It’s 4/20, what’s the Lege doing on cannabis? + Referendum reform + Retaliation lawsuits
Good morning and welcome to the A.M. Alert!
IT’S 4/20, WHAT’S THE LEGISLATURE DOING ABOUT CANNABIS?
April 20 is significant to the cannabis community, which spends the day celebrating the plant and all its benefits. So it seemed like a good occasion to review the cannabis-related bills being considered by state lawmakers.
A search of the California Legislative Information website lists 53 measures with the keyword cannabis. Here are some that stood out to us:
AB 374, by Assemblyman Matt Haney, D-San Francisco, would authorize California cannabis establishments to sell non-cannabis food and drinks — in the spirit of Amsterdam’s famous cafes. In the Assembly Governmental Organization Committee, with a hearing set April 26.
AB 471, by Assemblyman Ash Kalra, D-San Jose, would authorize issuance of cannabis catering licenses. Also in Assembly Governmental Organization Committee.
AB 1207, by Assemblywoman Jacqui Irwin, D-Thousand Oaks, would ban cannabis products and associated packaging, such as that using cartoon imagery, from being attractive to children. In the Assembly Appropriations Committee.
AB 1565, by Assemblyman Reginald Jones-Sawyer, D-Los Angeles, would allocate up to $15 million annually to support local cannabis equity programs and to assist equity license applicants in entering the marketplace. That bill, which would be effective in July 2028 if passed, is in Assembly Appropriations Committee, with a May 3 hearing set.
SB 700, by Sen. Steven Bradford, D-Gardena, would make it unlawful for employers to ask job applicants about past cannabis use. In the Senate Labor, Public Employment and Retirement Committee.
Honorable mention goes to SB 58, by Sen. Scott Wiener, D-San Francisco, which doesn’t affect cannabis but which would decriminalize possession of certain hallucinogenic drugs. In the Senate Appropriations Committee.
April 20 is significant to the cannabis community, which spends the day celebrating the plant and all its benefits. Naturally, the day’s association with marijuana started right here in California.
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE CLEARS WAY FOR BILL TO REFORM REFERENDUM PROCESS
The Assembly Elections Committee, chaired by Assemblyman Isaac G. Bryan, D-Los Angeles, voted 5-2 to approve Bryan’s AB 421 to reform California’s ballot initiative referendum process.
The bill would crack down on the paid signature-gathering industry by requiring registration with the California Secretary of State’s Office. It would also require clearly worded petitions, among other provisions.
The committee vote was cheered by Empower California Voters, a coalition of community organizations, which voiced dissatisfaction with recent referendum campaigns by the tobacco, fast food and oil industries.
“Big Oil, Big Tobacco, and fast food giants have abused our referendum process and turned it into a corrupt circus of lies, with corporations buying a veto over community progress,” SEIU California Executive Director Tia Orr said in a statement.
The coalition cited a recent poll from David Binder Research which found that 70% of California voters agree that referendum ballot language is purposely written to confuse voters, while 61% said that the referendum process is being abused by wealthy special interests.
The vote comes the same day that Politico ran a story about Michael Weinstein, head of the AIDS Health Care Foundation, who is paying signature-gathers to circulate petitions to put a rent control measure on the ballot.
The bill’s next stop is the Assembly Appropriations Committee.
ASSEMBLY TO VOTE ON BILL TO STRENGTHEN PROTECTIONS FOR SEXUAL ASSAULT VICTIMS
The Assembly is set for a floor vote Thursday on AB 933, which would strengthen protections for victims of sexual assault, harassment and discrimination against retaliatory defamation lawsuits.
“The protections in this bill will help encourage survivors to speak their truth and expose the behavior of those who harmed them,” wrote Assemblymembers Cecilia Aguiar-Curry, D-Winters, and Chris Ward, D-San Diego, in a statement for the Assembly floor legislative analysis of the bill.
The bill is sponsored by the California Employment Lawyers Association and the Equal Rights Advocates, who in a statement of support argue that AB 933 protects such victims “by clarifying that claims made in good faith are a form of protected speech.”
“We cannot allow abusers to use our courts as instruments for further abuse,” said Equal Rights Advocates’ Jessica Ramey Stender in a statement. “Serial predators are using defamation lawsuits to silence their victims with threats of expensive, retraumatizing, and drawn-out litigation. This also has the effect of discouraging other survivors from coming forward.”
The bill has no recorded opposition.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“I think Dems & Reps had good fentanyl bills that weren’t granted a hearing in the Public Safety Committee. Anyone else want to give them another chance to move forward?”
- Assembly Republican Leader James Gallagher, R-Yuba City, via Twitter.
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