§ 88-28.410. Standards applicable to all commercial cannabis activities.

The standards in this section apply to all commercial cannabis activities.

(a)

Health Permit and State License Required. No business may operate under a permit issued under this chapter unless and until the permittee possesses both (1) a State license authorizing the same commercial cannabis activities that are authorized under the permit, and (2) a commercial cannabis health permit issued under Chapter 413-4. Before a business begins operating, a permittee shall provide the Department (1) a copy of the permittee's State license and a copy of the State license application, and (2) a copy of the permittee's County health permit. A permittee shall provide the Department a copy of each renewed license and renewal application within thirty days after a State license is renewed. A permittee shall provide the Department a copy of each renewed County health permit within thirty days after the permit is renewed. All requirements of the permittee's State license shall be deemed to be incorporated as requirements of the permit issued under this chapter.

(b)

Location Requirements.

(1)

Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in this chapter or elsewhere in this code, no commercial cannabis activities may be located within a cannabis exclusion (-CE) combining district.

(2)

All commercial cannabis activities shall be located within the urban limit line established pursuant to Chapter 82-1, except as follows:

(A)

A business engaged in outdoor commercial cultivation, or a vertically-integrated business that includes outdoor cultivation, must be located outside of, and at least one mile from, the urban limit line.

(B)

A business engaged in indoor commercial cultivation, or a vertically-integrated business that includes indoor commercial cultivation, may be located within an agricultural zoning district outside the urban limit line.

(C)

A business engaged in manufacturing, or a vertically-integrated business that includes manufacturing, may be located outside the urban limit line.

(D)

No vertically-integrated business that includes a retailer may be located outside of the urban limit line.

(3)

A business shall meet the following buffer requirements:

(A)

A business may not be located within one thousand feet of any of the following located in the unincorporated County or in a city: a school providing instruction in kindergarten or any grades one through twelve; a day care center; or a youth center; or a drug treatment center.

(B)

A storefront retailer may not be located within five hundred feet of any other storefront retailer located in the unincorporated County or in a city.

All distances specified in this section shall be the horizontal distance measured in a straight line from nearest property line to nearest property line.

(c)

Vertically-Integrated Businesses. A vertically-integrated business must satisfy all requirements that apply to each commercial cannabis activity in which the business is engaged under this chapter. A permit for a vertically-integrated business will include all permit requirements that apply to each category of commercial cannabis activity in which the business is engaged.

(d)

Prohibited Activities. A business that is permitted under this chapter may not sell tobacco or alcoholic beverages.

(e)

Age Restrictions. No persons under the age of eighteen may be present on the premises of any business that has a State M-license. No persons under the age of twenty-one may be present on the premises of any business that has a State A-license, but does not have a State M-license. No person under the age of twenty-one may be present on the premises of any testing business.

(f)

Inspections. The County shall have the same rights of access that the bureau has under Title 16 of the California Code of Regulations, section 5800. A permittee shall allow access to its business and records if requested by the County, its officers, employees, or agents. A permittee, upon request, shall submit to an inspection by the County for the purpose of verifying the permittee is operating its business in compliance with the requirements of this chapter, the terms of a permit issued under this chapter, the State license, and all applicable requirements of this code and State laws and regulations. A permittee, upon request, shall provide the County with copies of records that the County requires to verify the permitee's compliance with this chapter and other applicable requirements of this code and State laws and regulations. A permittee must pay the applicable inspection fees for each County inspection.

(g)

Records. A permittee shall maintain all records in accordance with Business and Professions Code sections 26160 through 26162.5. The County shall have the same powers as licensing authorities under Business and Professions Code sections 26160 through 26162.5.

(h)

Compliance Review. The Department may perform a compliance review at any time during the term of a permit to determine whether a permittee is complying with the permit's terms and conditions, the requirements of this chapter, and all applicable laws and regulations. The Department will perform a compliance review at least once in each of the first, second, and fourth year during the initial five-year term of a permit issued under this chapter. If a permit is renewed under this chapter for one or more additional five year terms, the Department will perform a compliance review after the first two and one-half years of each renewal term. A permittee shall cooperate with the Department to complete the compliance review and must pay all applicable compliance review fees.

(i)

CEQA Compliance. The issuance of a permit under this chapter is a discretionary activity that is subject to environmental review under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). A permit will not be issued under this chapter unless and until the County has completed all applicable CEQA environmental review. An applicant shall pay all costs that the County incurs to satisfy the requirements of CEQA. A permit issued under this chapter shall include appropriate measures to mitigate the impacts of commercial cannabis activities, as determined by the County during CEQA environmental review.

(j)

Unique Identification Protocol. A permittee must comply with all applicable track-and-trace systems developed by the State for reporting the movement of cannabis and cannabis products throughout the distribution chain.

(k)

Indemnity. As a condition of issuance of a permit under this chapter, an applicant shall be required to enter into an indemnification agreement with the County that requires the applicant to indemnify, defend (with counsel reasonably acceptable to the County), and hold harmless the County, its boards, commissions, officers, employees, and agents from any and all claims, costs, losses, actions, fees, liabilities, expenses, and damages arising from or related to the applicant's application for a land use permit, the County's discretionary approvals for the commercial cannabis activities, the County's actions pursuant to CEQA and planning and zoning laws, and the operation of the commercial cannabis activities, regardless of when those liabilities accrue.

(l)

Notifications. A permittee shall provide written notice to the Department within five days after receiving any of the following from the bureau: a notice to comply, a citation, an interim order to suspend any license or impose any restrictions upon any permittee, an order revoking a license, or any other writing informing the permittee of any disciplinary action proposed to be taken or actually taken against the permittee.

(Ord. No. 2018-18, § 3, 6-26-18)