Bill Text: CA AB2555 | 2017-2018 | Regular Session | Amended
Bill Title: Cannabis.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2018-08-28 - Ordered to inactive file at the request of Senator McGuire. [AB2555 Detail]
Download: California-2017-AB2555-Amended.html
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Amended
IN
Senate
June 18, 2018 |
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Amended
IN
Assembly
April 04, 2018 |
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Amended
IN
Assembly
March 23, 2018 |
CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE—
2017–2018 REGULAR SESSION
| Assembly Bill | No. 2555 |
| Introduced by Assembly Member Cooley |
February 15, 2018 |
An act to amend Sections 26001 and 26069 of the Business and Professions Code, relating to cannabis.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 2555, as amended, Cooley.
Cannabis.
(1) The Control, Regulate and Tax Adult Use of Marijuana Act of 2016 (AUMA), an initiative measure approved as Proposition 64 at the November 8, 2016, statewide general election, authorizes a person who obtains a state license under AUMA to engage in commercial adult-use cannabis activity pursuant to that license and applicable local ordinances. The Medicinal and Adult-Use Cannabis Regulation and Safety Act (MAUCRSA), among other things, consolidates the licensure and regulation of commercial medicinal and adult-use cannabis activities. MAUCRSA generally divides responsibility for the state licensure and regulation of commercial cannabis activity among the Department of Consumer Affairs, the Department of Food and Agriculture, and the State Department of Public Health and requires those state licensing authorities to begin issuing licenses by January 1, 2018.
Under existing law, the Department of Food and Agriculture may issue cannabis cultivation licenses to commercial cannabis businesses that differ depending on the size of the cultivation site and whether the site is indoor, outdoor, or mixed. AUMA also requires the Department of Food and Agriculture, in consultation with the Bureau of Cannabis Control, to implement a unique identification program for cannabis and requires a unique identifier to be issued for each cannabis plant, plant at a cultivation site during the cultivation period, as specified. AUMA, as amended by MAUCRSA, defines a “unique identifier” as referencing a specific plant on a licensed premises, and any cannabis
or cannabis products derived from that plant. AUMA, as amended by MAUCRSA, requires the department, in consultation with the bureau, to use these unique identifiers in a track and trace program that tracks the movement of cannabis and cannabis products throughout the distribution chain, from cultivation to sale, using a software tracking system.
This bill would define “immature cannabis plant,” “mature cannabis plant,” and “plant” plant”
for purposes of AUMA. Instead of requiring a unique identifier to be issued for each cannabis plant, the bill would require a unique identifier to be issued for each mature
cannabis plant, as defined. The bill would provide for a unique identifier that references the lot of plants to which an immature plant belongs, instead of requiring a unique identifier for each immature plant, as specified.
(2) AUMA authorizes the Legislature to amend AUMA to further the purposes and intent of AUMA with a 2/3 vote of the membership of both houses of the Legislature, except as provided.
This bill would declare that its provisions further the purposes and intent of AUMA.
Digest Key
Vote: 2/3 Appropriation: NO Fiscal Committee: YES Local Program: NOBill Text
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
SECTION 1.
Section 26001 of the Business and Professions Code is amended to read:26001.
For purposes of this division, the following definitions shall apply:(a) “A-license” means a state license issued under this division for cannabis or cannabis products that are intended for adults who are 21 years of age and older and who do not possess a physician’s recommendation.
(b) “A-licensee” means any person holding a license under this division for cannabis or cannabis products that are intended for adults who are 21 years of age and older and who do not possess a physician’s recommendation.
(c) “Applicant” means an owner applying for a state license pursuant to this
division.
(d) “Batch” means a specific quantity of homogeneous cannabis or cannabis product that is one of the following types:
(1) Harvest batch. “Harvest batch” means a specifically identified quantity of dried flower or trim, leaves, and other cannabis plant matter that is uniform in strain, harvested at the same time, and, if applicable, cultivated using the same pesticides and other agricultural chemicals, and harvested at the same time.
(2) Manufactured cannabis batch. “Manufactured cannabis batch” means either of the following:
(A) An amount of cannabis concentrate or extract that is produced in one production cycle using the same extraction methods
and standard operating procedures.
(B) An amount of a type of manufactured cannabis produced in one production cycle using the same formulation and standard operating procedures.
(e) “Bureau” means the Bureau of Cannabis Control within the Department of Consumer Affairs, formerly named the Bureau of Marijuana Control, the Bureau of Medical Cannabis Regulation, and the Bureau of Medical Marijuana Regulation.
(f) “Cannabis” means all parts of the plant Cannabis sativa Linnaeus, 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. “Cannabis” also means the separated resin, whether crude or purified, obtained from cannabis. “Cannabis” 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. For the purpose of this division, “cannabis” does not mean “industrial hemp” as defined by Section 11018.5 of the Health and Safety Code.
(g) “Cannabis accessories” has the same meaning as in Section 11018.2 of the Health and Safety Code.
