Letter Sent Out to Cannabis Cultivators in the Permit Process Late Friday by the Humboldt County Planning Department

Humboldt Cannabis iconLetter sent out by the Humboldt County Planning Department at 5:08 p.m.:

Commercial Cannabis Interim Permit Holders

RE: Zoning Clearance Certificate for Interim Permit

This message is to alert you to the fact that too many Interim Permits are not in compliance with applicable state and county requirements. As a holder of a Zoning Clearance Certificate for an Interim Permit, you signed a Compliance Agreement with Humboldt County where you agreed to maintain existing conditions and to comply with the terms of the agreement and all applicable state and county laws. Your Interim Permit may be at risk of revocation if you are not in compliance with these requirements. The Department is observing too many Interim Permits with one or more of the following violations:

Expansion of cultivation area beyond that which was authorized in the Interim Permit;
Utilizing a water diversion that does not have a Lake and Streambed Alteration Agreement (LSAA) on file with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife;
Not participating in the Commercial Cannabis Track and Trace Program administered by the Humboldt County Agricultural Commissioner;
Lack of a state license from the California Department of Food and Agriculture.

If any of these situations apply to your Interim Permit, it is imperative that you take action immediately to ensure that your Interim Permit is not at risk of revocation. If your Interim Permit is revoked, your Zoning Clearance Certificate, Special Permit or Conditional Use Permit application is also at risk.

Sincerely,

John H. Ford, Director

Planning and Building Department

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Ed McMam
Guest
Ed McMam
5 years ago

And Herrrrrres Johnny!

Moonrock and a hard place
Guest
Moonrock and a hard place
5 years ago
Reply to  Ed McMam

My neighbor is all ready to go, but his State Permit application was turned in 6 weeks ago, and still no word back. As for me, I’m just out of money. I will have clean product to sell, but can’t afford the last bit of fees. Track & Trace and the State won’t take IOUs or bud as payment.

Oh, and I’m not asking for anones pitty, just sharing some info. Money is just another object that some people get waaay too attached to. Easy come easy go.

Gov expansion
Guest
Gov expansion
5 years ago
Reply to  Ed McMam

“Expansion of cultivation area beyond that which was authorized in the Interim Permit;”
Well the county therefore is not providing enough compliance visits. expand the inspection teams.

Ben Round
Guest
Ben Round
5 years ago

Unreal bureaucratic requirements: Fees. Deadline. Inspections. Taxes. Requirements. New/changed requirements. And these Threat Letters.
John Ford consistently presents himself as a man who is ‘carrying a big stick’. Not helpful.
(Hey! There’s a concept! Try ‘helping’ the good guys and gals who are going through all this, investing lots of money and time into businesses that may not even be successful! [If they are not successful, it will more often be on the hands of the locals BOS’s and the agencies!!).
Offer a hand up John. Less of the threats!!

Guest
Guest
Guest
5 years ago
Reply to  Ben Round

ANY business in Kalifornia has to put up with the bereaucratic power tripping and being ripped off by the government. Lots of people are moving out, you should too. Tell Emperor Brown you want to drive your cars without insurance so you can pay some of the fees and fines. He did it for the illegal immigrants, but I can guarantee he won’t do it for upstanding farmers like yourselves. Like one guy said; “You idiots voted for this”. Say what you want about the Fortuna citizenry, but they only had one grower in town show up to pay their fees, install the required expensive structures, and invite city inspectors to climb up their ass so they could exercise their right to grow their six plants. You guys screwed yourselves and everyone except the corrupt big dogs and the cutthroats when you voted to go legal. Welcome to the real world. Have fun while you can, ’cause the people you voted into office are gonna take you to the cleaner. This is what happens when the uneducated left is allowed to vote.

Legallettuce
Guest
Legallettuce
5 years ago
Reply to  Guest

We have been at war for scores of years and you underestimate our hillabilities. This country was founded upon the tyranny of government oppression. Our constitution protects us just like for you and government must be challenged as it clearly states “We the People!!”

You hear us now and you will hear more. No longer will growers be quiet, living in the shadows of the hills. We have a say and we will be heard and that is some scary shit to the conservative think tank. They must think we are gonna get all your constitutes high off that sticky and moist Humboldt grown devil’s lettuce. Which will turn them all liberal and they would sell their guns and give the money to the helpless and needy. Fox news will be bought by Disney and replaced with a news crew of Muppets. Churches accross the land will begin to admit the bible is just a very dramatic book with some odd solutions to social issues. Car insurance is no longer required since only 10% of drivers get into accidents annually. And the number one conservative fear Hillary Clinton is voted in as the chair of the NRA all because California legalized weed.

Jojo
Guest
Jojo
5 years ago
Reply to  Legallettuce

I actualy smoked alot of weed and over time have only become more of a conservative, i started smoking weed as a dumb loberal and now i dont even support abortion

Y Knot?
Guest
Y Knot?
5 years ago
Reply to  Jojo

That’s encouraging to hear, now once you stop smoking weed you’ll be on track towards living a healthy lifestyle leaving the last of the liberal mind control behind you.

LuckyPunk
Guest
5 years ago
Reply to  Jojo

It’s not the weed,it’s getting older.
Seems weird to know you don’t support abortion,that says a lot coming from a weed warrior,
Weed and kids are things anyone can do,but few do it correctly or courteously.

Ben Round
Guest
Ben Round
5 years ago
Reply to  Jojo

Hey Jojo! That is the BEST REASON EVER to NOT smoke pot!! Lol.

Ullr rover
Guest
Ullr rover
5 years ago
Reply to  Jojo

If you’re not a liberal by the time you’re 20 you don’t have a heart. If you’re not a conservative by the time you are 40 you don’t have a brain.

