California Leaders Exploring Recreational Marijuana Issues

Join us for MJBizCon, happening Dec. 2-5, 2025, in Las Vegas. Get on the pre-registration list now to receive early bird ticket pricing. Secure your spot today!


Some California officials are trying to ensure would-be recreational marijuana businesses don’t run into the same murky legal issues medical cannabis companies currently face should the state legalize cannabis for adult use.

San Francisco City Supervisor Scott Wiener is considering forming a task force that would look at what regulations would need to be in place to ensure a smooth transition from a medical-only market should voters elect to legalize recreational marijuana in 2016.

Gavin Newsom, the state’s lieutenant governor, also is preparing for the possibility of legalization by chairing a task force to sort out legal complexities, according to the San Francisco Examiner.

The aim is to involve people with a broad range of backgrounds – including organized labor and neighborhood activists along with those who haven’t been supportive of legalization, such as police, fire and school officials, the newspaper reported.

“We need to have a plan in place rather than reacting after the fact,” Wiener told the Examiner. “And we know this can be done in a smart and thoughtful way.”

California was the first state to legalize medical marijuana in 1996, but it never passed comprehensive regulations on the industry.