2022 Legislative Session: Inside Scoop with Illinois State Representative Sonya Harper

2022 Legislative Session Episode Details

First appointed to the Illinois House of Representatives in 2015, State Rep. Sonya Harper’s star has risen rapidly and prominently in Springfield. And it’s likely to continue the same trajectory for some time. With a background in media and communications and a reputation as a dedicated activist and community leader and savvy entrepreneur, she has earned strong support from her constituents and colleagues.

Her expertise in urban agriculture and access to healthy foods has propelled her into the Chairmanship of the influential House Agriculture Committee. And her focus on issues of food insecurity, education, and equity raised her profile among her peers, who elected her as Joint Chair of Illinois’ Legislative Black Caucus. Rep. Harper has previously introduced cannabis-based hospitality, tourism, and home delivery legislation. She will continue to play a leading role in shaping cannabis policy in the coming years.

Cannabis and Agriculture 00:01

• Representative Sonya Harper believes that agriculture is important.
• She also believes that equity in agriculture is important, which includes cannabis.
• Cannabis is important because it can help repair the harm done by the war on drugs.
• Illinois has many opportunities to increase revenue in this state and in local communities.

Introduction to the Interview and Representative Sonya Harper 00:27

• The video is titled “Illinois State Representative Sonya Harper: Inside The 2022 Legislative Session.”
• Mark Peysakhovic is the host of “The Cannabis Community Insider.”
• Representative Sonya Harper is the guest of the interview.
• She is the chairperson of the House Agriculture and Conservation Committee and a staunch leader and advocate for smart cannabis policy.

Session Schedule and Legislative Priorities 01:03

• The session schedule is unusual this year.
• The session will run from January to March instead of January to May.
• Representative Harper is trying to be optimistic about the session.
• She thinks that people will be able to get their legislative priorities over the finish line.
• She does not see people taking on very contentious issues this year.
• However, she knows that people have a lot of stuff they want to get past from previous years.

Cannabis Policy Priorities 03:22

• Representative Harper has several measures that she hopes to get action on this session.
• These measures include social equity delivery, social consumption, and events and tours.
• These measures were part of their long list of recommendations that did not make it into the legislation.
• Representative Harper wants to provide as many opportunities for folks to enter this large cannabis industry.
• She hopes that these measures will be sustainable for both businesses and communities that need revenue.

Social Equity Delivery 05:15

• Representative Harper has been getting a lot of feedback about the social equity delivery.
• Lots of folks are interested in that market and want to know when it will be opened up.
• This is a good measure that Representative Harper hopes to move.

Ancillary businesses and diversity programs 07:28

• Ancillary businesses are being considered for meshing into the current cannabis industry.
• Efforts are being made to contract a certain percentage of business with women and minority vendors similar to the current business enterprise program with the state.
• The goal is to open up the cannabis industry to as many businesses as possible to join this billion-dollar industry.

State diversity programs 08:36

• The state diversity program is much broader than equity within the context of beginning to heal the wounds caused by the war on drugs.
• Women, people with disabilities, and other groups are also included.
• Efforts are being made to calibrate and target social equity in terms of getting the right people opportunities.
• Changes to the statute have been made to drill down more on social equity applicants and narrow or broaden the scope as necessary.
• A big disparity study is awaited to make more permanent changes down the road to ensure equity forever.

Eye on social equity 10:37

• The market is being studied to define social equity applicants correctly.
• Efforts are being made to ensure that those people who are harmed or still suffering harms from the war on drugs are given their fair due.
• Permanent changes will be made down the road to ensure equity forever.

Slow government processes 12:30

• Government processes are slow and often take trial and error.
• There are a lot of different entities and agencies involved, making the process even more complex.
• There should be some streamlining of the approximately 13 agencies involved in the cannabis industry.

Streamlining agencies 14:27

• There should be some streamlining of the approximately 13 agencies involved in the cannabis industry.

Streamlining Equity in the Adult Use Market 14:34

• Representative Sonya Harper proposes legislation for streamlining equity in the adult use market.
• She has been having conversations with cannabis entrepreneurs about the issue.
• The aim is to ensure that equity happens the way it is intended to happen.
• There is a need to make sure that the market in Illinois goes the way it is intended to happen.

Cannabis Equity Commission 16:39

• Harper proposed a cannabis equity commission in the previous legislative session to oversee everything from licensing to equity.
• The commission would be responsible for ensuring that equity is a pillar in legislation.

Ensuring Equity from Here On Out 15:55

• Harper worries that even if equity is achieved perfectly under the current administration, it may not be followed 20 years down the line.
• She is not sure that they are set up right to ensure equity from here on out.
• There is a need for one central agency or office that is in charge of implementation and ensuring equity.

Expanding Tools for Equity 17:35

• The Black Caucus has a long list of ways to expand equity beyond ownership.
• There are complaints about the funneling of revenue to organizations and businesses in communities.
• The R3 program needs to ensure that funds are distributed fairly.

Geographical Locations of Dispensaries 19:55

• Harper believes that there is a need for more equity in the geographical locations of dispensaries.
• There are still people who have not had their cannabis records expunged.
• There is a need to make the industry more accessible to people with records.

Cannabis legislation plans 21:18

• Representative Sonya Harper talks about the Black Caucus’s plans for cannabis legislation in the 2022 session.
• They have a small work group working on cannabis legislation.
• They are figuring out the right strategy to move forward while consulting different advocates, community organizations, people on the ground, folks in the industry, and agencies.
• They want to make sure they hit all their bases on the proposals that they choose to move forward.

Cannabis experts in the caucus 22:01

• Representative Sonya Harper reveals that she carries most of the cannabis-related legislation.
• LaShawn Ford is another person in the caucus working on cannabis legislation.
• They plan on leaning towards him for some stuff as well.

Encouraging help from the community 23:47

• Representative Sonya Harper welcomes help with advocating for their bills.
• Getting bills passed in Springfield is not an easy feat.
• If anyone sees anything out there that they’ve already introduced or they have ideas that can make their bills better, please bring them forward.
• They always concentrate on medical and adult use, but they are interested in ways to ensure equity in their Illinois hemp market as well.

Equity in agriculture 24:37

• Representative Sonya Harper is interested in equity in agriculture period and ways to ensure it.
• She is interested in repairing the harm done by the war on drugs.
• She believes that it includes so many other things and so many wonderful opportunities to increase revenue in the state in their A and local communities.
• She wants to provide a platform, especially for the women of agriculture, to promote the importance of agriculture and equity in it.

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