California legal agency signs off on state’s final cannabis industry rules

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California marijuana rules, California legal agency signs off on state’s final cannabis industry rules

The California Office of Administrative Law (OAL) approved final marijuana industry rules that regulators had published in December, paving the way for the state to implement a permanent regulatory framework for the nation’s largest cannabis market.

The regulations, approved late Wednesday, take effect immediately, according to news releases from the Bureau of Cannabis Control (BCC), the Department of Food and Agriculture and the Department of Public Health, which wrote the rules. The regulations can be viewed here.

One of the most contentious policies – which could lead to a legal battle between state regulators and municipalities that have prohibited commercial cannabis operations – is from the BCC, which allows marijuana deliveries to be made in any jurisdiction in California, regardless of local MJ business bans.

“The public spoke loud and clear in favor of statewide delivery,” BCC spokesman Alex Traverso said in a statement to the Associated Press.

Traverso also confirmed to Marijuana Business Daily that the OAL made no major substantive changes to the rules that regulators submitted to the agency last month.

Regulators had spent months drafting and revising the rules. The OAL’s approval was needed before the regulations could take effect.

Several industry experts said last month that the rules as written in December were a mixed bag for companies. But they largely hailed the regulations as improvements over previous drafts.

There likely will be further regulatory changes to rules governing California’s marijuana industry, as bills are beginning to pile up at the state capitol in Sacramento on various cannabis business policies.

Also, the state’s new governor, Gavin Newsom, could propose major changes depending on how he approaches regulating the marijuana trade.

John Schroyer can be reached at johns@mjbizdaily.com