City Council President Pro Tem James Tate is pleased to announce that Detroit will continue to accept and process applications from marijuana businesses seeking to gain licensing in the city as prescribed in Detroit’s current Marijuana Licensing Ordinance. On Tuesday, May 31, 2022, the City of Detroit’s Department of Elections upheld the opinion from the city’s Law Department that a recently filed referendum petition to suspend and repeal Detroit’s Marijuana Licensing Ordinance was not filed within the timeframe provided in the city’s Charter and therefore may not advance to the ballot for consideration in the upcoming November election. Pro Tem Tate sponsored the current Marijuana Licensing Ordinance which was approved by an 8-1 vote of the Detroit City Council on April 5, 2022.
The referendum petition attempt sought to halt medical and adult-use marijuana licensing within Detroit until November 2022 when voters would have been asked if they supported a total repeal of the city’s current ordinance. The move to block marijuana licensing in the city is especially disturbing for countless Detroiters who have spent a great deal of time and money to prepare to gain entry into the marijuana industry since Michigan voters approved the statewide adult-use law in 2018.
The City of Detroit Law Department’s legal analysis and opinion points out that on April 5, 2022, the Detroit City Council passed the Adult-Use Marijuana Ordinance[…] Section 4 of the ordinance states, “This ordinance shall become effective on April 20, 2022, after publication by the city clerk, in accordance with Sec. 4-118 of the 2012 Charter of the City of Detroit.” On April 20, 2022, the ordinance became effective.
On May 20, 2022, the Citizens for Better Social Equity filed its petition with the City Clerk’s Office to place a Referendum of Legislation on the upcoming ballot. However, the petition did not meet the necessary requirements to be considered for the ballot. The referendum petition was required to be submitted before the effective date of April 20, 2022.
The Department of Elections’ report clears the pathway for city licensing to continue uninterrupted.
“At some point, the games must end,” said Pro Tem Tate. “We will not back down from the fight to best ensure equity and diversity in Detroit’s marijuana industry for our residents. No matter how many lawsuits are filed or any other attempts to freeze out Detroiters in their own city are made, we as lawmakers must remain bold and courageous in our legislation. This is upsetting to some, but Detroiters deserve to truly be able to compete and be successful in this industry – both today and tomorrow.”
This is Detroit’s second attempt at adult-use/recreational legislation. The previous ordinance was approved by City Council in November 2020 but was later challenged in the U.S. District Court Eastern District of Michigan. Following the filing of the lawsuit and preliminary injunction, a federal judge set a trial date in the matter for September 2022. Pro Tem James Tate was not going to allow another year to pass with Detroiters frozen out of the adult use industry, so he began working with the city’s Law Department and others to craft a new policy that placed emphasis on providing demonstrable social equity in licensing while also remaining mindful of potential litigation.
To learn more about Detroit’s Legacy Certification program and the city’s marijuana licensing process visit detroitmi.gov/homegrown, call (313) 418-9217 or email homegrown@detroitmi.gov.
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