Author: Caity Maple

Sacramento has found itself in the spotlight in recent years after multiple incidents of citizen deaths by law enforcement. 

While the increased prevalence of cell phone camera footage has sparked a national conversation about police brutality and the use of force, names like Stephon Clark and Joseph Mann remind us that these events don’t always happen far from home. Since 2016, there have been 18 officer-involved shootings in Sacramento, all of which were deemed justified.

These incidents sparked some changes to the Sacramento Police Department, including requiring body cameras to be worn and footage of officer-involved shootings to be released within 30 days, as well as appointing an Inspector General to review shootings. 

This, along with the decision to create an Office of Community Response that will help field 911 calls and ensure law enforcement is only utilized when necessary, is helping to transform how Sacramento addresses public safety. Such changes have shown success in reducing adverse outcomes for communities of color and those struggling with their mental health. I recommend reading this recent in depth reporting on the topic.

The city also chose to move the Office of Public Safety Accountability directly under the City Council and establish the Sacramento Community Police Review Commission to provide recommendations on improving everything from interactions with the public to increasing diversity within its ranks. 

However, many advocates believe more reforms are necessary to begin rebuilding trust.

This makes sense considering members of the commission have spent significant time and energy reviewing hundreds of pages of material, listening to experts, and crafting specific and well-researched recommendations — only to have many still left unimplemented.

To their credit, the Sacramento Police Department has decided to change some policies, including banning the use of choke holds, changing procedures related to shooting at moving vehicles, and requiring police officers to render medical care as soon as possible.

Still, many recommendations are still waiting to be put into action. Some of these include requiring data collection and reporting on all “Use of Force” incidents, using force only as a last resort when all other reasonable alternatives have been exhausted, and requiring drug and alcohol testing of officers after an incident.

Mario Guerrero, chair of the Sacramento Police Review Commission, expressed at a recent meeting that he will be pushing hard for the City Council to take a formal vote on this issue. “We expect that our recommendations be taken seriously and be given a vote,” said Guerrero.

While most of the commission’s work has centered around changing the department’s Use of Force policies, another area of focus includes incentivizing a more diverse police force. Notably, they recommend creating long-term strategies to encourage hiring of more Black and Indeginous residents, women, and members of the LGBTQ community. New research suggests that increasing diversity in law enforcement can lead to better outcomes for communities of color and may help rebuild trust in neighborhoods that have been historically overpoliced.

This is a crucial moment for Sacramento to make meaningful change.

We have the opportunity to lead with compassion and make sure we prioritize public safety for everyone. If this city is serious about real reform and respecting the labor done by its own Police Review Commission, it’s recommendations should be taken into consideration and adopted as soon as possible. Otherwise, what was the point?

We can’t wait for another death to do the right thing.

You can read an overview of the Commission’s recommendations here.

Note: The Sacramento City Council will be considering these recommendations on April 13th at 2 PM.

I don’t think there are many who would argue that Sacramento has not been hit hard by a statewide housing crisis. Indeed, the city had the third-highest overall rental increase in the nation in 2017 – and that has not gone unnoticed by its citizens. Unaffordable rents, compounded with stagnant and eroding wages and overwhelming student loan debt, among other factors, have left people of all ages (particularly young people) screwed…for lack of a better term.

They’re pissed and ready to do something about it, too.

At the state level, one such effort is a ballot measure that will be voted on in November. If passed, the initiative would overturn the Costa Hawkins Rental Housing Act, passed in 1995. The law essentially makes it difficult for cities and counties to enact rent control policies in the state. While for some the jury is still out on whether or not rent control makes a meaningful impact for renters in the long-term, it is a clear sign that renters are ready for relief now.

There is also an effort at the local level in Sacramento called the Sacramento Renter Protection and Community Stabilization Charter Amendment. Pushed by a coalition of tenant rights organizations called Housing 4 Sacramento, as well as Organize Sacramento, this measure would, among other things, provide financial support for renters who are displaced, limit what landlords can evict tenants for, and cap rent hike percentages per year. Mayor Steinberg has openly opposed the rent control initiative, but has proposed his own plan which includes raising the sales tax a full cent, creating a rent stabilization fund for displaced renters, and encouraging more development.

So, this begs the question of who’s protecting the interests of renters in Sacramento.

