Sonoma County officials consider bids for key study on future of commercial cannabis industry

Sonoma County officials are weighing proposals from two firms vying to carry out a highly anticipated environmental study of the local commercial cannabis industry — with the final product meant to help underwrite changes to the county’s troubled cannabis ordinance.

The proposals on the table come from Sacramento-based Ascent Environmental, which bid $623,238 for the project, and Oakland-based Rincon Consultants Inc., which bid $456,158.

The Board of Supervisors committed to an environmental impact report last year following years of sharp debate and criticism from those in the cannabis industry and residents concerned about the impacts of commercial cultivation.

“I hope it helps us in our decision making and to be more consistent on a holistic level instead of making a lot of these decisions individually,” said Supervisor Chris Coursey, the board’s vice chair.

Neighbors have pushed for tighter restrictions on the scope and location of cannabis farms, raising concerns ranging from water supply and odor to traffic and security.

Growers, however, said their operations present limited strain on resources and point to investments in security many have made above and beyond any other crop. The county’s struggle to establish a clear, comprehensive regulatory framework, growers said, has hampered development of a local industry legalized by California voters five years ago.

The period for companies to bid on the project ran from May 20 to June 20. Staff from the planning department and County Administrator’s Office already have identified which company to recommend to the board, said Crystal Acker, supervising planner with Permit Sonoma.

Acker said she could not yet name the favored company, nor disclose other details, because the county was still negotiating the prospective contract.

Officials are tentatively scheduled to present their recommendation to the board Sept. 27, said Dan Virkstis, a county spokesperson.

Ascent Environmental estimated the project would run through June 2024 if started in October 2022. The company’s previous work includes a cannabis land-use ordinance for Yolo County, a similar cannabis study for Trinity County and a report on commercial cannabis regulations for Humboldt County, according to Ascent’s proposal.

Rincon Consultants did not provide projected dates in its proposal but did estimate it would take 12 to 14 months. The company has previously worked with Sonoma County in 2020 and 2021, when it handled an initial study of changes to the county’s cannabis ordinance and a subsequent, more basic report to incorporate those changes.

Rincon’s previous work also includes an environmental impact report on indoor cannabis cultivation for the city of Santa Rosa. The company did not cite any previous work with the scope of Sonoma County’s requested study.

The future of cannabis cultivation became a major flashpoint over the past two years as cannabis growers and neighbors clashed over where and how the county should allow cultivators to expand their footprint outside cities.

Growers have bristled at pushback from residents opposed to cannabis farms nearby, who said that without major changes, including expedited permitting and lower fees, they’ll be chased off or forced back into the black market.

Across California, much of the industry, and especially smaller, independent operators, has struggled as a glut of product drove down wholesale prices while layers of local and state taxes cut into profits. Lawmakers handed the industry some relief earlier this summer, as the state ended its cultivation on tax on growers and capped the excise tax at point of sale at 15% over the next three years.

In March, the Board of Supervisors slashed the tax paid by cannabis growers, forgoing more than $1.6 million in tax revenue through mid-2023, when the subsidy is set to expire.

Entrenched opposition among many rural residents to looser rules rules for cannabis cultivation pressured the board in May 2021 to commit to a broad study geared to support its approach to governing the industry’s growth.

The county cast a wide net in its request for proposals that would handle the wide range of concerns aired in the yearslong debate.

“We’re basically looking for any information that is available to try to get a true understanding of what the program is currently costing, like staffing and management fees, and what changes to the program will cost,” Acker said.

The county is also looking for an evaluation of how the cannabis program impacts applicants, Acker said.

“Is it becoming so expensive that no one can afford to apply?” she said.

The county hopes those questions will be answered in an economic report accompanying the environmental study.

A team of five county staff members from Permit Sonoma and the administrator’s office reviewed the two proposals and scored each bid, Acker said.

When evaluating the proposals, Acker said, staff generally looks for familiarity with Sonoma County, experience dealing with California’s complex environmental laws, cost and previous experience with similar projects.

Previous work history with the county may be a factor in deciding which proposal to accept, but the product isn’t, Acker said.

“They have to be impartial based on the proposal itself,” she said.

“We wouldn’t say the work you did was awesome or it wasn’t and take that into account,” Acker said.

You can reach Staff Writer Emma Murphy at 707-521-5228 or emma.murphy@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @MurphReports.