Cannabis Tax and Reparations Policy

A Baltimore Beat investigation, highlighted by Fox News, reports that roughly $35 million in recreational cannabis tax revenue earmarked for community reinvestment and reparations in Baltimore remains unspent as City Hall and the city’s 17‑member Community Reinvestment and Reparations Commission battle over who controls the money. The commission was created in November 2024 under Maryland’s legalization law, which directs 35% of cannabis tax revenue to communities harmed by the war on drugs and requires local commissions to manage distribution, but not a single dollar has reached residents despite more than $1.1 billion in statewide cannabis sales in the first year. Commissioners say they were meant to operate independently and accuse City Hall of unilaterally allocating more than $5 million without their authorization, while the city, through a spokesperson, contends it designated the Office of Equity and Civil Rights to administer that money to support the commission’s staffing and outreach. The standoff means funds meant to address decades of over‑policing and harsh sentencing in Black neighborhoods are effectively frozen, even as the state has used some cannabis revenues for dental care, after‑school programs and early childhood screenings. The dispute is drawing scrutiny from reparations advocates and critics alike as a test case of whether cannabis‑funded local reparations can move from rhetoric to actual payouts, and whether city executives will let independent commissions truly control large new revenue streams.