There’s the Sacramento Housing Alliance, which according to their website, “advocates for safe, stable, accessible, and affordable homes in the Sacramento region”. The organization’s priorities include fighting for affordable housing for veterans and homeless individuals, as well as advocating for the local rent control effort.

There’s also the Sacramento Housing and Redevelopment Agency, which “was created to ensure the ongoing development of affordable housing and to continuously fuel community redevelopment projects in the city and county of Sacramento”. The organization helps develop and fund affordable housing opportunities and maintains rental assistance programs, among other things.

And then there’s CADA, which develops and maintains affordable housing units for renters in Sacramento. According to their website, they are the largest affordable housing developer in the central city and focus on sustainable, transit-oriented, community-minded dwellings. In many ways, CADA is its own animal in that it “is tasked with meeting challenging government mandates in a business model closely paralleling a private real estate management and development company.” This model includes having at-will rather than civil service employees, maintaining competitive market rate housing to help fund investment into affordable housing, and cultivating public-private partnerships.

Anecdotally, I have heard from many of my peers just how difficult it is to make it onto the CADA waitlist, which apparently has been impacted for years. This is no surprise as the demand for such units has increased dramatically.

Over the years organizations like CADA have faced many challenges, including the dissolution of California’s redevelopment agency, which has led to decreased funding to build and manage projects. Despite the growing demand for affordable housing, they are often left to make difficult financial decisions in order to continue moving forward.

One such decision occurred recently at a July 19th CADA board meeting, where the board voted to sell one of their properties to the development firm Cresleigh Homes. The project on the corner of N & 14th streets will not only displace current tenants within the 30 units to be torn down, it would allow the developer to sell 32 1-bedroom units for $748 per sq. ft. ($608k/avg per unit), 53 2-bedroom units for $443 per sq. ft. ($964k/avg per unit), and two 3-bedroom units for $347 per sq. ft. ($1.875mil per unit).

On its face, such a decision appears to directly contradict the public need by demolishing currently available affordable rental housing in lieu of pricey market-rate homes for sale; however, accordinging to the staff analysis, this will “satisfy CADA’s the long-held strategic goal of providing more home-ownership opportunities in the Capitol Area”. We can only hope the revenues generated from such a deal will eventually provide more affordable rental units for not only those who will be displaced, but those in need who have yet been able to access.

More broadly, it is imperative that state and local governments work together to develop long-term solutions and re-invest in bolstering the housing supply. It is a complex issue that involves the intersection of everything from local zoning ordinances to environmental impact assessments, and of course, finding the money needed to make it happen. I defer to those much smarter than I on the right solutions – but it is clear that the timing is now for the well-being of Sacramento and California as a whole.

We’re in a housing crisis, after all.

Over the last several years, the conversation over who holds power in the upper echelons of the private sector and government have increasingly focused on the lack of women and people of color. Indeed, the University of California, Davis produced over a decade’s worth of data which shows that about 97% of board-level and CEO positions in the top 400 companies in California are held by men.

Hell, in what is often-considered the most progressive state in the Union, we’ve still never had a female Governor.

I remember becoming particularly interested in this topic when looking at our own city council and realizing that there was just one woman sitting at the dais. After deciding to take a deep dive, in March of 2016 I wrote a piece that looked at the makeup of city boards and commissions, elected offices, and leadership positions within the city.

Of course, it was already clear that we were lacking in elected city positions in terms of gender diversity, but I was surprised to find out – according to the city’s own department leadership diagram – that only about 13 percent of upper management positions were held by women. Also, while the aggregate of boards and commissions were about 40 percent women, the commissions with decision-making power, such as the Planning and Design Commission, were seriously lacking (2 members out of 13).

Due to a lack of data and expertise, my analysis missed a larger question entirely — the intersectionality of ethnicity. The city has made modest strides over time with diversity in elected office; Milton McGhee (elected 1967) was the first African American city council member, Manuel Ferrales (elected 1969) was the first Latino council member, and Robert Matsui (elected 1971) was the first Japanese American council member.

But of course we wonder, where are the women of color? The answer is: not generally in positions of power. Recently, the city decided that needed to change, and while historically it hasn’t meaningfully gathered data on diversity or analyzed who holds the power, it does now.

