Bill Text: CA AB1894 | 2013-2014 | Regular Session | Amended
Bill Title: Medical cannabis.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2014-05-29 - Read third time. Refused passage. (Ayes 26. Noes 33. Page 5372.). [AB1894 Detail]
Download: California-2013-AB1894-Amended.html
BILL NUMBER: AB 1894 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MAY 23, 2014
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 1, 2014
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Ammiano
( Coauthor: Assembly Member
Bonta )
FEBRUARY 19, 2014
An act to amend Sections 2220.05, 2242, and 2264 of, and to add
Chapter 18 (commencing with Section 26000) to Division 9 of, the
Business and Professions Code, to add Section 23028 to the
Government Code, and to amend Section 11362.7 of, and to amend
and repeal Section 11362.775 of, the Health and Safety Code,
and to add Chapter 4 (commencing with Section 7294) to Part 1.7 of
Division 2 of the Revenue and Taxation Code, relating to
medical cannabis, and making an appropriation therefor.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 1894, as amended, Ammiano. Falsely filed liens or
encumbrances. Medical cannabis.
(1) Existing law, the Compassionate Use Act of 1996, an initiative
measure enacted by the approval of Proposition 215 at the November
6, 1996, statewide general election, authorizes the use of marijuana
for medical purposes. Existing law enacted by the Legislature,
commonly referred to as the Medical Marijuana Program Act, requires
the establishment of a program for the issuance of identification
cards to qualified patients so that they may lawfully use marijuana
for medical purposes, and requires the establishment of guidelines
for the lawful cultivation of marijuana grown for medical use.
The Medical Practice Act provides for the regulation and licensing
of physicians and surgeons by the Medical Board of California and
requires the board to prioritize investigations and prosecutions of
physicians and surgeons representing the greatest threat of harm, as
specified. Existing law identifies the cases that are to be given
priority, which include cases of repeated acts of excessively
prescribing, furnishing, or administering controlled substances
without a good faith prior examination of the patient. Existing law
makes it unprofessional conduct for a physician and surgeon to
prescribe, dispense, or furnish dangerous drugs without an
appropriate prior examination and medical indication. Existing law
also makes it unprofessional conduct to employ, aid, or abet an
unlicensed person in the practice of medicine. Existing law generally
makes any person who violates these provisions guilty of a
misdemeanor.
This bill would enact the Medical Cannabis Regulation and Control
Act and would create the Division of Medical Cannabis Regulation and
Enforcement within the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control, to
be administered by a person exempt from civil service who is
appointed by the Director of Alcoholic Beverage Control. The bill
would grant the department the exclusive power to
register persons for the cultivation, manufacture, testing,
transportation, storage, distribution, and sale of medical cannabis
within the state subject to specified exemptions for
provided that the authority of a city or county
to adopt ordinances inconsistent with the requirements of the
act that ban, regulate, or tax medical cannabis activities, and to
enforce those ordinances, would not be affected by the act .
The bill would provide that the director and persons employed by the
department to administer and enforce its provisions are peace
officers. The bill would prescribe requirements for the issuance,
renewal, suspension, and revocation of mandatory commercial
registrations and fees in relation to these activities. The bill
would permit the department to assist statewide taxation authorities
in the development of uniform policies for the
state taxation of mandatory commercial medical cannabis
registrants and to assist in the development of regulation in
connection with work safety in this industry. The bill would
authorize the division to establish a grant program for the purpose
of funding medical cannabis regulation and enforcement.
The bill would establish the Medical Cannabis Regulation Fund and
would require deposit of fees into the fund. The bill would
continuously appropriate moneys within the fund to the division for
the purposes of administering the program. The bill would require the
deposit of penalty money into the General Fund.
The bill would require the department, on or before January 1,
2016, to issue regulations as necessary for the implementation and
enforcement of mandatory commercial medical cannabis registration, as
specified, and including requirements
analogous to statutory environmental, agricultural, consumer
protection, and food and product safety requirements. The bill would
require the department to administer and enforce these requirements.
The bill would prescribe requirements for provisional
registrations to be operative January 1, 2015. The bill would
prohibit approval of a mandatory commercial registration for
specified reasons, including if a licensed physician making patient
recommendations for medical cannabis is an interested party in the
proposed operation, and would prohibit a physician from recommending
medical cannabis to a patient while he or she is a mandatory
commercial registrant, or associated, as specified, with a mandatory
commercial registrant. The bill would prohibit a registrant from
holding a one registration in more than one class of medical
cannibis activities.
The bill would require a registrant to keep various records
in connections with medical cannabis activities and would prescribe
requirements for making records available to the department and any
state or local agency. The bill would provide that certain
patient and caregiver information is excluded from disclosure to the
public. The bill would provide that the act does not apply to
the protections granted to a patient or primary caregiver acting
pursuant to the Compassionate Use Act of 1996 and would exempt these
parties from the application of the act, provided they act
consistently with specified requirements. The bill would
provide that the actions of a mandatory commercial registrant or
provisional registrant, its employees, and its agents that are
permitted pursuant to a valid mandatory commercial registration
issued by the division and that are conducted in accordance with the
requirements of the act are not unlawful under state law ,
as specified. The bill would provide a similar state law
immunity for a property owner who allows his or her property to be
used by a mandatory commercial registrant or provisional registrant.
The bill would require the department to work in conjunction with
law enforcement entities throughout the state to implement and
enforce the rules and regulations regarding medical cannabis and to
take appropriate action against businesses and individuals that fail
to comply with the law. The bill would prohibit, on and after January
1, 2016, a person other than a mandatory commercial registrant from
selling cannabis or cannabis products or performing other actions
related to cannabis, except as specified. The bill would provide that
its provisions do not affect local zoning ordinances or
laws of general application prevent
specified city or county actions, including zoning ordinances banning
or regulating the location, operation, or establishment of a
commercial registrant . The bill would make certain violations
of its provisions a crime, thereby imposing a state-mandated local
program. The bill would establish requirements for the transportation
of medical cannabis. The bill would specify that its provisions are
severable.
The bill would specify that recommending marijuana to patients
without a good faith examination and medical reason or
recommending marijuana for nonmedical purposes is
unprofessional conduct and is a type of case
conduct. The bill would provide that specified acts of
recommending marijuana without a good faith examination are among the
types of cases that should be given priority for investigation
and prosecution by the Medical Board of California, as described
above. The bill would also specify that employment by, or an
agreement with, a mandatory medical cannabis registrant to provide
recommendations for medical marijuana constitutes unprofessional
conduct. By broadening the definition of a crime, the bill would
impose a state-mandated local program. The bill would repeal, 90 days
after the department posts a specified notice on its Internet Web
site, the provisions described above prohibiting prosecution of
qualified patients, persons with valid identification cards, and
designated primary caregivers who associate in California,
collectively or cooperatively, to cultivate marijuana for medical
purposes.
(2) Existing law authorizes the board of supervisors of a county
and the governing body of a city to levy, increase, or
extend impose various taxes, including a
transactions and use tax at a rate of 0.25%, or a multiple thereof,
if approved by the required vote of the board or governing body and
the required vote of qualified voters, and limits the combined rate
of transactions and use taxes within a city or county to 2%.
This bill would additionally authorize the
board of supervisors of a county and the governing body of a
city to levy, increase, or extend transactions and use taxes on the
retail sale of or storage, use, or other consumption of, medical
marijuana or medical marijuana-infused products for general and
specified purposes, as provided, at a combined rate, as provided, not
to exceed 5%. to impose, by ordinance, a tax on th
e privilege of cultivating, dispensing, producing,
processing, preparing, storing, providing, donating, selling, or
distributing cannabis or cannabis products, including a transactions
and use tax at any rate specified by the board. The bill would
authorize the tax to be imposed for either general or specific
governmental purposes. The bill would require a tax imposed pursuant
to this authority to be subject to any applicable voter approval
requirement.
(3) The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse
local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the
state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that
reimbursement.
This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this
act for a specified reason.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: yes. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: yes.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. This act shall be known, and may be cited, as the
Medical Cannabis Regulation and Control Act.
SEC. 2. (a) The Legislature finds and declares all of the
following:
(1) In 1996, the people of the State of California enacted the
Compassionate Use Act of 1996, codified in Section 11362.5 of the
Health and Safety Code. The people of the State of California
declared that their purpose in enacting the measure was, among other
things, "to ensure that seriously ill Californians have the right to
obtain and use marijuana for medical purposes where that medical use
is deemed appropriate and has been recommended by a physician who has
determined that the person's health would benefit from the use of
marijuana in the treatment of cancer, anorexia, AIDS, chronic pain,
spasticity, glaucoma, arthritis, migraine, or any other illness for
which marijuana provides relief."
(2) The Compassionate Use Act of 1996 called on state government
to implement a plan for the safe and affordable distribution of
marijuana to all patients in medical need of marijuana.
