Since February 2009 City Council officials, the appointed Medical Marijuana Commission, local business owners and members of the public have been meeting to discuss possible guidelines for an expansion of Berkeley’s medical marijuana facilities. The decisions made, including the proposed 2.5% increase in business tax for dispensaries and the number of dispensing facilities increasing from three to four total, will be up for public vote in November.

Other amendments to the ordinance is the addition of six new, non-dispensing facilities which could include but are not limited to; cultivation, testing, food preparation and manufacturing and would not include public visits. These non-dispensing facilities will be allowed up to 30,000 square feet with a Zoning Certificate and above 30,000 square feet with an Administrative Use Permit and would be located in Manufacturing Zones (M).

Additional applications for non-dispensing, non-cultivating (except for testing) which would include processing and food preparation would be evaluated and regulated under Title 23E 16.070 Medical Cannabis Uses, without regard they involve medical cannabis and with the exception that any commercial facility that is used for medical cannabis food may not be used for any other type of food production.

The new dispensary and non-dispensing locations would be subject to an open application process to ensure that successful applicants provide public benefits in return for the opportunity to engage in business, says the City Council’s proposed ordinance. For example, the new facilities must not be for large profit, be organic to the maximum extent reasonable and provide a set amount of medicine produced to very low income patients.

It would also limit small, cultivating collectives and individual growers, who do not officially obtain a non-dispensing permit to 200 sq/ft or 25% of the residence and must be located in a Residential Zone.

For taxes, a maximum tax on cannabis businesses at 2.5% or up to $25 per $1,000 on gross receipts which would be phased in over two years, retroactively from June 30 2010; and a 10% tax on non-medical cannabis sold if Prop 19 passes this November was also added to the amendment. New taxes are never fun and we at Patient’s Care Collective will continue to do everything we can to keep giving our patients the best medicine and the best price possible for the high quality service we provide.

The City also wants to reconstitute the Measure JJ appointed Medical Marijuana Commission from an autonomous entity into a typical City Commission. This could affect how medical cannabis business is decided in future. The commission in its current state, consists of people involved in Berkeley’s medical cannabis industry, elected by the existing Berkeley dispensaries who are aware of the needs of Berkeley’s patients and cultivators. We feel changing the commission may be unnecessary as it has shown to be an effective organization and, when we voted for Measure JJ in 2008, it was the intention to create a peer review board independent of the City Council.

It is worth noting Section 8 of the proposed ordinance which states that the City Council has the authority to amend any part of the provision as it deems appropriate in its sole discretion. Which is quite a disclaimer.

We are happy Berkeley is allowing for expansion of medical marijuana facilities and enthusiastic about the possible greater availability of high grade medicine these new facilities could provide, but we are also wary of new tax and regulation that could potentially make medicine more expensive for some, or detract from the quality.

Like it or not though, things are changing for Berkeley and other cities around the State. It is up to all of us to pay attention to what’s happening in our areas and make a personal bid for what we believe is right or fair- by voting at the polls, and being involved in the discussion.

Articles of interest regarding this topic include the Daily Californian.