PAYMENT OPTIONS
The world of cannabis payments is dynamic, and we work hard to always ensure that we balance customer convenience with what’s safe, secure, and compliant. SPARC currently offers customers three payment options:
- NEW! DIGITAL PREPAY — Our newest, easiest, safest, most popular, and preferred form of payment. A simple, one-time sign up allows you to electronically transfer funds from your bank account to prepay for your SPARC purchase. There is a $3.00 fee per transaction, and your bank will not apply an additional fee. We will send you a text message to pay for your order when it’s ready. This payment form works for both in-store and delivery.
- CASHLESS ATM — Use your debit card to pay. Cashless ATM is like going to the ATM, except we keep the portion that pays for your order and then you get the remaining change. There is a fee per transaction (fees vary by location), and your bank may apply an additional fee. This payment form is offered in-store.
- CASH — Cash is accepted at all of our locations, and most locations have an ATM on-site. There is no fee for paying with cash. This payment form works for both in-store and delivery.
Payment options may vary by location — please check the checkout details screen before placing your order to see a full list of payment options available at that location. Unfortunately, due to federal banking regulations, we do not accept credit card payments at this time.
PAYMENT OPTION DETAILS
Cash is accepted at all of our locations, and most locations have an ATM on-site.
- There is no fee for paying with cash
This payment form works for both in-store and delivery.
Use your debit card to pay. Cashless ATM is like going to the ATM, except we keep the portion that pays for your order and then you get the remaining change.
- SPARC charges a fee per transaction (fees vary by location)
- Your bank may apply an additional fee
This payment form works in-store.
Our newest, easiest, safest, most popular, and preferred form of payment. A simple, one-time sign up allows you to electronically transfer funds from your bank account to prepay for your SPARC purchase.
- There is a $3.00 fee per transaction
- Your bank will not apply an additional fee
We will send you a text message to pay for your order when it’s ready. This payment form works for both in-store and delivery.
STEP-BY-STEP EXAMPLE:
note: you only need to link your bank account one time. After that, you’ll be able to skip directly from step 1 (receiving a text message) to step 11 (paying).
STEP 1
Once your order is packed & ready, you’ll receive a text message from SPARC; click the link in the message
STEP 2
You’ll see your order and payment options; click the ‘Link a Bank Account’ button in the bottom right
STEP 3
Review the three steps to link your bank account and then click the ‘Next’ button to proceed
STEP 4
Select your financial institution by clicking on the icon; if you don’t see it, use the search function to find it
STEP 5
Enter the username and password to log into your financial institution
STEP 6
Determine how you want the security code communicated to you
STEP 7
Enter the security code in order to complete verification & sign-in
STEP 8
Select the specific bank account that you want to link to SPARC
STEP 9
Select the right bank account and then click ‘Continue’ to proceed
STEP 10
Your bank account is not linked! Click ‘Finish’ to complete the payment
STEP 11
Back on you order, you can now click the ‘Pay’ button to pay for the order
STEP 12
Your payment is now complete and ready for pick-up / delivery
STATE & LOCAL TAXES
Taxes on cannabis help fund the regulation of the cannabis market, but they also drive up prices in the legal market and consequentially drive up demand in the illegal market. And based on how the regulations are written, there are several cannabis taxes throughout the supply chain. Trust us, we like them even less than you do; but while we don’t make the rules, we do need to follow them. At SPARC, our goal is to provide you with as much transparency as possible to the taxes that you’re paying on cannabis goods:
- Cultivation Tax — Baked into the cost of every cannabis product is a cultivation tax that’s paid when the cultivator transfers raw cannabis product to distributors. This is not an individual line item on your SPARC receipt, but we do want to make you aware of it because you’re still effectively paying it.
- Excise Tax — A value added tax (VAT) that’s based on the wholesale price of the individual SKU and assumes a certain mark-up percentage set by regulators on a periodic basis. While it’s rare, the wholesale price and/or the mark-up percentage of individual SKUs can vary, causing the Excise Tax for those SKUs to vary as well. It is for this reason we label Excise Tax as ‘Expected Excise Tax’ for customers who order online; the actual Excise Tax can only be calculated when the specific SKU for your order is selected.
- Sales Tax — The same as the sales tax that you would pay for many other goods and services. Medical customers with a valid MMID card are exempt from paying this tax.
- Local Taxes — Local jurisdictions have the power to add additional taxes as they see fit. In Santa Rosa, for example, there is a 3% city tax applied to all cannabis sales (in addition to all of the other taxes).
State taxes are set by the State of California and the Bureau of Cannabis Control (BCC). Click here to read more about their policies and tax rules. We encourage you to reach out to your State and local representatives; click here to find your representatives. A more streamlined cannabis tax system would benefit you, SPARC, and the whole legal cannabis community.
PAYMENTS & FEDERAL CANNABIS POLICY
While the State of California has make big strides towards advancing cannabis policy, the federal government lags behind. The biggest example of this is the lack of access to banking in the cannabis industry. This impacts SPARC as an operator, but it also impacts you as a customer. In order to advance cannabis policy at the federal level, we support the following bills. Both measures would significantly help advance banking access in the cannabis industry, which would benefit not only you and SPARC, but the whole cannabis community.
SAFE BANKING ACT
The Secure and Fair Enforcement (SAFE) Banking Act is proposed legislation that effectively providing cannabis operators with the same access to banking services as other industries.
STATES ACT
The Strengthening the Tenth Amendment Through Entrusting States (STATES) Act is proposed legislation that that would, at the federal level, recognize the legalization of cannabis and the state laws that govern cannabis in states where cannabis has been legalized.
To vocalize your support for this legislation and cannabis legislation more broadly, we also encourage you to make your voice heard by contacting your federal representatives. Click here to find your House Representative and click here to find your Senators. We’re all in this fight together — thank you for doing your part to pave the future of cannabis policy!
