Colorado launched a Cannabis Business Office July 28. Backed by a $4 million budget from the state marijuana cash tax fund, the office will provide loans, grants and technical assistance for pot business owners while prioritizing social equity licensees.
To be eligible as a social equity licensee, an applicant has to have lived in a disproportionately impacted area for at least 15 years between 1980 and 2010, be related to or guardian of someone arrested or convicted of a marijuana offense, or have forfeited assets during a marijuana investigation. The consulting and technical assistance arms of the Cannabis Business Office will launch in fall 2021 to assist marijuana business owners, and access to loans will start in early 2022.
Created by Senate Bill 21-111, which was signed into law March 21, the Cannabis Business Office comes under the Business Support and Rural Prosperity division of the Colorado Office of Economic Development and International Trade.
“As the office expands, we are confident it will further solidify Colorado as the leader in the nation’s cannabis industry,” Program Manager Tristan Watkins said.
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