Cannabis

By ordinance of the City Council of the City of Newport Beach, the distribution, cultivation, processing, manufacturing, and other activities involving Marijuana, or products containing or derived from any or all parts of the Cannabis plant, is strictly prohibited within the City of Newport Beach, as codified in Newport Beach Municipal Code Title 10, Chapter 10.70. A State of California license is not an exemption. Violation may result in civil or criminal prosecution, resulting in, but not limited to, fines, penalties, and imprisonment. Some of the relevant provisions of Chapter 10.70 are set forth, in part, below:

10.70.030 Prohibited activities.

Marijuana cultivation, marijuana processing, marijuana delivery, and marijuana dispensaries shall be prohibited activities in the City, except where the City is preempted by Federal or State law from enacting a prohibition on any such activity. No use permit, variance, building permit, or any other entitlement, license, or permit, whether administrative or discretionary, shall be approved or issued for the activities of marijuana cultivation, marijuana processing, marijuana delivery, or the establishment or operation of a marijuana dispensary in the City, and no person shall otherwise establish or conduct such activities in the City, except where the City is preempted by Federal or State law from enacting a prohibition on any such activity for which the use permit, variance, building permit, or any other entitlement, license, or permit is sought. (Ord. 2015-33 § 2 (part), 2015)

10.70.020 Definitions.

For purposes of this chapter, the following definitions shall apply:

A. “Marijuana” means any or all parts of the plant Cannabis sativa Linnaeus, Cannabis indica, or Cannabis ruderalis, whether growing or not; the seeds thereof; the resin or separated 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, including marijuana infused in foodstuff or any other ingestible or consumable product containing marijuana. The term “marijuana” shall also include “medical marijuana” as such phrase is used in the August 2008 Guidelines for the Security and Non-Diversion of Marijuana Grown for Medical Use, as may be amended from time to time, that was issued by the office of the Attorney General for the State of California or subject to the provisions of California Health and Safety Code Section 11362.5 (Compassionate Use Act of 1996) or California Health and Safety Code Sections 11362.7 to 11362.83 (Medical Marijuana Program Act).

B. “Marijuana cultivation” means growing, planting, harvesting, drying, curing, grading, trimming, or processing of marijuana.

C. “Marijuana processing” means any method used to prepare marijuana or its byproducts for commercial retail and/or wholesale, including but not limited to: drying, cleaning, curing, packaging, and extraction of active ingredients to create marijuana related products and concentrates.

D. “Marijuana dispensary” or “marijuana dispensaries” means any business, office, store, facility, location, retail storefront or wholesale component of any establishment, cooperative or collective that delivers (as defined in Business and Professions Code Section 19300.5(m) or any successor statute thereto) whether mobile or otherwise, dispenses, distributes, exchanges, transmits, transports, sells or provides marijuana to any person for any reason, including members of any medical marijuana cooperative or collective consistent with the August 2008 Guidelines for the Security and Non-Diversion of Marijuana Grown for Medical Use, as may be amended from time to time, that was issued by the office of the Attorney General for the State of California, or for the purposes set forth in California Health and Safety Code Section 11362.5 (Compassionate Use Act of 1996) or California Health and Safety Code Sections 11362.7 to 11362.83 (Medical Marijuana Program Act). (Ord. 2015-33 § 2 (part), 2015)

For further information, please review the City of Newport Beach Municipal Code, available online through the City’s website.