In April of 2016, Councilmember Angelique Ashby partnered with the research firm McKinsey to determine just what the “diversity deficit” is in Sacramento, and how we might move forward with solutions. That began with a Gender Parity Report Card issued out of her office, which not only noted the lack of women in management positions as well as a significant differences in pay (spoiler: women make less than men), but suggested actionable solutions such as hiring a Diversity Manager.

Ultimately, the city decided to move forward with that recommendation and is in the process of hiring for that position.

That study spurred the call for a city-wide Gender and Ethnic Diversity Audit, which was released in July of 2016. As the Sacramento Bee pointed out, “the city’s employees – and its Police and Fire departments – are significantly less diverse than the public they serve. In all but two of 17 city departments examined, more than 50 percent of managers are white.”

In a nutshell, we found out there is a lot of work to be done to ensure our city leadership mirrors its population.

Now, fast forward a year and five months, and the city released yet another audit of its ethnic and gender diversity. Overall, the results show that not much progress has been made in the past year and there is still a lot of work to be done, but also that there is significant movement underway.

In a February City Council hearing on the audit, the community came together to voice their opinions.

Via Consulting Group’s Jennifer Manuel, a local business-owner focused on closing the gender pay gap and the Chair of the Women and Girls Advancement Coalition noted in her testimony, “While the audit raises short-term challenges that require immediate attention, our coalition is concerned that the city does not yet have a comprehensive plan to address gender and racial disparities over the long-term. The audit shows us that we must take action to move beyond reporting and begin to design solutions – including the need to start with the proper classification of all City employees”

After going on to discuss the actionable ways the city can make progress now while we wait for the hiring of a Diversity Manager, including bringing together a broader coalition of stakeholders into the process, she went on to say, “we see this as a major step forward to achieve pay equity for women from all backgrounds, people of color, and LGBTQ employees.”

I couldn’t agree more.

Activist and board member for the Fem Dems of Sacramento, Mary McCune, wrote to the city, “The Fem Dems look forward to how City Council uses the most recent audit to determine its next steps towards creating a city workforce that welcomes and uplifts all members of the community and offers its support and expertise whenever possible.”

And the last speaker, Nicolina Hernandez, who is not only a newly appointed Latina woman to the Planning and Design Commission, but a member of the Mayor’s working group on Sacramento’s future economic growth, left it on the perfect note. “I agree that this is a very bold move that the city is undertaking, and I see that this audit has shed light on areas where the city can embrace policies and practices to increase diversity,” Hernandez stated. “I commend everyone who has participated in these discussions.”

Indeed, while things may not have moved as quickly as some hoped, I have to say I couldn’t be more proud to live in a city that prioritizes equity for all and is willing to take a good, hard look at itself to make that happen.

This is progress.

So, how can you get involved?

• If you or someone you know would be a great fit for the Diversity Manager position, apply here.
• Find out who your city council member is here, and send your feedback.
• Connect with local organizations such as the Fem Dems of Sacramento, InspireMidtown, and California Women Lead.
• Encourage your friends and loved ones to apply for that leadership position, run for office, and take the lead!

From where your body can be buried to how we fend off those pesky mosquitoes, the County of Sacramento has over 100 special districts serving your needs that you never knew you didn’t care about. But that’s what we’re here for.

You’re welcome.

So, what even is a special district? According to the California Special Districts Association (yes, there truly is an association for everything), “Special districts are a form of local government created by a local community to meet a specific need…nearly 85% of California’s special districts perform a single function such as sewage, water, fire protection, pest abatement or cemetery management.” Some exist to provide services consolidated over multiple jurisdictions. Most provide services in unincorporated areas that are typically provided by cities.

Today I’ll be taking you on a trip through all of the types of special districts provided to us.

Air Quality

Do you ever wonder who makes sure the air we breathe is not toxic, filled with pollutants, or just downright smelly? Yeah, me neither.

But as it turns out, Sacramento County has it’s very own Metropolitan Air Quality Management District that does just that. This 14-member board, first created in 1959 by the County Board of Supervisors, develops plans and regulations, monitors air quality, enforces on the bad actors, provides incentives to clean up pollution, and reviews land and transportation projects for their impact on air quality. That board consists of all five Sacramento County Supervisors, four members of the Sacramento City Council, one member each from the cities of Citrus Heights, Elk Grove, Folsom and Rancho Cordova, and one member representing the cities of Galt and Isleton. They meet the 4th Thursday of every month at 9:30 a.m. in the Board of Supervisors Chambers if you ever want to pop by for a visit.