(3) In 2003, the Legislature enacted the Medical Marijuana Program
Act (MMPA), codified in Article 2.5 (commencing with Section
11362.7) of Chapter 6 of Division 10 of the Health and Safety Code.
Under the guidance of the MMPA, approximately 60 California
cities and counties have created medical marijuana access ordinances
that can act as a guide for the state. However, many other cities and
counties are calling for more guidance and regulation from the state
and have passed bans or moratoria on medical marijuana cultivation
and distribution while awaiting this guidance.
(4) Greater certainty and uniformity
minimum statewide standards are urgently needed regarding
the rights and obligations of medical marijuana
facilities, and for the imposition and enforcement of regulations to
prevent unlawful cultivation and the diversion of marijuana to
nonmedical use.
(5) Despite the passage of the Compassionate Use Act of 1996 and
the MMPA, because of the lack of an effective statewide system for
regulating and controlling medical marijuana, local law enforcement
officials have been confronted with uncertainty about the legality of
some medical marijuana cultivation and distribution activities. The
current system of collectives and cooperatives makes law enforcement
difficult and endangers patient safety because of an inability to
monitor the supply of medical marijuana in the state and the lack of
quality control, testing, and labeling requirements. As a
result, many cities and counties have passed local ordinances that in
some cases ban the cultivation or distribution of medical marijuana.
(6) For the protection of all Californians, the state must act to
regulate and control medical marijuana and not preempt local
government ordinances. Cities and counties should be allowed to
impose reasonable local taxes and enact
reasonable zoning regulations and other restrictions ,
including bans, applicable to the commercial
cultivation and distribution of medical marijuana based on a
local governing body's determination of local needs. In order
to provide patients with access to safe medical marijuana products,
while at the same time preventing diversion of marijuana to
nonmedical uses and protecting the public, it is necessary to amend
the MMPA and to establish a comprehensive structure for regulating
the cultivation, production, and distribution of medical marijuana
products.
(7) A state entity shall be created to regulate and control the
mandatory registration of all entities involved in the commercial
cultivation, processing, manufacturing, testing, transportation,
distribution, provision, donation, and sale of medical
marijuana in this state. Patients and their primary caregivers
shall continue to be allowed to who
cultivate medical marijuana for the personal medical purposes of
the individual patient,
patients shall not be subject to the statewide system of
regulation established by this act but only medical marijuana
produced in compliance with this act may be sold or commercially
distributed.
(8) This act is not intended to prevent cities and counties from
imposing reasonable local taxes and enacting
reasonable zoning regulations and other
restrictions , including bans, applicable to the
commercial cultivation and distribution of medical marijuana based on
a local governing body's determination of local needs.
(9) It is the intent of the Legislature that the state entity
created to regulate and control medical marijuana solicit input from
cities and counties that have local ordinances or regulations
allowing for the registering, permitting, or licensing of medical
marijuana businesses, dispensaries, or other entities involved in
providing medical marijuana to patients in the process of
promulgating standards and regulations pursuant to this act.
(10) It is the intent of the Legislature that entities provided
immunity under Measure D, approved by the voters of the City of Los
Angeles on at the May 21, 2013,
ballot, general election, shall be
considered the equivalent of entities that are registered, permitted,
or licensed as a medical marijuana business, dispensary, or other
entity involved in providing medical marijuana to patients under a
local ordinance and shall be considered in compliance with a local
ordinance for the purposes of the implementation of this act and any
regulations promulgated by the Department of Alcoholic Beverage
Control.
(11) The provisions of this act are enacted pursuant to the powers
reserved to the State of California and its people under the Tenth
Amendment to the United States Constitution.
(12) Nothing in this act is intended to require any individual or
entity to engage in any conduct that violates federal law or to
exempt anyone from any requirement of federal law or to pose any
obstacle to federal enforcement of federal law.
(b) It is therefore the intent of the Legislature, in enacting
this act, to accomplish all of the following:
(1) To establish a statewide system for regulating and controlling
commercial medical cannabis activities by creating a state entity to
enact and enforce regulations governing the cultivation, processing,
manufacturing, testing, transportation, distribution,
provision, donation, and sale of commercial
medical cannabis.
(2) To allow cities and counties to enact reasonable
zoning regulations or other restrictions , including
bans, applicable to the cultivation, processing, manufacturing,
testing, and distribution of commercial medical cannabis based on
a local governing body's determination of local needs.
(3) To establish the Division of Medical Cannabis Regulation and
Enforcement to be located within the Department of Alcoholic Beverage
Control to provide a governmental agency that will ensure the
strict, honest, impartial, and uniform administration and enforcement
of the medical cannabis laws statewide
regulatory system established by this act throughout the state.
(4) To fulfill the promise enact
legislation in furtherance of the Compassionate Use Act of
1996 1996, which provides for the Legislature
to "implement a plan for the safe and affordable distribution
of marijuana to all patients in medical need of marijuana."
(5) To establish a statewide registration process for commercial
medical cannabis activities to identify for law enforcement which
entities are exempt from state criminal penalties for
the cultivation, processing, manufacturing, testing, transportation,
distribution, provision, donation, and sale of medical cannabis
solely on the basis of their activities conducted in
compliance with this act .
(6) To reduce the cost of commercial medical cannabis enforcement
by controlling commercial medical cannabis production and
distribution through comprehensive statewide regulation and providing
law enforcement guidelines to more easily determine whether or not a
person is acting in conformance with the state's medical cannabis
laws.
SEC. 3. Section 2220.05 of the Business and Professions Code is
amended to read:
2220.05. (a) In order to ensure that its resources are maximized
for the protection of the public, the Medical Board of California
shall prioritize its investigative and prosecutorial resources to
ensure that physicians and surgeons representing the greatest threat
of harm are identified and disciplined expeditiously. Cases involving
any of the following allegations shall be handled on a priority
basis, as follows, with the highest priority being given to cases in
the first paragraph:
(1) Gross negligence, incompetence, or repeated negligent acts
that involve death or serious bodily injury to one or more patients,
such that the physician and surgeon represents a danger to the
public.
(2) Drug or alcohol abuse by a physician and surgeon involving
death or serious bodily injury to a patient.
(3) Repeated acts of clearly excessive prescribing, furnishing, or
administering of controlled substances, or repeated acts of
prescribing, dispensing, or furnishing of controlled substances, or
recommending marijuana to patients for medical purposes, without a
good faith prior examination of the patient and medical reason
therefor. However, in no event shall a physician and surgeon
prescribing, furnishing, or administering controlled substances for
intractable pain consistent with lawful prescribing, including, but
not limited to, Sections 725, 2241.5, and 2241.6 of this code and
Sections 11159.2 and 124961 of the Health and Safety Code, be
prosecuted for excessive prescribing and prompt review of the
applicability of these provisions shall be made in any complaint that
may implicate these provisions.
(4) Sexual misconduct with one or more patients during a course of
treatment or an examination.
(5) Practicing medicine while under the influence of drugs or
alcohol.
(b) The board may by regulation prioritize cases involving an
allegation of conduct that is not described in subdivision (a). Those
cases prioritized by regulation shall not be assigned a priority
equal to or higher than the priorities established in subdivision
(a).
(c) The Medical Board of California shall indicate in its annual
report mandated by Section 2312 the number of temporary restraining
orders, interim suspension orders, and disciplinary actions that are
taken in each priority category specified in subdivisions (a) and
(b).
SEC. 4. Section 2242 of the Business and Professions Code is
amended to read:
2242. (a) Prescribing, dispensing, or furnishing dangerous drugs
as defined in Section 4022, or recommending marijuana to a patient
for a medical purposes, purpose,
without an appropriate prior examination and a medical
indication, including an in-person examination when recommending
marijuana, or recommending marijuana for a nonmedical purpose,
constitutes unprofessional conduct.
(b) No licensee shall be found to have committed unprofessional
conduct within the meaning of this section if, at the time the drugs
were prescribed, dispensed, or furnished, any of the following
applies:
(1) The licensee was a designated physician and surgeon or
podiatrist serving in the absence of the patient's physician and
surgeon or podiatrist, as the case may be, and if the drugs were
prescribed, dispensed, or furnished only as necessary to maintain the
patient until the return of his or her practitioner, but in any case
no longer than 72 hours.
(2) The licensee transmitted the order for the drugs to a
registered nurse or to a licensed vocational nurse in an inpatient
facility, and if both of the following conditions exist:
(A) The practitioner had consulted with the registered nurse or
licensed vocational nurse who had reviewed the patient's records.
(B) The practitioner was designated as the practitioner to serve
in the absence of the patient's physician and surgeon or podiatrist,
as the case may be.
(3) The licensee was a designated practitioner serving in the
absence of the patient's physician and surgeon or podiatrist, as the
case may be, and was in possession of or had utilized the patient's
records and ordered the renewal of a medically indicated prescription
for an amount not exceeding the original prescription in strength or
amount or for more than one refill.
(4) The licensee was acting in accordance with Section 120582 of
the Health and Safety Code.
