San Francisco mulls creation of ‘Department of Cannabis’

San Francisco would have a “Department of Cannabis” if a member of the city’s Board of Supervisors has his way.

Supervisor Jeff Sheehy – concerned about the “onslaught” when recreational marijuana becomes legal in California on Jan. 1 –  sees the need for a department that has the sole duty of overseeing the city’s cannabis industry, the San Francisco Chronicle reported. He has requested that the city attorney’s office prepare legislation to submit to the Board of Supervisors.

The proposed agency would regulate recreational marijuana sales, distribution and growing, though Sheehy believes cultivation will “be too expensive” to be a viable business in San Francisco, according to the Chronicle.

The department would have a director and a commission, as well as inspectors to ensure recreational cannabis businesses are in compliance. Medical marijuana dispensaries are currently overseen by the San Francisco Public Health Department.

The new agency would be funded by “fees charged to the marijuana businesses,” Sheehy told the Chronicle.

City officials displayed their wariness about the impending rec market last month when they enacted a delay on indoor cultivation so they would have more time to study the marijuana industry.

With statewide rules under development, California’s cannabis industry is shaping up to be a patchwork of regulations as municipalities consider taking control of their own markets.