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Sonoma County Cannabis Program
Cannabis Program Update & Environmental Impact Report
Updated Project Timeline - February 13, 2025
Given the complicated and evolving public sentiment around cannabis land uses and cannabis itself, development of the proposed program and preparation of the draft EIR has taken longer than previously anticipated. Staff have carefully evaluated and taken into consideration public comment, changing state regulations, and regulatory actions taken by other California counties when revising the proposed project, and have dedicated substantial time to developing more protective neighborhood compatibility setbacks, more detailed provisions for special events, and additional standards for ministerial crop swaps, and to collaborating with the County’s EIR consultant to develop a reasonable range of project alternatives to analyze in the Draft EIR.
An informational workshop has been scheduled for the Board of Supervisors meeting on April 15, 2025. To accommodate ongoing work and the April informational workshop, the project timeline has been revised. Key changes to the project timeline include:
- The Draft EIR is scheduled for publication in late April, after the April 15, 2025 workshop
- The public comment period has been extended from 45 days to 60 days
- Hearings at the Planning Commission would start in June 2025 and continue through September 2025
- The Board of Supervisors Hearing is scheduled for October 28, 2025
Updated Draft Documents Now Available - July 2024
Permit Sonoma has released a final draft Cannabis Land Use Ordinance, General Plan Amendment, and other documents. Revisions were made to certain documents published on April 2, 2024 in response to public input received during the public comment period. Comments may continue to be submitted at any time throughout this process, both before and after publication of the Draft EIR.
A Frequently Asked Questions document has been created, which aims to address questions received in response to the last publication.
Frequently Asked Questions (PDF: 443 KB)
Draft Cannabis Land Use Ordinance Public Comment and Documents - April 2024
On April 2, 2024, Permit Sonoma released a draft Cannabis Land Use Ordinance, Draft General Plan Amendment and other documents. A public comment period was open through May 3, 2024.
Link to public comment received during the comment period (SoCo Cloud link)
Link to interactive Cannabis Ordinance Update GIS map
Notice of Preparation and Public Scoping Meeting for the Cannabis EIR - February 6, 2023
The County prepared and released a Notice of Preparation (NOP) on February 6, 2023, held a virtual public scoping meeting on March 8, 2023, and provided a public comment period through March 23, 2023 to allow an opportunity for agency staff and interested members of the public to submit written and verbal comments on the scope of the environmental issues to be addressed in the EIR. The NOP provides a brief summary of the Update, the County’s preliminary identification of the potential environmental issues to be analyzed in the EIR, and information on how to provide comments. The scoping meeting included a presentation on elements of the Cannabis Program Update, a summary of the NOP, and the broader CEQA process to come.
Read the Notice of Preparation (PDF: 953 KB)
Link to Scoping Meeting PowerPoint Presentation (English and Spanish)
Scoping Meeting Zoom Recording
Ascent Environmental, Inc. selected as consultant for Cannabis Program Update EIR and Economic Analysis - October 2022
Permit Sonoma released a Request for Proposals (RFP) on May 20, 2022, to solicit proposals to prepare a Programmatic EIR and an Economic Analysis in support of the Comprehensive Cannabis Program Update. Two firms responded with proposals for the requested scope of work: Ascent Environmental, Inc. and Rincon Consultants, Inc.
County staff evaluated and scored both proposals in accordance with the evaluation criteria outlined in the RFP. The review panel consisted of four staff members from the Planning Division of Permit Sonoma and one staff member from the County Administrator’s Office. Ascent was unanimously scored as the preferred bidder because of the proposal’s strong emphasis on environmental review streamlining of future cannabis applications and demonstrated experience conducting similar environmental reviews for other California county cannabis land use ordinances.
The Board of Supervisors approved the selection on October 4, 2022.
Item Materials on Board of Supervisors Agenda website
Read the Request for Proposals
Cannabis Program Update & EIR Public Comment
Public comment received regarding the Cannabis Program Update & EIR will be published on a monthly basis.
Comprehensive Cannabis Program Update Study Session - September 28, 2021
On June 8, 2021, the Board of Supervisors directed staff to complete a comprehensive update of the cannabis program, based on community input and an Environmental Impact Report (EIR). As a first step in this three-year process, staff relaunched public outreach and engagement by holding eight virtual visioning sessions, twelve small group outreach sessions, and conducting a county-wide survey.
This study session provided an opportunity for staff to update the Board on the results of the outreach, and receive direction regarding overall program goals and policy options. This workshop also served as a forum for additional public input on the goals of the project.