Said someone somewhere.

https://quoteinvestigator.com/2014/02/24/heart-head/

Hmmmmm
Guest
Hmmmmm
5 years ago
Reply to  Jojo

Love Jojo!
Want to hang out with you!

fuzzy dude
Guest
fuzzy dude
5 years ago
Reply to  Hmmmmm

LIDAR!
pew-pew, pew-pew-pew, pew-pew-pew

Ben Round
Guest
Ben Round
5 years ago
Reply to  Guest

I hear you, Guest, making a lot of ASSUMPTIONS. You are also, unfortunately misinformed.
As one IMPORTANT point of clarification I certainly did NOT vote for Proposition 64!

47
Guest
47
5 years ago
Reply to  Guest

No other industry has as many changes, as often, that are as drastic than the “plane that’s being built while flying,” aka the commercial cannabis industry.

Larry
Guest
Larry
5 years ago
Reply to  Guest

Very well said only a fool couldn’t see this coming. A lot of us figured it out in the late 60’s and early 70’s when we were figuring out why the government wanted to send us to Vietnam to be killed for their own greedy interests. Enjoy the race to the bottom you all deserve it.

Ohferfucksakes
Guest
Ohferfucksakes
5 years ago
Reply to  Ben Round

Oh fer fuck sakes, can this dude Ford be any more of a fucking baby sitter and hand holder?
Reading this letter , he’s giving a courtesy heads up to the growers in the permitting process telling them their permit might be in jeapordy BECAUSE:
the grower is not holding to the terms of the original permit. And, BECAUSE:
The grower is growing MORE than was authorized in the Interim Permit; And BECAUSE
The Grower is utilizing a water diversion that does not have a Lake and Streambed Alteration Agreement (LSAA) on file with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife; And BECAUSE the grower did not participate in the Commercial Cannabis Track and Trace Program administered by the Humboldt County Agricultural Commissioner;

WTF??? What’s unfair or unreasonable about expecting people they gotta come through on what theyre supposed to come through on before they get their permit?

There are many growers in the process that did NOT get this letter because they didn’t have these issues.

Jaylen
Guest
Jaylen
5 years ago
Reply to  Kym Kemp

Kym, It would be really interesting to read a piece on how this is affecting local businesses in sohum. I’m surprised there hasn’t been a meeting of business holders, especially store fronts and restaurants, with Estelle present. I’d like to hear how she’s going to help our community non-cannabis businesses that are clearly suffering. There’s a lot of empty buildings in town and as soon as the season is over it feels like it’s going to be a ghost town.

LuckyPunk
Guest
5 years ago
Reply to  Kym Kemp

That would be awesome if everyone in Humco had to pass smog every two years. Some state require full annual auto inspection

47
Guest
47
5 years ago
Reply to  LuckyPunk

And some don’t have to smog their vehicles, also some states let you register your vehicle for 2 years or more so…

Ullr rover
Guest
Ullr rover
5 years ago
Reply to  47

For 2 years at a reasonable price AND the roads are in good shape… go figure.

Ben Round
Guest
Ben Round
5 years ago
Reply to  Ohferfucksakes

I concur with Kym. Humboldt county officials (in many departments) are sending letters that have ‘boiler plate’ language that only applies to some of the letters’ recipients. (The language below was sent in a letter to Interim Permit holders). Like the below sentence that has had people freaked out and pissed off (after all they have been doing to endure this process):
“Please remember that the filing of a permit application does not authorize the applicant to engage in any new commercial marijuana cultivation, processing, manufacture or distribution activity. No such activity shall commence until the applicant has processed to decision and ALL requisite clearances, permits and/or licenses have been secured”. (Caps added for emphasis in the word ‘all’). That letter was sent to people with permits that expired September 30, 2018 (just before/during harvest!). So, that quoted language is saying, clearly, ‘if you don’t have your ALL of, and your FINAL permits, you can’t dry, trim, bag, store, sell, etc. your 2018 product’!! And turns out that after talking to a Supervisor Planner (SP), it is NOT TRUE. He admitted that it is boiler plate language. What’s more, local lawyers and at least one respected Consultant, reached for clarification, prior to finally contacting the SP, did not know that was inaccurate. And, since it is near impossible to get a call back from the planning Dept (and it is known that the answers given by the planner on duty at the Planning Dept ‘help’ desk are often inaccurate) a permit holder would have to live with this conclusion. Really STRESSFUL for the people who are TRYING TO DO THE RIGHT THING!!

jojo
Guest
jojo
5 years ago
Reply to  Ben Round

all the growers complaining are just not fit for a competitive market. You need to be better at what you do to win now. I have my permit, it was easy to get. everyone complaining just doesn’t know what it takes to run a real business. If you cannot manage to get your permits then you already do not have what it takes to run a real business. its over for you, your lucky you dropped out sooner cause chances are you were going to fail eventually.

Emily
Guest
Emily
5 years ago
Reply to  jojo

It’s also possible that you aren’t the smartest one in the room… some people don’t get permits because they don’t want them, and think they might be a stupid road to go down.

47
Guest
47
5 years ago
Reply to  Emily

jojo was the person that said and I quote, “the Bulgarians are very smart,” and “they knew to sit this season out.” Bwahahahaaaa

Cassidy Goodrich
Guest
Cassidy Goodrich
5 years ago
Reply to  jojo

OK permit patty. You have your permit now so everyone else should quit complaining?!?! You obviously had Gallegos as your lawyer, investors, sucked up to one of the supervisors or got busted 3 years ago and had your schmucks in a row. Good for you!!! Quit gloating and look around at peoples lives being destroyed. Did you not hear Kym talking about suicides and businesses shutting down left and right!!! [edit]

Diane
Guest
5 years ago

Here’s a concept, People have been growing illegally for 50 years, start paying taxes and following the simple rules put in place like the rest of society. John Ford seems to be more than reasonable.