(h) “Cannabis concentrate” means cannabis that has undergone a process to
concentrate one or more active cannabinoids, thereby increasing the product’s potency. Resin from granular trichomes from a cannabis plant is a concentrate for purposes of this division. A cannabis concentrate is not considered food, as defined by Section 109935 of the Health and Safety Code, or a drug, as defined by Section 109925 of the Health and Safety Code.
(i) “Cannabis products” has the same meaning as in Section 11018.1 of the Health and Safety Code.
(j) “Child resistant” means designed or constructed to be significantly difficult for children under five years of age to open, and not difficult for normal adults to use properly.
(k) “Commercial cannabis activity” includes the cultivation, possession, manufacture,
distribution, processing, storing, laboratory testing, packaging, labeling, transportation, delivery or sale of cannabis and cannabis products as provided for in this division.
(l) “Cultivation” means any activity involving the planting, growing, harvesting, drying, curing, grading, or trimming of cannabis.
(m) “Cultivation site” means a location where cannabis is planted, grown, harvested, dried, cured, graded, or trimmed, or a location where any combination of those activities occurs.
(n) “Customer” means a natural person 21 years of age or older or a natural person 18 years of age or older who possesses a physician’s recommendation, or a primary caregiver.
(o) “Day care center” has the same meaning as in Section 1596.76 of the Health and Safety Code.
(p) “Delivery” means the commercial transfer of cannabis or cannabis products to a customer. “Delivery” also includes the use by a retailer of any technology platform.
(q) “Director” means the Director of Consumer Affairs.
(r) “Distribution” means the procurement, sale, and transport of cannabis and cannabis products between licensees.
(s) “Dried flower” means all dead cannabis that has been harvested, dried, cured, or otherwise processed, excluding leaves and stems.
(t) “Edible cannabis product”
means cannabis product that is intended to be used, in whole or in part, for human consumption, including, but not limited to, chewing gum, but excluding products set forth in Division 15 (commencing with Section 32501) of the Food and Agricultural Code. An edible cannabis product is not considered food, as defined by Section 109935 of the Health and Safety Code, or a drug, as defined by Section 109925 of the Health and Safety Code.
(u) “Fund” means the Cannabis Control Fund established pursuant to Section 26210.
(v) “Immature cannabis plant” or “immature plant” means a cannabis plant that is nonflowering and is shorter or narrower than eight
18 inches.
(w) “Kind” means applicable type or designation regarding a
particular cannabis variant or cannabis product type, including, but not limited to, strain name or other grower trademark, or growing area designation.
(x) “Labeling” means any label or other written, printed, or graphic matter upon a cannabis product, upon its container or wrapper, or that accompanies any cannabis product.
(y) “Labor peace agreement” means an agreement between a licensee and any bona fide labor organization that, at a minimum, protects the state’s proprietary interests by prohibiting labor organizations and members from engaging in picketing, work stoppages, boycotts, and any other economic interference with the applicant’s business. This agreement means that the applicant has agreed not to disrupt efforts by the bona fide labor organization to
communicate with, and attempt to organize and represent, the applicant’s employees. The agreement shall provide a bona fide labor organization access at reasonable times to areas in which the applicant’s employees work, for the purpose of meeting with employees to discuss their right to representation, employment rights under state law, and terms and conditions of employment. This type of agreement shall not mandate a particular method of election or certification of the bona fide labor organization.
(z) “License” means a state license issued under this division, and includes both an A-license and an M-license, as well as a testing laboratory license.
(aa) “Licensee” means any person holding a license under this division, regardless of whether the license held is an A-license or an
M-license, and includes the holder of a testing laboratory license.
(ab) “Licensing authority” means the state agency responsible for the issuance, renewal, or reinstatement of the license, or the state agency authorized to take disciplinary action against the licensee.
(ac) “Live plants” means living cannabis flowers and plants, including seeds, immature plants, and vegetative stage plants.
(ad) “Local jurisdiction” means a city, county, or city and county.
(ae) “Lot” means a batch or a specifically identified portion of a batch.
(af) “M-license” means a state license issued under this
division for commercial cannabis activity involving medicinal cannabis.
(ag) “M-licensee” means any person holding a license under this division for commercial cannabis activity involving medicinal cannabis.
(ah) “Manufacture” means to compound, blend, extract, infuse, or otherwise make or prepare a cannabis product.
(ai) “Manufacturer” means a licensee that conducts the production, preparation, propagation, or compounding of cannabis or cannabis products either directly or indirectly or by extraction methods, or independently by means of chemical synthesis, or by a combination of extraction and chemical synthesis at a fixed location that packages or repackages cannabis or cannabis products or labels or relabels its
container.
(aj)“Mature cannabis plant” means a cannabis plant that is taller than eight inches or wider than eight inches of total canopy size.
(ak)
(aj) “Medicinal cannabis” or “medicinal cannabis product” means cannabis or a cannabis product, respectively, intended to be sold for use pursuant to the Compassionate Use Act of 1996 (Proposition 215), found at Section 11362.5 of the Health and Safety Code, by a medicinal cannabis patient in California who possesses a
physician’s recommendation.
