RCRC officially opposes Assembly Bill 1356 by Assembly Member Phil Ting (D-San Francisco). AB 1356 requires a retail commercial cannabis facility in each city/county if more than 50 percent of the voters of a local jurisdiction voted in favor of Proposition 64. The city/county must issue a minimum number of licenses authorizing retail cannabis activity within that jurisdiction.
RCRC believes AB 1356 erodes local control as provided to county Boards of Supervisors under Proposition 64. Essentially, AB 1356 proposes a land-use standard based on the results of a statewide ballot measure when the primary purpose was to sanction adult-use of cannabis. In addition, many of the RCRC member counties that supported Proposition 64 (and are also working to sanction all forms of commercial cannabis activity) are troubled by the preference deferred to retail. RCRC is also concerned that AB 1356 clearly favors storefront over mobile deliveries.
While RCRC is pleased that AB 1356 was temporarily defeated by being placed on the Assembly Inactive File, AB 1356 (or a similar effort) is expected to resurface in the near future. RCRC’s AB 1356 letter can be accessed here.
For more information, Paul A. Smith, RCRC Governmental Affairs Vice President, can be reached at (916) 447-4806 or psmith@rcrcnet.org.