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ORDINANCE NO. AN URGENCY ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PLEASANTON AMENDING MUNICIPAL CODE CHAPTER 6.18 TO PROHIBIT COMMERCIAL CULTIVATION AND COMMERCIAL DELIVERY OF MEDICAL MARIJUANA IN RESPONSE TO NEW STATE LAWS WHEREAS, in 1996, California voters approved Proposition 215, the Compassionate Use Act. The purpose of the Act is to enable persons who are in need of marijuana for specified medical purposes to obtain and use marijuana under limited circumstances; and WHEREAS, in 2003, the Legislature enacted the Medical Marijuana Program. The Program established regulations and procedures regarding the issuance of identification cards to patients qualified to use medical marijuana; and WHEREAS, in 2007, the City Council adopted Municipal Code Chapter 6.18 (Medical Marijuana Dispensaries) to prohibit the operation of medical marijuana dispensaries based on reports from other communities about armed robberies, vagrancy and diversion of medical marijuana to non-qualified persons, while acknowledging that qualified persons may use medical marijuana in private in compliance with State law; and WHEREAS, in 2015, the State legislature adopted the Medical Marijuana Regulation and Safety Act comprised of three bills (AB 266, AB 243 and SB 643) related to medical marijuana licensing, cultivation and delivery businesses which would allow for commercial cultivation and commercial delivery of medical marijuana regulated only by the State unless a local community enacts its own regulations; and WHEREAS, this urgency ordinance to prohibit commercial cultivation and commercial delivery of medical marijuana is needed to protect the public health, safety and welfare, as reports from communities with medical marijuana cultivation provide a record of armed robberies, home invasions, environmental pollution, illegal use of water and electricity, odor from the plants, as well as other negative activities impacting adjacent residents and property owners; and reports from communities with medical marijuana deliveries report robberies and diversion to non-qualified persons; and WHEREAS, qualified patients will continue to be allowed to use, and primary caregivers provide, medical marijuana in private as allowed by State law with an allowance to cultivate up to three (3) plants indoors, but the prohibition against commercial delivery and commercial cultivation will protect the general public, and particularly minors, from access to a substance still prohibited by Federal law. NOW, THEREFORE, THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PLEASANTON DOES HEREBY ORDAIN AS FOLLOWS: Section 1. Municipal Code Chapter 6.18 is amended as follows: