BILL ANALYSIS
AB 1147
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ASSEMBLY THIRD READING
AB 1147 (Leno)
As Amended January 23, 2006
Majority vote
PUBLIC SAFETY 4-2 APPROPRIATIONS 13-3
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|Ayes:|Leno, Cohn, Goldberg, |Ayes:|Chu, Bass, Berg, |
| |Hancock | |Calderon, |
| | | |De La Torre, Karnette, |
| | | |Klehs, Leno, Nation, |
| | | |Oropeza, Ridley-Thomas, |
| | | |Saldana, Yee |
| | | | |
|-----+--------------------------+-----+--------------------------|
|Nays:|La Suer, Spitzer |Nays:|Runner, Emmerson, |
| | | |Nakanishi |
| | | | |
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SUMMARY : Clarifies the definition of "marijuana" contained in the
Uniformed Controlled Substance Act (CSA) to exclude industrial hemp.
Specifically, this bill :
1)Defines "industrial hemp" as an agricultural field crop limited to
the non-psychoactive varieties of the of the plant Cannabis sativa
L., having no more than three-tenths of 1% tetrahydrocannabinol
(THC) contained in the dry flowering tops and cultivated from
seeds originating in California, and processed exclusively for the
purpose of producing the mature stalks of the plant and
by-products of the stalk and seed.
2)States that nothing in this section shall be construed to
authorize the cultivation, production, or possession of resin,
flowering tops, or leaves that have been removed from the field of
cultivation and separated from the other constituent parts of the
industrial hemp plant.
3)Prohibits the transportation and/or sale of a seed capable of
germination across state lines of any variety of Cannabis sativa
L. and any cultivation of the industrial hemp plant that is not
grown in a research setting or as an agricultural field crop.
4)Finds and declares the following:
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a) Industrial hemp is produced in at least 30 nations including
Canada, Britain, France, Germany, Romania, Australia, and China
and is used by industry to produce thousands of products
including: paper; textiles; food; oils; automotive parts; and,
personal care products;
b) The United States Court of Appeals Ninth Circuit has ruled
in Hemp Industries v. Drug Enforcement Administration that the
Controlled Substances Act of 1970 explicitly excludes
non-psychoactive hemp from the definition of marijuana, and the
federal government has declined to appeal that decision.;
c) The Controlled Substances Act of 1970 (21 U.S.C. Section
812(b)) specifies the findings to which the government must
attest in order to classify a substance as a Schedule I Drug
and those findings include that the substance has a high
potential for abuse, has no accepted medical use, and has a
lack of accepted safety for use, none of which apply to
industrial hemp;
d) According to a study commissioned by the Hemp Industries
Association, sales of industrial hemp products have grown
steadily since 1990 to more than $250 million in 2005,
increasing at a rate of approximately $26 million per year;
and,
e) California manufacturers of hemp products currently import
from around the world tens of thousands of acres worth of hemp
seed, oil, and fiber products that could be produced by
California farmers at a more competitive price and intermediate
processing of hemp seed, oil, and fiber could create jobs in
close proximity to the fields of cultivation.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Provides that "marijuana" is all parts of the plant Cannabis
sativa L., whether growing or not; the seeds thereof; 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. It 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 there from), fiber, oil, or cake, or
the sterilized seed of the plant which is incapable of
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germination.
2)States that except as authorized by law, every person who
possesses any concentrated cannabis shall be punished by
imprisonment in the county jail for a period of not more than one
year, by a fine of not more than $500, by both such fine and
imprisonment, or shall be punished by imprisonment in the state
prison.
FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Assembly Appropriations Committee
analysis:
1)No direct state costs.
2)To the extent this bill results in additional law enforcement
efforts, such as increased investigation and court time to
determine whether plants or materials are industrial hemp or
marijuana, there could be indeterminable state and
non-reimbursable local costs.
3)To the extent this bill results in litigation to challenge federal
preemption issues, there could be indeterminable state trial court
costs.
COMMENTS : According to the author, "While hemp fiber, oil and
non-viable seed are used by many sectors of the economy for a
variety of purposes, the Federal Government restricts the growing of
hemp and the sale of viable hemp seed."
"In 1937, the United States Government mistakenly categorized hemp
with marijuana due to their physical similarities and the fact that
hemp contains THC (although hemp contains only a negligible amount
of the chemical). Hemp has so little THC that it physically cannot
be used as an intoxicant and is 100% safe for the consumer. Because
hemp has no psychoactive properties, the Federal Government has
allowed hemp products of every kind to be manufactured and sold in
the United States. Californians can buy hemp clothing and food
products in stores throughout the state, but state law is silent on
the legality of growing hemp in California for in-state commerce."
Please see the policy committee analysis for full discussion of this
bill.
Analysis Prepared by : Kimberly Horiuchi / PUB. S. / (916)
AB 1147
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319-3744 FN:
0013629