CHAPTER 13
MEDICINAL CANNABIS AND ADULT-USE CANNABIS

(Added by O-3795; Amended by O-3820)

413.1.010 DEFINITIONS.

(Amended by O-3855)

a)    "Cannabis" means all parts of the plant 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 Division, "cannabis" does not mean "industrial hemp" as defined by Section 11018.5 of the Health and Safety Code as it may be amended from time to time.

b)    "Cannabis concentrate" means cannabis that has undergone a process to concentrate one (1) 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 Division, as defined by Section 26001(h) of the Business and Professions Code as it may be amended from time to time. A cannabis concentrate is not considered food, as defined by Section 109935 of the Health and Safety Code, or a drug, as defined by Section 109925 of the Health and Safety Code.

c)    "Cannabis products" means cannabis that has undergone a process whereby the plant material has been transformed into a concentrate, including, but not limited to, concentrated cannabis, or an edible or topical product containing cannabis or concentrated cannabis and other ingredients as defined in Section 11018.1 of the Health and Safety Code.

d)    "Caregiver" or "primary caregiver" means the individual designated by the person exempted under Section 11362.5 of the Health and Safety Code who has consistently assumed responsibility for the housing, health, or safety of that person as defined in Section 11362.5(e) of the Health and Safety Code as it may be amended from time to time.

e)    "CBD" means the compound cannabidiol derived from industrial hemp, cannabis, or otherwise.

f)    "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 Division 10, Cannabis, of the Business and Professions Code as it may be amended from time to time. For purposes of this Chapter, commercial cannabis activity will also include commercial medicinal cannabis activity.

g)    "Cooperative" or "collective" means two (2) or more persons or a group that is collectively or cooperatively cultivating, using, transporting, possessing, administering, delivering, or making available medicinal and/or adult-use cannabis and cannabis products, with or without compensation.

h)    "Cultivation" means any activity involving the planting, growing, harvesting, drying, or curing, grading, or trimming of cannabis as defined in Section 26001(l) of the Business and Professions Code as it may be amended from time to time.

i)    "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 as defined in Section 26001(m) of the Business and Professions Code as it may be amended from time to time.

j)    "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 as defined in Section 26001(n) of the Business and Professions Code as it may be amended from time to time.

k)    "Delivery" means the commercial transfer of cannabis or cannabis products to a customer. "Delivery" also includes the use by a retailer of any technology platform as defined in Section 26001(p) of the Business and Professions Code as it may be amended from time to time.

l)    "Dispense" means to deliver a controlled substance to an ultimate user or research subject by or pursuant to the lawful order of a practitioner, including the prescribing, furnishing, packaging, labeling, or compounding necessary to prepare the substance for that delivery as defined in Section 11010 of the Health and Safety Code as it may be amended from time to time.

m)    "Distribute" means to deliver other than by administering or dispensing a controlled substance as defined in Section 11012 of the Health and Safety Code as it may be amended from time to time.

n)    "Distribution" means the procurement, sale, and transport of cannabis and cannabis products between licensees as defined in Business and Professions Code Section 26001(r) as it may be amended from time to time.

o)    "Distributor" means a person who distributes. The term "distributor" also includes warehousemen handling or storing controlled substances and customs brokers as defined in Health and Safety Code Section 11013 as it may be amended from time to time.

p)    "Edible cannabis product" means cannabis product that is intended to be used, in whole or in part, for human consumption, including, but not limited to, chewing gum, but excluding products set forth in Division 15 (commencing with Section 32501) of the Food and Agricultural Code. An edible cannabis product is not considered food, as defined by Section 109935 of the Health and Safety Code, or a drug, as defined by Section 109925 of the Health and Safety Code.

q)    "Food" means either of the following:

1)    Any article used or intended for use for food, drink, confection, condiment, or chewing gum by man or animal.

2)    Any article used or intended for use as a component of any article designated in subsection (q)(1) of this Section.

r)    "Industrial hemp" means a crop that is limited to types of the plant Cannabis sativa L. having no more than three-tenths of one percent (0.3%) tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) contained in the dried flowering tops, whether growing or not; the seeds of the plant; the resin extracted from any part of the plant; and every compound, manufacture, salt, derivative, mixture, or preparation of the plant, its seeds or resin produced therefrom.

