San Diego Cannabis Roundtable
Recap
September 22, 2018 at 10 AM - 1 PM
San Diego, CA
Introductory Discussion and Industry Panel
We began the San Diego symposium with a conversation between our two moderators, California Board of Equalization member (and candidate for California State Treasurer) Fiona Ma, and journalist Jesse Marx (Voice of San Diego). They set the stage for the three fascinating discussions to follow. The first panel focused on challenges and opportunities faced by the cannabis industry in California. Panelists included: Melissa Sanchez of the Harvest Law Group, Dustin McDonald of Weedmaps, Charles Le of MGO Ello, and Julian Canete of the California Hispanic Chamber of Commerce.
Community Panel Discussion
The San Diego symposium explored how the lack of cannabis business licensing by state and local regulators impacts various sectors of the local community: Panelists Robbin Lynn of the One Minute Cannabist, Dallin Young of the Association of Cannabis Professionals, and Joel Wiesberger of the San Diego Farm Bureau shared their insights.
Government Panel
Local and State government play a critical role in ensuring that enough cannabis businesses are licensed to meet patient and consumer demand, and to thwart the illicit market. Local elected officials and candidates, including CA Assembly Member Lorena Gonalez Fletcher, UCSD Professor Nathan Fletcher (candidate for San Diego County Supervisor), Oceanside Deputy Mayor Chuck Lowery, and Dr. Jennifer Campbell (candidate for San Diego City Council) provided thoughtful and practical solutions to the various challenges ahead. State Senator (and candidate for CA Insurance Commissioner) Ricardo Lara provided the symposium with encouraging final remarks.
Join us at our next session in Los Angeles!
Moderators
Fiona Ma
Fiona serves on the California State Board of Equalization, where she works to protect the rights of taxpayers while also ensuring that California collects its fair share of tax revenues. She is currently a candidate for California State Treasurer.
Jesse Marx
Jesse is the associate editor at the Voice of San Diego. He writes about cannabis and politics, and manages the op-ed section.
Panelists
Dustin McDonald, Vice President of Government Relations, Weedmaps
Dustin McDonald is the Vice President of Government Relations for Weedmaps, where he leads the effort to engage Congress, the Administration and state and local governments on marijuana policy reforms.
Julian Canete, President & CEO, California Hispanic Chambers of Commerce
Julian is the President and CEO of the California Hispanic Chambers of Commerce, the country’s largest statewide ethnic chamber of commerce. He has previously served as President of CHCC from 1999-2006 and again from 2009-2012.
Charles Le, Senior Tax Manager, MGO Ello
Charles assists cultivators, manufacturers, distributors and retailers with a range of tax services including corporate and partnership compliance, organizational restructuring, IRC 280E consulting and responding to inquiries from the federal and state taxing authorities.
Melissa Sanchez, Founder, Harvest Law Group
Melissa founded Harvest Law Group in 2012 (formerly known as MS Law). She created the firm to focus on her passion for helping clients become and stay compliant with cannabis laws.
Robbin Lynn, Consultant, One Minute Cannabist
Robbin is a Certified Cannabis Specialist (CCS). She has spent the past decade helping people understand and navigate the latest methods for realizing the maximum benefits cannabis has to offer.
Dallin Young, Executive Director, Association of Cannabis Professionals
As the Executive Director of the Association of Cannabis Professionals, Dallin works to empower members of the cannabis industry to be successful, professional entrepreneurs that serve the needs of their patrons.
Lorena Gonzalez Fletcher, California State Assembly, 80th Assembly District
Assembly woman Gonzalez Fletcher was elected in 2013. Since then she has passed bills to protect the jobs of grocery workers, fight the misclassification of employees, protect immigrant communities from legal services fraud and other important issues.
Nathan Fletcher, Professor, University of California-San Diego
Nathan Fletcher is a Marine Corps combat veteran, former California State Assemblymember and a Professor of Practice in Political Science at the University of California, San Diego. He is currently a candidate for San Diego County Supervisor.
Ricardo Lara, California State Senate, 33rd Senate District
Ricardo Lara was elected to the California Senate in 2012. He has engineered the campaign to allow for multi-lingual education in California’s schools and is a key leader behind the effort to grant driver’s licenses to undocumented immigrants. He is currently a candidate for California Insurance Commissioner.
Chuck Lowery, Deputy Mayor, City of Oceanside
Chuck Lowery is Deputy Mayor of Oceanside, California–the city where he was born and raised. Before running for public office, he founded and operated his own business.
Dr. Jennifer Campbell
Dr. Jennifer Campbell has practiced and taught Family Medicine for nearly 40 years. While living in San Diego for the past 13 years, she has been a community activist. She is currently a candidate for the San Diego City Council.
Joel Wiesberger, Chair, Cannabis Working Group, Farm Bureau of San Diego County
Joel Wiesberger is a former nurseryman and an advocate for cultivation in the San Diego region.