Recent legislation made changes to the statutory scheme to regulate commercial medical cannabis here in California. In 2015, the Legislature passed and the Governor signed into law three bills (Assembly Bills 243 and 266, and Senate Bill 643) that established a regulatory structure for medical cannabis in California. This legislation included the Medical Marijuana Regulation and Safety Act (Act) and established the Bureau of Medical Marijuana Regulation (Bureau) within the Department of Consumer Affairs.
Senate Bill 837, effective July 1, 2016, made several changes to this regulatory structure. The Act was renamed the Medical Cannabis Regulation and Safety Act and the Bureau was renamed the Bureau of Medical Cannabis Regulation. The bill also moved the licensing of testing laboratories from the California Department of Public Health to the Bureau.
The Bureau is continuing its efforts to increase staffing, reach out to stakeholders, and work with other State agencies involved in the regulation of medical cannabis. It is currently preparing to hold its pre-regulatory public meetings in the fall to provide information and receive public input on various topics that will be included in its regulations.
“The entire Bureau team is committed to ensuring we have a transparent process with significant public participation as we develop our regulations,” said Bureau Chief Lori Ajax.
Learn more on the Bureau’s website at http://www.bmcr.ca.gov and sign up for email alerts to receive updates as they become available at https://www.dca.ca.gov/webapps/bmcr/subscribe.php. Write to the Bureau at P.O. Box 138200, Sacramento, CA 95813-8200.
