cannabisnews.com: California's Top Marijuana Regulator Talks
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California's Top Marijuana Regulator Talks
Posted by CN Staff on December 25, 2017 at 13:55:00 PT
By The Associated Press 
Source: Associated Press
California's legal pot market opens for business on Jan. 1. The day will be a milestone, but what exactly will happen then and, especially, in the weeks and months to come is unclear.Lori Ajax, the state's top pot regulator, has been at the center of the effort to establish rules for a legal pot economy valued at $7 billion. It’s a question many people are asking: Can I buy legal pot on Jan. 1?
Well, maybe.“You will, in certain areas of the state,” Ajax says.Businesses are required to have a local permit and a state license to open their doors for recreational sales, and that process has moved slowly.So far, there is not a consistent pattern in the geography of legal pot.Kern County, for example, has banned all commercial cannabis activity. Oakland, Santa Cruz, Shasta Lake and San Diego are among the cities that have embraced it and have licensed operators that will open Jan. 1.San Francisco is running late getting licenses out, so legal sales there are not expected to start until later that week. In Los Angeles, the city will begin accepting applications to sell recreational pot on Jan. 3, but it could be weeks before any of those shops open for legal sales.If you can get legal pot on Jan. 1, where can you smoke it?First rule: Not in public, Ajax says.And as a general guideline: Don’t smoke anywhere where tobacco is prohibited.State law has specific guidelines for where not to light up, and they include being within 1,000 feet of a school or a daycare center when kids are around, or smoking while driving.However, the state has left it up to local governments to determine whether they want to permit onsite consumption at retailers. So it will vary by city whether you can buy and light up on the spot.This is going to be a big transition, transforming the lightly regulated medical industry and the vast illegal market into a legal pot economy. How will it roll out?With ups and downs.“That transition period is going to be an adjustment for a lot of folks,” Ajax says.The industry — medical and illegal — has existed for years with little or no regulation. Now, growers and sellers are facing a range of new state and local rules, including hefty new taxes.Consumers who want to make a purchase will have to check their local rules, which can vary.The state expects to be visiting businesses, perhaps repeatedly, to help them meet the regulations.“We have to really work with them,” Ajax says.Her biggest worry?The pace and extent of licensing, because lots of players are needed to make the supply chain work across the state. Cultivators. Distributors. Manufacturers. Testing companies. Retailers.State licensing started only in December.Ajax worries about whether California has “licensed enough people throughout the supply chain, and geographically across the state, so people can continue to do business,” which includes medical and recreational pot. “That’s something I think about all the time.”Take distributors that transport cannabis.“If you don’t have enough distributors, if they are the only ones that can transport the cannabis, that would be an issue on Day One,” Ajax says.How tough is enforcement going to be, if you intend to entice businesses into the market?For now, more carrot than stick.“We can’t just hit them over the head,” Ajax says. “You work toward educating them and, I think, you go from there.”“If we have somebody that is causing a public nuisance or a public safety problem, then I do think strong enforcement is necessary. But if you just got somebody trying to comply, and they are completely overwhelmed because they just don’t know what to do, then I think that’s our job to then break it down for people.”She acknowledges that the dense regulations can be intimidating.“A lot of them have never dealt with the state before,” she says. “We want to encourage people that this is the best way for California, to come out of the shadows and be licensed.”Experts say the new legal economy will struggle if the black market continues to thrive. How does the state intend to persuade illegal operators to come out of the shadows?In a word, education.Ajax says businesses need to know how to get licensed — an online application site opened this month — and the state should encourage them to do so.The state also needs to be flexible at first with compliance, she said, as businesses become accustomed to the new system.“We, as a state, have to show them that this is where you need to be,” she says.Source: Associated Press (Wire) Published: December 25, 2017Copyright: 2017 The Associated PressCannabisNews  -- Cannabis Archiveshttp://cannabisnews.com/news/list/cannabis.shtml 
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Comment #2 posted by Hope on December 26, 2017 at 11:24:59 PT
Obviously
Kern County wants to protect their black market. How considerate of them. Aw, who knew they were so fond of their old fashioned "undercover" dealers."Kern County, for example, has banned all commercial cannabis activity." Wow. It's amazing how a law against cannabis can be enacted and readily enforced in just one day. Snap! Just like that! But the poor old public servant, he just can't get this not being against the law thing to work that easily. It's soooo hard to stop busting heads. Soooo hard.This is different. The governing bodies were so brave! "However, the state has left it up to local governments to determine whether they want to permit onsite consumption at retailers. So it will vary by city whether you can buy and light up on the spot."Probably a lot. "The state expects to be visiting businesses, perhaps repeatedly, to help them meet the regulations."What? Who in the USA over the age of 5 has not had to deal with the state?!! "She acknowledges that the dense regulations can be intimidating. “A lot of them have never dealt with the state before,” she says. “We want to encourage people that this is the best way for California, to come out of the shadows and be licensed.”And oh no... the freaking carrot and stick! There's that damned analogy or parable or whatever you want to call it again! No one in the world seems to actually remember the story and how it went except me! Good grief! It wasn't that difficult. A donkey and a boy. The boy wanted the donkey to move and it wouldn't. He took a stick and hit it and it still wouldn't move. Finally, he tied the donkey's favorite treat on a string and then to the stick and hung it down in front of the donkey's face. Using the stick he could guide the donkey to go in whatever direction he wanted it to. Funny story and it has a meaning. Kindness and love make more sense than beating with a stick. Aaargh. Kind of like the "Catch more flies with honey than vinegar".
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Comment #1 posted by HempWorld on December 25, 2017 at 15:43:28 PT
My 0.02 Cents
200+ Pages to regulate a plant, including GPS and recording the id of every buyer and their doorstep, that is safer than water, let alone alcohol or cigarettes... 20%+ will go, or remain underground, is my prediction. That's what you get if you write regulation that is out of step with reality, science and facts.See, Amsterdam coffee shop model... that has been working for 40 years without problems.We have waited for a long, long time, now we need to wait for politicians to get real in CA!
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