SEC. 5. Section 2264 of the Business and Professions Code is
amended to read:
2264. The employing, directly or indirectly, the aiding, or the
abetting of any unlicensed person or any suspended, revoked, or
unlicensed practitioner to engage in the practice of medicine,
including employment by, or other agreement with, a mandatory
commercial registrant acting pursuant to the Medical Cannabis
Regulation and Control Act or a dispensary to provide recommendations
for medical marijuana, or any other mode of treating the sick or
afflicted which requires a license to practice constitutes
unprofessional conduct.
SEC. 6. Chapter 18 (commencing with Section 26000) is added to
Division 9 of the Business and Professions Code, to read:
CHAPTER 18. MEDICAL CANNABIS REGULATION
Article 1. General Provisions
26000. (a) It is the intent of the Legislature in enacting this
chapter to provide for the comprehensive regulation of the commercial
cultivation, manufacturing, testing, transportation, distribution,
provision, donation, and sale of medical cannabis and the
enforcement of laws relating to commercial medical cannabis
activities without preempting city or county
ordinances regulating or banning these activities .
(b) This chapter is an exercise of the police powers of the state
for the protection of the safety, welfare, health, peace, and morals
of the people of the state.
26001. Subject to Without limiting
the authority of a city or county pursuant to Section 26010
Section 7 of Article XI of the California Constitution
or any other provision of law, and subject to that authority ,
the state shall have the exclusive right and
power to regulate and register persons for the cultivation,
manufacture, testing, transportation, storage, distribution,
provision, donation, sale, purchase, and possession of medical
cannabis within the state. In the exercise of these rights and
powers, the Legislature shall not constitute the state or any of its
agencies as a cultivator, manufacturer, transporter, tester, or
seller of medical cannabis.
26002. For the purpose of this chapter:
(a) "Cannabis" means all parts of the plant Cannabis
sativa L. sativa, cannabis indica, or cannabis
ruderalis , whether growing or not; the seeds thereof; the
resin , whether crude or purified, extracted from any part
of the plant; and every compound, manufacture, salt, derivative,
mixture, or preparation of the plant, its seeds , or
resin. It does not include the mature stalks of the plant, fiber
produced from the stalks, oil or cake made from the seeds of the
plant, any other compound, manufacture, salt, derivative, mixture, or
preparation of the mature stalks (except the resin extracted
therefrom), fiber, oil, or cake, or the sterilized seed of the plant
which is incapable of germination. "Cannabis" also means the
separated resin, whether crude or purified, obtained from marijuana.
"Cannabis" also means marijuana as defined by Section
11018 of the Health and Safety Code as enacted by Chapter 1407 of
the Statutes of 1972.
(b) "Commercial" means any cultivation, processing, possession,
storage, manufacturing, testing, transportation, distribution,
provision, donation, or sale of cannabis or cannabis product, whether
or not gratuitous, except as provided in subdivision (b) of Section
26052.
(b)
(c) "Department" means the Department of Alcoholic
Beverage Control.
(c)
(d) "Dispensary" means a mandatory commercial
registrant that dispenses cannabis or medical cannabis products
through a retail storefront.
(d)
(e) "Division" means the Division of Medical Cannabis
Regulation and Enforcement.
(f) "Edible cannabis product" means a cannabis product that is
used or intended for use in whole or in part for human consumption
and includes chewing gum.
(e)
(g) "Fund" means the Medical Cannabis Regulation Fund
established pursuant to Section 26028.
(f)
(h) "Identification program" means the universal
identification certificate program for mandatory commercial
registrants.
(g)
(i) "Mandatory commercial registrant" or "registrant"
means any individual, partnership, joint venture, association,
limited liability company, corporation, estate, trust, receiver,
syndicate, or any other group or combination thereof acting as a unit
to commercially cultivate, process, possess,
store, manufacture, test, transport, distribute, provide,
donate, or sell medical cannabis in compliance with this
chapter, other than a patient or a patient's primary caregiver, as
defined by the Compassionate Use Act of 1996, growing, possessing,
storing, manufacturing, transporting, or providing medical cannabis
exclusively for the personal medical purposes of individual patients
as defined in subdivision (b) of Section 26050
26052 .
(h)
( j) "Medical cannabis product" or
"cannabis product " means any
cannabis product, product containing cannabis,
including concentrates and extractions, that is cultivated,
manufactured, processed, packaged, and distributed in full
compliance with the requirements of this chapter and with any
regulations adopted by the department pursuant to its rulemaking
authority. "Medical cannabis product" includes medically
infused products that contain medical cannabis and are
intended for oral or topical consumption by a qualified patient.
(i)
(k) "Person" includes any individual, firm,
copartnership, joint venture, association, corporation, estate,
trust, business trust, receiver, syndicate, or any other group or
combination acting as a unit and includes the plural as well as the
singular number.
(j)
(l) "Testing and labeling" means mandatory labeling and
a quality assurance plan in place that addresses all of the
following:
(1) Potency.
(2) Chemical residue.
(3) Microbiological contaminants.
(4) Random sample testing of medical cannabis and medical cannabis
products.
(5) Handling, care, and storage.
(6) Date and location of production and manufacturing.
26010. This chapter does and Article 2
(commencing with Section 11357) and Article 2.5 (commencing with
Section 11362.7) of Chapter 6 of Division 10 of the Health and Safety
Code do not prevent a city or county from doing any of the
following:
(a) Adopting local ordinances inconsistent with this chapter
that ban or regulate the location, operation, or establishment
of a mandatory commercial registrant or other individual,
partnership, joint venture, association, limited liability company,
corporation, estate, trust, receiver, syndicate, or any other group
or combination thereof acting as a unit, that cultivates, processes,
possesses, stores, manufactures, tests, transports, distributes,
provides, donates, or sells medical cannabis .
(b) The civil or criminal enforcement of the ordinances described
in subdivision (a).
(c) Establishing a reasonable fee or tax
for the operation of a mandatory commercial registrant within
its jurisdiction.
(d) Enacting and enforcing other laws
consistent with this chapter or ordinances pursuant to
the authority granted by Section 7 of Article XI of the California
Constitution .
Article 2. Administration
26020. (a) There is hereby created in the Department of Alcoholic
Beverage Control the Division of Medical Cannabis Regulation and
Enforcement. The division shall be administered by a person exempt
from the civil service who is appointed by the director.
(b) The department shall have the exclusive
power, consistent with the provisions of this chapter, to register
persons for the cultivation, manufacture, testing, transportation,
storage, distribution, and sale of medical cannabis within the state
and to collect registration fees in connection with these actions.
26022. The department shall have all power necessary for
administration of this chapter, including, but not limited to, the
following:
(a) Establishing statewide minimum standards for the
commercial cultivation, manufacturing, testing, transportation,
storage, distribution, provision, donation, and sale of
medical cannabis and medical cannabis products and procedures for the
issuance, renewal, suspension, and revocation of registrations of
mandatory commercial registrants.
(b) Establishing a scale of application, registration, and renewal
fees, to be imposed by the state, for mandatory commercial
registrants for the cultivation, manufacturing, testing,
transportation, distribution, and sale of medical cannabis and
medical cannabis products. The department may charge separate fees
for each mandatory commercial registration application for
cultivation, manufacturing, transportation, distribution, and sale.
The total fees imposed pursuant to this chapter shall be
reasonable and based on the actual costs of administering
and enforcing this chapter.
(c) The department shall make and prescribe those
reasonable rules as may be necessary or proper to carry out
the purposes and intent of this chapter and to enable it to exercise
the powers and perform the duties conferred upon it by this chapter
and in accordance with Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section 11340) of
Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code. For the
performance of its duties, the department has the powers as set forth
in Article 2 (commencing with Section 11180) of Chapter 2 of Part 1
of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code.
(d) Approving or denying mandatory commercial registration
applications for cultivation, manufacturing, testing and labeling,
transportation, distribution, provision, donation, and
sale of medical cannabis pursuant to this chapter.
(e) The department shall have the power, in its discretion, to
deny, suspend, revoke, or fine any registration issued pursuant to
this chapter if the department determines, for good cause,
determines that the granting or continuance of
the registration would be contrary to public welfare or morals or
that a person holding or seeking a registration has violated any law
prohibiting conduct involving moral turpitude or an applicable
local ordinance .
(f) Imposing any penalty authorized by this chapter or any rule or
regulation adopted pursuant to this chapter.
(g) Taking any reasonable action with respect
to a mandatory commercial registration application in accordance with
procedures established pursuant to this chapter.
(h) Upon the denial of any application for a registration, the
department shall notify the applicant in writing. After service of
the notice and within the time prescribed by the department, the
applicant may present his or her written petition for a registration
to the department. Upon receipt by the department of a petition for a
registration in proper form, the petition shall be set for hearing.
(i) (1) For any hearing held pursuant to this chapter, the
department may delegate the power to hear and decide to an
administrative law judge appointed by the director. Any hearing
before an administrative law judge shall be pursuant to the
procedures, rules, and limitations prescribed in Chapter 5
(commencing with Section 11500) of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of
the Government Code.