Now, that’s a breath of fresh air.

Cemeteries

People die. It’s a fact of life, ironically. While whether we live or die is not up to us, how we choose to lay our dead to rest, is.

Fun macabre fact of the day: Sacramento County has four different cemetery districts to serve your burial needs. These appointed boards manage the day-to-day operations of cemeteries, and some are quite old. For instance, the Fair Oaks Cemetery was first created in 1903. Though burial privileges are limited to current or former district residents/taxpayers or former residents/taxpayers that purchased lots or plots while they were taxpayers/residents, family members of those eligible for burial and veterans are still allowed. Also, if you’re strapped for cash, the County can foot the bill of burial.

The Elk Grove-Cosumnes Cemetery District, founded in 1949, meets every 2nd Thursday of the month at 7:00 p.m. in the District Office. The Fair Oaks Cemetery District, founded in 1926 meets every 2nd Wednesday of the month at 9:15am in the District Office. The Galt-Arno Cemetery District, founded in 1949, meets every 4th Wednesday of the month at 3:00 p.m. in the District Office; and the Sylvan Cemetery District, founded in 1926, meets every 2nd Tuesday of the month at 7:00 p.m. in the Cemetery Office. Drop by and give them a visit next time you’re around the cemetery.

Side note: this may seem unintuitive, but the Sacramento Historic City Cemetery is in fact NOT a special district, but a city park. While folks are still able to bury their loved ones there, it’s only in existing familial plots.

Water

When it rains, it pours, but is your County equipped to deal with that excess water? You better believe Sacramento is.

Our very own Drainage Districts, housed under the Stormwater Utility, provide drainage and flood control services. While this may not seem like a huge priority in a place where rain can be scarce, all you need to do is take one look at how many feet of water we would be under if our floodplains systems, like Natomas, failed. Pretty serious stuff. These districts maintain and operate water channels, drainage pipes, investigate systems and design problems, develop programs to reduce pollutants in drainage, and manage regional flood control projects, among other important tasks. This is often done in tandem with the Sacramento Area Flood Control Agency (SAFCA).

In addition to dealing with excess water, we’re also provided water for consumption and other uses. Through twenty-five Water Purveyors, which include dependent water districts, autonomous water districts, as well as cities and private companies, water is distributed to residents in the county. This includes the Sacramento County Water Agency, the City of Sacramento, and three mutual companies that are not regulated by any governmental body which sell shares of the water system, or “securities”. These mutual companies are Tokay Park Water Company​, Orangevale Water Company, and Natomas Central Mutual Water Company.

Fires

This seems particularly relevant given recent fires that have ravaged other parts of California. We are fortunate to be protected from flames by the fire departments of the cities of Sacramento and Folsom, as well as eleven Fire Protection Districts. While fire protection has been a necessity since man first harnessed its power to burn stuff, coordination of services has taken a convoluted path to get to where it is today.

Back in the day, just a short seventy or so years ago, fires were fought primarily on a volunteer basis. While some fire districts started forming, such as Galt in 1921 and North Highlands in 1951, there still wasn’t a great need for sophisticated coordination across the county. As the need became more pronounced, several studies conducted in 1968, 1972, 1977, and 1981, helped determine how to best manage the myriad districts with outdated and weird boundaries. Alas, through a very long series of consolidations, we have the advanced fire protection system we know today. What a day to be alive.

Utilities

This is a no-brainer. If you live in Sacramento, you’re likely writing checks for gas and/or electricity to one of these each month. That’s right, good old Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) and Sacramento Municipal Utility District (SMUD).

According to the Sacramento Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFCo), the Sacramento PG&E district was established in 1917, is governed by a board of directors, and is regulated by the Public Utilities Commission, Energy Commission, and Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. Now, that’s a lot of bosses.

SMUD was founded just a few years later in 1923, and is governed by a 7-member board of directors that are elected during the November General Election. Come say “hi” at their next board meeting held on the 1st Thursday of every month at 7:00 p.m. and the 3rd Thursday of every month at 9:00 a.m. in the SMUD Headquarters Building.

