Humboldt County extends deadline to pay marijuana grower taxes

Humboldt County supervisors have extended the deadline for hundreds of marijuana farmers to pay off cultivation taxes enacted years ago.County growers faced a March 31 deadline to eliminate all tax debts related to Measure S, a ballot referendum approved by voters in 2016, more than a year before the launch of adult-use sales.

ADVERTISEMENT Supervisors pushed the looming deadline to April 4 for 210 license holders to make their first payments or face suspension, according to the Standard Times of Eureka.For the hundreds more who have made some payment, their deadline was extended to Dec.

31, 2025.No more relief The county supervisors indicated at their March 25 meeting this will be the final extension, the newspaper reported.

Despite the extensions, hundreds of Humboldt County farmers are still in jeopardy of losing their business licenses.More than 75% of the county’s 1,000 or so cultivation permit holders carry some tax debt, MJBizDaily reported recently, citing information obtained by a Public Records Act request from the Humboldt County Growers Alliance (HGCA).

ADVERTISEMENT The average outstanding tax debt is roughly $12,000, according to county data and officials, although some owe more than $150,000.In all, cultivation permit holders owe the county more than $17 million in taxes, primarily from 2017 to 2021.

Of the 765 listed account holders with cultivation licenses in Humboldt County, public records show 415 agreed to a payment plan, or roughly 54%.“Cultivators must now take immediate steps to address their tax obligations or risk losing their permits,” HCGA Executive Director Natalynne DeLapp warned in a memo sent to members.

Addressing the tax debt In the letter, obtained by MJBizDaily, DeLapp encouraged HGCA members to confirm their tax records with the county treasurer and planning department because of “known discrepancies” between the age...