Ben Round
Guest
Ben Round
5 years ago
Reply to  Diane

Diane. Please read what Local Yocal says below.
And to state it in another way, as a highly respected cannabis farm consultant said, ‘The reason unprecedented regulation is placed on cannabis growers is because the fledgling legal industry is not yet well organized, does not have enough power, nor lobbyists, like the other major agricultural and business interests, to PUSH BACK on regulators, agencies and legislators’. Makes a lot of sense!

Guest
Guest
Guest
5 years ago
Reply to  Ben Round

Yes. Just wait until they change into Big Pot, just like the Big Pharma or Big Oil or Big whatever you want to contrast with the assumed virtuous little guy.

In my 1911 I trust
Guest
In my 1911 I trust
5 years ago

If they would actually do their job and issue some permits instead of spending all their time sending out abatement letters and screwing with people, there would be more people in compliance. The main complaint I have heard from my friends going through this is that they have hit a certain point and cannot go any farther without the county issuing them the necessary paperwork. They instead are not being called back and when they go into the office are repeatedly stonewalled. I’m sure they are not happy about this new round of threats. Its their job, people need to eat, give them the permits and let them work and pay their taxes.

tech
Guest
tech
5 years ago

This pertains to people who already have an interim permit with county. Once you have that it is all down hill. If you have an interim permit at this point it is literally your golden ticket. Don’t fuck it up by not following through with all the other shit you need to get a state permit. Such other shit as an LSAA with CDFW, water right(see Initial Statement and SIUR), not expanding your grow, etc.

Legallettuce
Guest
Legallettuce
5 years ago
Reply to  tech

So, if you went to the DMV and they gave you a temporary licence (the one without the picture) but every 6 weeks you get a letter that says you have to take another test. Then you go to take the test and have to pay enormous fees and you do this for almost 2 years. November 2016 the citizens voted it is late September 2018. Interim is as far as they got it is not like they reinvented the pot industry. They plagerized from the medical cannabis laws from 1996. So almost 2 years and you all think not having a permanent number prior to harvest is good government work. lol

Fly on the wall
Guest
Fly on the wall
5 years ago
Reply to  Legallettuce

Dmv gives you a temporary when you need to complete a application or a test or further eye exam. You get an INTERIM license if you’re ‘good to go’ and will then wait for your hard copy to come in the mail.

antichrist
Guest
antichrist
5 years ago

not so true you also get interm if you have a cdl and are attempting to change sor or if you get an extra endorsement as fed law states you can not have 2 of the same

bearjew
Guest
bearjew
5 years ago

Our Dear Ford: “you hillbilly soma farmers owe me some fiat” … https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FPO3aenqT4o

Local Yocal
Guest
Local Yocal
5 years ago

you have no idea of the rules and regs .Cannabis farmers are held to a higher standard than any other business. the central valley farmers dont have to follow the same rules The county dosent follow water quality standards.Under sized culverts ,shot gunning culverts culverts where there isn’t a natural stream.
hard to follow rules that keep changing.Other county’s are helping and encouraging cannabis business lower taxes on and on.
impeach the lot of them.

tech
Guest
tech
5 years ago
Reply to  Local Yocal

Whataboutism is a falsehood. Focus on you and all the background noise. If you need to invest mounds of money into your property, so you can make mountains of money (or you use to), I would do so or else give up now because this will be your last year.

Guest
Guest
Guest
5 years ago
Reply to  Local Yocal

If Federal legalization comes to pass, then a regulating frenzy will occur such as will dwarf the county’s and state’s rules.

Erica Boyd
Guest
Erica Boyd
5 years ago

“Late Friday evening” = a special County of Humboldt MO. Admin changes, Dhhs notices, anything that might be a biggie in the consumer or county employees lives’ happens at 4:45 Friday evening, or after.

Guest
Guest
Guest
5 years ago
Reply to  Erica Boyd

Better to let people fret on their own time I suppose. By Monday morning they will have settled down and work can proceed as usual.

Recalll Estelle
Guest
Recalll Estelle
5 years ago

Oh…

Scooter
Guest
Scooter
5 years ago

Not to mention the fact that if you dont sell legal trackable pounds the state will know and come for you while you sleep.

Cry me up a storm.
Guest
Cry me up a storm.
5 years ago

How is the planning department noticing these violations? Being that marijuana is a federally schedule 1 controlled substance, being that even posession of such substance is considered a threat to national security, being that the patriot act is still trumping all law, being that the fbi trumps all law enforcement organizations, everybody who put themselves on the “legal” list is being monitored. Connect the dots, the feds have known who’s doing what for a long time.

Spotted owl.
Guest
5 years ago

Permits,permits,permits at risk 😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂. She’ll out hundreds of thousands for permits. Lol. Wonder how many they’ll gank. Just sit back and watch how many people they turn on. It’s just the nature of these people to be lying rip offs

farce
Guest
farce
5 years ago

Here’s an idea! Go to permitted farms every day and inspect their track n trace labelling, storage, and sales process. Notice anything not right? Confiscate the entire crop. Do a few of those and the rest will step into line or disappear from sight and you can then chip them entirely next year. C’mon, Ford- get to work!!!

Hum broseph
Guest
5 years ago

Here’s another idea…. let’s make the legal permitting process nearly impossible to navigate for the avg desired compliant farmer and continue to run the money out of the economy in Humboldt County. Let’s use the taxes gained from legalization not for our county’s degrading infrastructure but instead for enforcing the canna trade.

Let’s call Netflix back in 10 years from now for a “where are they now” edition of the current state of Humboldt County and see how “perfect” things really became after the county big whigs shot this place in the foot. Netflix can title it “Humboldt County: boom> bust>boom>bust>boom> busted forever!”

the misadventures of bunjee
Guest
the misadventures of bunjee
5 years ago

Political suicide for whom? People that don’t vote anyway? I don’t see too many people all that upset with them.