Industrial hemp shall not be subject to the provisions of this Division or of Division 10 (commencing with Section 26000) of the Business and Professions Code, but instead shall be regulated by the Department of Food and Agriculture in accordance with the provisions of Division 24 (commencing with Section 84000) of the Food and Agricultural Code, inclusive.

s)    "Manufacturer" means a licensee that conducts 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 relabels its container as defined in Business and Professions Code Section 26001(ah) as it may be amended from time to time.

t)    "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 Health and Safety Code, by a medicinal cannabis patient in California who possesses a physician’s recommendation as defined in Business and Professions Code Section 26001(ai) as it may be amended from time to time. For purposes of this Chapter, medical cannabis will also include medical marijuana.

u)    "Medicinal and Adult-Use Cannabis Regulation and Safety Act" or "MAUCRSA" means SB 94, signed into law by the Governor on June 27, 2017, as the same may be amended from time to time.

v)    "Nursery" means a licensee that produces only clones, immature plants, seeds, and other agricultural products used specifically for the propagation and cultivation of cannabis as defined in Business and Professions Code Section 26001(aj) as it may be amended from time to time.

w)    "Testing laboratory" means a laboratory, facility, or entity in the State 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; and

2)    Licensed by the Bureau of Cannabis Control as defined in Business and Professions Code Section 26001(at) as it may be amended from time to time.

413.1.020 PROHIBITED ACTIVITIES.

(Amended by O-3855)

a)    Dispensaries of medicinal and adult-use cannabis are expressly prohibited in the City.

b)    Cultivation of medicinal and adult-use cannabis is expressly prohibited in the City. No person, including a qualified patient or primary caregiver, will cultivate any amount of cannabis in the City, even for medical purposes.

c)    Deliveries of medicinal and adult-use cannabis are expressly prohibited from originating in the City. No person will conduct any delivery that originates in the City of Torrance.

d)    Mobile cannabis dispensaries are expressly prohibited in the City of Torrance.

e)    Commercial cannabis activities are expressly prohibited in the City of Torrance.

f)    Non-cannabis sourced cannabidiol (CBD) testing, manufacturing, and distribution are expressly prohibited in the City of Torrance.

g)    This Section is meant to expressly prohibit all activities for which a State license is required. Accordingly, the City of Torrance will not issue any permit, license, or other entitlement for any activity for which a State license is required under the MAUCRSA.

413.1.030 EXCEPTIONS.

This Chapter allows persons twenty-one (21) years of age or older to do any of the following:

a)    Possess, process, transport, purchase, obtain, or give away to persons twenty-one (21) years of age or older up to twenty-eight and one-half (28.5) grams of marijuana pursuant to Health and Safety Code Section 11362.1(a)(1);

b)    Possess, process, transport, purchase, obtain, or give away to persons twenty-one (21) years of age or older up to eight (8) grams of concentrated cannabis pursuant to Health and Safety Code Section 11362.1(a)(2);

c)    Possess, plant, cultivate, harvest, dry, or process not more than six (6) living marijuana plants and possess the marijuana produced by the plants pursuant to Health and Safety Code Section 11362.1(a)(3);

1)    But the City of Torrance requires any person who is engaging the in the actions and conduct under Health and Safety Code Section 11362.1(a)(3) to do so inside a private residence or inside an accessory structure to a private residence located upon the grounds of a private residence that is fully enclosed and secure.

d)    Smoke or ingest marijuana or marijuana products pursuant to Health and Safety Code Section 11362.1(a)(4);

1)    The exception listed above is limited by the prohibitions found in Health and Safety Code Section 11362.3;

e)    Possess, transport, purchase, obtain, use, manufacture, or give away marijuana accessories to persons twenty-one (21) years of age or older without any compensation whatsoever pursuant to Health and Safety Code Section 11362.1(a)(5).

413.1.040 USE OR ACTIVITY PROHIBITED BY STATE OR FEDERAL LAW.

Nothing contained in this Chapter shall be deemed to permit or authorize any use or activity which is otherwise prohibited by any State or Federal law.

413.1.050 PUBLIC NUISANCE.

Any violation of any provision of this Chapter will be, and is declared to be, a public nuisance and may be summarily abated by the City pursuant to the Torrance Municipal Code, Code of Civil Procedure Section 731, or any other remedy available to the City under local, State, or Federal law.