(a)
The Federal Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. Section 841 et seq.) makes it unlawful to manufacture, distribute, dispense or possess cannabis, and, accordingly, medical cannabis dispensaries are illegal under Federal law;
(b)
In 2013, Deputy Attorney General James Cole issued a memorandum to all Federal prosecutors to provide guidance on the enforcement of the Federal Controlled Substances Act as it related to cannabis, indicating that enforcement would not be a priority in states and local jurisdictions that have laws authorizing cannabis-related conduct; that have implemented strong and effective regulatory and enforcement systems that will address the threat those state laws could pose to public safety, public health, and other law enforcement interests; and that have provided the necessary resources to demonstrate the willingness to enforce their laws and regulations;
(c)
In 2015, Congress began to defund enforcement of the Federal Controlled Substances Act in states where such enforcement activities would prevent states from implementing their own state laws that authorize the use, distribution, possession or cultivation of medical cannabis;
(d)
The voters of the State of California approved Proposition 215 (codified as Health and Safety Code Section 11362.5 et seq., "The Compassionate Use Act of 1996"); the intent of Proposition 215 was to enable persons who are in need of cannabis for medical purposes to obtain and use it without fear of State criminal prosecution;
(e)
On October 9, 2015, Governor Brown approved a series of bills commonly referred to as the Medical Cannabis Regulation and Safety Act ("MCRSA"), effective on January 1, 2016, which establishes a comprehensive State licensing and regulatory framework for the cultivation, manufacture, transportation, storage, distribution, and sale of medical cannabis, also known as marijuana; and which recognizes the authority of local jurisdictions to either impose additional restrictions or prohibit certain activities related to the cultivation, manufacture, transportation, storage, distribution, delivery, and sale of medical cannabis;
(f)
The voters of the State of California approved Proposition 64, known as the "Control, Regulate and Tax Adult Use of Marijuana Act" ("AUMA"), which establishes a comprehensive State licensing and regulatory framework for the cultivation, manufacture, transportation, storage, distribution, and sale of recreational cannabis, also known as marijuana; and which recognizes the authority of local jurisdictions to either impose additional restrictions or prohibit certain activities related to the cultivation, manufacture, transportation, storage, distribution, delivery, and sale of recreational cannabis;
(g)
The City Council of the City of Emeryville has recognized, and continues to recognize, the potential adverse impacts on the health, safety, and welfare of its residents and business from secondary effects associated with commercial cannabis activity, which include: offensive odors, trespassing, theft, violent encounters between growers and persons attempting to steal plants, fire hazards, increased crime in and about the dispensary, robberies of customers, negative impacts on nearby businesses, nuisance problems, and increased DUI incidents;
(h)
There is a need to adopt health, safety, and welfare regulations to avoid adverse impacts on the community which may arise from commercial cannabis activity;
(i)
The MCRSA and AUMA set forth a comprehensive framework to regulate cannabis and cannabis products from seed to ingestion by a consumer, which includes uniform health and safety standards designed to implement quality control, a labeling and a track-and-trace program, and other consumer protections, which mitigates against some of the potential adverse impacts identified by the City Council in the past, and the California State Legislature subsequently has adopted the Medicinal and Adult-Use Cannabis Regulation and Safety Act (Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code § 26000, et seq.) to integrate the MCRSA and the AUMA into a single State regulatory system;
(j)
Neighboring local jurisdictions that allow commercial cannabis activity for medical purposes have implemented effective regulatory and enforcement systems that address the adverse impacts that could pose a threat to public safety, health, and welfare;
(k)
An effective regulatory system governing cannabis in the City of Emeryville, as provided in this chapter, will address potential adverse impacts to the public health, welfare, and safety, thereby allowing commercial cannabis activity and other use of cannabis and cannabis products consistent with Federal law as applicable to the State of California and State law.
(Sec. 1, Ord. 20-004, eff. May 7, 2020; Sec. 1 (part), Ord. 17-003, eff. Sep. 1, 2017)