Spotted owl.
Guest
5 years ago

All we need to save her is some new Supervisors and soon before it’s too late.!!!!!!!!!! I’m from South county and everyone is upset with them here. hear bones district is loving him lately.lol. The official recall forms got here for Estelle the other day now it’s time to do some tables.

bonglord
Guest
bonglord
5 years ago

It’s almost as if these regulations were intentionally designed to drive small and medium mom-and-pop grows out of town or something.

bearjew
Guest
bearjew
5 years ago
Reply to  bonglord

yup… the big boyz paying the supes and staties to bust the competition. No joke… regulatory capture… what a scam

For Sure
Guest
5 years ago
Reply to  bonglord

Ya think ?

farce
Guest
farce
5 years ago
Reply to  bonglord

Yeah! It’s almost like the proposition was written by the billionaire Napster dude in a way that would certainly deliver this already-existing multi-billion dollar industry into the hands of well-financed corporations. And then they bullshitted the very people who would become destroyed into voting for their own demise! And then that well-intentioned yet useful idiots would tell us all that we’d “be free” and “safe” and “legitimate” and “don’t worry”!!…I’m glad that couldn’t happen with so many smart, caring people around but it sure does feel like it.

Nimby
Guest
Nimby
5 years ago

That letter says nothing, no definitive statements. Your permit may be at risk…. blah, blah, blah….. take action….Blah blah blah…. the funny part is ”the department is observing too many interim permits with one or more of the following”. So how many is too many? Is this an arbitrary number? What a load of phony bologne on the menu. Harrumph, we are fed up with this non compliance, we are about to do something! Meanwhile, people are just working their asses off right now to finish months of hard work to maybe make enough cash to pay off these extortionists to maybe get a golden ticket to earn a slightly above middle class wage being a farmer. The planning dept is so out of touch it’s laughable. If they want to shake down the farmers again, they may want to wait a couple months.

47
Guest
47
5 years ago
Reply to  Nimby

Yes the county does resemble two teenage boys bumping their chests with their hands in the air yet never fighting now doesn’t it… lol

LuckyPunk
Guest
5 years ago

Would it be easier to plant 6 in every friend’s yard that lets you?

Cove broseph
Guest
Cove broseph
5 years ago
Reply to  LuckyPunk

Wat ?

Ann D.
Guest
Ann D.
5 years ago
Reply to  LuckyPunk

You only need five friends to supplement your income pretty well if you know what you’re doing…. And you can avoid all this nonsense all together…
Not that I would know..
Er..
I mean..
That’s what I heard umm… some guy saying one time…

Family man
Guest
Family man
5 years ago

A blanket threat to all applicants. My email was sent to me personally with no Bcc so I had hard time deciphering if this was meant for me personally. I have now had to contact my lawyers and engineers to once again confirm everything is in order. This is a tremendous amount of stress and money yet again, to prove myself right, not for them to inform me I did something wrong. The lack of communication and changing regulations and platforms between all agencies involved almost makes it my full time job to defend myself with never ending costs. John, this letter was ill conceived to say the least. Friday night at 5:08. Regulators work 9-5 five days a week. We work 12 hours a day seven days a week, with mini emergencies thrown in every third day. To threaten years of hard work and hundreds of thousands of dollars in a general vague statement is insulting and draining. My belief that the BOS and Planning department wanted this to work is dwindling and I was one of your staunchest supporters. This shouldn’t feel like Navy Seal training with the goal to weed out hundreds down to a few survivors. When you carry the stick of Power you should wield is wisely and purposefully, the Planning Department is beginning to swing it wildly and without thought of damage. History repeats itself and power is addictive. You are an extremely smart man John, please listen when innocent people say they are be caught up in your wide cast net with abatement notices and letters such as this. You and the BOS will lose support before you realize the damage is done.

commenter
Guest
commenter
5 years ago

hey Guest i see you’re taking a turn to the right recently; i guest you wanted to show your true colors. but what i object to is you saying we voted in legality as if we had the votes. the big cities voted in legalization, our paltry votes against didn’t add up to much.
and LuckyPunk you read my mind…
SpottedOwl–good luck with your tabling, i’ll be pleasantly amazed if you get 4000 signatures.
by the way, still haven’t heard whose name is going on the ballet if there is a recall–maybe some Fortuna person no one down here knows will sign up.

Guest
Guest
Guest
5 years ago
Reply to  commenter

There are many Guests in life. That’s one reason it is more useful to actually read a comment for what it is rather than reacting to an assumed identity. Looking for a person who doesn’t exist to hate exposes a great deal about the hater but nothing about the hated.

BYE BYE ESTELL
Guest
BYE BYE ESTELL
5 years ago
Reply to  commenter

A very respected local born and raised is thinking of running. Estell would never have a chance against this person.

Spotted owl.
Guest
5 years ago

Hey commenter we only need 3000 ,and were gonna give it our best.ive been surveying at public functions and everyone I talk to seems to be for it.from weott to the Mendocino line.lightning bolt ranch to the ocean

RecallRexBohn
Guest
RecallRexBohn
5 years ago

This actually makes me happy – my “permitted” neighbor does not follow any of the rules, does not do track & trace and funnels all his product (100,000 square feet of it) onto the black market. And then he has the gall to give all of us non-growing neighbors the finger, saying “I’m permitted and Rex is my buddy, so I can do anything I want” – I just wonder if the County will actually go after this guy or are the bureaucrats too busy putting old hippies out of business?

Guest
Guest
Guest
5 years ago
Reply to  RecallRexBohn

Call, complain and find out.

Mariahgirl
Guest
Mariahgirl
5 years ago
Reply to  Guest

Yes, yes and yes!,

farce
Guest
farce
5 years ago
Reply to  RecallRexBohn

I know several people with big operations like this. They are much nicer but yeah- all their product is going underground while the permits protect them. That’s why they got the permits!!

