NC H1145

Transfer $50,000,000 from the Reserve to the Coronavirus Relief Fund for the 2019-2020 fiscal year, with funds remaining available to expend until December 30, 2020.

Allocate the $50,000,000 to the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services to provide grants to eligible farmers for converting farm production to medical marijuana cultivation, contingent upon House Bill 401 or substantially equivalent legislation legalizing medical marijuana becoming law.

Eligible expenses include purchasing or leasing equipment for marijuana planting/cultivation/harvest/processing, acquiring chemicals and soil supplements, and filing/maintaining cultivation licenses.

Eligible farmers must hold a qualifying farmer sales tax exemption and have average annual farming income not exceeding $200,000 over the three preceding taxable years.

Department must report to the Joint Legislative Oversight Committee on Agriculture by August 1, 2020, on fund distribution and by February 1, 2021, on how recipients used the funds.