Tracy Municipal Code Art. 1 General Provisions

It is the purpose and intent of this chapter to implement the provisions of the Medicinal and Adult Use Cannabis Regulation and Safety Act ("MAUCRSA") to accommodate the needs of medically-ill persons in need of and provide access to cannabis for medicinal purposes and implement the desire of California voters who approved the Adult Use of Marijuana Act ("AUMA") by Proposition 64 in November 2016, while imposing sensible regulations on the use of land to protect the City's residents, neighborhoods, and businesses from disproportionately negative impacts. As such, it is the purpose and intent of this chapter to regulate the commercial cannabis activity in a responsible manner to protect the health, safety, and welfare of the residents of Tracy and to enforce rules and regulations consistent with state law. It is the further purpose and intent of this chapter to require all commercial cannabis operators meeting the established requirements to obtain and renew annually a regulatory permit to operate a cannabis business in Tracy. Nothing in this chapter is intended to authorize the possession, use, or provision of cannabis for purposes that violate state or local law. The provisions of this chapter are in addition to any other permits, licenses and approvals which may be required to operate a cannabis business in the City, such as a conditional use permit issued pursuant to title 10 of this Code, and are in addition to any permits, licenses and approval required under state, county, or other law.

(Ord. No. 1277, § 2(Exh. A), 12-3-2019)

Pursuant to Sections 5 and 7 of Article XI of the California Constitution, the provisions of MAUCRSA, and any subsequent state legislation and/or regulations regarding same, the City of Tracy is authorized to adopt ordinances that establish standards, requirements and regulations for the licensing and permitting of commercial cannabis activity. Any standards, requirements, and regulations regarding health and safety, security, and worker protections established by the State of California, or any of its departments or divisions, shall be the minimum standards applicable in the City of Tracy to all commercial cannabis activity.

(Ord. No. 1277, § 2(Exh. A), 12-3-2019)

When used in this chapter, the following words shall have the meanings ascribed to them as set forth herein. Any reference to California statutes includes any regulations promulgated thereunder and is deemed to include any successor or amended version of the referenced statute or regulatory provision.

"A-license" means a State License issued for cannabis or cannabis products that are intended for adults who are twenty-one (21) years of age or older (adult-use) and who do not possess a physician's recommendation.

"A-licensee" means any person holding a license under California Business and Professions Code Section 26000 et seq. for cannabis or cannabis products that are intended for adults who are twenty-one (21) years of age or older (adult-use) and who do not possess a physician's recommendation.

"Applicant" means an owner applying for a cannabis business permit or a person applying for a cannabis employee permit pursuant to this chapter.

"Bureau" means the California Bureau of Cannabis Control within the California Department of Consumer Affairs, formerly named the Bureau of Marijuana Control, the Bureau of Medical Cannabis Regulation, and the Bureau of Medical Marijuana Regulation.

"Cannabis" means all parts of the Cannabis sativa Linnaeus, Cannabis indica, or Cannabis ruderalis, whether growing or not; the seeds thereof; the resin, whether crude or purified, extracted from any part of the plant; and every compound, manufacture, salt, derivative, mixture, or preparation of the plant, its seeds, or resin. "Cannabis" also means the separated resin, whether crude or purified, obtained from cannabis. "Cannabis" does not include the mature stalks of the plant, fiber produced from the stalks, oil or cake made from the seeds of the plant, any other compound, manufacture, salt, derivative, mixture, or preparation of the mature stalks (except the resin extracted therefrom), fiber, oil, or cake, or the sterilized seed of the plant which is incapable of germination. For the purpose of this chapter, "cannabis" does not mean "industrial hemp" as defined by Section 11018.5 of the California Health and Safety Code.

"Cannabis accessories" has the same meaning as in Section 11018.2 of the California Health and Safety Code.

"Cannabis concentrate" means cannabis that has undergone a process to concentrate one or more active cannabinoids, thereby increasing the product's potency. Resin from granular trichomes from a cannabis plant is a concentrate for purposes of this chapter. A cannabis concentrate is not considered food, as defined by Section 109935 of the California Health and Safety Code, or drug, as defined by Section 109925 of the California Health and Safety Code.

"Cannabis employee permit" means a regulatory permit issued by the City pursuant to this chapter to persons working, volunteering, interning, or apprenticing at any cannabis business operating in the City.

"Cannabis product" means cannabis or a product containing cannabis, including, but not limited to, manufactured cannabis, and shall have the same meaning as in Section 11018.1 of the California Health and Safety Code. For purposes of this chapter, "cannabis" does not include industrial hemp as defined by Section 81000 of the California Food and Agricultural Code or Section 11018.5 of the California Health and Safety Code.

"Canopy" shall have the same meaning as that appearing in Title 3, Section 8000(f) of the California Code of Regulations.

"Caregiver" or "primary caregiver" has the same meaning as that term is defined in Section 11362.7 of the California Health and Safety Code.

"City" or "City of Tracy" means the City of Tracy, a California general law City.

"City Council" means the City Council of the City of Tracy.