Emily
Guest
Emily
5 years ago
Reply to  farce

Yes but it’s a short sited game. If you give all your info to the authorities and expect they will let you cheat on obvious rules, you got another thing coming. I have seen lots of people come and go around here.. I always say ‘give them five years and see where they are’
Pat of Emerald FF for example.. many others

RecallRexBohn
Guest
RecallRexBohn
5 years ago

I also can’t help wondering if this letter will make Terra and Natalynn pull their heads out of John Ford’s ass …..

farce
Guest
farce
5 years ago
Reply to  RecallRexBohn

No. They love him and think he’s wonderful. Because…they are really from the same cloth as him- elitist, classist, materialistic, regulatorial, better-than-the-rest-of-us. And they have no problem bullshitting us commoners to do “what is best for us”.

Guest
Guest
Guest
5 years ago
Reply to  farce

I wonder what your alternative is. If an industry has a large segment of scofflaws who have, like ’49ers in the gold rush, become very destructive, how would you rein them in? Without bankrupting the larger population of the county with impossible to administer and expensive programs where the county pays for required improvements.

Legal grow
Guest
Legal grow
5 years ago

Our lsa is 15k to cdfw plus 40k for the work. State license application was around 5k just to apply . We have our first legal deal in place . It’s 60k the state gets 25k , we get 35k and pay 30% tax on that . MoSt expenses aren’t deductible . On a 60k sale we get 22 k . It cost at least 15 to grow . There’s no way we can survive with this margin . There is no mathematical way that if you sign up you can make money . Government greed and the incredible inefficiency of the planning dept will destroy us all. Whether you grow or not our community is being destroyed .

Legallettuce
Guest
Legallettuce
5 years ago
Reply to  Legal grow

Spot on!! Truth is they are just assisting a flourishing “traditional market” with demand and higher prices on the left coast. As more states legalize moving product will become less hazardous.

They act as if legalization would derail the outlaw systems in place they created by their lies. They act as if we would put our weapons down and garage our quads. They act as if they control a product we have provided globally for generations. So far they have not achieved much other than pissin off a bunch of future business owners.

Scooter
Guest
Scooter
5 years ago
Reply to  Legal grow

Not to mention the greed of the distributors and the retail dispensaries. Everyone assumed all growers were rich and just piled on. I had hoped your price might go up. Good luck.

farce
Guest
farce
5 years ago
Reply to  Legal grow

My neighbor did a spreadsheet and plugged in his fixed costs. That’s what prifessional-types do before they commit. He found out that he and his partner would need to pull 400 pounds to clear $15,000 each. He doesn’t want to grow even that much. So he stopped thinking about getting a permit. He is doing fine.

I like stars
Guest
I like stars
5 years ago
Reply to  farce

Yes. These bitchers should have paid attention in math class. It wasn’t hard to see this coming.

jojo
Guest
jojo
5 years ago
Reply to  Legal grow

Your totally wrong, there is ways to break even and use accounting tricks to not have to pay any taxes at all. A lot of things are deductible, i suggest you familiarize yourself with COGS you are allowed to deduct under IRC 280e. for instance you can rent our your land to your collective to 50k a year. Claim the 50k as your rent income and pay normal tax rate on that amount. You can also deduct costs of productions, and you can subtract a huge amount of money each year off land devaluation due to agriculture operation. Your nutrients, dirt, materials, etc can all be used to reduce your tax burden. I know farmers who made 190,000 and were able to deducts 156,00 worth of COGS. Seriously be creative contact a cannabis CPA and figure it out, cause what your saying is not right.

Swine
Guest
Swine
5 years ago
Reply to  jojo

So be a white collar criminal. Goa way jojo

Legallettuce
Guest
Legallettuce
5 years ago
Reply to  jojo

Shhh, you are helping my competition and I do not appreciate it, lol. Guess this is where I will put a plug in to run whomevers farm that is upset over JoJo’s comment. Just one rule I have is please do not tell me what to do on my hill (per our contract). Will help you get compliant and can even act on your behalf to get permitted. We can negotiate the percentage, all natural grower, big nugz 🙂

Potmation
Guest
Potmation
5 years ago
Reply to  jojo

jojo,

Land is a capital asset. For tax purposes, land is not devalued by farming.

Really have no Idea
Guest
Really have no Idea
5 years ago
Reply to  jojo

Your Ignorance of taxes laws shows.O nly cost of goods can be written off nothing else. no rent no payroll nothing

Native humboldt
Guest
Native humboldt
5 years ago
Reply to  jojo

You are awesome Jojo, I wish you could mentor me along the path of legalization. I have tried every way possible to come up with a profitable business plan but haven’t had any luck. I’m not going to donate my labor to the government no way! I’m better off flying under the medical umbrella and not worrying about all these permits and fees.
My CPA also told me that federally I couldn’t deduct any expenses due to the fact it’s illegal and I would risk my freedom. What a mess! Good luck to ya!

Emily
Guest
Emily
5 years ago
Reply to  Legal grow

Legal Grow: should have crunched the numbers before you signed up. Sorry to say but that’s what you do in a real world legal business. Lotsa people in the real world who are doing everything they can do to get the same product out cheaper and more efficiently than you.

Stream (of consciousness) diversion. Permitted of course
Guest
Stream (of consciousness) diversion. Permitted of course
5 years ago
Reply to  Legal grow

Oh no! That sounds terrible. There might be those that semi-wish they were in the game but statements and a clear number run down like that should reassure them that they are lucky they’re not!

It takes so much energy to pull in a good product. It’s physically and mentally challenging. And there are multiple ways you can screw it up after harvest! I hope no one is making those mistakes, some will tho.. and I also hope everyone is getting everything in that needs to get in ahead of the rain and cloudy week ahead, and that people are being careful not to hurt themselves. Handling so much herb and sharp tools, it can get hectic. And the uneven ground. Watch where you are going!

Tho many legit farms I see now are just flat as a pancake. That must be fun. And a lot of work.

