Oh oh, California could not have legal cannabis by the summer

California's legal cannabis supply promises to dry up by spring unless a quick fix is ​​passed as a law.
On Tuesday, February 19, California Legislature Senate Bill 67 published to keep cannabis farms open while waiting for permanent licenses.

Thousands of farms currently work under temporary permits from the California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA). Those 6.924 temporary licenses run faster than the CDFA can issue permanent annual licenses. These temporary licenses can also not be extended unless the existing legislation is amended.

It has been 834 days since California voters approved cannabis legalization in November 2016. So far, the CDFA has issued only nine annual licenses for cannabis farms. Another 39 annual farm licenses are pending payment of fees as high as $ 44.000 per license.

Industry expert and cannabis lawyer Omar Figueroa said that without legal farm licenses there is no legal industry. Meanwhile, the state's illegal market continues to flourish.

"If California is without regulated cannabis, consumers will turn to the unregulated market, making it even more difficult for the few remaining licensed cannabis companies to make a living," Figueroa said.

“The largest legal cannabis industry in the world is on the verge of collapse,” said Lauren Mendelsohn, an employee of Figueroa's law firms.

The author of the Senate Bill 67 is Senator Mike McGuire, who represents many cannabis farmers north of San Francisco.

Why a fix is ​​needed

There is, of course, no shortage of cannabis (unlicensed sales) in California. It's the legal cannabis system that can dry up.

California's Proposition 64 legalization mandates government licensing for the entire commercial cannabis supply chain. But bureaucratic red tape has been most extensive in the licensing of agricultural holdings. Corporations require local city and county approval, plus Department of Fish & Wildlife and California State Water Resources Control Board signings. The annual farm license application is 44 pages long and application reviews can take longer than four months.

The main cause that agricultural licenses are delayed is the environmental assessment, said CDFA director Richard Parrott on 29 January. For example, cannabis is the only type of crop that is subject to the state's most stringent environmental legislation, the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA).

Senate Bill 67 provides more time for government officials to try to get more companies past the CEQA rating to achieve “preliminary” or “annual” licensure.

Read the full article Leafly (EN, source)
(photo: Ecowaste services)