Community Meeting
How Neighborhood Councils Can Participate in DCR’s Processes
Public Convenience or Necessity
There are a variety of ways for members of the public to stay informed about and engaged in cannabis licensing.
DCR releases regular news and updates to provide licensees, stakeholders, and consumers with the latest information on the CIty’s commercial cannabis industry. We encourage you to stay engaged by attending and participating in our public meetings and events.
Please see below for more information about public participation.
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Community Meeting
The Cannabis Procedures Ordinance, specifically LAMC Sec. 104.04, requires that DCR conduct a community meeting via video or telephone conferencing or within the defined geographic area of the Area Planning Commission within which the Business Premises is situated, when the applicant is applying for a retail license or a non-retail license larger than 30,000 sqft.
At the meeting, DCR shall accept written and oral testimony regarding the application and then prepare a written report to the Cannabis Regulation Commission summarizing the testimony in favor and against the application.
The Commission shall consider the decision by DCR to recommend approval of the application, the written summary of the community meeting prepared by DCR, the record before DCR and any written information and oral testimony timely provided to the Commission.
The Department shall provide notice of the community meeting as required by LAMC 104.05.
How Neighborhood Councils (NCs) Can Participate in DCR’s Processes
The Department of Cannabis Regulation (DCR) welcomes the participation of interested Neighborhood Councils in DCR’s Annual Licensing process. This page will describe (1) background on how the Annual License process works; and (2) how Neighborhood Councils (NCs) can participate at each stage.
Since 2018, DCR and the State Department of Cannabis Control (DCC) have issued Temporary Approvals and Provisional Licenses. All Temporary/Provisional licenses must transition to the Annual License process eventually. An Annual License is a more permanent form of licensure that requires community input and a public hearings before the Cannabis Regulation Commision (CRC), which ultimately approves or denies Annual License applications. The process is summarized below.
Please note that licensees with either a Temporary Approval or Annual License are subject to the same operating rules and requirements.
The relevant Annual License process steps for NCs are described below:
Annual License step #1: First, within 30 days of the submission of a complete annual application, DCR sends a Notice of Complete Application by electronic mail to: (1) the Applicant; (2) the closest Neighborhood Council; (3) the relevant business improvement district, if one exists; (4) all addresses within 700 feet of the proposed location; and (5) and the City Council Office within which the Business Premises is situated. The notice will also provide the date of (1) the community meeting and (2) the Cannabis Regulation Commission hearing. DCR also posts the Notice of Complete Application to our website here.
- Once the Notice of Complete Application is sent to an applicant, it has 10 days from the receipt of the Notice to contact the NC and offer to appear to address questions about the application. If the 10-day period passed, the applicant can still reach out and offer to appear before the respective NC. If the applicant fails to reach out or reaches out after the allotted time period, DCR will make note of it to the Commissioners.
- How can an NC participate?
- The NC may schedule the applicant to appear at a NC board or committee meeting. Ideally, this should occur before the applicant’s Cannabis Regulation Commission (CRC) hearing date; this is when the Commission may approve or deny the license application. The NC may decline to hear the matter, or may hear the matter at a later date, although the license application may already have been reviewed and decided upon by the CRC. If the NC takes a position on the application before the CRC hearing date, the NC may transmit a letter for consideration by the CRC by emailing CannabisCommission@lacity.org.
Annual License step #2: DCR hosts a virtual community meeting for each application. During this meeting, DCR accepts testimony which is summarized in a report for the CRC. The community meeting is designed solely for the community to express any concerns or support related to the Annual License application; there is no discussion or decision made during the community meeting.
- How can an NC participate in a community meeting?
- The NC or its individual members may provide input during the community meeting. Any individual who wishes to speak at the community meeting is provided 2 minutes to do so. The comments are then summarized and included in DCR’s report to the CRC.
Annual License step #3: Finally, the CRC holds a commission meeting to decide whether to approve or deny the Annual License application. The meeting’s agenda will be provided no later than 72 hours before the meeting. Public comment will be taken, and is limited to one (1) minute of general public comment per meeting and one (1) minute of public comment per agenda item, up to two (2) minutes per meeting. In total, an individual shall be limited to three (3) minutes of public comment per meeting.
- How can an NC participate?
- The NC may transmit a letter for consideration by the CRC by emailing CannabisCommission@lacity.org. The letter should be emailed no later than 2:00 p.m. on the Thursday of the week prior to the week of the Commission meeting. If this deadline is missed, your submission will be accepted as a secondary submission. To learn more about submission deadlines, click here. The NC may be afforded additional time to provide public comment at the CRC meeting if the NC has filed a Community Impact Statement in accordance with the City’s Administrative Code. For information on how to file a Community Impact Statement, please click here. If no Community Impact Statement is filed, a NC member or representative may still provide public comment but they will be limited to a total of 2 minutes as described above.
Public Convenience or Necessity
The following Community Plan Areas have reached Undue Concentration
- Central City
- Central City North
- Harbor-Gateway
- Sherman Oaks - Studio City-Toluca Lake-Cahuenga Pass
- Sun Valley - La Tuna Canyon
- Venice
For the purposes of the Public Convenience or Necessity Process, key stakeholders include but are not limited to: the area Neighborhood Council, Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) Division, local chamber of commerce, and at least one substance abuse intervention, prevention and treatment organization with the Community Plan Area.
Pursuant to LAMC Section 104.03(a)(4), an Applicant in a Community Plan Area of Undue Concentration must obtain approval from the City Council that approval of their License application would serve the public convenience or necessity. As part of that process, Applicants are required to engage with and seek written input from key stakeholders for the area in which the proposed Business Premises will be located, including, but not limited to, area Neighborhood Council, Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) Division, local chamber of commerce, and at least one substance abuse intervention, prevention and treatment organization within the Community Plan Area.
Applicants will both attest to comply with requirements to engage key stakeholders and seek written input by key stakeholders and submit a Stakeholder Input Request Form to applicable key stakeholders.
Members of the public may submit comments or documents concerning Public Convenience or Necessity Requests at LACouncilComment.com.
As required by LAMC Section 104.05(c)(4), DCR will provide Written Notice in accordance with LAMC Section 104.05(b)(1) within 10 days of the City Clerk receiving the PCN Request Form. The notice will contain the link to the Council File with instructions on how to subscribe for notifications.
This video was created to assist key stakeholders understand their role in the Public Convenience or Necessity Process (PCN) for Commercial Cannabis Retail Applicants.
It provides key stakeholders, specifically Area Neighborhood Councils, local Los Angeles Police Department precincts, local chambers of commerce and substance abuse intervention, prevention and treatment organizations, with information on how to submit input to the City Council regarding a prospective cannabis business applicant’s Public Convenience or Necessity (or PCN) request.