It sucks that the price has bottomed out so badly. I know the business models we played around with had the ” lowest ” value of our product certainly higher than it is right now. So how many others dove in to legalization thinking the price would stay at or near 1000? Optimistic? Or blind? Blind Faith has lured a lot of folks down the permitting path and blind Faith can actually carry you quite a ways, often to your detriment tho. 🙁

The letter is a vague passive aggressive form threat and imo says little , and it was a dirty trick to send it out on a fri eve. It shows how out of touch the planning dept is.

I’m not even in the process and reading it drained me ! Yuck. Go away John Ford!

Spotted owl.
Guest
5 years ago

Yep the permit process is definitely a pay off program to do what you like.the people who were doing the right thing for years are getting screwed.theyre way more people getting screwed than not we need to get these people to register to vote and RECALL these Constitution trampling extortion based politicians running the county.

Spotted owl.
Guest
5 years ago

And promising news in the times standard by Ed denson. The 40 to contest the abatement is the beginning of the class action.(20 times what they’ve collected in abatement fines I hope).And hopefully to get a judge to rule excessive fines,and cruel and unusual punishment. F@#$ you Estelle fennel and rex bone!!!!! And you too John Ford.

Reality
Guest
Reality
5 years ago

In order to legally grow the area that has an intern permit you must also have a state permit, all the hoops have weed in them and almost no one has a state permit.On top of that they are all selling on the black market while track and trace does nothing about it.many of these hoops have grow lights in them to boost plants and don’t cover them while boosting causing a near daylight effect through the night for all the neighbors.It definitely isn’t hard to find major violations since almost every “ legal” grow is in violation of one or many of these rules. Until they hold a state permit, cover the light pollution and sell their product on the legal market they should all be sighted and chipper shredded.Not to mention all the under the table field workers and trimmers they aren’t claiming .The legal grows are at the table to avoid being on the menu but they are soon going to realize the reason they are on the table to be a quick appetizer , then they shall start on the menu lol

farce
Guest
farce
5 years ago
Reply to  Reality

It has been a useful strategy to separate them from the other grows. Then come around to clean them up in the next wave. But by using this strategy the County Planning Department and Supervisors have committed federal conspiracy crimes. They have protected the ability for partially-permitted mega-grows to grow weed unhindered and the sell their product on the underground market They should all be prosecuted as they are criminals just as much as the unpermitted growers.

Notbuyinit
Guest
Notbuyinit
5 years ago
Reply to  Reality

My friend just got his interim permit last week after being told by the county he was in good standing while waiting. You cannot apply for a state permit without an interim county. Immediately his consultant began working on state paperwork as per policy. Currently there is no state permit simply because of how long the county took. Should he be “sighted (sic) and chipper shredded” too after spending years in the permit process and tens of thousands of dollars coming into compliance after years of growing legally for a collective under prop 215?

Legallettuce
Guest
Legallettuce
5 years ago
Reply to  Notbuyinit

Same scenario here. It is being played out all across the county. Plus I am sure that consultant was not cheap applying for the state on your friends behalf. Why is the county not applying to the state on our behalf? Everything on the county computers should cover the information for the state permit. The county has a lot of computers maybe the humans should put them to work!!

Show me the Moeny
Guest
Show me the Moeny
5 years ago

There was a poorly attended (because it was poorly advertised, like every one of the State’s meetings) BCC Cannabis Advisory Committee (https://bcc.ca.gov/about_us/committee_members.html) meeting on the 20th in Eureka. One member Alice Huffman lambasted the Committee and the State for making it so difficult to get through the permit process. She stated (paraphrasing) that no other industry in the State is as regulated as the cannabis industry and as a result the underground market is flourishing and changes needed to be made in order to protect the small farmers. She was very impressive and right on!

People need to get involved. A local Cannabis Advisory Committee (CAC) needs to be established. I hate to say it, but Estelle seems to be out of touch. In regards to local Track and Trace, it is a joke. I have heard (from people in the know) the same thing in that many of the larger, permitted growers are back-dooring 30 – 40% of their product.

Spotted owl.
Guest
5 years ago

Yep farce being extorted by the worst kind of criminals.Theives. gonna celebrate the day Estelle and bone no longer have there chairs !!!!!

Emily
Guest
Emily
5 years ago
Reply to  Spotted owl.

I’m sorry but I don’t quite understand why the two supervisors are being blamed? Aren’t there bigger forces at play here? What’s the next supervisor going to be able to do to fix the problem? Please explain, I’m being serious. The legal market is a joke, so if they are going to make it easier to get legal, I hope you know that’s not going to fix anything. The abatement are rough but needed.

Mendo Madness
Guest
Mendo Madness
5 years ago

The bigger legal grows are worse for the neighborhoods than the illegal ones in the past. Back in the day the illegal growers knew not to piss off their neighbors, to at least pretend to care and try to avoid detection. This new group of “legals” is greedy greedy greedy. They hide behind their “legal” label to pirate away whole neighborhoods. Disrespect is their right by virtue of having a permit. The uglification of our county. Mendocino County has no real enforcement of their ordinance and the “legals” pride themselves in taking advantage of us all. No participation in the community, or true care of the environment. They know more about LLCs and funneling money into banks undetected than they do about farming. Creative book keeping their primary skill. Shameful. The higher they climb the further they fall. Look forward to watching . Greed one of the seven deadly sins.

Scooter
Guest
Scooter
5 years ago
Reply to  Mendo Madness

Yup! My legal neighbors yell, ride quads up and down, they have grow lights for porch lights so they can work at night, plus the uncovered lights on the hoops, plus the traffic, the big loads, the heavy equipment, the generators, and they tie up dogs at their gardens that bark all night. In the old days we had to be low key, not now. Here is the question; should I “watch their back” or complain to the county? Would that make me a “snitch”?

Swine
Guest
Swine
5 years ago
Reply to  Scooter

I asked my big permitted neighbornto cover his lights and he did. Sometimes it just takes being an honest kind human and we can all get what we want.

