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b'November 8, 2021 \\u2014 The online cannabis re-application portal closed late Tuesday night, amid confusion about the final requirements and the fate of incomplete applications. At this point, it\\u2019s not clear if those who re-submitted their applications online will be denied a permit if they are missing any documents.\\nMichael Katz, the Executive Director of the Mendocino Cannabis Alliance, sent KZYX an email that an applicant received from the cannabis program in late October, saying that \\u201cALL submissions will be reviewed! We will not be denying applications because we\\u2019ve had to ask for additional information that was not clarified ahead of time.\\u201d\\nBut on the day the applications were due, Katz flagged a line in a reminder email from the program with the opposite message, saying, \\u201cOnce the portal closes no further materials can be submitted. Please be sure to check your submission materials prior to pressing submit as incomplete applications will be denied.\\u201d \\nKatz said that among his members: \\u201cthe average story is one of confusion, not feeling supported, and being forced to jump through new and poorly defined hoops.\\u201d\\nSarah Hake has heard a similar sentiment among her client base. Hake is the COO of Countervail Inc., which specializes in bookkeeping, tax preparation and legal compliance for people in the cannabis business. She said she was working on 40-50 portal applications for her clients right up to the deadline. She reported that the changing requirements were detailed and often came at the worst possible time, in the middle of harvest during a year when cannabis prices have plummeted. \\n\\u201cWhat you\\u2019re telling us is if somebody is deemed incomplete, they\\u2019re going to be denied,\\u201d she said, outlining the situation. \\u201cAnd then you\\u2019re deeming them incomplete for things that they weren\\u2019t told were needed, or things that weren\\u2019t clearly communicated, or things like a bullfrog management plan, where there\\u2019s absolutely no documentation as to what that should include or what that should look like, so we\\u2019re all having to guess as to what that should be and then being told that\\u2019s not good enough.\\u201d \\nCultivators are required to pay a minimum tax every year, and Hake wondered if her clients would have to pay the tax, even if their applications are eventually denied. And she\\u2019s been told she might have to wait until after the first of the year to find out the status of some of those applications. \\u201cSo now you\\u2019ve bumped these cultivators who may get denied through the end of the year into another year,\\u201d she said, envisioning the possibility. \\u201cAre you going to charge them the minimum tax for that? And they\\u2019re feeling taken advantage of in this way, that, oh, you\\u2019re just going to charge me the five thousand dollars, and then kick me out of the program. There\\u2019s a lot of frustration, and I think a lot of heartbreak and a lot of fear,\\u201d she concluded.\\nKristin Nevedal was promoted from cannabis program manager to cannabis program director on October 19th. CEO Carmel Angelo confirmed that Nevedal still reports directly to the Board of Supervisors. Katz wants more supervisorial involvement to resolve what he sees as a systemic lack of clarity throughout the cannabis program. \\u201cThe board, minus Supervisor Haschak, has continually chosen not to pursue a committee of any sort to address the myriad issues that are facing the program,\\u201d he complained. \\u201cWhen the program manager was promoted to program director, there was no job description posted. The details of that job and what are specifically different about it from the program manager position, that was not provided. Given the confusion around every licensee\\u2019s status in the program at the moment, it would be our hope that the county would be willing to have these conversations openly and transparently.\\u201d\\nBut since the repeal of Chapter 22.18, the cannabis ordinance the board planned to replace 10a17, cannabis has not played its formerly prominent role on the Board of Supervisors agendas. There is a consent calendar item tomorrow about the submission of an application for an $18 million grant from the state Department of Cannabis Control. But most cannabis-related matters have been addressed during public comment, including reports from Nevedal, where supervisors can ask clarifying questions but cannot give direction because no formal discussion has been agendized.\\nSupervisor John Haschak explained his understanding of Nevedal\\u2019s comments at the last meeting on October 26, the board\\u2019s intent, and how he\\u2019d like to resolve any confusion. \\u201cThe intent of the board is really to get the people in and then process those,\\u201d he said. \\u201cAnd I thought that that\\u2019s what the cannabis program manager had said, was that they were going to process the ones that had been submitted, even though it\\u2019s not possible to deal with the thousands and thousands of documents at the time...So that\\u2019s what I hope happens. I think it\\u2019s the intent of the board to kind of separate those who aren\\u2019t serious about applying for a permit and those that are...there have been some changes in the portal,\\u201d he acknowledged. \\u201cIt\\u2019s a new process. It\\u2019s technology at its best and sometimes worst, and so there are going to be glitches. I think that we need to have a working group of the board, an ad hoc group, to look at the issues, try to deal with them, and create a process for people to appeal whatever decision is made in the cannabis program. So that we can get as many people through the system who really want to get through and be legal and permitted. I think that should be the intent.\\u201d\\nThere\\u2019s not much appetite from the rest of the board for an ongoing standing committee to address cannabis issues, but Supervisor Glenn McGourty told KZYX he\\u2019d be willing to serve on short-term assignments with a specific and focussed purpose, like resolving the portal.\\nSarah Hake shared her wish list. \\u201cLet us know why you\\u2019re asking for the thing,\\u201d she began; \\u201cexactly what it is you want so we can hand you that document. And make it easy on everyone. Because nobody wants to be out of compliance. These people are doing this because they want to be in compliance.\\u201d'