The Charleston City Council will vote on adopting and levying a cannabis tax during its meeting Tuesday evening at 6:30 p.m. in City Hall.

If approved, the ordinance would implement a maximum 3 percent tax on all retail sales of cannabis.

The tax would be imposed on all people engaged in the sale of cannabis unless said cannabis is purchased under the Compassionate Use of Medical Cannabis Program.

Currently the city has a moratorium in place on cannabis businesses until May 31 that was put in place on Oct. 1, 2019.

On Oct. 2, 2019, The Daily Eastern News reported that Mayor Brandon Combs said the possibility of having cannabis businesses in Charleston was not impossible.

“We just put (the moratorium) there to do the research, and if after a month we’ve found out all the research that we need to know, we can turn around and say, ‘Hey guess what? We’re in business,’” Combs said after the Oct. 1, 2019 meeting. “We’re not saying we’re not open for business; we’re not saying that we’re against it. We’re saying that we want to do proper research as our due diligence to our citizens and to Charleston before we just say yes to something that is still up in the air.”

Another ordinance the council will vote on could potentially change the language used in the special use permit section of the alcoholic beverages section of the business and regulations of the city code.

The change will add an additional license for events under special use permit licenses.

The annual city audit review will be given at the meeting, and two raffle licenses will be voted on.

Following the action items, time is reserved for members of the public to address the council. No action will be taken on matters not listed on the agenda, and the Council is not required to take any further action or to discuss the matter further. 

The council asks that those who choose to address the council speak into the microphone, limit the presentation to three minutes and avoid repetitive comments.

Corryn Brock can be reached at 581-2812 or at cebrock@eiu.edu.