"Commercial cannabis activity" includes the cultivation, possession, manufacture, distribution, processing, storing, laboratory testing, packaging, labeling, transportation, delivery or sale of cannabis and cannabis products as provided for in this chapter and in MAUCRSA. This definition shall have the same meaning as set forth in California Business and Professions Code Section 26001(k) as the same may be amended from time to time.

"Commercial cannabis business" or "Cannabis business" means any business or operation which engages in medicinal or adult-use commercial cannabis activity.

"Commercial cannabis business permit" or "City cannabis business permit" means a regulatory permit issued by the City pursuant to this chapter to a person operating a cannabis business in the City. This permit is required before any commercial cannabis activity may be conducted in the City and does not constitute a land use entitlement nor a conditional use permit. The issuance of a cannabis business permit is made expressly contingent upon the business' ongoing compliance with all of the requirements of this chapter and any regulations adopted or imposed by the City governing the commercial cannabis activity at issue.

"Cultivation" or "cultivate" means any activity involving the planting, growing, harvesting, drying, curing, grading, or trimming of cannabis.

"Cultivation site" means a location where cannabis is planted, grown, harvested, dried, cured, graded, or trimmed, or a location where any combination of those activities occurs.

"Cultivation area" means the area in which cannabis is cultivated.

"Customer" means a natural person twenty-one (21) years of age or older or a natural person eighteen (18) years of age or older who possesses a physician's recommendation, or a primary caregiver.

"Delivery" means the commercial transfer of cannabis or cannabis products by a retailer directly to a customer off the premises of a cannabis retail facility, in the customer's home or other locations authorized by this chapter. "Delivery" also includes the use by a retailer of any technology platform owned and controlled by the retailer. This definition shall have the same meaning as Section 26001(p) of the California Business and Professions Code, as may be amended from time to time.

"Dispensary" or "Dispensary site" means a state-licensed, locally permitted business selling cannabis, cannabis products or cannabis accessories from a building or structure that is open to customers. For the purposes of this chapter, the term "Dispensary" is synonymous with a storefront retailer.

"Dispensing" means any activity involving the licensed retail sale of cannabis or cannabis products from a retailer.

"Distribution" means the procurement, sale, and transport of cannabis and cannabis products between Licensees.

"Distributor" means a person holding a valid commercial cannabis state license for distribution, required by state law to engage in the business of purchasing cannabis from a licensed cultivator, or cannabis products from a license manufacturer, for sale to a licensed retailer.

"Labeling" means any label or other written, printed, or graphic matter upon a cannabis product, upon its container or wrapper, or that accompanies any cannabis product.

"Licensee" means any person holding a State License under this chapter, regardless of whether the license held is an A-license or an M-license, and includes the holder of a testing laboratory license.

"Licensing authority" means the state agency responsible for the issuance, renewal, or reinstatement of the license, or the state agency authorized to take disciplinary action against the Licensee.

"M-license" means a State License issued for commercial cannabis activity involving medicinal cannabis.

"M-licensee" means any person holding a State License for commercial cannabis activity involving medicinal cannabis.

"Manufacturing" or "manufacturing operation" means the production, preparation, propagation, or compounding of cannabis or cannabis products either directly or indirectly or by extraction methods, or independently by means of chemical synthesis, or by a combination of extraction and chemical synthesis at a fixed location that packages or repackages cannabis or cannabis products or labels or container.

"Manufactured cannabis" means raw cannabis that has undergone a process whereby the raw agricultural product has been transformed into a concentrate, extraction or other manufactured product intended for internal consumption through inhalation or oral ingestion or for topical application.

"Manufacturing site" means a location that produces, prepares, propagates, or compounds cannabis or cannabis products, directly or indirectly, by extraction methods, independently by means of chemical synthesis, or by a combination of extraction and chemical synthesis, and is owned and operated by a person issued a valid commercial cannabis business permit for manufacturing from the City of Tracy and, a valid State License as required for manufacturing of cannabis products.

"Medicinal cannabis" or "medicinal cannabis product" means cannabis or a cannabis product, respectively, intended to be sold for use pursuant to the Compassionate Use Act of 1996 (Proposition 215), found at Section 11362.5 of the California Health and Safety Code, by a medicinal cannabis patient in California who possesses a physician's recommendation. For the purposes of this chapter, the term "medicinal cannabis" is synonymous with medical cannabis.

"Microbusiness" means a business that engages in at least three (3) of the following commercial activities: cultivation (provided that the cultivation area is less than ten thousand (10,000) square feet); distribution; manufacturing (Level 1), storefront retailer (dispensary), or non-storefront retailer (delivery-only). This definition shall have the same meaning as Section 26001.1 of the California Business and Professions Code, as may be amended from time to time.

"Mixed-light cultivation" means cultivation of cannabis using any combination of natural and supplemental lighting with the cultivation site in a fully enclosed building. For the purposes of this definition, "building" shall have the same meaning as provided in Title 10 of this Code. The use of natural light does not include opening of any part of the building to the outside air such that odors from the cannabis business may be detectable off-site.

"Natural person" is an individual human being as opposed to an artificial or legal person like a company which may be a private entity or non-governmental organization or public government organization.

