California marijuana business lawyers

March 11, 2018

Marijuana Businesses Weed Through Hundreds of Candidates at Cannabis Job Fair

Californians have known for decades the benefits of marijuana, especially as a treatment for certain medical ailments. Now the state is reaping the benefits of added tax revenue from recreational marijuana businesses pouring into cities that have chosen to legalize marijuana under Proposition 64.

In addition to taxes flooding into communities, so too are jobs, and people are answering the call. Recently in Sacramento, the Cannabis Job Fair had people standing in lines out the door, waiting for up to two hours, according to KCRASacramento, prompting planners to already set their sites on a bigger event next time around.

With such a burgeoning industry, workers of all levels are needed for success. The marijuana industry offers opportunities for those with skills in cultivation, testing, distribution, horticulture, production, kitchen work, sales, management, and more. But they also need people savvy in the typical tent poles of any industry, including finances, accounting, analytical tracking, marketing, and social media. That’s on top of the farmers across the state investing their abilities and resources in the cannabis market. This creates a wealth of possibilities for a diverse cross-section of people across the socioeconomic spectrum. Continue reading

March 9, 2018

Smaller Cannabis Business Operations Need More Support

By Cannabis Law Group

Cannabis business owners want to be able to operate in full compliance with California law and function as a legitimate business. They are open to paying taxes and following the rules. However, they are facing many barriers to achieving this end goal while operating a successful business – one of the biggest being the law itself.

This message was delivered loud and clear at a recent meeting in Ukiah, Calif., which included government officials and Northern California marijuana industry leaders in the first gathering of its kind, according to The Press Democrat.

The Sonoma County agriculture commissioner used this forum to address the seemingly endless patchwork mix of state and local regulations to which marijuana businesses must adhere and how detrimental they have been to established cultivators who want to operate legally under Proposition 64. Known as the Adult Use of Marijuana Act, Prop 64 went into effect earlier this year and allows adult-use marijuana legal in the state – but only for counties and cities whose leaders chose to adopt the law. Local governments have the right to continue to ban adult-use marijuana and to regulate it as they see fit.

February 26, 2018

Privacy Protections Necessary for Recreational Marijuana Users in California

By Cannabis Law Group

While many Californians are finally enjoying the freedom to use recreational marijuana, some are questioning how safe their private information is when they make a purchase. When Proposition 64 went into effect Jan. 1, adult-use marijuana became legal in the state, with local governments able to set up their own regulations or bans. But there are currently loopholes that threaten the privacy of customers.

Assembly Bill 2402 seeks to tighten those loopholes. Assemblyman Evan Low (D-Silicon Valley) introduced the bill, which would prevent cannabis retailers from selling customer information to third parties. It would also protect customer information from employers looking to investigate employee use, according to Capital Public Radio. It mirrors similar rules that are currently in place for medical marijuana users.

Because you must be 21 or older to purchase cannabis in California, dispensaries require a valid ID to prove your age. Though it is not mandatory, some dispensaries will keep a record of the information on file. Some use this information for marketing purposes. Many also keep such records in order to monitor how much someone is purchasing in a day, according to Politifact. This could be necessary if a business needed to prove they are in compliance with state law, which caps individual recreational marijuana sales to one ounce per day. Continue reading

February 20, 2018

UCSF Says Marijuana Businesses Can Learn from Mistakes of Tobacco

By Cannabis Law Group

While many politicians and other leaders continue to wring their hands, hemming and hawing ad nauseum over the best way to regulate the growing number of marijuana businesses, University of California San Francisco says the answer is right under our noses.

According to a study by the university published in the Journal of Psychoactive Drugs, regulators need look no further than the tobacco industry for inspiration to create best practices for adult-use marijuana. By using what the tobacco industry has learned by trial and error over the years, the marijuana industry can avoid early mistakes and take a proactive approach.

Examples in the study include implementing clear labeling with conspicuous warning labels, avoiding marketing that appeals to minors, and restricting product potency. Continue reading

February 14, 2018

Federal Budget Protects State Medical Marijuana Businesses, For Now

By Cannabis Law Group

One of the beacons of hope for medical marijuana businesses during these uncertain times has been Rohrabacher-Blumenauer, an amendment that medical marijuana lawyers blocks the Justice Department’s ability to spend money on prosecuting medical marijuana operations that are compliant with their state’s relevant laws.

However, this amendment is not a permanent structure and is put in peril every time the government shuts down and Congress must pass a spending measure. Given the tumultuous nature of the current budget debates at the federal level, this has already happened multiple times this year. Each time Congress goes for a vote, the medical marijuana community must hold its breath and wait to see if the amendment will be included in the next budget parameters. That’s no way to treat respectable business owners.

