New Cannabis Traffic Laws Take Effect Jan. 1
New laws take effect on Jan. 1, 2018, which will affect anyone in California who purchases cannabis and travels in a motor vehicle. Consuming any amount of cannabis while operating a vehicle is now officially an infraction, and all open containers of cannabis are now banned in operating vehicles.
For years, medical cannabis dispensaries in California have implemented a policy in which cannabis is given to patients stapled in a prescription bag, and at CULTURE, we know from personal experience that many dispensaries have also warned patients against opening the staple before or while traveling with the cannabis in a vehicle. It’s also already illegal to drive while intoxicated on cannabis. The new laws, however, ban consumption of any amount in a car and make the rules punishable by law for both medical and recreational cannabis consumers. The new laws can be compared to open container laws that apply to alcohol consumption.
Gov. Jerry Brown approved Senate Bill 65 on Sept. 11, which makes it an infraction to consume alcohol or cannabis while operating a vehicle. The new law expands on existing law to include cannabis. Senate Bill 94 prohibits drivers from possessing an open container of cannabis in an operating motor vehicle. Both laws will go live when recreational cannabis sales begin on Jan. 1, 2018.
Violations of SB-65 could result in a $70 fine according to the Los Angeles Times. The law is among several new laws released in a press release from the California Highway Patrol (CHP). SB-94 gives the CHP authority over addressing protocols for cannabis-related impaired driving. SB-94 also calls upon the CHP commissioner to serve as chairman of a new impaired driving task force.
The CHP has noted that with the implementation of recreational cannabis, the number of DUIs is expected to increase. Ignorance of the new laws will hold no merit in the event that you are pulled over.
Several more unrelated traffic laws also take effect on Jan. 1, so it’s wise to take a minute to review the new laws.