"Non-Storefront retailer" or "Retailer Non-Storefront" means a cannabis business that conducts sales of cannabis or cannabis products to customers exclusively by delivery and whose premises are closed to the public. The term "Non-Storefront retailer" is synonymous with the terms "delivery only" or "delivery service."

"Non-volatile solvent" means any solvent used in the extraction process that is not a volatile solvent. For purposes of this chapter, a nonvolatile solvent includes ethanol and carbon dioxide used for extraction, or as it may be defined and amended by the state.

"Operation" means any act for which licensure is required under the provisions of this chapter, or any commercial transfer of cannabis or cannabis products.

"Owner" means any of the following:

(1) A person with an aggregate ownership interest of five (5) percent or more in the person applying for a permit or a permittee, unless the interest is solely a security, lien, or encumbrance.

(2) The chief executive officer and the members of the board of directors of the entity engaging in the cannabis business.

(3) An individual who will be participating in the direction, control, or management of the person applying for a City cannabis business permit.

"Package" means any container or receptacle used for holding cannabis or cannabis products.

"Patient" or "qualified patient" shall have the same definition as California Health and Safety Code Section 11362.7 et seq., as it may be amended, and which means a person who is entitled to the protections of California Health and Safety Code Section 11362.5.

"Permit Holder" means person to whom a permit under this chapter has been issued, including but not limited to a cannabis business permit and cannabis employee permit. For purposes of this chapter, the term "Permit Holder' is synonymous with "Permittee."

"Person" includes any individual, firm, partnership, joint venture, association, corporation, limited liability company, estate, trust, business trust, receiver, syndicate, or any other group or combination acting as a unit, and the plural as well as the singular.

"Person with an identification card" shall have the meaning given that term by California Health and Safety Code Section 11362.7.

"Physician's recommendation" means a recommendation by a physician and surgeon that a patient use cannabis provided in accordance with the Compassionate Use Act of 1996 (Proposition 215), found at Section 11362.5 of the California Health and Safety Code.

"Premises" means the designated structure or structures and land specified in the application that is owned, leased, or otherwise held under the control of the applicant or licensee where the commercial cannabis activity will be or is conducted. The premises shall be a contiguous area and shall only be occupied by one licensee. This definition shall have the same meaning as California Business and Professions Code Section 26001(ap), and as may be amended from time to time.

"Retailer" means a cannabis business issued a state license for the retail sale and delivery of cannabis or cannabis products to customers. This definition shall have the same meaning as California Business & Professions Code Section 26070 and as may be amended from time to time.

"Sell," "sale," "to sell" and "retail sale" include any transaction whereby, for any consideration, title to cannabis or cannabis products are transferred from one person to another, and includes the delivery of cannabis or cannabis products pursuant to an order placed for the purchase of the same and soliciting or receiving an order for the same, but does not include the return of cannabis or cannabis products by a licensee to the licensee from whom the cannabis or cannabis product was purchased.

"State" means the State of California.

"State License" means a permit or license issued by the State of California, or one of its departments or divisions, under MAUCRSA and any subsequent State of California legislation regarding the same, to engage in commercial cannabis activity.

"Testing laboratory" means a laboratory, facility, or site that offers or performs tests of cannabis or cannabis products and that is both of the following:

(1) Accredited by an accrediting body that is independent from all other persons involved in commercial cannabis activity in the state.

(2) Licensed by the State of California to engage in cannabis testing activities.

"Transport" means the transfer of cannabis products from the permitted business location of one licensee to the permitted business location of another licensee, for the purposes of conducting commercial cannabis activity authorized by the MAUCRSA which may be amended or repealed by any subsequent State of California legislation regarding the same.

(Ord. No. 1277, § 2(Exh. A), 12-3-2019; Ord. No. 1293, § 2, 7-21-2020)

It is the responsibility of the owners and operators of the cannabis business to ensure that it is always operating in a manner compliant with all applicable state and local laws, policies, rules, and regulations including, but not limited to, the California Health and Safety Code, the California Water Code, the City adopted Building Code, Plumbing Code, Electrical Code, Mechanical Code, Fire Code, Energy Code, Green Building Standards Code, Existing Building Code, Historical Building Code, the Tracy Municipal Code, the Tracy Zoning Code, all requirements and conditions related to the land use entitlement process, and any regulations promulgated thereunder. Nothing in this chapter shall be construed as authorizing any actions that violate state law or local law with respect to the operation of a cannabis business. It shall be the responsibility of the owners and the operators of the cannabis business to ensure that the cannabis business is, at all times, operating in a manner compliant with all applicable state and local laws, including for as long as applicable, the Compassionate Use Act ("Prop. 215") and the Medical Cannabis Program Act ("MMPA") (collectively "the Medical Cannabis Collective Laws"), the Medical and Adult Use Cannabis Regulation and Safety Act (MAUCRSA), any subsequently enacted state law or regulatory, licensing, or certification requirements, and any specific, additional operating procedures or requirements which may be imposed as conditions of approval of the cannabis business permit. Nothing in this chapter shall be construed as authorizing any actions that violate state law regarding the operation of a commercial cannabis business.

(Ord. No. 1277, § 2(Exh. A), 12-3-2019)