T
Guest
T
5 years ago
Reply to  Scooter

Complain about what? You said it was legal. ” my neighbor is riding his quad on his property” isnt going to bring the heat on him.

rivi
Guest
rivi
5 years ago
Reply to  Scooter

NEVER snitch! Damn rat mentality. Ask nice, threaten their lives, but never, ever, under any circumstances should you snitch. If what they do is a ‘7’ bad on a 0 to 10 scale, snitching is like a 7,000,000,000,000. If you snitch they should absolutely kill you, slowly, over a week or two.

RecallRexBohn
Guest
RecallRexBohn
5 years ago
Reply to  rivi

Why? Why is it bad to report a crime?

Jack Holt
Guest
Jack Holt
5 years ago
Reply to  RecallRexBohn

do not feed babylon

Qanon
Guest
Qanon
5 years ago

http://media.sacbee.com/static/newsroom/graphicsembeds/prop64/prop64.html?nocache=1050

Prop 64 designed for Humboldt to fail. Let’s put pressure on BOS to help our economy thrive.

Qanon
Guest
Qanon
5 years ago
Notbuyinit
Guest
Notbuyinit
5 years ago

Thanks a lot Herr Ford. Pretty strong words for a guy who’s office has processed 240 out of 2300 applications in 2 years. Guess if we all paid someone off like Emerald Family Farms than we would all have brand new 7 acre grows that draw from the river all summer long with no storage and get prorated on our 2017 square footage tax while everyone else paid for the whole year. Must be nice. The rest of everyone who did it the right way by the rules get threatening letters every couple months and the run around from planning. Typical American pay me politics

commenter
Guest
commenter
5 years ago

hey Spotted Owl, everyone knows that if you need 3000 signatures you get 4000, many will be ruled invalid…(and who will you run against Estelle, as that is part of a recall i believe) good luck S 0…

(Kym for Supe! She’s tough, she’s fair, she’s intelligent and she’s already got good political instincts,ie, pretending she doesn’t want the job–i almost believed that! Any more denials just mean she’s in it to win it!)

and Guest, because i say you’re (truly) veering to the right you call it hate…

i think it’s too late in the game to effectively whine–Estelle should have been lobbied hard from the beginning…

and no one, yet, wants to go through the time and $$ and effort to sue over abatement or any other policy…

Guest
Guest
Guest
5 years ago
Reply to  commenter

Sigh. No. I said there are a number of different “Guests” all with different things to say. I did say that someone who has to have a person to hate, when there is no such person, has a problem. Apparently with reading comprehension.

Spotted owl.
Guest
5 years ago

Well that’s what makes this country kind of a democracy unless we bring up electorial college.You can vote for her I’m gonna help TRY to get her out!!! I might feel differently if she was trying to help the little people,not just the big,greedy,rich. If we don’t get better representation soon this place is heading for total poverty for 90% of us.

commenter
Guest
commenter
5 years ago

it’s two years before the next election so that’s interesting that you say you plan to vote for Estelle–you don’t even know who will be running then, maybe not even Estelle, although she’s perfectly fitted for the job: she likes getting paid and can wade through the gobbledegook with the best of the mealymouthed politicians. i guess you think she’s doing a great job. (would you vote against yourself? )

Guest
Guest
Guest
5 years ago
Reply to  Kym Kemp

Chip Tittman
For County Supervisor!😊

Spotted owl.
Guest
5 years ago

Well just my opinion but extortion,warrentless searches,spy sattilites(@200,000 a year when our roads are a joke) encouraging the stealing of our Constitutional riparian water rights,loss of property rights.lol. I think that’s what Estelle’s doing for us. Stealing our only industry here ?????? I’ll let you draw your own conclusions

Jorge Cervantes
Guest
Jorge Cervantes
5 years ago

What ever happened to ?….It’s that time of year for friends and good cheer
So twist up a fat one and pass it over here
Tis the season for the KGB
It’s harvest time in Northern Cal and it’s Green!!!

I’d love to mention names but my friends are kinda noddin
CAMP’S flyin over and they’re tryin to avoid em
I wanna give em props for the fruits of their labors
But I don’t want the word to get to any of their neighbors
It’s a small world in northern cal in the summer
& when you get to your patch and it’s gone that’s a bummer
it’s better than getting there and findin straight 5-oh
hangin in the bushes and waitin for the grass to grow
or some punk to pick it up and put it in a pickup truck
and trim the bud and dry the stuff and go down south and live it up

SHC
Guest
SHC
5 years ago

JOJO knows what time it is! She understands COGS AND IRC280e which makes me know she is more informed then most on here!
I hear a bunch of greedy cry babies!! Mad that your $1M you make every summer isn’t going to be worth a $1M anymore! Wa, wa, wa! Sorry around $200K legal isn’t good enough for you! Maybe you’ve never almost been stuffed or done time!!! Because if you haven’t experienced either of the two, you made it decades in the hills then maybe now is the time to humble yourself and take the $200K?!
I for one have no interest going up against the new onslaught that is abatement, CDFW, BCC, FEDS, LIDAR(can find the dna of cannabis through a lead wall), satellite programs… Camp and all the other BS I been through over the years is enough! It’s not getting any easier to pull a crop and survive on either market, but at least I’m no longer risking the most valuable thing of all MY FREEDOM!

P.S. Jon Ford is a good, fair and reasonable man! Stop blaming your inability on him!! I have friends who obtained permits with no consultant or attorney before many with them could get there’s!! If you want it that bad you can get it.

In my 1911 I trust
Guest
In my 1911 I trust
5 years ago
Reply to  SHC

Are you john ford? You are severely misinformed. Only about 240 people have permits. If it were that easy many more would have them John Ford is not reasonable, he forgot what his job is, which is making tge permit process happen. Instead he is all caught up in the abatement process instead of the permit process. He needs to leave enforcement to the sheriff until he has processed all 2400 of those permits. Give them out or deny them, at least do something.

