[EclipseFour20]

Source: https://www.ocregister.com/articles/m...tate-wild.html

SACRAMENTO – California took the first step Thursday to regulate its nearly 20-year-old medical marijuana industry, one that lawmakers said currently resembles something out of the “wild, wild West.”

AB266 merges what were two competing bills and attempts to set up state regulations that will pass muster with the federal Department of Justice.

The measure approved by the Assembly would create the Office of Marijuana Regulation within the governor’s office, with help from the departments of Public Health and Food and Agriculture and the Board of Equalization, which would collect licensing fees. Local governments could still license or reject commercial cannabis operations. The bill calls for involvement from a host of other state agencies, including criminal background checks by the state Department of Justice and wastewater standards by the State Water Resources Control Board.

It largely leaves it to those offices and agencies to develop standards, licensing and regulations.

“There was a reference to the wild West, and that is what this bill is trying to move away from,” said Assemblyman Rob Bonta, D-Alameda. “I think that we can all agree that stronger regulation is needed … and is long overdue.”

California was the first state, in 1996, to legalize the sale of marijuana for medical use, but has since fallen behind the rest of the nation, said Assemblyman Reginald Jones-Sawyer, D-Los Angeles. Colorado, Washington, Oregon and Alaska have recently legalized recreational pot use to varying degrees.

The bill was sent to the Senate on a 50-5 vote, though supporters said they will keep working on the measure during the rest of this year’s legislative session.

It won support from Assemblyman Tom Lackey, R-Palmdale, who spent 28 years as a California Highway Patrol officer and said the measure will help “to tighten up some of the abuses that currently exist.”

But it was opposed by Assemblyman Jim Cooper, D-Elk Grove, who served with the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Department for 30 years. He said the bill doesn’t do enough to regulate marijuana-impaired drivers and keep pot-infused candy and other goodies from children, though Bonta said both will be more highly regulated than they are now.

“It’s the wild, wild West,” Cooper said. “I think we’re heading in the wrong direction.”

Now....let's read what it says about "cultivators".

Source: https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/fa...201520160AB266

Article 7. Licensed Cultivation Sites
19332. (a) The Division of Medical Cannabis Cultivation in the Department of Food and Agriculture shall promulgate regulations governing the licensing of cultivation sites. For purposes of this chapter, the Secretary of the Department of Food and Agriculture shall declare medical cannabis to be an agricultural product. The department shall develop standards for the production and labeling of all edible medical cannabis products, standards for the use of pesticides and rodenticides in cultivation, and, in consultation with the State Department of Public Health, maximum tolerances for pesticides, rodenticides, and other foreign object residue in harvested cannabis.
(b) The Department of Food and Agriculture shall have the authority necessary for the implementation of this chapter. Department regulations shall do all of the following:
(1) Provide that weighing or measuring devices used in connection with the sale or distribution of medical cannabis are required to meet standards analogous to Division 5 (commencing with Section 12001).
(2) Require that the application of pesticides or other pest control in connection with the indoor or outdoor cultivation of medical cannabis shall meet standards analogous to Division 6 (commencing with Section 11401) of the Food and Agricultural Code and its implementing regulations.
(3) Require that indoor and outdoor cannabis cultivation by licensees is conducted in accordance with state and local laws and best practices related to land conversion, grading, electricity usage, water usage, agricultural discharges, and similar matters.
(c) State licenses to be issued by the Division of Medical Cannabis Cultivation are as follows:
(1) Type 1, or “specialty outdoor,” for outdoor cultivation of less than 5,000 square feet of total area on one property. Maximum of 50 mature plants on the property.
(2) Type 1A, or “specialty indoor,” for indoor cultivation of less than 5,000 square feet of total area on one property. Maximum of 50 mature plants on the property.
(3) Type 2, or “small outdoor,” for outdoor cultivation between 5,001 and 10,000 square feet of total area on one property. Maximum of 99 mature plants on the property.
(4) Type 2A, or “small indoor,” for indoor cultivation between 5,001 and 10,000 square feet of total area on one property. Maximum of 99 mature plants on the property.
(5) Type 3, or “medium outdoor,” for outdoor cultivation between 10,001 and 30,000 square feet of total area on one property. Maximum of 299 mature plants on the property. The Division of Medical Cannabis Cultivation shall limit the number of licenses allowed of this type.
(6) Type 3A, or “medium indoor,” for indoor cultivation between 10,001 and 30,000 square feet of total area on one property. Maximum of 299 mature plants on the property. The Division of Medical Cannabis Cultivation shall limit the number of licenses allowed of this type.
(7) Type 4, or “large outdoor,” for outdoor cultivation greater than 30,001 square feet of total area on one property. Maximum of 500 mature plants on the property. The Division of Medical Cannabis Cultivation shall limit the number of licenses allowed of this type.
(8) Type 5, or “nursery,” for cultivation of medical cannabis solely as a nursery. Type 5 licensees may transport live plants.
(d) All license fees collected by the division pursuant to this chapter shall be deposited into the Medical Cannabis Cultivation Fees Account, which is hereby established within the fund. All moneys within this account are available upon appropriation by the Legislature to the division solely for the purposes of fully funding and administering this chapter, including, but not limited to, the costs incurred by the division for its administrative expenses and costs and the costs of regulation.
(e) It is the intent of the Legislature to establish appropriate protocols for the collection of the specific location of cultivation sites."

