
Letter to Berkeley City Council
January 27, 2020
Berkeley City Council
2180 Milvia Street
Berkeley, CA 94704
Dear Mayor Arreguin and Councilmembers:
We are Legal Cannabis for Consumer Safety (LCCS), a coalition representing California’s largest licensed cannabis growers, manufacturers, associations, retailers, testing labs, advocates, and marketplaces. LCCS is the regulated cannabis industry’s unified voice on consumer safety issues, and is committed to understanding the causes of lung illnesses associated with vaping and implementing fact-based responses. We write to respectfully urge the Council to reject the proposed ban on flavored vaping and smoking products produced and sold by licensed cannabis retailers.
Vaping illnesses are caused by illegal vapes. The Centers for Disease and Control and Prevention (CDC) has confirmed that EVALI illness cases are linked to products obtained from unlicensed, illicit market sources. These tainted products include dangerous additives used as cutting agents, diluents, or thickeners. CannaSafe, a licensed testing facility in California, tested more than 100 unlicensed market cannabis goods and found high levels of pesticides in all samples, and vitamin E acetate in the vast majority. None of the 100 licensed products tested by CannaSafe contained these dangerous substances.
Not a single EVALI case in California is tied to licensed cannabis vapes. Licensed cannabis vapes sold through licensed retailers are among the most highly-regulated consumer products in California. All packaging and marketing, for example, is regulated by the Bureau of Cannabis Control and the California Department of Health to ensure product names, logos, and advertising do not appeal to minors. Licensed retailers and delivery services have rigorous protocols in place to prevent underage consumption – including, but not limited to, geofencing and age-gating that only allow entry to adults 21+. This oversight is in sharp contrast to tobacco products and the illicit cannabis market.
Banning characterizing flavors in cannabis ignores science. Terpenes in cannabis provide aroma and offer therapeutic benefits. Terpenes naturally occur in the cannabis plant, and are often added into products during formulation. Given their naturally occurring presence in the plant and importance to the formulation and viscosity of oil concentrates, terpenes should not be misconstrued as added or characterizing flavors.
Bans on legal cannabis vapes drive consumers to use illegal vapes. Banning legal, tested, compliant products is not the answer. The data speaks for itself — there are higher rates of vaping illnesses in municipalities and states where consumers do not have access to safe, legal, tested cannabis vape products. In Utah, where these products are not legal, EVALI illness rates were 38 cases per million people, versus 2.1 cases per million people in Colorado (where regulated vapes are accessible).
The State is working on a comprehensive policy to protect consumer safety, as a result of the Governor’s Executive Order issued on September 16, 2019. California State lawmakers and public health officials are developing state-wide vaping policy to safeguard public health while supporting a responsible, regulated cannabis industry.
We urge you to reject this proposal which will hurt – and not help – public health.
Sincerely,
Legal Cannabis for Consumer Safety
www.calccs.org | info@calccs.org
Anthony Law Group
Dosist
Legion of Bloom
sclabs
Artemis Growth Partners
Eaze
Level
Se7enLeaf
Austin Legal Group
Eden
LoudPack
Select
AVD
Farmacy Santa Barbara
Lowell Herb Co.
Sherbinskis
Bloom Farms
Field
Mammoth Distribution
Skunk Feather Cannabis
BPG
Flow Kana
Mario Antonio
Solo Sciences Inc
Brite Labs
Flower Co
Meadow
Sonoma Lab Works
CA4EA
Fumé
Moxie
Sparc
Caliva
Genius
MPP
SVCA
Cannabis Connect
Glass House Farms
NCIA
Terra Tech
CannaCraft
Gold Coast Industries
New Leaf Family Farms
The Werc Shop
Cannalysis
Harborside
Norcal Cannabis
Therapy Tonics & Provisions
CannaSafe
Harvest
Old Pal
Utopia
CCIA
Headstash
Paradise Gardens
Venice Cookie Co.
CCMA
Honey Vape
PAX
Xtractor Depot
Central Coast Agriculture
Humboldt's Finest
Pineapple Express
Yvette McDowell
Certus Analytics
Island
Pluto
Chillum
Jetty Extracts
Potters Cannabis Co.
Coastal Growers Association
Kingpen
Puffy Delivery
Connected Cannabis Co.
Kiva
Pure
Cresco Labs
La Vida Verde
Raw Garden
Cru
Ocean Cannabis Co.
Rioverde
Henry G. Wykowski & Associates
Law Office of Kimberly R. Simms
UCBA
A Therapeutic Alternative
CDA