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California Issues Emergency Regulations for Shared Cannabis Manufacturing Facilities

April 17, 2018 – Update: On Friday, April 13, 2018, the Office of Administrative Law approved the emergency cannabis regulations pertaining to Shared-Use Cannabis Manufacturing Facilities.  A copy of the text of the final approved regulations filed with the California Secretary of State is available here at Endorsed Emergency Regulations for Shared-Use Facilities.

March 29, 2018 – On Friday, March 23, 2018, the California Department of Public Health’s Manufactured Cannabis Safety Branch (MCSB) published the much-anticipated emergency regulations for Shared-Use Cannabis Manufacturing Facilities—State license “Type S”—which will be available once the Office of Administrative Law approves of the emergency regulations.

This new license type would enable certain kinds of manufacturers of cannabis products to utilize the same space to manufacture their products, albeit at different times, of course. This will make licensing more feasible for many manufacturers, especially smaller businesses and “mom and pop” operators.

The way it will work is as follows: The owner or operator of a Shared-Use Cannabis Manufacturing Facility is known as the “Primary Licensee.” The Primary Licensee must hold either a Type 7, Type 6, or Type N license for these purposes. The Type 7, Type 6, or Type N licensee would then register their space as a Shared-Use Cannabis Manufacturing Facility with the MCSB. After the facility has been approved for shared-use by the MCSB, other cannabis manufacturers wishing to use the space can apply for a Type S license for that location.

Type S licenses are limited to the following activities:

  • Infusions
  • Packaging and labeling
  • Extractions with butter or food-grade oils (*Note: the extract or concentrate produced can only be used in the Type S licensee’s infused products)

The primary licensee must designate an area of the facility as the shared space. There must be an occupancy schedule posted that lists the days and times when each Type S licensee is authorized to use the space. This occupancy schedule must be submitted with the license application.

The primary licensee is responsible for making sure that products made within the shared-use manufacturing facility are free of contaminants and meet all of the other requirements under state and local law. Like other cannabis licenses in California, there is a dual-licensing requirement, meaning that local approval to operate a shared-use cannabis manufacturing facility is needed before the state will issue a license for one.

Temporary applications for shared cannabis manufacturing licenses will be available online and can also be submitted by mail. Temporary licenses are valid for 120 days, and can be extended for an additional 90-day period if a complete annual license application has been submitted. The application fee for a Type S license is $500, and the annual license fee ranges from $2,000 to $100,000 depending on a business’ annual gross revenue.

The full text of the emergency regulations can be found here: https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/OLS/CDPH%20Document%20Library/01DPH-17-013E.text.pdf

A summary of the shared-use manufacturing facilities license regulations can be found here: https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/CEH/DFDCS/MCSB/CDPH%20Document%20Library/EmergRegsFactSheet_SharedFacilities.pdf

For more information, visit the Manufacturing Cannabis Safety Branch’s website: https://www.cdph.ca.gov/Programs/CEH/DFDCS/MCSB/Pages/MCSB.aspx

The above information is provided as a public service and is not intended as legal advice. For more information about cannabis manufacturing licenses in California, contact the Law Offices of Omar Figueroa at (707) 829-0215 or info@omarfigueroa.com to schedule a confidential legal consultation.

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