Silicon Valley Chinese Association Foundation (SVCAF) strongly opposes AB 1356 (Ting). We are troubled by the fact that this Bill contradicts the existing law of the Medicinal and Adult-Use Cannabis Regulation and Safety Act (“MAUCRSA”) and its clear intent not to supersede the local authorities to govern their own matters. It not only threatens local safety and health, but also encroaches on self-governance of cities and townships, the very fabric of our civic society.

AB 1356, if passed, would mandate those jurisdictions to issue cannabis licenses if more than 50 percent of the voters in that jurisdiction voted positively for Proposition 64 in 2016. That is in direct contradiction to Section 26200 of the Business and Professions Code (“BPC”), part of MAUCRSA as adopted in Proposition 64.
More specifically, subsection 26200 (a) of BPC provides, “[n]othing in this division shall be interpreted to supersede or limit the authority of a local jurisdiction to adopt and enforce local ordinances to regulate businesses licensed under this division, including, but not limited to, local zoning and land use requirements, business license requirements, and requirements related to reducing exposure to second hand smoke, or to completely prohibit the establishment or operation of one or more types of businesses licensed under this division within the local jurisdiction.” Now, AB 1356 wants to take back the very authority the state legislators had guaranteed to the local jurisdictions as Proposition 64 became law. We are deeply disturbed by a flipflop that is this thorough and this abrupt.

Further, just because the majority of the voters in a particular jurisdiction are in favor of Proposition 64 doesn’t mean they agree that their local government should license cannabis retails stores in that jurisdiction.
While legal access to cannabis should be protected, health and safety concern of the general public should also be protected at no less level. Local governments know their people best and should be afforded full authority to determine how they handle matters with regard to their own constituents.

California prides itself as the most inclusive state in the United States by accommodating people with varied backgrounds. That is only possible by letting people build their local communities and exercise control over their daily lives traditionally reserved to them and not delegated this control to the state or federal government. AB 1356, if passed, would undermine this very foundation. 

By blatantly contradicting the law of MAUCRSA, in which state legislators promised to preserve self-governance, AB 1356 would destroy the credibility of these legislators. This would result in a total loss of faith in our state lawmakers, a price tag too high to pay.

For the reasons above, SVCAF, with love of our great state of California, strongly opposes AB 1356 (Ting).