Burlingame officials approved prohibitions on recreational cannabis businesses, but kept the door open for delivery and lab testing companies while state lawmakers hash out more comprehensive policies.
The Burlingame City Council unanimously approved banning commercial cannabis activity by disallowing dispensaries, collectives, corporate grows and more, according to video of the meeting Tuesday, Sept. 4.
But not all drug business is eradicated, as officials are waiting for the Legislature to clarify state laws as it relates to delivery and lab testing companies before closing the book on Burlingame’s code.
Councilwoman Ann Keighran said she supported formalizing the regulations, with an eye on amending them further if necessary down the road.
“We still have the option to look at this again,” she said. “If we want to change it we can. And if we don’t, we don’t.”
The decision was invited by voters’ approval of Proposition 64, which allowed for recreational sale and use of marijuana among adults. Since its passage, local officials have scrambled to craft policies specific to their communities to protect against the threat of the more permissive state law taking hold.
Approaches across the Peninsula have varied to regulating the drug, as some are attempting to take advantage of the opportunity to generate tax revenue by allowing commercial sales, cultivation and testing of the drug. Others are more restrictive, and seek to prohibit all cannabis business.
Burlingame typically has taken the latter approach, as officials approved a series of moratoriums prohibiting the businesses in favor of allowing state lawmakers to take the lead on crafting regulations. The ordinance does make way for cultivation of six plants grown indoor for personal use, in compliance with the state law.
More than a year after voters approved the new law, Burlingame officials noted the state still lacks clarity in the rules relating to the delivery and testing. As a result, councilmembers postponed a decision until lawmakers take a firm position on the matters.
Resident Thomas Paine said he supported officials taking a more conservative approach to regulation.
“We don’t want to be on the vanguard of this social and political legislative development,” he said. “Let someone else do that.”
Holding off on approving policies specific to Burlingame could open the door for some businesses to take advantage of the available loophole though, noted a consultant hired to help the city navigate the issue.
To that end, Keighran raised the threat of a cannabis testing company applying for a business license while the city’s regulation does not specifically prohibit the industry.
The consultant though said the sweeping prohibition of most cannabis companies would be instructive to state officials considering a license by announcing a general unwillingness to accept such business.
More difficult would be prohibiting cannabis deliveries to Burlingame, noted the consultant, as state lawmakers have indicated they would likely not restrict such activity.
The city is protected from the threat of a delivery businesses starting operations from Burlingame because that would violate the prohibition of recreational cannabis companies.
For his part, Mayor Michael Brownrigg said he supported approving the proposed ordinance as a placeholder to safeguard against uninvited businesses temporarily. But he favored more substantive discussions of the matter down the road, once the state’s position on some of the lingering issues become more clear.
“We should adopt this recognizing that we should come back and amend this,” he said.
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