San Diego to Allow Recreational Cannabis Sales at Medical Collectives

San Diego is the first city in California to allow medical cannabis collectives to sell recreational cannabis.

San Diego City Council voted unanimously to permit recreational cannabis sales to adults, 21-and-over, at the city’s 15 medical collectives, once the voter backed initiative is put into place. In addition, the council said they would look into protocols that would allow for commercial cultivation, testing and distribution later this year.

The San Diego Police Department made its opposition heard, alongside city staff members who lobbied for a ban on recreational cannabis sales because of concerns over increased crime.

“Our take is this is going to very much negatively affect public health and public safety,” Police Lt. Matt Novak told the council.

Councilwoman Barbara Bay, however, stated that the city would see a dramatic increase to their tax revenues with the law’s passage.

“I believe it is our responsibility to implement the will of the voters,” she said in the report. “It’s also our duty to wisely and responsibly regulate every part of the supply chain in order to ensure that our consumers have a safe and vetted product.”

San Diego passed a bill to add an additional five percent local tax less than a week after Proposition 64, California’s recreational initiative, passed last November. The tax will be levied on all recreational cannabis operations including dispensaries, farms and factories. The tax will increase to eight percent in 2019.

Estimates on tax revenue have been placed as high as $30 million per year. The new legislation also included regulations on dispensary branding/signage and keeping the areas around cannabis businesses free of litter and graffiti.