Title
Consider adoption of a resolution to authorize the Treasurer-Tax Collector to conditionally waive all penalties and interest on unpaid installments of the annual commercial cannabis business tax imposed on cultivation activities for the first quarter of Fiscal Year 2022-2023, so long as the full amount due for that quarter is received by the Treasurer-Tax Collector on or before January 31, 2023.
Report
RECOMMENDATION:
Staff recommends that the Board of Supervisors:
Consider adoption of a resolution to authorize the Treasurer-Tax Collector to conditionally waive all penalties and interest on unpaid installments of the annual commercial cannabis business tax imposed on cultivation activities for the first quarter of Fiscal Year 2022-2023, so long as the full amount due for that quarter is received by the Treasurer-Tax Collector on or before January 31, 2023.
SUMMARY/DISCUSSION
The County imposes an annual business tax on cannabis businesses under Monterey County Code (MCC) Chapter 7.100. That tax is collected by the Treasurer-Tax Collector. On June 1, 2022, the Cannabis Program (Program) reported to the Board of Supervisors on the implications of the decline in wholesale price points for commercial cultivation and the impacts of that decline on the cannabis industry. The Program provided the Board with six options to consider The Board approved the following:
1. Effective July 1, 2022, reduce the nursery, mixed-light, and indoor cultivation tax rates to $1 per square foot, $2 per square foot, and $3 per square foot, respectively.
a. This option would not have budgetary impacts from the perspective of how the Recommended Budget is built.
b. This option does not present operational challenges to the Treasurer-Tax Collector's office, as the proposed effective date coincides with the start of the fiscal year and aligns with established quarterly reporting due dates.
On August 23, 2022, staff introduced Ordinance No. 5384 (Attachment A) for its first re...
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