It is the fall harvest here in this fertile stretch of oaks and hills that produces some of the country’s best wine. This season, though, workers also are plucking the sticky, fragrant flowers of a new crop. Marijuana is emerging among the vineyards, not as a rival to the valley’s grapes but as a high-value […]
California
Foreign Investment In California’s Marijuana Market: What You Need To Know Now
By HILARY BRICKEN It appears the federal government is taking a wait-and-see approach to foreign ownership of state cannabis businesses Our California cannabis business have been getting tons of interest and questions lately about foreign investment into California’s booming cannabis industry. As would be expected, much of this interest in foreign direct investment is coming from […]
You Can Bring Your Marijuana to the LA Airport Now
It looks like travelers in Los Angeles won’t have to cram their weed inside balled-up socks or stash it in their ibuprofen bottles next time they fly—because LAX is totally chill about bringing pot into the airport now, ABC 13 reports. This week, Los Angeles International Airport posted a new marijuana policy on its website, announcing that LAX […]
Calif. Gov. Vetoes Tax Deduction For Pot Biz Expenses
California Gov. Jerry Brown vetoed on Wednesday a bill that would have provided deductions for business expenses for a cannabis trade or business through the state’s personal income tax law, decoupling the state tax code from the federal law barring tax breaks for trafficking in controlled substances. In the veto message issued for Assembly Bill […]
California Cannabis: So Close on Provisional Licensing
Provisional licensing would benefit state AND industry. The California legislature is currently finalizing a bill (SB-1459) which would establish a provisional licensing regime for California cannabis businesses. The bill moved into “enrolled” status late last week, which means that SB-1459 has been approved by both houses of the state legislature and is being proofread to ensure […]
Unique Program to Track and Trace Dollars in CA Could Pave the Way for a Banking Solution in the US
State and local governments vary greatly in their ability to attract and compensate regulatory personnel that bring institutional knowledge and experience to regulate the nascent Cannabis Industry in their respective spheres of influence. Think about it, the challenge for any state or local government is to find and afford people with the experience and the […]
California Marijuana Products Are Failing Tests At An Alarming Rate
Nearly 20 percent of marijuana products in California have failed tests for potency and purity since the state started requiring the checks on July 1, a failure rate some in the industry say has more to do with unrealistic standards and technical glitches than protecting consumer safety. The testing has been especially tough on cannabis-infused cookies, candies […]
Confused About Background Checks in California? Read This
California is rife with regulation of how employers may obtain and consider background check information for use in hiring and personnel decisions. The relatively new California ban-the-box law (effective Jan. 1, 2018) and the older Los Angeles and San Francisco ordinances and amendments to the California Labor Code set strict rules on when and how […]
We Still Need Clarity: Non-Profit to For-Profit Conversion in California
The Bureau of Cannabis Control (“BCC”) implemented Regulations under California’s Medicinal and Adult-Use Cannabis Regulation and Safety Act (“MAUCRSA”). New Regulations were released and titled the Proposed Non-Emergency Regulations (“Regulations”). The Regulations, among other things, provide the licensing requirements for cannabis businesses. As part of those requirements, all “owners” of the licensed business must be […]
High-End California Chefs Are Cashing In On Cannabis
Leave it to California to combine high-end cuisine with the kind of ingredients that might actually get you high. It’s an increasingly lucrative niche for chefs in San Francisco and Los Angeles — cities already well known for trendy food culture. Chefs and entrepreneurs making cannabis-infused foie gras and “stoner souffles” have been featured on […]
California Measure Would Expunge Many Marijuana-Related Crimes
California lawmakers have approved a measure requiring prosecutors to expunge convictions or reduce sentences for many marijuana-related convictions dating back decades. The bill is now awaiting a signature from Gov. Jerry Brown, according to the Associated Press. The bill, passed by the state Senate on Wednesday by a 22-8 vote, would require the state’s Department of […]
Teen Marijuana Use Down In California
Despite the dawn of a new era legalizing recreational use of cannabis by adults, marijuana use among middle and high school students continued to decline in California in 2016 and 2017, a new state-funded health survey shows. Only 4.2 percent of seventh graders reported ever using marijuana, according to the 16th biennial California Healthy Kids Survey, […]
Marijuana is not really legal in California if residents don’t have a reasonable way to buy it
California law allows adults to buy marijuana. It allows licensed businesses to deliver marijuana to customers, and it says specifically that cities and counties cannot prevent delivery services from traveling on public roads. Yet even though cities can’t stop deliveries traveling through their jurisdiction, many cities currently ban deliveries to their jurisdiction. That means that unlike deliveries of virtually […]
The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly: Social Equity Cannabis In Los Angeles
By Hillary Bricken Potential applicants on both sides of the social equity aisle need to be aware of the tricks being used to game this new system. Phase II cannabis licensing in the City of Los Angeles (for only non-retail activity) kicked off on August 1 at 12 p.m. (and it will conclude on September 13th). […]
Buzzkill Alert: California Prohibits Hemp CBD In Food
California is essentially letting the FDA dictate what it will do with hemp CBD. Earlier this month, the California Department of Public Health’s Food and Drug Branch (CDPH-FDB) issued a revised FAQ on cannabidiol (CBD) in food products. Per these FAQs it appears California intends to block the sale of hemp-derived CBD products — which are […]
California’s exploding market for hemp CBD products rocked by sporadic crackdowns
The pink menus at Coffee Dose, a Costa Mesa coffee shop, list lattes infused with trendy ingredients such as tumeric powder and grass-fed butter. The menus also have several ingredients carefully hidden by lines of Wite-Out. But look closely enough and you can make out two words: “CBD oil.” Cannabidiol, known as CBD, is one […]
California Cannabis Outlook Slashed by BDS on Slow Licensing
Forecast for 2018 marijuana sales reduced for second time, Research firm cites new regulations that have hit the industry New state rules are killing the buzz on California’s cannabis sales. Legal pot that was once expected to generate $3.7 billion in revenue this year now is forecast to total just $2.9 billion, Greg Shoenfeld, vice president […]
Marijuana festivals, and businesses that benefit from them, are hurting now that cannabis is legal in California
Marijuana festival organizers were banking on this to be their biggest year yet, now that recreational cannabis is legal in California and the state is legitimizing such events by licensing them for the first time. Promoters say they planned to stop operating under the loose protections of the state’s medical marijuana laws, where they’d force […]
