impose New Restrictions on Cultivators; Supervisors Form an Ad Hoc Committee to Work on Alternatives
Dozens of impassioned cannabis farmers and allied community members spoke out during Tuesday’s Humboldt County Board of Supervisors meeting to urge the board to shoot down an initiative that would restrict commercial cannabis cultivation across the county.
Source: Lost Coast Outpost, March 8, 2023. Author: Isabella Vanderheiden.
An Industry on Edge. HCRI would dramatically overhaul cannabis regulations.
The Humboldt County cannabis industry is on edge, with an initiative slated to come before voters next year that would dramatically reshape cultivation regulations, capping the number and limiting the size of farms, and overhauling how the county's primary cash crop can be grown moving forward.
Source: North Coast Journal, March 16, 2023. Author: Thadeus Greenson.
An Industry on Edge. HCRI would dramatically overhaul cannabis regulations.
The Humboldt County cannabis industry is on edge, with an initiative slated to come before voters next year that would dramatically reshape cultivation regulations, capping the number and limiting the size of farms, and overhauling how the county's primary cash crop can be grown moving forward.
Source: North Coast Journal, March 16, 2023. Author: Thadeus Greenson.
An Industry on Edge. HCRI would dramatically overhaul cannabis regulations.
The Humboldt County cannabis industry is on edge, with an initiative slated to come before voters next year that would dramatically reshape cultivation regulations, capping the number and limiting the size of farms, and overhauling how the county's primary cash crop can be grown moving forward.
Source: North Coast Journal, March 16, 2023. Author: Thadeus Greenson.
Press Releases
copy about this section for SEO purpose
Humboldt County Cannabis Farmers Blast ‘Misleading’ Ballot Initiative That Would Impose New Restrictions on Cultivators; Supervisors Form an Ad Hoc Committee to Work on Alternatives
Dozens of impassioned cannabis farmers and allied community members spoke out during Tuesday’s Humboldt County Board of Supervisors meeting to urge the board to shoot down an initiative that would restrict commercial cannabis cultivation across the county.
Source: Lost Coast Outpost, March 8, 2023. Author: Isabella Vanderheiden.
An Industry on Edge. HCRI would dramatically overhaul cannabis regulations.
The Humboldt County cannabis industry is on edge, with an initiative slated to come before voters next year that would dramatically reshape cultivation regulations, capping the number and limiting the size of farms, and overhauling how the county's primary cash crop can be grown moving forward.
Source: North Coast Journal, March 16, 2023. Author: Thadeus Greenson.
An Industry on Edge. HCRI would dramatically overhaul cannabis regulations.
The Humboldt County cannabis industry is on edge, with an initiative slated to come before voters next year that would dramatically reshape cultivation regulations, capping the number and limiting the size of farms, and overhauling how the county's primary cash crop can be grown moving forward.
Source: North Coast Journal, March 16, 2023. Author: Thadeus Greenson.
An Industry on Edge. HCRI would dramatically overhaul cannabis regulations.
The Humboldt County cannabis industry is on edge, with an initiative slated to come before voters next year that would dramatically reshape cultivation regulations, capping the number and limiting the size of farms, and overhauling how the county's primary cash crop can be grown moving forward.
Source: North Coast Journal, March 16, 2023. Author: Thadeus Greenson.
Video News Coverage
Watch the Latest Interviews
Headline Humboldt: March 31st, 2023
Cannabis farmers Dylan Mattole (Mattole Valley Sungrown) and John Casali (Huckleberry Hill Farms) join us in studio to talk about the state of their industry and to help frame the debate over an upcoming initiative in a way that they say is more appropriate to the times.
Source: KEET, March 31, 2023. Host: James Faulk
Headline Humboldt: March 10th, 2023
A look at the Humboldt Cannabis Reform Initiative with the Humboldt County Growers Alliance.
Source: KEET, March 10, 2023. Host: James Faulk
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