(2) Prior to suspending, revoking, or fining any registration, the
department shall file an accusation as provided for in Section 11503
of the Government Code, and the registrant may request a hearing.
If the department determines that the public interest requires
that a registration be summarily suspended pending hearing on charges
of misconduct that include any of the causes for suspension or
revocation specified in this chapter, or if the department
has information that leads it to believe that a registrant has
violated any law prohibiting conduct involving moral turpitude or any
applicable local ordinance, the department may, without hearing,
temporarily suspend the registration for a period not exceeding 60
days pending a hearing and decision on the charges.
(j) Developing any forms, identification certificates, and
applications that are necessary or convenient in the
reasonable discretion of the department for the
administration of this chapter or any of the rules or regulations
adopted pursuant to this chapter.
(k) Overseeing the operation of the Medical Cannabis Regulation
Fund established pursuant to Section 26028.
(l) Establishing reasonable fees for processing
all applications, registrations, notices, or reports required to be
submitted to the department. The amount of the fees shall reflect,
but shall not exceed, the direct and indirect costs of the department
for the administration of this chapter and the rules or regulations
adopted pursuant to this chapter.
(m) The department may consult with other state agencies,
departments, or public or private entities for the purposes of
establishing statewide standards and regulations.
26024. (a) The department may assist state taxation authorities
in the development of uniform policies for the state
taxation of mandatory commercial registrants.
(b) The department shall assist the Division of Occupational
Safety and Health in the Department of Industrial Relations in the
development of industry-specific regulations related to commercial
medical cannabis activities.
26028. (a) The Medical Cannabis Regulation Fund is hereby
established within the State Treasury. Notwithstanding Section
16305.7 of the Government Code, the fund shall include any interest
and dividends earned on the money in the fund.
(b) All fees
collected pursuant to this chapter shall be deposited into the
Medical Cannabis Regulation Fund. Notwithstanding Section 13340 of
the Government Code, all moneys within the fund are hereby
continuously appropriated, without regard to fiscal year, to the
department solely for the purposes of fully funding and administering
this chapter, including, but not limited to, the costs incurred by
the department for its administrative expenses.
(c) All moneys collected pursuant to this chapter as a result of
penalties imposed under this division shall be deposited directly
into the General Fund, to be available upon appropriation.
(d) The department may establish and administer a grant program to
allocate moneys from the Medical Cannabis Regulation Fund to state
and local entities for the purpose of assisting with
commercial medical cannabis regulation and the enforcement
of this chapter and other state and local laws applicable to
registrants .
26030. (a) The director and the persons employed by the
department for the administration and enforcement of this chapter are
peace officers in the enforcement of the penal provisions of this
chapter, the rules of the department adopted under the provisions of
this chapter, and any other penal provisions of law of this state
prohibiting or regulating the cultivation, processing, storing,
manufacturing, testing, transporting, or selling of medical cannabis,
and these persons are authorized, while acting as peace officers, to
enforce any penal provisions of law while in the course of their
employment.
(b) The director, the persons employed by the department for the
administration and enforcement of this chapter, peace officers listed
in Section 830.1 of the Penal Code, and those officers listed in
Section 830.6 of the Penal Code while acting in the course and scope
of their employment as peace officers may, in enforcing the
provisions of this chapter, visit and inspect the premises of any
mandatory commercial registrant at any time during which the
registrant is acting pursuant to the registration.
(c) Peace officers of the Department of the California Highway
Patrol, members of the University of California and California State
University police departments, and peace officers of the Department
of Parks and Recreation, as defined in subdivisions (a), (b), (c),
and (f) of Section 830.2 of the Penal Code, may, in enforcing this
chapter, visit and inspect the premises of any mandatory commercial
registrant located on state property at any time during which the
registrant is acting pursuant to the registration.
26034. (a) Information identifying the names of patients, their
medical conditions, or the names of their primary caregivers received
and contained in records kept by the department for the purposes of
administering this chapter are confidential and exempt from the
California Public Records Act (Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section
6250) of Division 7 of Title 1 of the Government Code) and
or are not subject to disclosure to any
individual or private entity, except as necessary for authorized
employees of the State of California to perform official duties
pursuant to this chapter:
(b) (1) Nothing in this section precludes the following:
(A) Division employees notifying state or local law
enforcement agencies about information submitted
to the division that the employee suspects is falsified or
fraudulent.
(B) Notifications from the division to state or local law
enforcement agencies about apparent
criminal violation violations of this chapter
or any applicable local ordinance .
(C) Verification of requests by state or local law
enforcement agencies to confirm registrants and
certificates issued by the division or other state agency.
(D) Provision of information requested pursuant to a court order
or subpoena issued by a court or an administrative agency or
local governing body authorized by law to issue subpoenas
.
(2) Information shall not be disclosed beyond what is necessary to
achieve the limited goals of a specific
investigation or notification or the parameters of a
specific court order or subpoena.
Article 3. Mandatory Commercial Registration
26040. (a) On or before January 1, 2016, the department shall
promulgate regulations necessary for the implementation and
enforcement of this chapter. These regulations shall be
reasonable and shall include:
(1) Procedures for the issuance, renewal, suspension, and
revocation of mandatory commercial registrations.
(2) Application, registration, and renewal forms and fees
consistent with this act.
(3) Time periods, not to exceed 90 days, by which the department
shall approve or deny an application for medical cannabis
registration.
(4) Qualifications for registrants.
(5) Security requirements, including, but not limited to,
procedures for limiting access to facilities and for the screening of
employees. The department shall require all registrants to maintain
an accurate roster of any employee's name, date of birth, and
relevant personally identifying information, which shall be available
for inspection by the department or state or local law enforcement
upon demand.
(6) Testing and labeling requirements, including, but not limited
to, disclosure of the active cannabinoid profile, constituent
elements, active ingredients, and results of testing for
contaminants.
(7) Health and safety requirements, including, but not limited to,
prohibitions on shipping or distribution of products containing
microbiological, bacterial, pathogenic yeast or mold counts, or any
adulterant or contaminant, that exceed levels to be determined by the
department.
(8) Inspection and tracking requirements, including, but not
limited to, an electronic production and inventory tracking system
that will allow the department to monitor inventory data at every
level of the cultivation, processing, and distribution system through
a secure, Internet Web site-based portal.
(9) Storage, packaging, and transportation procedures and
protocols.
(10) Advertising restrictions and requirements.
(11) Requirements to ensure conformance with applicable
standards analogous to state statutory
environmental, agricultural, consumer protection, and food
and product safety requirements. The department may consult
with the California Environmental Protection Agency to determine
whether additional regulations should be issued in order to protect
the state's clean water and environment, including, but not limited
to, protections related to land conversion, grading, water diversion
and pond development, and agricultural discharges.
These standards shall be administered and enforced by the department
and shall be in addition to, and not limit, any other state
requirements. At a minimum, these standards shall:
(A) Prescribe sanitation standards analogous to the California
Retail Food Code for food preparation, storage, and handling and sale
of edible cannabis products.
(B) Require that edible cannabis products produced, distributed,
provided, donated, or sold by mandatory commercial registrants shall
be limited to nonpotentially hazardous food as established by the
State Department of Public Health pursuant to Section 114365.5 of
Health and Safety Code.
(C) Provide standards for labeling edible cannabis products to
ensure that the products cannot be mistaken as food not containing
cannabis.
(D) Require that facilities in which edible cannabis products are
prepared shall be constructed in accordance with applicable building
standards, health and safety standards, and other state laws.
(E) Ensure that edible products distributed or sold by
dispensaries are not produced or stored in private homes.
(F) Provide that any weighing or measuring devices used in
connection with the sale or distribution of cannabis are required to
meet standards analogous to Division 5 (commencing with Section
12001) of the Business and Professions Code.
(G) Require that any application of pesticides or other pest
control in connection with the indoor or outdoor cultivation of
cannabis shall meet standards analogous to Division 6 (commencing
with Section 11401) of the Food and Agricultural Code and its
implementing regulations.
(H) Protect the state's clean water and environment, including,
but not limited to, protections related to land conversion, grading,
water diversion and pond development, and agricultural discharges.
(12) Requirements to prevent the diversion of cannabis to
nonmedical use, including procedures and protocols for disposal of
excess, contaminated, adulterated, or deteriorated products.
(13) Civil penalties for the failure to comply with regulations
adopted pursuant to this chapter.
(b) A mandatory commercial registration application or renewal
shall not be approved if the department determines any of the
following:
(1) The applicant fails to meet the requirements of this chapter
or any regulation adopted pursuant to this chapter,
including chapter or any applicable city or
county ordinance or regulation.
(2) The applicant, or any of its officers or directors,
officers, directors, owners, members, or shareholders
is under 21 years of age.
(3) The applicant has knowingly answered a question or request for
information falsely on the application form or failed to provide
information requested.
