In an effort to give local lawmakers more time to develop medical cannabis regulations Assemblyman Jim Wood has adopted, and amended AB 21.
Assemblyman Wood said, “It was never our intention to place such a short timeline on local lawmakers. The current deadline gives jurisdictions just 65 more days to consult stakeholders, learn about the industry, and write good policy; that is not nearly enough time.”
The Medical Marijuana Regulation and Safety Act (MMRSA) created a requirement for local jurisdictions - develop regulations for the cultivation and delivery of medical marijuana by March 1st, 2016, or relinquish that authority to the State. AB 21 would strike the deadline completely, allowing local jurisdictions to create new regulations around the cultivation of medical marijuana indefinitely.
“We have widespread support for this fix, including bi-partisan support from both houses, stakeholders, and the Governor’s office” said Wood. “I am hoping that AB 21 will be on the Governor’s desk before the end of the month and local lawmakers will give this complicated issue the time it deserves.”
The MMRSA was signed as a package of three bills (AB243, AB266, SB643) on October 9th, 2015 following a landmark stakeholder process. All of the authors have acknowledged that the March 1 deadline was mistakenly included as a holdover from previous drafts of the bill and in an LA Times article last month the Governor’s office stated, "The governor supports allowing local municipalities a reasonable amount of time to come up with regulations that work for their communities."1
AB 21 will be heard in Senate Rules Committee on Thursday January, 7th.
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Elected in 2014, Assemblymember Jim Wood (D- Healdsburg) represents the 2nd Assembly District, which includes all of Del Norte, Trinity, Humboldt and Mendocino counties, plus northern and coastal Sonoma County, including the northern half of Santa Rosa.
http://asmdc.org/members/a02/