{"id":75730,"date":"2017-02-07T17:17:25","date_gmt":"2017-02-08T01:17:25","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/theavtimes.com\/?p=75730"},"modified":"2017-02-10T16:34:24","modified_gmt":"2017-02-11T00:34:24","slug":"la-county-extends-marijuana-ban-and-moves-to-shut-down-dispensaries-as-regulations-take-shape","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/theavtimes.com\/2017\/02\/07\/la-county-extends-marijuana-ban-and-moves-to-shut-down-dispensaries-as-regulations-take-shape\/","title":{"rendered":"LA County extends marijuana ban and moves to shut down dispensaries as regulations take shape"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"LOS ANGELES — The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors voted Tuesday to extend a ban on the cultivation, manufacture, processing, testing, transportation and retail sale of medical and non-medical marijuana in unincorporated areas until a comprehensive regulatory framework can be put in place.<\/span><\/p>\n

The board also asked the county’s lawyers to work with the district attorney to shut down 70 dispensaries illegally operating in unincorporated areas.<\/span><\/p>\n

The moves come as the state and various municipalities struggle with the nitty-gritty details of legalizing a long illegal drug.<\/span><\/p>\n

The state has until Jan. 1 to implement Proposition 64 and begin issuing licenses to sell recreational marijuana, but Supervisor Sheila Kuehl expressed doubts.<\/span><\/p>\n

“I don’t know whether the state’s really going to get it together by Jan. 1,” Kuehl told her colleagues. “Everybody’s saying no.”<\/span><\/p>\n

Meanwhile, the county is trying to figure out just how to deal with challenges posed by marijuana businesses.<\/span><\/p>\n

The fact that marijuana sales are conducted using cash makes dispensaries a target for potentially violent robberies, but also raises odder issues.<\/span><\/p>\n

Tax collectors worry about handling suitcases full of cash,” said Joe Nicchitta of the CEO’s Office of Marijuana Management.<\/span><\/p>\n

Supervisors Hilda Solis and Mark Ridley-Thomas both raised concerns about concentrations of dispensaries in their districts.<\/span><\/p>\n

“The constituents that I represent are not exactly eager to have these businesses and manufacturing sites next to their homes and schools and parks,” Ridley-Thomas said, telling his colleagues that he wanted to ensure that low- income communities were “not left alone to shoulder the burdens of marijuana legalization.”<\/span><\/p>\n

Solis called for the enforcement effort.<\/span><\/p>\n

“The First District has over 40 of these dispensaries,” Solis said. “While there’s a ban, they’re there.”<\/span><\/p>\n

The vote in favor of enforcement while the ban is in place was unanimous, but Kuehl was more optimistic that legalization would ultimately shut down a black market in cannabis.<\/span><\/p>\n

Normalizing it and strictly regulating it is more in our interest,” Kuehl said, envisioning a day when marijuana edibles are widely on offer in restaurants. “It’ll be a list, like the wine list.”<\/span><\/p>\n

The county has the option under state law to permanently ban cannabis, but the board consensus seemed to be that thoughtful regulation would be best.<\/span><\/p>\n

Kuehl and Supervisor Janice Hahn proposed a comprehensive regulatory framework, with Kuehl emphasizing the potential to pick up best practices from Oregon, Washington and Colorado, where the drug is already legal.<\/span><\/p>\n

Supervisor Kathryn Barger, who called for extension of the ban, said she was particularly worried about young people using marijuana.<\/span><\/p>\n

“I think we all know, and I would argue, this is a gateway drug,” Barger said. “If we do not properly educate, especially our youth, we are going to be creating a whole different set of problems.”<\/span><\/p>\n

But even Barger agreed, “We cannot ban it, the voters have spoken.”<\/span><\/p>\n

Community outreach — including educational campaigns for consumers, children and parents — is planned as part of what is expected to be a yearlong process of creating regulations across more than a dozen county departments.<\/span><\/p>\n

A report back on enforcement is expected in 30 days and regulatory updates will be provided quarterly.<\/span><\/p>\n

Previous related stories:<\/span><\/p>\n

Voters say \u2018yes\u2019 to marijuana, parole for \u2018non-violent\u2019 prisoners, gun\/ammo control<\/span><\/em><\/a><\/p>\n

No-grow ordinance extended one year<\/span><\/em><\/a><\/p>\n

–<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

LOS ANGELES — The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors voted Tuesday to extend a ban on the cultivation, manufacture, processing, testing, transportation and retail sale of medical and non-medical marijuana in unincorporated areas until a comprehensive regulatory framework can be put in place. The board also asked the county’s lawyers to work with the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":70,"featured_media":70681,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[23],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/theavtimes.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/75730"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/theavtimes.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/theavtimes.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theavtimes.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/70"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theavtimes.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=75730"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/theavtimes.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/75730\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theavtimes.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/70681"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/theavtimes.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=75730"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theavtimes.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=75730"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theavtimes.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=75730"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}