(4) The applicant, or any of its officers or directors,
officers, directors, owners, members, or
shareholders has been convicted in the previous five years of a
violent felony, as specified in subdivision (c) of Section 667.5 of
the Penal Code, a serious felony as specified in subdivision (c) of
Section 1192.7 of the Penal Code, a felony offense involving fraud or
deceit, or any other felony that, in the department's estimation,
would impair the applicant's ability to appropriately operate as a
mandatory commercial registrant.
(5) The applicant, or any of its officers or directors,
officers, directors, owners, members, or shareholders
is a licensed physician making patient recommendations for
medical cannabis.
(6) The applicant, or any of its officers or directors,
officers, directors, owners, members, or shareholders
has been sanctioned by the department, a city, or a county for
unregistered commercial medical cannabis
activities conducted in violation of this chapter or any
applicable local ordinance or has had a mandatory commercial
registration revoked in the previous three years.
(7) A sufficient number of mandatory commercial registrants
already exists in the state, a city, or a county to provide a
sufficient amount of medical cannabis to satisfy patients' medical
use in that jurisdiction.
(8) The proposed cultivation, processing, possession, storage,
manufacturing, testing, transporting, distribution, provision,
donation, or sale of medical cannabis will violate any applicable
local law or ordinance.
(c) (1) In order to protect the public safety and provide patients
with prompt, safe access to medical cannabis during implementation
of this chapter, within 180 days of January 1, 2015, the department
shall issue emergency regulations consistent with this chapter that
allow a qualified applicant for mandatory commercial registration to
apply, be reviewed, and be registered to cultivate, process,
manufacture, store, and transport medical cannabis so as to ensure an
adequate supply of medical cannabis upon full implementation of this
chapter.
(2) The department shall establish appropriate fees as part of its
emergency regulations adopted pursuant to this chapter.
26042. For the purpose of regulating the commercial cultivation,
manufacturing, testing, transportation, distribution, provision,
donation, and sale of medical cannabis, the department
, in its reasonable discretion, may shall
establish various classes or types of registration for specific
commercial medical cannabis-related activities, as set forth in this
chapter. At a minimum, registrants engaged in the cultivation
and processing of cannabis shall be in a different class
from those registrants operating dispensaries.
26043. (a) Each mandatory commercial registration application
approved by the department pursuant to this chapter is separate and
distinct. An applicant may apply for A
registrant shall not hold a mandatory commercial registration
in more than one class of specified medical cannabis activities.
A registrant shall not be an officer, director, member, owner, or
shareholder registrant in another class. The officers, directors,
owners, members, or shareholders of a registrant in one class may not
hold a registration in another class, and may not be an
officer, director, member, owner, or shareholder of a registrant in
another class.
(b) A mandatory commercial registration application approved by
the department pursuant to this chapter shall be valid for a period
not to exceed one year from the date of approval unless revoked or
suspended earlier than that date pursuant to this chapter
or the rules or regulations adopted pursuant to this chapter.
26044. (a) The department shall limit the number of registrations
statewide for the cultivation, processing, extraction, packaging,
and transportation of medical cannabis to a number no greater than
what is necessary to meet statewide need. In determining the
appropriate number of registrations, the department may take into
account information obtained from sources that include, but need not
be limited to, municipalities, patients, and registrants.
(b) The department shall ensure that the number of registrations
that it approves does not exceed the ability of the department to
enforce the provisions of this chapter, particularly with respect to
ensuring patient safety and preventing illegal diversion of cannabis.
(c) In establishing limits pursuant to this section, the
department shall consider the following:
(1) The purposes and intent of the Compassionate Use Act of 1996
to ensure an adequate supply of medical cannabis while endeavoring to
prevent an oversupply of cannabis that may result in diversion.
(2) The number of applicants for mandatory commercial
registrations whose application demonstrates that they will be able
to produce consistent products with strict quality controls, in full
compliance with this chapter and with all applicable state and local
regulations, and the amount of medical cannabis those applicants will
be able to provide.
26045. Every mandatory commercial registration is renewable
unless the registration has been revoked if the renewal registration
is made and the fee for it is paid. A registration that has been
suspended, but not revoked, may be renewed under this section,
provided that the suspension shall remain in effect upon renewal.
All registrations expire at 12 midnight on the last day of the
month posted on the registration. All registrations issued shall be
renewed as follows:
(a) On or before the first of the month preceding the month posted
on the registration, the department shall mail to each registrant at
his or her registered premises, or at any other mailing address that
the registrant has designated, an application to renew the
registration.
(b)
(a) The application to renew the registration may be
filed before the registration expires upon payment of the annual fee.
(c)
(b) For 60 days after the registration expires, the
registration may be renewed upon payment of the annual renewal fee
plus a penalty fee that shall be equal to 50 percent of the annual
fee.
(d)
(c) Unless otherwise terminated, or unless renewed
pursuant to subdivision (b) or (c), (a) or
(b), a registration that is in effect on the month posted on
the registration continues in effect through 12 midnight of the 60th
day following the month posted on the registration, at which time it
is automatically canceled.
(e) On or before the 10th day preceding the cancellation of a
registration, the department shall mail a notice of cancellation to
each registrant that has not either filed an application to renew its
registration or notified the department of its intent not to do so.
Failure to mail the renewal application in accordance with
subdivision (a) or to mail the notice provided in this subdivision
shall not continue the right to a registration.
(f)
(d) A registration that has been canceled pursuant to
subdivision (d) (c) may be reinstated
during the 30 days immediately following cancellation upon payment by
cashier's check or money order of the annual renewal fee, plus a
penalty fee that shall be equal to 100 percent of the annual fee. A
registration that has been canceled pursuant to subdivision
(d) (d) and that has not been reinstated within
30 days pursuant to this subdivision is automatically revoked on the
31st day after the registration has been canceled.
(g)
(e) A renewal application shall not be deemed filed
within the meaning of this section unless the document itself has
been actually delivered to, and the required renewal fee has been
paid at, any office of the department during office hours, or unless
both the document and fee have been filed and remitted pursuant to
Section 11003 of the Government Code.
26046. An application for mandatory commercial registration shall
include, but shall not be limited to, all of the following:
(a) For all applicants:
(1) The legal name and proposed physical addresses of the
mandatory commercial registrant.
(2) The name, address, and date of birth of each principal officer
and board member.
(3) Operating and inventory control procedures to ensure security
and prevent diversion.
(4) Detailed operating procedures for the proposed facility, which
shall include, but not be limited to, provisions for facility and
operational security, prevention of diversion, employee screening,
storage of medical cannabis, personnel policies, and recordkeeping
procedures.
(5) A list of all persons or entities having an ownership interest
other than a security interest, lien, or encumbrance on any property
that will be used by the applicant.
(6) Evidence of the legal right to occupy and use an established
location, or an immunity from prosecution for that occupancy or use
pursuant to a local ordinance or ordinances, including, but not
limited to, Measure D, approved by the voters of the City of Los
Angeles at the May 21, 2013, general election, for the
activities to be conducted if the desired registration is granted
consistent with the provisions of this chapter and the regulations
developed by the department.
(7) Documentation that the applicant will be in compliance with
all local ordinances and regulations, including an entity granted
immunity under Measure D, approved by the voters of the City of Los
Angeles on at the May 21, 2013,
ballot general election .
(8) Evidence that officers and owners of the applicant
organization are citizens of the United States and residents of the
State of California.
(b) In For applications for
cultivation and processing, in addition to the requirements of
subdivision (a), for cultivation and processing applicants,
the application shall also include detailed
operating procedures for cultivation, extraction and infusion
methods, transportation of products, inventory procedures, procedures
for quality control, and onsite testing of product for potential
contaminants.
26047. Upon receipt of an application for a registration and the
applicable fee, the department shall make a thorough investigation to
determine whether the applicant and the premises for which a
registration is applied qualify for the registration and whether the
provisions of this chapter have been complied with, and shall
investigate all matters connected therewith which may affect the
public welfare and morals. The department shall deny an application
for a registration if either the applicant or the premises for which
a registration is applied do not qualify for a registration under
this chapter. The department further shall deny an application for a
registration if the department fi nds that
issuance of that registration would tend to
create a law enforcement problem. The department may place
reasonable conditions upon registrations if grounds exist
for denial of the registration, and the department finds those
grounds may be removed by the imposition of those conditions
conditions, provided that the requirements set forth
in paragraphs (6) and (8) of subdivision (b) of Section 26040 shall
not be waived .
26048. A physician shall not recommend medical cannabis to a
patient while the physician is a mandatory commercial registrant, or
an officer, director, owner, member, shareholder,
employee, or financial beneficiary of a mandatory commercial
registrant.
26049. (a) The actions of a mandatory commercial registrant or
provisional registrant, its employees, and its agents, permitted
pursuant to a mandatory commercial registration or provisional
registration issued by the department or otherwise permitted by this
chapter, that are conducted in accordance to the requirements of this
chapter and regulations adopted pursuant to the authority granted by
this chapter, are not unlawful under state law and shall
not be an offense subject to arrest, prosecution, or other sanction
under state or local law, or be subject to a civil
fine or be a basis for seizure or forfeiture of assets under state
or local law.