So far it has survived each round, but with another vote coming up in March, we’re not in the clear just yet, according to Leafly.

January 31, 2018

Recreational Cannabis Sales Begin in L.A.

By Cannabis Law Group

Three weeks after recreational cannabis sales officially became legal in California, select Los Angeles businesses were allowed to open their doors for Los Angeles recreational cannabis business commercial sales. While the Adult Use of Marijuana Act made recreational sales legal in the state Jan. 1, it is still up to city and county governments to decide for themselves whether they will issue a ban or set up their own guidelines and regulations. Implementation of guidelines takes time, and some cities, Los Angeles included, were not able to get them in place before the rollout at the beginning of the year.

Los Angeles City Council approved commercial marijuana sales early in December, and by mid-January about two dozen businesses in the city had been granted temporary permits. Three of those businesses had state approval secured and were able to open for business that week, according to an NBC News report. More regulations will have to be met down the road to achieve legal status permanently, the Los Angeles Department of Cannabis Regulation told NBC. Continue reading

January 29, 2018

Northern California County Rolls Back Marijuana Legalization

By Cannabis Law Group

As of January 1, California rolled out Proposition 64, The Adult Use of Marijuana Act, making recreational marijuana legal in the state. However, the marijuana legalization attorneys new law did not automatically make cannabis legal everywhere in California. It is still up to local governments to regulate, restrict, and ban as they see fit or to open the floor to residential votes. Therefore, many Californians have been disappointed to discover their local laws are prohibitive to using, growing, or distributing marijuana.

Even more disappointing, though, is when the law changes in a region that initially legalized marijuana, especially for citizens who have already made significant investments in the cannabis industry.

This is the case in Calaveras County in Northern California, where the board of supervisors voted 3-2 to ban commercial marijuana. The board included four newly elected members who campaigned last year on promises of banning marijuana, according to an article from Associated Press. The decision will have broad-sweeping effects on some 200 cannabis farms that will now have only three months to shut down operations. Continue reading

January 10, 2018

Marijuana Official Tells California Residents What to Expect in 2018

By Cannabis Law Group

The Cannabis Law Group is prepared for the onslaught of challenges that face the residents and cannabis business question-3-1146620-639x830-231x300 owners of California with the implementation of the Adult Use of Marijuana Act at the start of this new year, legalizing recreational marijuana.

Commercial sales were legalized in California as of Jan. 1, but the exact date of implementation varies from region to region based on local laws and ordinances. Some areas have even decided to maintain a ban on recreational use, such as Kern County, while others have not yet decided the fate of their particular city or region yet.

Officials such as Lori Ajax, chief of the Bureau of Cannabis Control, explain that this complicates the rollout process, making it unclear to citizens as to what to expect throughout the state in the months ahead. Continue reading

January 8, 2018

Cautious Optimism Surrounds Marijuana Business Stocks

By Cannabis Law Group

While there are lingering concerns around the cannabis industry, with the federal government scrutinizing state marijuana attorney legalization measures and uncertainty about the effects of tax reform and unemployment rates, there is still a lot of optimism surrounding marijuana industry stocks in the U.S.

Cannabis stocks saw a spike around the holiday season, bolstered by an increase in spending overall in November of 2017. Some reports even indicated marijuana and marijuana products were a popular gift this year. Our marijuana attorneys urge you to check local laws and only purchase, give and transport commercial products legally.

With reports showing possible economic growth in the U.S., it could mean a continued upswing for an ever-expanding marijuana market. The right factors seem to be in place to potentially see more people investing in the industry and more consumers with expendable income to buy recreational marijuana and related products.

This trend is expected to continue with California recently opening up legal recreational marijuana sales in the state, thanks to the Adult Use of Marijuana Act, ushering in the potential for a great deal of commerce in one of the nation’s biggest markets. Cities across the state were able to decide for themselves whether to participate and how, with major markets such Los Angeles throwing their hats in the ring.

December 30, 2017

Long Beach Moves Forward with Recreational Marijuana Business Plans

By Cannabis Law Group

Thanks to Prop. 64, the state of California is considering applications for licenses for Los Angeles Recreational Marijuana Business Lawyers recreational marijuana businesses beginning Jan. 1, 2018.

Authority rests with local governments to decide whether to allow recreational marijuana sales to go into effect in their area, giving them power to either issue bans or develop policies for businesses to operate.

The Long Beach City Council is the latest to join the movement. The council recently voted to move ahead with developing policies for recreational marijuana businesses to operate in Long Beach. Continue reading