Representative Town Meeting Annual Meeting Materials (linked)

FIFTEEN ROPE FERRY ROAD
WATERFORD, CT 06385-2886
PHONE: 860-442-0553
www.waterfordct.org
18-November 2021
To: Waterford Planning and Zoning Commission, RTM Moderator and Majority and Minority leaders
Cc: Board of Selectmen
From: Waterford Economic Development Commission
Subject: Cannabis Policy Recommendations
In reference to Public Act 21-1, ANACT CONCERNING RESPONSIBLE AND EQUITABLE REGULATION OF
ADULT-USE CANNABIS, Waterford Economic Development Commission (EDC) recommends the following;
EDC supports permitting of both a retailer and a micro-cultivator in Waterford. If these are not
permitted in Waterford, their corresponding tax and fee revenues will simply flow to neighboring towns.
EDC recommends using existing ordinances and regulations regarding package stores and
liquor permitting as a blueprint for permitting activities on-premises, signage, hours of operation, and
proximity restrictions with regard to certain protected locations within the municipality.
EDC suggests Cross Road and Route 85 as possible retail zones to keep cannabis retail distant
from schools, while providing maximal revenue-driving traffic from I-95, |-395, and local roads.
EDC recommends a comprehensive ordinance to prohibit individuals from smoking and vaping
on public streets, sidewalks, parks and properties, including tobacco, e-cigarettes, and cannabis,
punishable by a $50 fine.
EDC does not recommend a fine for restaurants that allow smoking or vaping in outdoor areas, so
long as such locations are not patio or sidewalk seating that encroaches on municipal property as
outlined in the public smoking and vaping ordinance recommended above.
Attachment: OPM Guidance on Public Act 21-1
Sincerely,
Dan Radin, Chair yO
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STATE OF CONNECTICUT
OFFICE OF POLICY AND MANAGEMENT
Intergovernmental Policy and Planning Division
SB 1201 ~ AN ACT CONCERNING RESPONSIBLE AND EQUITABLE
REGULATION OF ADULT-USE CANNABIS
www.ct.gov/cannabis
MUNICIPAL AUTHORITY - IMPACT OVERVIEW
Sec. 83 ~ effective July 1, 2021; Addresses various issues on municipalities’ authority
to regulate cannabis, such as (1) requiring them, upon petition of 10% of their voters,
to hold a local referendum on whether to allow the recreational sale of marijuana or
whether to allow certain types of cannabis businesses within the municipality; (2)
barring them from prohibiting the delivery of cannabis by authorized persons; and
(3) allowing them to charge retailers, hybrid retailers, and micro-cultivators for
certain initial public safety expenses.
Local Referendum: A municipality must hold a referendum on whether to allow
certain cannabis sales if at least 10% of its electors’ petition for such a vote at least 60
days before a regular election.
Specifically, these votes may determine whether to allow (1) the sale of adult-use
marijuana in the municipality or (2) the sale of adult-use marijuana in one or more of
the cannabis establishment license types.
The ballot designations are as follows: “Shall the sale of recreational marijuana be
allowed in .... (Name of municipality)?” or “Shall the sale of cannabis under
(Specified license or Licenses) be allowed in .... (Name of municipality)?” or “Shall
the sale of recreational marijuana be prohibited (No Licenses) in .... (Name of
municipality)?”
The referendum and ballot designations conform to existing procedures. The results
take effect on the first Monday of the month after the election and stay in effect until
another vote is taken. The bill allows a vote to occur at a special election, following
existing procedures, if at least one year has passed since the previous vote. Existing
laws on absentee voting at referenda apply to these votes. These referenda do not
affect any class of cannabis establishments already allowed in a municipality and do
not affect any class of cannabis establishments that do not sell adult-use cannabis,
including a medical dispensary and establishments that grow cannabis products.
450 Capitol Avenue Hartford, Connecticut 06106-1379
ci.gov/opm