(b) The actions of a person who, in good faith and upon
appropriate investigation, allows his or her property to be
used by a mandatory commercial registrant or provisional registrant,
its employees, and its agents, as permitted pursuant to a mandatory
commercial registration or provisional registration issued by the
department or otherwise permitted by this chapter, are not unlawful
under state law and shall not be an offense subject to
arrest, prosecution, or other sanction under state or local
law, or be subject to a civil fine or be a basis for
seizure or forfeiture of assets under state or local
law.
(c) This section shall not be deemed to limit the authority or
remedies of a city or county under any provision of law, including,
without limitation, Section 26010 or 26060 of this code or Section 7
of Article XI of the California Constitution.
26050. (a) A registrant shall not cultivate, process, store,
manufacture, test, transport, or sell medical cannabis in the state
unless accurate records are kept at the registered premises of the
growing, processing, storing, manufacturing, testing, transporting,
or selling by the registrant in the state. These records shall
include the name and address of the supplier of any cannabis or
cannabis products received or possessed by the registrant, the
location at which the cannabis was cultivated, the amount of cannabis
received, the form in which it is received, the name of the employee
receiving it, and the date of receipt. These records shall
further include receipts for all expenditures
incurred by the registrant, registrant and
banking records, if any, for all funds obtained or
expended in the performance of any activity under the authority of
the registration, provided that a registrant registered to act
at more than one premises may keep all records at one of the
registered premises. Required records shall be kept for a period of
three seven years from the date of the
transaction.
(b) The department and any state or local agency may
make any examination of the books and records of any registrant and
may visit and inspect the premises of any registrant that the
department may deem necessary to perform its duties under this
chapter.
(c) Any books or records requested by the department or any state
or local agency shall be provided by the registrant no later than at
the end of the next business day after the request is made.
(d) The department or any state or local agency may enter and
inspect the premises of any facility operated by a registrant between
the hours of 8 a.m. and 8 p.m. on any day that the facility is open,
or at any reasonable time, to ensure compliance and enforcement of
the provisions of this chapter or any local ordinance.
(e) In the event that the registrant or any employee of the
registrant refuses, impedes, obstructs, or interferes with an
inspection pursuant to this chapter or local ordinance, or if the
registrant fails to maintain or provide the books and records
required by this section, the registration may be summarily suspended
pursuant to paragraph (2) of subdivision (i) of Section 26022 and
the department shall directly commence proceedings for the revocation
of the registration in accordance with this chapter.
26052. (a) This chapter shall not apply to, and shall have no
diminishing effect on, the rights and protections granted to a
patient or a primary caregiver pursuant to the Compassionate Use Act
of 1996.
(b) (1) A patient who cultivates, possesses, stores, manufactures,
or transports cannabis exclusively for his or her personal medical
use and who does not sell or distribute sell,
distribute, donate, or provide cannabis to any other
person is not considered a commercial registrant and is exempt
from mandatory commercial registration under this chapter
.
(2) A primary caregiver who cultivates, possesses, stores,
manufactures, transports, or provides cannabis exclusively for the
personal medical purposes of a specified
qualified patient for whom he or she is the
primary caregiver within the meaning of Section 11362.7 of the Health
and Safety Code and who does not sell or distribute
cannabis does not receive remuneration for
these activities except for compensation in full compliance
with subdivision (c) of Section 11362.765 of the Health and Safety
Code is not considered a commercial registrant and is exempt from
mandatory commercial registration under this chapter .
26054. Beginning January 1, 2014, the department shall provide
for provisional registrations as follows:
(a) The department shall request that every city or
county, county provide the department with a
list of approved entities providing medical cannabis to qualified
patients and caregivers within the city or county's jurisdiction,
if any, the location at which the entity is operating, and
the names of the persons who operate the entity. Unless
If the jurisdiction represents that the entity
has not been operating in compliance with local
laws and regulations, or does not have has
limited immunity under local laws, including, but not
limited to, Measure D, approved by the voters of the City of Los
Angeles at the May 21, 2013, general election, the
department shall issue a provisional registration to the entity until
the time that the entity's application for mandatory commercial
registration has been approved or denied under this chapter, but no
later than 90 days after the department begins accepting applications
for mandatory commercial registration.
(b) The department shall issue a provisional registration to
individuals and entities that the department determines were, during
the six months prior to January 1, 2015, regularly cultivating or
distributing medical cannabis collectively or cooperatively in full
compliance with paragraphs A and B of Section IV of the Guidelines
for Security and Non-Diversion of Marijuana Grown for Medical Use,
issued by the Department of Justice in August 2008, and any
applicable local ordinance, to continue to do so until such
time as the registrant's application for mandatory commercial
registration has been approved or denied under this chapter, but no
later than 90 days after the department begins accepting applications
for mandatory commercial registration. In determining
compliance, the department shall consider any complaints or actions
made or brought by a city or county against the individual or entity.
To qualify, provisional registrants shall be required to
disclose to the department the following information in writing on or
before January 20, 2015, in order to obtain provisional
registration:
(1) The names, addresses, and dates of birth of each principal
officer, owner, or board member.
(2) The common street address and assessor's parcel number of the
property at which the registrant conducts any activity under the
authority of the registration.
(2)
(3) The common street address and assessor's parcel
number of the property at which any cultivation activity was or is to
be conducted.
(3)
(4) For the six months prior to January 1, 2015, the
quantity of cannabis cultivated at a location and the quantity
expected to be cultivated from January 1, 2015, to June 30, 2015,
inclusive. The registrant shall make its records of current activity
and activity for the six months prior to January 1, 2015, available
to the department upon request.
(c) The department shall charge an application fee of five
thousand dollars ($5,000) for each provisional registration.
(d) Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, the
department shall not issue a provisional registration to any
individual or entity, or for any premises, against whom there are
pending state or local administrative or judicial proceedings or
actions initiated by a city or county under any applicable local
ordinance or who has been determined through those proceedings to
have violated any applicable local ordinance.
26055. Entities that are provided immunity under Measure D,
approved by the voters of the City of Los Angeles on
at the May 21, 2013, ballot,
general election, shall be considered the equivalent of
entities that are registered, permitted, or licensed as a medical
marijuana business, dispensary, or other entity involved in providing
medical marijuana to patients under a local ordinance and shall be
considered in compliance with a local ordinance for the purposes of
the implementation of the act adding this section and any regulations
promulgated by the department.
26056. In addition to other regulations adopted by the department
pertaining to mandatory commercial registrants and without limiting
the authority of a city or a county pursuant to Section
26010 or subdivision (b) of Section 26060, Section 7
of Article XI of the California Constitution or any other law,
the department shall adopt regulations regarding the minimum
standards for the operation of dispensaries that establish all of the
following:
(a) Standards for labeling of products, including the name of the
mandatory commercial registrant from which the product was obtained,
and a requirement that dispensaries provide patients with detailed
written information about the contents of the cannabis and medical
cannabis products they obtain.
(b) Requirements for inventory control and reporting that require
all dispensaries to be able to demonstrate the present location,
amounts, and descriptions of all medical cannabis products from the
time of delivery to the dispensary until purchase by a qualified
patient or primary caregiver.
(c) The maximum number of dispensaries that may operate in a city
or county or the unincorporated areas of a county based on
population, taking into consideration the distances that patients in
rural areas may need to travel in order to reach a dispensary and the
availability of public transportation in both rural and urban areas.
The number established by the department for any
city or county may not exceed the number of dispensaries allowed by
any applicable local ordinance.
(d) Minimum educational and testing requirements for dispensary
staff, including background checks, and a requirement that every
dispensary maintain dedicated , licensed security staff
both inside and outside the dispensary.
(e) Maximum hours of operation for every dispensary.
(f) Minimum standards governing signage and advertising for
dispensaries.
26057. The department shall make recommendations to the
Legislature pertaining to the establishment of an appeals and
judicial review process for persons aggrieved by a final decision of
the department.
Article 4. Enforcement
26060. (a) The department shall work in conjunction with law
enforcement entities throughout the state for the purpose of
implementing and enforcing the rules and regulations regarding
commercial medical cannabis and taking appropriate action against
businesses and individuals who fail to comply with the law.
(b) Nothing in this chapter shall prevent a city, county,
or city and county from enforcing a zoning ordinance or law of
general application. or in Article 2 (commencing with
Section 11357) or Article 2.5 (commencing with Section
11362.7) of Chapter 6 of Division 10 of the Health and Safety Code
shall prevent a city, county, or city and county from adopting or
enforcing a zoning ordinance or other law, ordinance, or regulation
that bans or regulates the location, operation, or establishment of a
mandatory commercial registrant or other individual, partner
ship, joint venture, association, limited liability company,
corporation, estate, trust, receiver, syndicate, or any other group
or combination thereof acting as a unit, that cultivates, processes,
possesses, stores, manufactures, tests, transports, distributes,
provides, donates, or sells medical cannabis.
