A cannabis plant growing in northern California. (Photo: King Dragon, via Shutterstock)The headlines were attention-grabbing; some were scary: “What will your mother say when she finds your corpse?” “The weed with roots in hell.” “Assassin of Youth.” They were, of course, all about marijuana. Movie producers discovered they could sell more tickets if their advertisements promised audiences lots of dissolute youth.
Marijuana, cannabis, flowering plant as medicinal medicine, grass in sunset sunlightOPINION; California cannabis regulations are taking one step forward and two steps back. Two landmark – and at times polarizing – pieces of legislation for California’s cannabis market are currently making waves: The state is set to raise the cannabis cultivation tax while regulators have announced plans to standardize cannabis testing.
Commercial marijuana being dried at a California facility. (Photo: Shutterstock)With cannabis taxes to rise on Jan. 1 and a legitimate business landscape plagued by a thriving black market, California’s marijuana industry faces uncertainty. The tax hike — like others before it — stems from a state law requiring the California Department of Tax and Fee Administration to recalculate the cultivation tax rates once a year because of inflation.
An illustration of cannabis in California. (Image: Bruce Stanfield, via Shutterstock)OPINION: When California voters passed Proposition 64 in 2016, they envisioned a robust legal cannabis market with substantial tax revenue for our state, improved access, and relief for communities of color who have been disproportionately impacted by the failed “War on Drugs.” Almost three years later, we see a cannabis market constrained by local bans on retail sales and frustratingly slow licensing processes. An alarming 77 percent of California cities have banned cannabis retailers altogether
An indoor cannabis farm in California. (Photo: Mitch M., via Shutterstock)OPINION: California’s legal cannabis industry is in a state of disarray. The market is chaotic, the regulatory landscape is in a constant state of flux, and at the same time, the black market continues to flourish. Consumers find themselves with limited access to quality and safe products as businesses struggle to stay afloat and keep up with a moving target.
An illustration of a California highway sign depicting cannabis legalization.(Image: Rex Wholster Though recreational marijuana has been legal in the state since January, good luck trying to open a marijuana business in much of the state. The state gives local jurisdictions the power to decide what type and how much cannabis businesses to allow. While big cities like San Francisco and San Jose allowed commercial activity right away, many other communities have banned it or are still debating how much to let in
A flowering marijuana plant in a California destined to be used for medicinal purposes in California. (Photo: PRO Stock ProfessionalThe California cannabis conundrum: A lot more weed, a lot less money. Since Proposition 64 took effect earlier this year, the cannabis industry has raked in nearly $135 million of revenue for the state through sales taxes, not including local jurisdiction taxes. Even with increased sales each quarter, some officials are calling the revenue “substantially below projections.”
Rep. Dana Rohrabacher at an April 26 news conference on medical cannabis reform. (Photo: Bill Clark, CQ Roll Call, via AP) After 30 years in office, Orange County Republican Congressman Dana Rohrabacher is facing his toughest re-election. Rohrabacher, 70, is being challenged by more than a dozen people in the June primary, including his former ally, Republican Scott Baugh.
An indoor marijuana grow in California. (Photo: Mitch M., via Shutterstock)OPINION: No one expected California’s legalization of recreational cannabis, barely two months’ old, to be without plenty of problems. In a mixed metaphor so often the trait of politicians, state Sen. Mike McGuire noted, “… as I have always said, this is a tall mountain to climb and we are currently building the airplane and flying it at the same time.”
An indoor cannabis-growing operation in California. (Photo: Seastock, via Shutterstock)The flood gates are about to open for California’s new commercial cannabis industry, as the state rushes to assemble temporary licenses for businesses looking to open on Jan. 1. California delivered its first batch of commercial cannabis licenses last week with the approval of 30 temporary licenses for cannabis businesses across the state.