22 - Laserfiche WebLink

SB 1262 Senate Bill-Bill Analysis Page 15 of 18 start a business and will encourage non-compliance. we recommend scaling application fees to the size of the operation. Furthermore, there needs to be greater clarity, differentiating an application fee, a provisional licensing fee, and a standard licensing fee. The cost to apply should be much lower than the fee for a one-year or two-year license to operate. "The bill as amended states that, "The bureau shall deny an application for a license if issuance of that license would SB 1262 Page 20 tend to create a law enforcement problem, or if issuance would result in or add to an undue concentration of licenses." This language is unclear, and the accompanying language is problematic for several reasons. First, a significant body of research demonstrates that there is no relationship between medical cannabis businesses and crime in a community. There is even evidence that a well-lit, secure, and active facility can improve the safety and livability of a neighborhood. Secondly, many localities have already established zoning ordinances for medical cannabis businesses which relegate them to industrial areas with higher crime rates, and the census tracts described are low-income neighborhoods. The inclusion of this amendment could wipe out access to medical cannabis in communities already plagued with lack of access to health care and economic opportunity. "Finally, the recent mock-up would ban licenses where "the ratio of licenses to population in the census tract or census division in which the applicant premises are located exceeds the ratio of licenses of population in the county in which the applicant premises are located." It appears that a city like Sacramento, Oakland, or Los Angeles would not be able to license programs, unless it mathematically balances with the number of licensed entities in the counties of Sacramento, Alameda or Los Angeles. It appears unworkable, or at least open to numerous interpretations by county council and city attorneys." 7)Related Legislation . a) AB 1894 (Ammiano) of 2014 would have enacted the Medical Cannabis Regulation and Control Act to license and regulate the cultivation, manufacture, testing, transportation, storage, distribution, and sale of medical cannabis, and would create the Division of Medical Cannabis Regulation and Enforcement within the Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control. This bill failed passage on the Assembly Floor. bl SB 1193 (Pavley) of 2014 reduces the amount of growing or harvested marijuana that has been seized by a law enforcement agency that must be retained for evidence from at least 10 pounds to at least two pounds. SB 1193 will be heard in this Committee today. $)Prior Legislation . SB 1262 hnp/ANININdeginfoxa.gov/pubfl 13-14/bill/sen/sb_1251.1300/sb_1262_c fa_20I 40626_1 11950_asm_com m.htm l 7/3/2014