This year, Cal NORML is sponsoring AB 564 (Haney) to amend the law that requires the already high cannabis taxes to go even higher, impacting California’s consumers and patients as well as our cannabis industry.
This year’s Lobby Day on March 24 in Sacramento will focus on stopping the pending cannabis tax increase in California. It’s ALL HANDS ON DECK THIS YEAR for cannabis consumers and businesses.
Read more and Sign Up to Attend Lobby Day or Sponsor Lobby Day.
In addition, the following bills affecting cannabis have been introduced in California:
KEY BILL
AB 564 (Haney) – Cal NORML-sponsored bill to halt a pending cannabis excise tax increase from 15% to 19%. Read more.
HEMP BILLS
AB 8 (Aguiar Curry) – intends to enhance the viability of cannabis licensees in the marketplace by pursuing measures to relieve tax and regulatory requirements, and to authorize licensees to manufacture, distribute, and sell hemp and cannabidiol (CBD) products in compliance with current law.
AB 1397 (Flora) – would authorize a hemp manufacturer to produce and sell low-dose hemp drinks if they contain no greater than 0.5 milligrams of total THC per container, and are tested by an independent testing laboratory. It would prohibit a low-dose hemp drink from being sold to or consumed by an individual under 21 years of age and impose an excise tax of 10%.
VAPORIZER BILLS
AB-762 (Irwin, Wilson) – would prohibit disposable, battery-embedded vapor inhalation devices
SB 501 (Allen) – would put vape pens into the Plastic Pollution Prevention and Packaging Producer Responsibility Act, requiring manufacturers to ensure the safe and convenient collection and management of those products at no cost to consumers or local governments.
AB-998 (Hadwick) – classifies cannabis vape pens, among others, confiscated at schools as household hazardous waste for disposal purposes.
ENFORCEMENT BILLS
SB-378 (Wiener) – would impose strict liability for damages caused to the consumer on an online marketplace that facilitated the connection between a consumer and an unlicensed seller of a cannabis or intoxicating hemp product.
AB-632 (Hart) – would authorize a local agency to file a final administrative order or decision for payment of fines or penalties related to unlicensed commercial cannabis activity for immediate judgment in the superior court of any county in California. The bill would also authorize a local agency to, by ordinance, establish a procedure to collect administrative fines or penalties by lien upon the parcel of land on which the unlicensed commercial cannabis activity occurred.
OTHER BILLS
AB 1332 (Ahrens) – would authorize a licensed microbusiness with an M-license to directly ship medicinal cannabis to a patient in the state.
AB 1496 (Blanca Rubio) – would reinstate the cannabis task force and expand it to include representatives from tribal governmental entities regulating commercial cannabis activity that opt to participate in the task force.
AB 1209 (Michelle Rodriguez) – would require an employer that is licensed or is required to be licensed under MAUCRSA annually to provide proof that it has secured payment of workers’ compensation.
AB-1065 (Ortega) – would enact the Consumer Inflation Reduction and Tax Fairness Act, to require that cannabis taxes and others not be included in calculating fees charged by credit card companies.
AB-895 (Blanca Rubio) – Nonsubstantive change to cannabis donation programs
AB-1027 (Sharp-Collins) – Spot bill on cannabis testing laboratories.
SB 478 (Arreguin) – Spot cannabis bill.
AB-686 (Berman) – Cannabis: appointees: prohibited activities