Joint Powers And More

As you know, things are usually done better when people work together. While governments don’t always do this well, they can make a big impact when they do.

Sacramento has several Joint Powers Agencies (JPA), which are entities that formed so that two or more entities can work together to do similar things, and play nice in the figurative government sandbox. These include waste management and recycling, employment and training, housing and redevelopment, public libraries, and transit, among others.

Here’s a list of JPA’s and other authorities for you:

• • Cable TV Commission
  • Maintenance Area #9
  • Sacramento Area Flood Control Agency
  • Sacramento County Stormwater Utility
  • Sacramento County Waste Management and Recycling
  • Sacramento Employment and Training Agency
  • Sacramento Housing and Redevelopment Agency
  • Sacramento Metropolitan Air Quality Management District
  • Sacramento Public Library Authority
  • Sacramento Regional Solid Waste Authority
  • Sacramento Regional Transit District
  • Sacramento Transportation Authority
  • Maintenance Districts – Flood Agencies

Mosquitoes and Rodents

Oh yes, the bane of my existence. Aside from being possibly the most annoying creature on the planet, mosquitoes can also put our lives at risk. In fact, mosquitoes are considered one of the more dangerous creatures on the planet because of their ability to spread deadly diseases, including Zika Virus, Malaria, West Nile Virus, and Yellow Fever. No, thank you.

Luckily for us, the Sacramento-Yolo Mosquito and Vector Control District, founded in 1946, is here to ensure we’re not victims of mosquito-borne illnesses. This district is governed by a 13-member board of trustees which are appointed by the legislative bodies in Woodland, Winters, Sacramento, Isleton, Davis, Galt, Folsom, Citrus Heights, West Sacramento, Elk Grove, Rancho Cordova and Sacramento and Yolo Counties.

Parks and Recreation

Who doesn’t love to recreate? I sure do. I  enjoy spending my summers paddle boarding on Lake Natoma, riding on the American River Parkway, and hiking around on my favorite local trails.

If you’re like me and never wondered who the heck manages all of the outdoor spaces we love, then you’d probably be surprised to find out that it is done by five different types of governmental entities: dependent park districts, independent park districts, county service areas, cities, and the County Regional Park System. Some are quite small, such as the Arden Manor Recreation and Park District which only spans one square mile, while others like the City of Sacramento park and community services department encompasses ninety-four square miles. Dang, that’s a lot of recreation.

Here’s another list for you:

• • Arcade Creek Recreation and Park District
  • Arden Manor Recreation and Park District
  • Arden Park Recreation and Park District
  • Carmichael Recreation and Park District
  • Cordova Recreation and Park District
  • County Service Area 4b
  • County Service Area 4c
  • County Service Area 4d
  • Del Norte Oaks Park Maintenance District
  • Fair Oaks Recreation and Park District
  • Fulton-El Camino Recreation and Park District
  • Mission Oaks Recreation and Park District
  • North Highlands Recreation and Park District
  • Orangevale Recreation and Park District
  • Rio Linda-Elverta Recreation and Park District (County Service Area #3)
  • Southgate Recreation and Park District
  • Sunrise Recreation and Park District

Land Reclamation

Yeah, I thought the same thing when I read “Reclamation District”…what the heck is that? As it turns out, these districts are the oldest in Sacramento County. Most were formed prior to 1900, and some are over one hundred years old. That’s a trip.

These districts were created to maintain and reclaim land threatened by flooding, and use it for the purposes of agriculture, residential, commercial, or industrial use. Beginning around 1864, large parts of the Delta region were reclaimed by land investors and over the course of about 30 years, turned the region into one of the most rich agricultural areas in California. While it’s difficult to know just how many reclamation districts exist because historically little reporting has been required, there are eighty-four on record, with about twenty-one of them thought to be still active.

You can view a map of those districts here.

Resource Conservation

The Dust Bowl isn’t just a name for a Brewery in Turlock (they’ve got a great IPA, though), but also a dark time in America’s history. With little understanding of the value of preserving our soils, the introduction of large-scale agriculture, with almost no regulation, depleted the land of moisture and nutrients. By the 1930’s, much of the agricultural land across the midwest had become a barren wasteland.