(al)
(ak) “Nursery” means a licensee that produces only clones, immature plants, seeds, and other agricultural products used specifically for the propagation and cultivation of cannabis.
(am)
(al) “Operation” means any act for which licensure is required under the provisions of this division, or any commercial transfer of cannabis or cannabis products.
(an)
(am) “Owner” means any of the following:
(1) A person with an aggregate ownership interest of 20 percent or more in the person applying for a license or a licensee, unless the interest is solely a security, lien, or encumbrance.
(2) The chief executive officer of a nonprofit or other entity.
(3) A member of the board of directors of a nonprofit.
(4) An individual who will be participating in the direction, control, or management of the person applying for a license.
(ao)
(an) “Package” means any container or receptacle used for holding cannabis or cannabis products.
(ap)
(ao) “Person” includes any individual, firm, partnership, joint venture, association, corporation, limited liability company, estate, trust, business trust, receiver, syndicate, or any other group or combination acting as a unit, and the plural as well as the singular.
(aq)
(ap) “Physician’s recommendation” means a recommendation by a physician and surgeon that a patient use cannabis provided in accordance with the Compassionate Use Act of 1996 (Proposition
215), found at Section 11362.5 of the Health and Safety Code.
(ar)“Plant” means a mature cannabis plant.
(as)
(aq) “Premises” means the designated structure or structures and land specified in the application that is owned, leased, or otherwise held under the control of the applicant or licensee where the commercial cannabis activity will be or is conducted. The premises shall be a contiguous area and shall only be occupied by one licensee.
(at)
(ar) “Primary caregiver” has the same meaning as in Section 11362.7 of the Health and Safety Code.
(au)
(as) “Purchaser” means the customer who is engaged in a transaction with a licensee for purposes of obtaining cannabis or cannabis products.
(av)
(at) “Sell,” “sale,” and “to sell” include any transaction whereby, for any consideration, title to cannabis or cannabis products is transferred from one person to another, and includes the delivery of cannabis or cannabis products pursuant to an order placed for the purchase of the same and soliciting or receiving an order for the same, but does not include the return of cannabis or cannabis products by a licensee to the licensee from whom the cannabis or cannabis product was purchased.
(aw)
(au) “Testing laboratory” means a laboratory, facility, or entity in the state that offers or
performs tests of cannabis or cannabis products and that is both of the following:
(1) Accredited by an accrediting body that is independent from all other persons involved in commercial cannabis activity in the state.
(2) Licensed by the bureau.
(ax)
(av) “Unique identifier” means an alphanumeric code or designation used for reference to a specific plant
plant, or lot of plants to which an immature plant belongs, on a licensed premises and any cannabis or cannabis product derived or manufactured from that plant. Notwithstanding the presence of an immature plant in a lot, each cannabis plant in the lot that is not an immature plant shall be referenced by its own unique alphanumeric code or designation.
(ay)
(aw) “Youth center” has the same meaning as in Section 11353.1 of the Health and Safety Code.
SEC. 2.
Section 26069 of the Business and Professions Code is amended to read:26069.
(a) The department shall establish a Cannabis Cultivation Program to be administered by the secretary. The secretary shall administer this section as it pertains to the cultivation of cannabis. For purposes of this division, cannabis is an agricultural product.(b) A person or entity shall not cultivate cannabis without first obtaining a state license issued by the department pursuant to this division.
(c) (1) The department, in consultation with, but not limited to, the bureau, shall implement a unique identification program for cannabis. In implementing the program, the department shall consider
issues including, but not limited to, water use and environmental impacts. If the State Water Resources Control Board or the Department of Fish and Wildlife finds, based on substantial evidence, that cannabis cultivation is causing significant adverse impacts on the environment in a watershed or other geographic area, the department shall not issue new licenses or increase the total number of plant identifiers within that watershed or area.
(2) (A) The department shall establish a program for the identification of permitted cannabis plants at a cultivation site during the cultivation period. A An appropriate unique identifier shall be issued for each mature
cannabis plant. The department shall ensure that unique identifiers are issued as quickly as possible to ensure the implementation of this division. The unique identifier shall be attached at the base of each plant or as otherwise required by law or regulation.
(B) Unique identifiers shall only be issued to those persons appropriately licensed by this section.
(C) Information associated with the assigned unique identifier and licensee shall be included in the trace and track program specified in Section 26067.
(D) The department may charge a fee to cover the reasonable costs of issuing the unique identifier and monitoring, tracking, and inspecting each cannabis plant.
(E) The department may promulgate regulations to implement this section.
(3) The department shall take adequate steps to establish protections against fraudulent unique identifiers and limit illegal diversion of unique identifiers to unlicensed persons.
(d) A city, county, or city and county may administer unique identifiers and associated identifying information but a city, county, or city and county’s identifiers shall not supplant the department’s track and trace program.
(e) (1) This section does not apply to the cultivation of cannabis in accordance with Section 11362.1 of the Health and Safety Code or the Compassionate Use Act.
(2) Subdivision (b) does not apply to persons or entities licensed under subdivision (b) of Section 26070.5.
