San Francisco Says Yes to Outdoor Smoking, But Not in Time for 420

[dropcap class=”kp-dropcap”]S[/dropcap]an Francisco has given the thumbs up to permit cannabis sales and consumption at outdoor public events, but will not be able to approve it in time for 420.

San Francisco’s Board of Supervisors approved legislation 9-2 last week, allowing the Office of Cannabis to administer permits for sale and consumption at events. The first permits will only be available to events that have offered cannabis consumption in the past, such as Outside Lands and Pride.

However, the office will not be able to turn around the process in quick enough time to legally allow cannabis sales and consumption at the biggest cannabis event date of the year, 420 (April 20). “There just wasn’t enough time to develop the regulatory framework and get everything in place before this year’s event,” said Supervisor Vallie Brown, who represents the neighborhood where the 420 celebration on Hippie Hill is held annually.

State law currently prohibits cannabis use anywhere smoking is not allowed. The approved legislation will also allow the city to temporarily waive the city’s non-smoking laws during the permitted events. Events will be approved on a case-by-case basis and require approval by the department that oversees the event area as well. “What we are recognizing here is that there are events, and have been for time immemorial, where people have been smoking cannabis,” said Supervisor Rafael Mandelman, who introduced the legislation to help the city control cannabis use in those public areas during events. “This is a public health life and safety issue. We want to have these events to be legal, permitted, safe.”

Furthermore, Mandelman added that this will definitely be a new test for the city. “As powerful as the City and County of San Francisco is, the notion that we can dictate that people stop smoking cannabis at 420 or other events is not something that I want to put to the test.”