Thus, the federal government sprung into action to preserve this land and avoid another dust bowl disaster, and in 1933 the Federal Soil Conservation Service (FSCS) was founded. Unable to address the needs of individual land owners, the FSCS pushed for the creation of local districts to help individuals get on board with taking care of the soil. This lead to the creation of Sacramento’s four Resource Conservation Districts, each with a five-member elected board of directors that work directly with the FSCS.

The Florin Resource Conservation District was founded in 1953 and meets the 3rd Wednesday of every month at 6:30 pm. at 8820 Elk Grove Boulevard. The Granite Resource Conservation District was founded in 1950 and is currently inactive. The Lower Cosumnes Resource Conservation District was founded in 1952 and meets bimonthly in the odd number months on the 2nd Thursday, at 7:30 p.m. in the USDA Service Center located at 9701 Dino Drive, Suite 170, Elk Grove. The Sloughhouse Resource Conservation District was founded in 1956 and meets bimonthly in the even number months on the 2nd Tuesday at 11:30 a.m. in Vince’s Restaurant in Elk Grove. Drop by and say hello if you’re in the neighborhood.

Sanitation

I’ve often pondered which direction the water actually should swirl in the toilet, but I have to admit that I’ve never given any thought to where that water (and waste) goes, or who is responsible for its disposal. Good thing someone has already thought of that for me. The Sacramento Regional County Sanitation District (SRCSD) provides wastewater collection, treatment, and disposal services to the major urban areas of Sacramento. Some of the more rural areas, such as Galt, Isleton, and Rancho Murieta, manage their own sewage services.

Street Lights

We all know the typical horror movie scene where a character is randomly walking through a dark alleyway at night, because of course they are. Inevitably that person gets kidnapped, attacked, or chased by something creepy. It’s funny because most of us would not walk down a pitch-black alley at night, and recognize the value of well-lit streets!

We’re fortunate to have street lighting in the urbanized areas of Sacramento, provided independently by cities. In addition to those, County Service Area No. 1 was founded in 1986, which includes all the unincorporated areas of the County of Sacramento and City of Rancho Cordova. This district does just about everything you would guess; it purchases, installs, and maintains all street and highway lights. In total, that’s 23,140 street lights and 3,770 highway lights. It is governed by the Board of Supervisors.

Transportation

We’ve all got places to go, people to see; and in all the hustle and bustle we may sometimes take for granted the transit systems Sacramento has in place and the value that public transportation brings to our lives. There are currently four special transportation districts which are responsible for public busses, light rail, paratransit, and other ways of getting around town.

The Sacramento Regional Transit District was founded in 1973 and currently operates over 60 bus routes covering 418 square miles, as well as an extensive light rail system. It is governed by an 11-member board of directors, all consisting of county supervisors and city council members. The Sacramento Transportation Authority was founded in 1988 by the initiative Measure A, with much of its funding earmarked for the construction of highways, streets, and roads, increased light rail service, expanded services for the handicapped and elderly, and air quality programs. It is governed by a 15-member board of directors; 5 elected officials appointed by the County Supervisors, 5 elected officials appointed by the Sacramento City Council; 1 elected official appointed by the each of the following city councils: Citrus Heights, Elk Grove, Folsom, Galt and Rancho Cordova.

Additional transportation districts include:

• • County Service Area No. 6
  • County Service Area No. 10

And so here we are…

Throughout this journey we’ve learned about how Sacramento manages its cemeteries, water, and lights, and even how fires are fought. I always knew government was complex and expansive, but by diving deep into just one county, it’s clear the tentacles reach far beyond what I had expected.

To find out more, visit the Sacramento Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFCo) website! But, what’s a LAFCo, you ask? Well… that another complicated story for another day. Stay tuned.

**Author’s Note: the majority of the data provided in this article is from the Sacramento LAFCo website on special districts. Some information may outdated or missing, please contact them directly for the most up-to-date information.

As a lobbyist for a variety of industries, I have to admit that working within the cannabis space is thrilling. It is not often that one gets an opportunity to actively influence an entirely new sector, particularly when so much is happening so quickly.

And it can be kind of a whirlwind to understand if you’re not immersed in it.

At this point, most folks are aware that the people of California legalized recreational cannabis with the passage of Proposition 64 last November. What they may not be aware of, however, are the deliberative steps the City of Sacramento has been taking to ensure that it’s done right — and they’re doing a lot.

Let’s start with how we got here.

