Ellen Komp

Presumptive Democratic Presidential nominee Joe Biden has named California Senator Kamala Harris as his Vice Presidential pick.

As San Francisco’s District Attorney and California’s Attorney General, Harris upheld California’s medical marijuana law. Since being elected to the Senate, she has come on strong for federal marijuana law reform as the Senate sponsor of the Marijuana Opportunity, Reinvestment, and Expungement (MORE) Act to remove marijuana from the Controlled Substances Act, enabling states to set their own marijuana policies and reinvesting funds in communities of color that have been impacted by laws against marijuana.…

July 14, 2020 – Arrest data released by the California Dept. of Justice show there were 1,181 felony marijuana arrests in California in 2019, down 27% from 2018 (1,617 arrests) and the lowest number since 1954.

Latinos accounted for 493 or 41.7% of arrests; blacks for 263 (22.3%) and whites for 252 (21.3%).  Males were 87.9% of those arrested for felonies, and juvenile felony arrests numbered 91.

2019’s misdemeanor marijuana arrests were down slightly in 2019: they numbered 3,769, versus 3,835 in 2018.Hispanics…

UPDATE November 2021 – Voters in the city of Santa Cruz overwhelmingly passed a ballot measure upping the allocation of local cannabis tax monies from 12.5% to 20% for their Children’s Fund. Because it specifically allocated tax funds, the measure required a supermajority to pass, and won 83% of the vote. Read more.

June 18, 2020 – Two new reports, taken together, have found that California communities where huge racial disparities in marijuana arrests have been happening for decades are spending cannabis tax dollars to increase their police budgets since the passage of Prop.…

UPDATE 6/30/2020 – We have had several reliable, confirmed reports that police in San Francisco and Oakland are warning cannabis businesses that a second wave of robberies could happen over the July 4 weekend, especially on Saturday when police will be busy with fireworks celebrations, etc. Businesses are advised to take precautionary safety measures. It is unknown how widespread these actions may be; if anyone has more information please let us know. 

A boarded up and guarded cannabis shop: Cookies on Melrose.  …

UPDATE 6/30/20 – The Governor has extended ID cards for another 60 days. The extension is contained in Paragraph 25 of Executive Order N-71-20. (Originally paragraph 5 in executive order N-65-20).  

May 19, 2020 – The Governor has issued an executive order extending the expiration date of Medical Marijuana Identification Cards (MMIC) issued by county health departments. Under the order, MMICs that would otherwise have expired between March 4, 2020 and any day within 60 days from the date of the executive order shall remain valid for 60 days from the date of the order.…

UPDATE: May 31, 2021 – The Marijuana Opportunity, Reinvestment, and Expungement (MORE) Act has been reintroduced in Congress. MORE would allow veterans to obtain medical cannabis recommendations from their VA doctors in states that have an established medical cannabis program. Please contact your Representative and tell them to support its swift passage.

May 25, 2020 – On this Memorial Day, we remember all those who gave their lives in military service, and the veterans who commit suicide at a rate of 22 per day.…

THIS STORY WILL BE UPDATED AS IT DEVELOPS

May 18, 2020 – The explosion and fire at the “Smoke Tokes” facility in downtown Los Angeles, resulting in injuries to several firefighters, did not happen at a facility that contained cannabis, nor did it have any license for manufacturing or distributing cannabis products, according to a search at the CA Bureau of Cannabis Control and Department of Public Health. Alex Traverso, a spokesman for the state Bureau of Cannabis Control, confirmed to Forbes magazine on Monday that there was no state-licensed cannabis business at the address.…

THIS PAGE WILL BE UPDATED AS BILLS ARE AMENDED OR VOTED ON.

UPDATE 5/8/2020 – On May 21, the Assembly Business & Professions Committee will hear three bills, each of which would enact $30,000/day state fines for operating unlicensed cannabis businesses, or allowing property to be used for one. They are:

AB 3330 (O’Donnell) – Would impose a civil penalty of up to $30,000 for collecting a fee or any other form of compensation for advertising or marketing the sale or provision of cannabis or cannabis products, or for the completion, initiation, or facilitation of the sale or provision of cannabis or cannabis products, unless the sale or provision is done in compliance with MAUCRSA (the law establishing state licenses for cannabis businesses).…

April 21, 2020 – The ACLU released a report on 4/20 finding that on average, 3.6 times as many black people are arrested for marijuana possession offenses than are white people in the US, despite similar usage rates. This disparity has not improved over the last decade, and in fact, disparities have actually worsened in most states.

On average, states that have legalized or decriminalized marijuana tend to have lower racial disparities than states in which marijuana remains fully illegal. In some legalized states, such as Maine and Vermont, racial disparities in marijuana possession arrests increased between 2010 and 2018, while in other legalized states, such as California and Nevada, the disparities decreased.…

UPDATE May 5, 2020 – The El Dorado County Board of Supervisors voted today to approve an ordinance that limits cannabis cultivation to six plants per parcel, but exempts for 2020 existing personal medical gardens that have been planted under the old ordinance allowing 200, 400 or 600 square feet, depending on parcel size. The ordinance was passed as an urgency and takes effect immediately.

The last-minute amendment exempting medical gardens is in effect through December 1, 2020 and came after members of the El Dorado American Alliance for Medical Cannabis  contacted Cal NORML, and we contacted attorney Joe Elford.…

4/20/20 – Thanks to all who took our advice to #FlattenThe420Curve and stocked up in advance for 420 celebrations this year, instead of crowding retailers on 4/20.

There are lots of opportunities to celebrate online that support reform groups and/or COVID charities.

Don’t Go to Hippie Hill This Year (or Gather Anywhere Else)

The April 20 celebration at Golden Gate Park in San Francisco has been cancelled. SF’s Mayor London Breed has announced that Robin Williams Meadow will be fenced off, and officers will patrol the area, making sure people don’t gather there or elsewhere.…

Photo: Noah Friedlander / CC BY-SA

READ A MESSAGE FROM NORML’S NATIONAL DIRECTOR ABOUT COVID-19, CANNABIS AND SAFETY

THIS STORY WILL BE UPDATED AS DEVELOPMENTS HAPPEN.

UPDATE 3/23/20: MONTEREY COUNTY AND AGRICULTURE INDUSTRY ASSOCIATIONS ENDORSE ADVISORY FOR AGRICULTURAL WORKER PROTECTION DURING COVID-19 CRISIS

3/21/20: California’s Dept. of Public Health has issued an order deeming cannabis retailer workers and workers supporting cannabis retail as “essential critical infrastructure workers” during the statewide coronavirus “stay at home” order.

The Bureau of Cannabis Control has issued a statement saying, “Because cannabis is an essential medicine for many residents, licensees may continue to operate at this time so long as their operations comply with local rules and regulations.…

This page will be updated as more results become available. 

March 4, 2020 – In the Democratic presidential primary held yesterday in California, Bernie Sanders, who has an A+ rating from NORML based on his policy to deschedule marijuana and legalize it nationwide, is carrying California with 33.6% of the vote. Ex-VP Joe Biden, who has consistently opposed cannabis as a “gateway drug” and now says he favors “decriminalizing” cannabis, has a C- grade from NORML and has won only 24.8% of the vote in California (so far).…

Cal NORML regrets to announce that the Cal NORML / ASA Lobby Day scheduled for June 1, 2020 has been cancelled due to safety concerns around the COVID-19 pandemic. As of now, the Legislature is not in session, and will only be considering emergency bills regarding COVID and a few other issues.

We will be continuing to monitor the legislative situation in 2020, and hope to see everyone back in Sacramento for Lobby Day 2021!…