26062. Except for a person identified in Section 26052, a person
shall not exercise the privilege or perform any act that a registrant
may exercise or perform under the authority of a registration unless
the person is acting pursuant to a registration, including a
provisional registration, issued pursuant to this chapter.
26063. (a) Commencing January 1, 2016, any product containing
cannabis that is distributed, except in the case of a primary
caregiver distributing to a qualified patient, or offered for sale
shall comply with the testing and labeling
testing, labeling, and food safety requirements established
through regulation by the department.
(b) No person shall steal or fraudulently use a mandatory
commercial registrant identification certificate or registration or
other registrant's identification card or registration issued by the
department to acquire, cultivate, transport, produce, possess for
sale, sell, provide, donate, or distribute cannabis.
(c) No person shall counterfeit, tamper with, or fraudulently
produce an identification card or registration status.
(d) Any person who violates this section, or Section 26062, is
guilty of a misdemeanor and shall be subject to the following
penalties:
(1) For the first offense, imprisonment in a county jail for no
more than six months or a fine not to exceed one
five thousand dollars ($1,000),
($5,000), or both.
(2) For a second or subsequent offense, imprisonment in a county
jail for no more than one year or a fine not to exceed one
eight thousand dollars ($1,000),
($8,000), or both.
(e) Any person who is charged, prosecuted, or subjected to a civil
penalty under this chapter shall not also be charged or prosecuted
pursuant to the Health and Safety Code for conduct arising from the
same set of facts.
26064. Any person operating an unregistered facility, building,
structure, or location where cannabis is being commercially
cultivated, manufactured, or possessed for sale in violation of this
chapter may be subject to civil penalties of up to twenty-five
thousand dollars ($25,000) for each violation, and the department may
order the destruction of any cannabis associated with that
violation. Each day of operation shall constitute a separate
violation of this section. Any civil fines collected pursuant
to this section shall be deposited into the General Fund pursuant to
Section 26028.
26066. The director or any district attorney, county
counsel, city attorney, or city prosecutor may bring an action
in the name of the people of the State of California
to enjoin a violation or the threatened violation of any
provision of this chapter, including, but not limited to, a
registrant's failure to correct objectionable conditions following
notice or as a result of any rule promulgated pursuant to this
chapter. The action shall be brought in the county in which the
violation occurred or is threatened to occur. Any proceeding brought
pursuant to this chapter shall conform to the requirements of Chapter
3 (commencing with Section 525) of Title 7 of Part 2 of the Code of
Civil Procedure.
26068. (a) A state or local
law enforcement agency shall immediately notify the department of
any arrests made for violations over which the department has
jurisdiction which involve a registrant or registered premises.
Notice shall be given within 10 days of the arrest. The department
shall promptly cause an investigation to be made as to whether
grounds exist for suspension or revocation of a registration of the
registrant.
(b) The department shall not open or add an entry to a file or
initiate an investigation of a registrant or suspend or revoke a
registration in either of the following circumstances:
(1) Solely because the registrant or an agent acting on behalf of
the registrant has reported to a state or local law enforcement
agency that suspected controlled substance violations have taken
place on the registered premises.
(2) Solely based on activities constituting violations described
in a report made under paragraph (1), unless the violations reported
occurred with the actual knowledge and willful consent of the
registrant.
26070. Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to limit a law
enforcement agency's ability to investigate unlawful activity in
relation to a mandatory commercial registrant.
26072. The department shall create and maintain a searchable
database that will allow state and local law enforcement to verify a
mandatory commercial registration.
Article 5. Transportation of Medical Cannabis
26100. To claim the protections of this chapter and to maintain a
valid mandatory commercial registration, a registrant shall
ship transport medical cannabis products
only to the registered facilities of a mandatory comme
rcial registrant and only in response to a request for a
specific quantity and variety from a registered dispensary
or mandatory commercial that registrant.
26102. (a) Prior to transporting any medical cannabis product, a
mandatory commercial registrant shall do the following:
(1) Complete a shipping manifest using a form prescribed by the
department.
(2) Securely transmit a copy of the manifest to the mandatory
commercial registrant that will receive the medical cannabis product
and to the department prior to transport.
(b) The mandatory commercial registrant shipping and the
registrant receiving shall maintain each shipping manifest and make
it available to the department upon request.
26104. (a) Transported medical cannabis products shall:
(1) Be transported only in a locked, safe and secure storage
compartment that is securely affixed to the interior of the
transporting vehicle.
(2) Not be visible from outside the vehicle.
(b) Any vehicle transporting medical cannabis products shall
travel directly from the facilities of the mandatory
commercial registrant to the registered facilities of the
registrant authorized to receive the shipment.
26106. (a) A mandatory commercial registrant shall staff all
transport vehicles with a minimum of two employees. At least one
delivery team member shall remain with the vehicle at all times that
the vehicle contains medical cannabis.
(b) Each delivery team member shall have access to a secure form
of communication by which each member can communicate with personnel
at the mandatory commercial registrant facility at all times that the
vehicle contains medical cannabis.
(c) Each delivery team member shall possess documentation of
mandatory commercial registration and a government-issued
identification card at all times when transporting or delivering
medical cannabis and shall produce it to any representative of the
department or law enforcement official upon request.
26107. This chapter shall not be construed to authorize or permit
any registrant to transport, or cause to be transported, cannabis or
cannabis products outside the state.
SEC. 7. Section 23028 is added to the
Government Code , to read:
23028. (a) (1) In addition to any authority otherwise provided by
law, the board of supervisors of any county may impose, by
ordinance, a tax on the privilege of cultivating, dispensing,
producing, processing, preparing, storing, providing, donating,
selling, or distributing cannabis or cannabis products by a mandatory
commercial registrant operating pursuant to Chapter 18 (commencing
with Section 26000) of Division 9 of the Business and Professions
Code. The tax may be imposed for general governmental purposes or for
purposes specified in the ordinance by the board of supervisors.
(2) The board of supervisors shall specify in the ordinance
proposing the tax the activities subject to the tax, the applicable
rate or rates, the method of apportionment, and the manner of
collection of the tax. A tax imposed pursuant to this section is a
tax and not a fee or special assessment, and the tax is not required
to be apportioned on the basis of benefit to any person or property
or be applied uniformly to all taxpayers or all real property.
(3) A tax imposed by a county pursuant to this section by a county
may include a transactions and use tax imposed solely for cannabis
or cannabis products, which shall otherwise conform to Part 1.6
(commencing with Section 7251) of Division 2 of the Revenue and
Taxation Code. Notwithstanding Section 7251.1 of the Revenue and
Taxation Code, the tax may be imposed at any rate specified by the
board of supervisors, and the tax rate authorized by this section
shall not be considered for purposes of the combined tax rate
limitation established by that section.
(4) The tax authorized by this section may be imposed upon any or
all of the activities set forth in paragraph (1), regardless of
whether the activity is undertaken individually, collectively, or
cooperatively, and regardless of whether the activity is for
compensation or gratuitously, as determined by the board of
supervisors.
(5) The board of supervisors shall specify whether the tax applies
throughout the entire county or within the unincorporated area of
the county.
(b) In addition to any other method of collection authorized by
law, the board of supervisors may provide for collection of the tax
imposed pursuant to this section in the same manner, and subject to
the same penalties and priority of lien, as other charges and taxes
fixed and collected by the county.
(c) Any tax imposed pursuant to this section shall be subject to
applicable voter approval requirements imposed by any other law.
(d) For purposes of this section, "cannabis" and "cannabis
products" shall have the meanings set forth in Section 26001 of the
Business and Professions Code.
(e) This section does not limit or prohibit the levy or collection
or any other fee, charge, or tax, or any license or service fee or
charge upon, or related to, the activities set forth in subdivision
(a) as otherwise provided by law. This section shall not be construed
as a limitation upon the taxing authority of any county as provided
by other law.
SEC. 7. SEC. 8. Section 11362.7 of
the Health and Safety Code is amended to read:
11362.7. For purposes of this article, the following definitions
shall apply:
(a) "Attending physician" means an individual who possesses a
license in good standing to practice medicine or osteopathy issued by
the Medical Board of California or the Osteopathic Medical Board of
California and who has taken responsibility for an aspect of the
medical care, treatment, diagnosis, counseling, or referral of a
patient and who has performed an appropriate prior examination, found
that the patient has a medical indication, and recommends marijuana
for medical purposes to treat a serious medical condition.
(b) "Department" means the State Department of Public Health.
(c) "Person with an identification card" means an individual who
is a qualified patient who has applied for and received a valid
identification card pursuant to this article.
