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City of San Leandro <br />Meeting Date: February 1, 2016 <br />Staff Report <br />Agenda Section:File Number:16-035 PUBLIC HEARINGS <br />Agenda Number:4.A. <br />TO:City Council <br />FROM:Chris Zapata <br />City Manager <br />BY:Rich Pio Roda <br />City Attorney <br />FINANCE REVIEW:Not Applicable <br />TITLE:Staff Report for an Urgency Ordinance to Amend the San Leandro Municipal <br />Code to Prohibit Medical Cannabis Cultivation Activities, and to Affirm that <br />Under the Principles of Permissive Zoning, Medical Cannabis Cultivation Is <br />Not a Permitted Land Use Under the City of San Leandro Zoning Code <br />RECOMMENDATION <br />Staff recommends that the City Council approve, by a 4/5 vote of its membership, an urgency <br />ordinance to amend the San Leandro Municipal Code to prohibit medical cannabis cultivation <br />activities, and to affirm that under the principles of permissive zoning, medical cannabis <br />cultivation is not permitted land use under the City of San Leandro Zoning Code, such that the <br />State may not issue a license or permit for large scale and commercial medical cannabis <br />cultivation within the City. Cultivation for personal use and distribution by primary caregivers <br />under California Health & Safety Code section 11362.77(g) would be exempt under the new <br />Ordinance, and under State law as it relates to land use regulations. <br />BACKGROUND AND ANALYSIS <br />By way of background, and as an overview of the State of California’s law related to medical <br />cannabis, California Health and Safety Code section 11362.5, the Compassionate Use Act of <br />1996 (“CUA”), authorizes a limited defense to criminal charges for the use, possession or <br />cultivation of cannabis for medical purposes when a qualified patient has a doctor's <br />recommendation for the use of cannabis. Health and Safety Code section 11362.7 et seq., <br />the Medical Cannabis Program Act (“MMPA”), was adopted by the state legislature and offers <br />some clarification on the scope of the Compassionate Use Act of 1996, and section 11362.83 <br />specifically authorizes cities and other governing bodies to adopt and enforce rules and <br />regulations related to medical cannabis. Neither the CUA nor the MMPA prevent a city from <br />enacting nuisance and land use regulations regarding medical cannabis. A city is <br />constitutionally authorized to make and enforce within its limits all local police, sanitary, and <br />other ordinances. (Cal. Const. Art. XI, § 7.) <br />Page 1 City of San Leandro Printed on 1/26/2016