This guy...
Guest
This guy...
5 years ago

Basically who has the most money….

bearjew
Guest
bearjew
5 years ago

meanwhile,now that the county has been disenfranchised entirely, pot pump and dump stocks like TLRY and CGC are exploding to new “highs”… talk about missing out. What started here, ended with 64… Corporate greed now owns the herb like everything else…. sad times, police enforcing monopolistic greed…

LostCoastEMT
Guest
LostCoastEMT
5 years ago

Jerry springers final thoughts…… The system was designed to fail. When the system fails you, create your own system.

Knuckleheads
Guest
Knuckleheads
5 years ago

Not sure if you ever realized who the people are in the humboldt county building and planning department.
Next to anr Real building department in the lower half of the state they look like complete knuckleheads!
Nothing is straight forward and they are playing growers like Trump the liberals!
Vote red in november!

Spotted owl.
Guest
5 years ago

Recall the supervisors!!!! That’s who abatement belongs too. Not all supervisors Estelle,and bone the corrupt couple.

Spotted owl.
Guest
5 years ago

Well 98% of northern California got shafted real good.but that means we have 98% of the vote.theyre all lying theivs but gotta pick through the trash for the shiniest objects.go vote,its hard cuz the Democrats own 64 and Republicans rob us whenever the chance arises. Which way to turn???????

Perspective
Guest
Perspective
5 years ago

If you can’t make it through the permitting process, you can not survive the legal market. Simple

Ullr rover
Guest
Ullr rover
5 years ago

HUMBOLDT COUNTY OUT OF HUMBOLDT COUNTY

Small Fry
Guest
Small Fry
5 years ago

Over production?.. Expansion… What a joke! Honestly what about the state… who said they were going to limit permits to One acre… then allowed unlimited HUGE grows.. same with the County of Humboldt. They want to give us hell over any small amount of water here.. at the same time allow HUGE unsustainable monster grow in the DESERT.. you think the DESERT doesn’t have huge water issues??? Just suck that aquifer dry…
As far as Tracking and Tracing Cannabis.. if they really gave a hoot.. they wouldn’t have allowed Mega grows everywhere! I beilive THE STATE is guilty of saturating the market and pushing it out of state! They are ‘regulating size’ anyways. Soo.. why not keep it to a smaller scale.. to make room for existing farmers.. It was too soon to go BIG! It is not federal legal! California has a roomy.. but limited market. California And Humboldt County failed To protect farmers… The state has failed us.. so why adhere to thier restrictive draconian laws? I wanted to beilive.. to do the legal thing.. but There laws are abusive.

weedageddon
Guest
weedageddon
5 years ago
Reply to  Small Fry

What about the State. Cali is guilty of promoting the illegal ‘tradition market’? Without TnT this is an uncertain shit-show.

What a joke. If prices weren’t in the toilet and Ford wasn’t threatening to chip your scene or fine you into oblivion you would be perfectly happy selling in to the ‘traditional market’. Anyone who blew up there scene based on 64 was a fool. Not just a fool, a damn fool.

Small Fry
Guest
Small Fry
5 years ago
Reply to  weedageddon

Actually your wrong.. I beilive most small farmers would be happy to sell in state.. and to regulated dispensaries… But the state has made it near impossible for the small farmer to gain access to the legal markets. The state has also flooded the markets with huge huge disgusting grows. If they would have kept the entire industry around 10,000 square ft.. I beilive it would have been a much better picture for everyone. As far as I am concerned.. it is the State who has violated federal laws by allowing such monster grows. Maybe if it was federally legal in the future they could allow bigger grows.. But I personally beilive the state and Humboldt county are extremely corrupt. Especially the county.. and beilive me.. I have had to deal with the county, on more then a few issues..

weedageddon
Guest
weedageddon
5 years ago
Reply to  Small Fry

Trust me when I tell you that my 80yo Uncle Bob in Sausalito voted yes on 64 because he assumed the tax money would help senior citizens. I assure that he would consider anyone growing weed illegally a freaking criminal that helped put cash money in the hands of violent criminals.

As for the other main reasons that voters said yes to 64, please google it. No one gave a rat’s ass about the well being or economic future of the criminals growing drugs illegally. Just like Canada, its all about tax money and putting criminals out of business.

Guest
Guest
Guest
5 years ago
Reply to  Small Fry

As have many businesses said for quite awhile. This is just the shake down cruise. What until FLSA, ADA, IRS, EPA, OSHA, FDA or DEA start on details if pot changes status Federally. Besides pot growers are frequently deliberately blind over what is a “little” water. A little water can support 10 households to one “small” grow. “Little” and “small” are indefinite amounts. And all uses not equally acceptable.

Eventually I suppose that regulation will become more exactly quantified and rules tailored as to size. Not that most growers as evinced by the photos here will be happy with that either.

Small Fry
Guest
Small Fry
5 years ago
Reply to  Guest

I would say I am for some regulation when It comes to Water.. and water use on a cannabis farm. But it has to be sensible… and to competly disregard current property rights.. and water rights, that have already been established by the courts is down right abusive and oppressive. But for the State to allow Huge Huge grows in places like Desert Hot Springs.. where the Aquafir is already being depleted at an alarming rate, or even along I-5 where they have shut down Food farmers and cut them off thier from their water supply because of the drought.. is in my mind corrupt.

bearjew
Guest
bearjew
5 years ago
Reply to  Small Fry

Amen “Guest” and good points!

bearjew
Guest
bearjew
5 years ago

oh snap, the real guest got his post removed and now my above post was big upping the pot/property rights nazis… 🙁

bearjew
Guest
bearjew
5 years ago

ok, word…ty… Glad to see that you don’t have too many sponsored trolls driving you crazy! salute!