(d) "Primary caregiver" means the individual, designated by a
qualified patient or by a person with an identification card, who has
consistently assumed responsibility for the housing, health, or
safety of that patient or person, and may include any of the
following:
(1) In any case in which a qualified patient or person with an
identification card receives medical care or supportive services, or
both, from a clinic licensed pursuant to Chapter 1 (commencing with
Section 1200) of Division 2, a health care facility licensed pursuant
to Chapter 2 (commencing with Section 1250) of Division 2, a
residential care facility for persons with chronic life-threatening
illness licensed pursuant to Chapter 3.01 (commencing with Section
1568.01) of Division 2, a residential care facility for the elderly
licensed pursuant to Chapter 3.2 (commencing with Section 1569) of
Division 2, a hospice, or a home health agency licensed pursuant to
Chapter 8 (commencing with Section 1725) of Division 2, the owner or
operator, or no more than three employees who are designated by the
owner or operator, of the clinic, facility, hospice, or home health
agency, if designated as a primary caregiver by that qualified
patient or person with an identification card.
(2) An individual who has been designated as a primary caregiver
by more than one qualified patient or person with an identification
card, if every qualified patient or person with an identification
card who has designated that individual as a primary caregiver
resides in the same city or county as the primary caregiver.
(3) An individual who has been designated as a primary caregiver
by a qualified patient or person with an identification card who
resides in a city or county other than that of the primary caregiver,
if the individual has not been designated as a primary caregiver by
any other qualified patient or person with an identification card.
(e) A primary caregiver shall be at least 18 years of age, unless
the primary caregiver is the parent of a minor child who is a
qualified patient or a person with an identification card or the
primary caregiver is a person otherwise entitled to make medical
decisions under state law pursuant to Sections 6922, 7002, 7050, or
7120 of the Family Code.
(f) "Qualified patient" means a person who is entitled to the
protections of Section 11362.5, but who does not have an
identification card issued pursuant to this article.
(g) "Identification card" means a document issued by the State
Department of Public Health that document identifies a person
authorized to engage in the medical use of marijuana and the person's
designated primary caregiver, if any.
(h) "Serious medical condition" means all of the following medical
conditions:
(1) Acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS).
(2) Anorexia.
(3) Arthritis.
(4) Cachexia.
(5) Cancer.
(6) Chronic pain.
(7) Glaucoma.
(8) Migraine.
(9) Persistent muscle spasms, including, but not limited to,
spasms associated with multiple sclerosis.
(10) Seizures, including, but not limited to, seizures associated
with epilepsy.
(11) Severe nausea.
(12) Any other chronic or persistent medical symptom that either:
(A) Substantially limits the ability of the person to conduct one
or more major life activities as defined in the Americans with
Disabilities Act of 1990 (Public Law 101-336).
(B) If not alleviated, may cause serious harm to the patient's
safety or physical or mental health.
(i) "Written documentation" means accurate reproductions of those
portions of a patient's medical records that have been created by the
attending physician, that contain the information required by
paragraph (2) of subdivision (a) of Section 11362.715, and that the
patient may submit to a county health department or the county's
designee as part of an application for an identification card.
SEC. 8. SEC. 9. Section 11362.775 of
the Health and Safety Code is amended to read:
11362.775. (a) Qualified patients, persons with valid
identification cards, and the designated primary caregivers of
qualified patients and persons with identification cards, who
associate within the State of California in order collectively or
cooperatively to cultivate marijuana for medical purposes, shall not
solely on the basis of that fact be subject to state criminal
sanctions under Section 11357, 11358, 11359, 11360, 11366, 11366.5,
or 11570.
(b) This section shall remain in effect only until 90 days after
the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control posts a notice on its
Internet Web site that it began accepting applications for mandatory
commercial registration pursuant to Article 3 (commencing with
Section 26040) of Chapter 18 of Division 9 of the Business and
Professions Code, and as of that date is repealed.
SEC. 9. Chapter 4 (commencing with Section 7294)
is added to Part 1.7 of Division 2 of the Revenue and Taxation Code,
to read:
CHAPTER 4. LOCAL MEDICAL MARIJUANA TAXES
Article 1. Counties Medical Marijuana Tax
7294. (a) Notwithstanding any other law, the board of supervisors
of any county may levy, increase, or extend a transactions and use
tax for tangible personal property that is medical marijuana or
medical marijuana-infused products for general purposes if the
ordinance proposing that tax is approved by a two-thirds vote of all
members of the board of supervisors and the tax is approved by a
majority vote of the qualified voters of the county voting in an
election on the issue. The board of supervisors may levy, increase,
or extend more than one transactions and use tax under this section,
if the adoption of each tax is in the manner prescribed in this
section.
(b) (1) The transactions and use tax shall conform to Part 1.6
(commencing with Section 7251).
(2) Notwithstanding Section 7251.1, the tax rate authorized by
this section shall not be considered for purposes of the combined
rate established by that section.
7294.5. (a) Notwithstanding any other law, the board of
supervisors of any county may levy, increase, or extend a
transactions and use tax for tangible personal property that is
medical marijuana or medical marijuana-infused products for specific
purposes. The tax may be levied, increased, or extended for the
purpose for which it is established, if all of the following
requirements are met:
(1) The ordinance proposing that tax is approved by a two-thirds
vote of all members of the board of supervisors and is
subsequently approved by a two-thirds
vote of the qualified voters of the county voting in an election on
the issue.
(2) (A) The transactions and use tax conforms to the Transactions
and Use Tax Law Part 1.6 (commencing with Section 7251).
(B) Notwithstanding Section 7251.1, the tax rate authorized by
this section shall not be considered for purposes of the combined
rate established by that section.
(3) The ordinance includes an expenditure plan describing the
specific projects for which the revenues from the tax may be
expended.
(b) A county shall be deemed to be an authority for purposes of
Chapter 1 (commencing with Section 55800) of Part 3 of Division 2 of
Title 5 of the Government Code.
7294.6. Notwithstanding any other law, the combined rate of all
taxes imposed in any county pursuant to this article and pursuant to
Article 2 (commencing with Section 7295) shall not exceed the rate of
5 percent.
Article 2. Cities Medical Marijuana Tax
7295. (a) Notwithstanding any other law, the governing body of
any city may levy, increase, or extend a transactions and use tax for
tangible personal property that is medical marijuana or medical
marijuana-infused products for general purposes if the ordinance
proposing that tax is approved by a two-thirds vote of all members of
that governing body and the tax is approved by a majority vote of
the qualified voters of the city voting in an election on the issue.
The governing body may levy, increase, or extend more than one
transactions and use tax under this section, if the adoption of each
tax is in the manner prescribed in this section.
(b) (1) The transactions and use tax shall conform to Part 1.6
(commencing with Section 7251).
(2) Notwithstanding Section 7251.1, the tax rate authorized by
this section shall not be considered for purposes of the combined
rate established by that section.
7295.5. Notwithstanding any other law, the governing body of any
city may levy, increase, or extend a transactions and use tax for
tangible personal property that is medical marijuana or medical
marijuana-infused products for specific purposes. The tax may be
levied, increased, or extended for the purpose for which it is
established, if all of the following requirements are met:
(a) The ordinance proposing that tax is approved by a two-thirds
vote of all members of the governing body and is subsequently
approved by a two-thirds vote of the qualified voters of the city
voting in an election on the issue.
(b) (1) The transactions and use tax conforms to the Transactions
and Use Tax Law Part 1.6 (commencing with Section 7251).
(2) Notwithstanding Section 7251.1, the tax rate authorized by
this section shall not be considered for purposes of the combined
rate established by that section.
(c) The ordinance includes an expenditure plan describing the
specific projects for which the revenues from the tax may be
expended.
7295.6. (a) The authority of a city to impose transactions and
use taxes under Sections 7295 and 7295.5 shall not exceed the rate of
2 percent.
(b) An ordinance proposing a tax shall contain a provision that
any person subject to a transactions and use tax under a county
ordinance shall be entitled to credit against the payment of taxes
due under that ordinance in the amount of transactions and use tax
due to any city in the county.
SEC. 10. The provisions of this act are severable. If any
provision of this act or its application is held invalid, that
invalidity shall not affect other provisions or applications that can
be given effect without the invalid provision or application.
SEC. 11. The Legislature finds and declares that Section 3 of this
act imposes a limitation on the public's right of access to
documents in the possession of a public agency within the meaning of
Section 3 of Article I of the California Constitution. Pursuant to
that constitutional provision, the Legislature makes the following
finding to demonstrate the interest protected by this limitation and
the need for protecting that interest:
It is necessary to maintain the confidentiality of patient and
physician information provided to the Division of Medical Cannabis
Regulation and Enforcement in order to protect the private medical
information of patients who use medical cannabis and to preserve the
essential confidentiality of the physician and patient relationship.
SEC. 12. No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to
Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution because
the only costs that may be incurred by a local agency or school
district will be incurred because this act creates a new crime or
infraction, eliminates a crime or infraction, or changes the penalty
for a crime or infraction, within the meaning of Section 17556 of the
Government Code, or changes the definition of a crime within the
meaning of Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California
Constitution.