The medical sale of cannabis to qualified patients has been legal for quite some time, 21 years in fact. The industry was left largely unregulated during those years, and it wasn’t until 2015 with the passage of a package of bills entitled the Medical Cannabis Regulation and Safety Act (MCRSA) that a more formalized regulatory structure was put in place. These laws set forth the requirements for everything from packaging and labeling, to taxation, to what licenses are available including dispensaries, distributors, and cultivators. Then Proposition 64 passed in 2016, and suddenly the state, cities, and counties were handed a very tight timeline to figure out how to regulate recreational weed too.

Now, it’s 2018 or bust.

According to the law, California has until January 1, 2018 to develop a process for licensing both medical and recreational cannabis businesses. In the last few months, the Governor and Legislature passed two bills that helped streamline the process. The first combined medical and recreational laws into one in order to avoid duplicative work and inefficiencies (there’s really no need for two separate processes). The second clarified the issues that remained unaddressed in the first, such as whether or not businesses can sell both medical and recreational cannabis in the same location (they can).

Now that these laws are in place, the agencies in charge of creating the detailed regulations – such as how much cannabis you can sell to one person, or how much security you’re required to have – are fiercely writing away to ensure those are in place before January of next year. So, we’re all good, right? Seems like the work is underway and we can all go buy special brownies to celebrate in January…well, not exactly.

Cities and Counties are calling the shots.

One of the more prominent requirements of the law is that the ultimate power over whether or not – and how – cannabis is regulated rests in the hands of local governments. This means 58 counties and hundreds of cities can give the thumbs up or down, and even determine what’s allowable. For instance, the County of Marin is considering only allowing cannabis delivery businesses, while the County of Sacramento has banned commercial sales altogether in the unincorporated parts of the county.

This makes things very, very complex if you’re a business that’s hoping to operate statewide. The law requires that you submit proof of local authorization (i.e. that you’re allowed to be there) in order to obtain a state license. That is a huge road block considering many local governments haven’t even begun the process of deciding whether or not they will allow cannabis sales, and many more are waiting to see what others do first.

Luckily for us, the City of Sacramento is not waiting, they’re leading.

Sacramento’s Cannabis Czar (more formally known as the Chief of Cannabis Policy and Enforcement), Joe Devlin, has no enviable job. While simultaneously waiting for the state to determine their rules, the city has also been charting its own path into the unknown, and there’s no guide book. Sacramento currently has 30 storefront dispensaries (and that number is unlikely to change any time soon), and is accepting applications for both cultivation and manufacturing.

After months of community stakeholder meetings and hearings, they are set to develop plans for delivery and distribution in the coming months, and may even hold discussions for on-site consumption and the potential of “cannabis cafes” as soon as early 2018. These are “high times” (pun intended) for the industry, city officials, consumers, and city coffers alike. Dispensaries alone brought in millions of additional revenues last year.

So, I can buy recreational weed in January, right?

Nope, sorry. And there is no clear timeline for when that might happen. While the city is a leader in regulating medical cannabis, they are also taking precautions. It appears that city officials would prefer to finish laying out what the rules will look like for medical first before tackling the recreational market. So, while it is legal to consume cannabis without a doctor’s recommendation, the City of Sacramento will not be the place to buy legal recreational weed…at least any time soon.

Is it too late to get involved in the process?

Quite the opposite. There are still many opportunities to have your voice heard on the sale and use of cannabis in Sacramento. The city is currently holding community discussions in each council district, stakeholder meetings at city hall, and will vet each proposal through the law and legislation committee, budget and audit committee, and planning commission before being voted upon by the city council. The Planning Commission will be discussing delivery dispensaries, distribution, and background checks at their October 26th meeting, and those are expected to be voted on by the city council on November 21st.

You can visit the City of Sacramento cannabis page for the most up-to-date information.

Upcoming Meetings:

September 27 | 5:30 – 7 pm | District 3 Neighborhood Workshop

October 5 | 5:30 – 7 pm | District 8 Neighborhood Workshop

October 23 | 2 – 4 pm | Stakeholder Meeting

October 24 | 3 pm | Law and Legislation Committee Meeting

November 7 | 2 pm | Budget and Audit Committee Meeting

November 16 | 2 – 4 pm | Stakeholder Meeting

November 21 | 5 pm | City Council Meeting