So...if I have a 5,000 sq ft operation, then only 50 plants are allowed...5k-10k sq ft for 99 plants, 10k-30k sq ft for 299 plants and....for 500 plants you need at least a 30,001 sq feet plot of land--no inside garden? WTF!

"Oh oh" is what I say--most residential homes in my "hood" range between 1800-3000 sq feet--qualifying for a 50 plant limit. Say goodbye to us "legit" covert home cultivators if this becomes law....at least as it is currently written.

[HUGE]

Meet the new boss same as the old boss.

[_tessarecting]

Limited licenses...

[wantaknow]

I cant agree at all with that ,stronger regulation for what reason ? Because they cant prove intent for sale, it just to hard ,but they know it is happining,my ass ,after watching pot cops ,and seeing some sniviling cop crying in his beer ,they he cant make the bust stick ,who most likly has a 215 card at home ,so he can steal his meds ,eat for free at the local fast food shop ,they are commininst just like there daddy obama,decriminalization is now need i. Cali ,they are not happy now and will not stop until they are putting peeps back in jail again for a plant ,because you are making to much money off it ,better stomp this out quick

[stoned-trout]

cali fucks up everything that is state government regulated....ooh no this will not end well.. the good news is I am out of here within a few years.. suck it on the property taxes,gas and electric prices and the drought and a few other things.. cali is nice but it cost you $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$ $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$..fuck even cost me 109$ to re register car............yeeehaw come to cali live nice stay broke.. 5 years back in new England and Isaved /banked almost 100k.. another 5 years here in cali I might be 100k in debt...haha

[resinryder]

"“There was a reference to the wild West, and that is what this bill is trying to move away from,” said Assemblyman Rob Bonta, D-Alameda. “I think that we can all agree that stronger regulation is needed … and is long overdue.”

Here's a friendly democrat looking out for current and future campaign contributors.

[EclipseFour20]

Did some math, 5001 sq ft divided between 99 plants...equates to 50.52 square feet per plant. Guess the new growing technique is 1 plant per 50 square feet....instead of what we are doing now: 1-2 square feet per plant (inside gardens).

Who is smoking crack in Sacramento?

This will just force us "legit" growers to go further underground...or maintain two operations: licensed (50 sq ft per plant) and unlicensed/off the books (1-2 sq ft per plant) operation.

[m314]

Can't they just wait until next year? The voters will probably pass a better version of legalization than this next year. The Jack Herer Initiative would allow to 99 flowering plants and up to 12 pounds of dried bud just for personal use.

[snake11]

Originally Posted by m314

Can't they just wait until next year? The voters will probably pass a better version of legalization than this next year. The Jack Herer Initiative would allow to 99 flowering plants and up to 12 pounds of dried bud just for personal use.

That is what they don't want. They would rather push through a watered down version now.

[Crusader Rabbit]

This is their chance to fuck up medical before the 2016 elections. Did anybody who writes this legislation talk with anyone who grows pot? Are personal grows going to require a license? Whatever happened to the idea of just leaving people alone to live their lives? How about eliminating bogus reasons for cops kicking down doors and ruining people's lives? ... shooting the family dog and sending the children to foster homes where they can be sexually molested. Everyone seems to have forgotten that the prime reason to remove the marijuana laws is simply because they are a travesty of justice.