The Department of Cannabis Control oversees the state of California’s cannabis business licensing and operations.
Here is what you need to know about California cannabis business licensing:
Medical Cannabis in California
On Nov. 6, 1996, PROPOSITION 215 (also known as the California Compassionate Use Act), was enacted by voters and took effect as California Health & Safety Code 11362.5. The law makes it legal for patients and/or their designated primary caregivers to possess and cultivate marijuana for medical use, if they have a qualifying condition and are given the recommendation or an approval from a California-licensed physician. All purchases are tracked in a California seed to sale system.
Recreational Cannabis in California
On November 9, 2016, California voters legalized cannabis for adult use by responding yes to Proposition 64, the California Marijuana Legalization Initiative. Supporters referred to the initiative as the Adult Use of Marijuana Act. The Act allows for cannabis businesses to grow, process, sell, and deliver cannabis to qualifying patients around the state. The California market set the tone for the entire industry. All purchases are tracked in a California seed to sale system.
Every business needs standard operating procedures to apply and successfully operate in a compliant manner. We have the following SOP’s specific to the California Market:
California Distribution Standard Operating Procedures
California Dispensary Standard Operating Procedures
California Cultivation Standard Operating Procedures
California Manufacturing Standard Operating Procedures
California cannabis standard operating procedures should include requirements and processes for:
| Agent Conduct |
| Health and Safety Standards |
| Accessibility and Diversity |
| Record Keeping |
| Inventory Control Systems |
| Inventory Control Processes |
| Packaging and Labeling Marijuana |
| Disposing of Marijuana |
| Inventories and Audits |
| Customers |
| Sales |
| Security and Diversion |
| Safe Delivery Practices |
California allows Adult Use by persons 21 years of age or older. The daily purchase limit is as follows:
- 28.5 grams of non-concentrated cannabis.
- 8 grams of cannabis concentrate, including cannabis concentrate contained in cannabis products.
- 6 immature cannabis plants
- The limits provided shall not be combined to allow a customer to purchase cannabis goods in excess of any of the limits provided.
- A licensed retailer shall be responsible for determining that the amount of cannabis concentrates found in manufactured cannabis products sold to customers comply with the requirements.
California allows Medical Use by persons 18 years of age or older with a valid physician’s referral. The purchase limit is as follows:
- If a medicinal cannabis patient’s valid physician’s recommendation contains a different amount than the limits listed for Adult Use, the medicinal cannabis patient may purchase an amount of medicinal cannabis consistent with the patient’s needs as recommended by a physician and documented in the physician’s recommendation.
California Marijuana Taxes:
- Sales tax of 7.25% is collected on all Adult Use cannabis purchases. Medical Patients are exempt from the sales tax.
A 15-percent excise tax is imposed upon retail purchasers of all cannabis and cannabis products, including medicinal cannabis. Distributors are required to calculate and collect the amount of excise tax due on the cannabis or cannabis products they supply.
Cannabis Goods Packaging and Exit Packaging
- All cannabis goods sold by a licensed retailer shall be in compliance with the packaging requirements.
- A package containing cannabis goods shall be resealable, tamper-evident, and child-resistant
- All cannabis goods purchased by a customer shall not leave the licensed retailer’s premises unless the goods are placed in an opaque exit package.
- Immature plants and seeds sold by a licensed retailer are not required to be placed in resealable, tamper-evident, child-resistant packaging.
California Business Licensing requires businesses to participate in track and trace procedures.
Seed to Sale Tracking
Real-time inventory records must be maintained as specified by the state’s rules and by your regulators. This includes, at a minimum, an inventory of the amount of marijuana plants, marijuana seeds, and marijuana clones in any phase of development. Such phases may include propagation, vegetation, and flowering. Detailed harvest records will also be required.
California uses METRC for Track and Trace Purposes. Businesses can use other software to for cannabis business data from seed to sale.
Cannabis businesses are also required to track marijuana ready for dispensing, all marijuana infused products, and all damaged, defective, expired, or contaminated marijuana and marijuana infused products that are in the process of being disposed of. Seed to sale tracking includes detailed sales and inventory control records to ensure quality control and diversion prevention.
Product is tracked using many tools and unique identifiers, including cultivation batch names or numbers, production batch name and numbers, and through the use of RFID tags.