Delivery and Transport: Municipalities cannot prohibit the delivery of cannabis to
(1) consumers or (2) qualifying medical marijuana patients or their caregivers, if the
delivery is made by someone authorized to do so under the bill (e.g., delivery
services). It also bars municipalities from prohibiting the transport of cannabis to,
from, or through the municipality by anyone licensed or registered to do so.
Ban on Certain Actions and Local Host Agreements: The bill prohibits
municipalities or local officials from conditioning any official action on, or accepting
any donations from, any cannabis establishment or applicants for cannabis
establishment licenses in the municipality. The bill also bars municipalities from
negotiating or entering into a local host agreement with a cannabis establishment or
license applicant.
Charge for Initial Public Safety Costs: The bill allows municipalities, for the first 30
days after cannabis retailers or hybrid retailers open, to charge them up to $50,000
for any necessary and reasonable municipal costs for public safety services
related to the opening (such as for directing traffic).
Sec. 84 - effective October 1, 2021: Allows municipalities to prohibit consumption of
cannabis in public areas and to establish fines for use of cannabis in such areas.
Existing law in place through September 30, 2021 - Allows a municipality to
regulate, on any property owned by the municipality, any activity deemed to be
deleterious to public health, including the lighting or carrying of a lighted cigarette,
cigar, pipe or similar device. This provides sufficient authority to regulate the
consumption of cannabis of any form in the interim.
Regulation of Smoking and Cannabis Use: Existing law allows municipalities to
regulate activities deemed harmful to public health, including tobacco smoking, on
municipally-owned property. The bill broadens this to include property that a
municipality controls but does not own. For the purposes of this section, property
that a municipality controls includes, but not limited to, sidewalks, parks, beaches,
municipal land and buildings, etc. It specifies that this regulatory authority applies
to (1) smoked or vaped tobacco or cannabis, and (2) other types of cannabis use or
consumption.
For municipalities with more than 50,000 people, if they regulate the public use
cannabis, the regulations must designate a location in the municipality where public
consumption is allowed. This section does not require that such municipalities
provide for a location where any or all forms of cannabis can be consumed, but only
some forms of cannabis can be consumed. The most common forms of cannabis
consumption are smoking, vaping, and edibles. Through regulations, municipalities
may set fines for violations by individuals regarding outdoor consumption of
cannabis of up to $50.
450 Capitol Avenue Hartford, Connecticut 06106-1379
ct.gov/opm

Municipalities are permitted to ban cannabis smoking and vaping at outdoor sections
of restaurants. Through regulations, municipalities may set fines for violations of up
to $1,000 for businesses who allow cannabis smoking or vaping contrary to the
regulation of the municipality.
Sec. 126 - effective July 1, 2021: Imposes a 3% municipal sales tax on the sale of
cannabis that applies in addition to the state’s 6.35% sales tax and the state cannabis
tax established under the bill; specifies the purposes for which municipalities may
use the tax revenue. The 3% municipal sales tax will be administered through DRS,
though each municipality will be responsible for collecting the appropriate amounts
as identified by DRS.
Municipal Designee: The bill requires each municipality in which a cannabis retailer,
hybrid retailer or micro-cultivator is located to submit to the DRS commissioner, at
least annually, the name and contact information of the individual designated by the
municipality to receive notifications regarding the tax. The DRS commissioner must
notify these designated individuals of the tax amount reported due from each
cannabis retailer, hybrid retailer and micro-cultivator located in their respective.
Such municipalities are then responsible for collecting the tax payments from each
payor.
Municipal Uses of Funds: The amounts remitted become a part of the municipality’s
general revenue and may only be used for the following purposes:
1. streetscape improvements and other neighborhood developments in
communities where cannabis retailers, hybrid retailers or micro-cultivators
are located;
2. education programs or youth employment and training programs in the
municipality;
3. services for individuals living in the municipality who were released from
DOC custody, probation, or parole;
4, mental health or addiction services;
5. youth service bureaus and municipal juvenile review boards; and
6. community civic engagement efforts.
Sec. 148 - effective July 1, 2021: Authorizes municipalities to enact certain zoning
regulations or ordinances for cannabis establishments; temporarily prohibits
municipalities from granting zoning approval for more retailers or micro-cultivators
than a number that would allow for one of each for every 25,000 residents; and allows
the DCP commissioner to set a population-based cap for number of retailers or micro-
cultivators in the future.
450 Capitol Avenue Hartford, Connecticut 06106-1379
ct.gov/opm

General Zoning Authority and Restrictions: Allows municipalities to amend their
zoning regulations or local ordinances to take the following actions regarding
cannabis establishments:
1. prohibit them from opening;
2. reasonably restrict their hours and signage; or
3. restrict their proximity to religious institutions, schools, charitable
institutions, hospitals, veterans’ homes, or certain military establishments.
Municipal chief zoning officials are required to report these zoning changes to the
OPM Secretary and DCP. They must report in writing within 14 days after adopting
the change.
Affirmative Zoning Approval for Retailers and Micro-Cultivators: Until June 30,
2024, municipalities are prohibited from granting zoning approval for more retailers
or micro-cultivators than a number that would allow for one retailer and one micro-
cultivator for every 25,000 municipal residents, as determined by the most recent
decennial census. Beginning July 1, 2024, the DCP commissioner may post on the
department's web site a specific number of residents such that no municipality shall
grant zoning approval for more retailers or micro-cultivators than would result in
one retailer and one micro-cultivator for every such specific number of residents, as
determined by the commissioner.
In order to ensure compliance, the bill requires a special permit or other affirmative
approval for any retailer or micro-cultivator seeking to be located within a
municipality. A municipality must not grant the special permit or approval for any
applicant if an approval would result in exceeding the density cap set by the bill or
DCP Commissioner. The purpose of the special permit or other affirmative approval
is not to require a public meeting or any other steps or procedures than would
otherwise be required under a municipality’s zoning ordinance, but rather to ensure
that no more retailers or micro-cultivators are granted zoning approval than the
number allowable under the legislation.
450 Capitol Avenue Hartford, Connecticut 06106-1379
¢t.gov/opm