Connecticut’s cannabis legalization came with opportunity for communities disproportionately affected by the War on Drugs to get funding for community efforts. Those funds are starting to come in.
On Tuesday, the CT Cannabis Social Equity Council and the Community Foundation of Eastern Connecticut formally gave out $1 million in grants to causes based in Norwich, New London, and Willimantic.
This is part of a pilot program from the Social Equity Council, where $6 million was divided evenly between six grant making entities from impacted communities, which will help the Social Equity Council further distribute funds from the cannabis industry, Social Equity Council Director Ginnie-Rae Clay said.
“There’s never going to be enough money to restore our communities, so we’re going to do our best with what we have to make an impact on these communities,” Clay said.
There will also be community conversations starting in January, where the Social Equity Council will get to hear how funds can be best used in communities in eastern Connecticut, Clay said.
“We’re gathering feedback and ideas from (distressed and impacted areas) residents and stakeholders to see where the most needs are,” she said.
To help get further ideas on how to spend the money, Clay is also encouraging people to complete the Social Equity Council’s community reinvestment survey, which will ask people about if people or families were affect, how they may have been effected, what zip codes people are from, and what you’d like to see funds used for in your community, Clay said.
This feedback and results of the first pilot program will help the Social Equity Council develop a larger plan to disperse a large amount of money: $34 million. This money came from conversion fees for medical dispensaries to change to adult use facilities. The Social Equity Council wants this money distributed as quickly as possible, Clay said.
“These funds do us and do the community no good by holding back,” she said.
H/T: www.norwichbulletin.com
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