CalCannabis: What We Do

CalCannabis Cultivation Licensing, a division of the California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA), ensures public safety and environmental protection by licensing and regulating commercial cannabis cultivators in California. CalCannabis also manages the state's track-and-trace system, which tracks all commercial cannabis and cannabis products—from cultivation to sale. CalCannabis is organized into three branches: Licensing, Compliance and Enforcement, and Administration.

• For general CalCannabis Cultivation Licensing questions, send an email to: CalCannabis@cdfa.ca.gov
• For media requests, contact CDFA’s Office of Public Affairs; send an email to OfficeofPublicAffairs@cdfa.ca.gov or call (916) 654-0462
• For Public Records Act requests, send an email to CDFA’s Legal Office: cdfa.LegalOffice@cdfa.ca.gov
• For tips on illegal cannabis cultivation operations or related complaints, call the CalCannabis toll-free hotline: 1-833-WEED-TIP

Apply Now: Applications for Temporary and Annual Cannabis Cultivation Licenses

The California Department of Food and Agriculture’s CalCannabis program is now accepting applications for temporary and annual commercial cannabis licenses for cultivators, nurseries, and processors.

Prior to applying for a license, new users must register for an account on the online licensing system.

Important Note about Annual Cannabis Cultivation Licenses: The Department will begin review of the annual license application once you submit the Live Scan fingerprints for each person who meets the definition of “owner,” as described in the emergency regulations. The Department is finalizing the information needed for this process and will post the required “Request for Live Scan” form on our website soon. In the meantime, you may fill out your annual license application and submit it without the Live Scan form, and the Department will notify you once it is available.

• Annual Cultivation License Application with Instructions
• Annual Cultivation License Pest Management Fillable Form
• Annual Cultivation License Waste Management Fillable Form
• A Reference Guide for the Application Attachments
• A Reference Guide for the Cultivation Plan

Temporary licenses are valid for 120 days, with the possibility of extensions, if warranted. They will only be issued to applicants with a valid license, permit, or other authorization from their local jurisdiction.

• Temporary Cultivation License Application with Instructions

* Click here for the temporary and annual commercial cannabis cultivation license applications

* Step-by-Step Videos: How to Fill Out an Application for a Temporary and an Annual State Cannabis Cultivation License

---

California Cannabis Track-and-Trace System

California Cannabis Track-and-Trace (CCTT) System FAQ and the Public Workshops

The workshops that provided an overview of the CCTT system that will be used statewide to record the inventory and movement of cannabis and cannabis products through the commercial cannabis supply chain are now over; we will soon post a recording of a workshop on this website once it's ready. The CCTT system will be used by all state cannabis licensees, including those with licenses for cannabis cultivation, manufacturing, retail, distribution, testing labs, and microbusinesses. Please see our Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) document for additional information.

PowerPoint Presentations Reviewed at the Public Workshops

• Introduction to the California Cannabis Track-and-Trace System and METRC
• Product Transfer/Transport Documentation for Temporary Licensees

A Sample Sales Invoice/Shipping Manifest

Here is a sample sales invoice/shipping manifest that temporary licensees may use to document transfers of cannabis and cannabis products.

---

The Medicinal and Adult-Use Cannabis Regulation and Safety Act (MAUCRSA)

Earlier this spring, the Department of Food and Agriculture's CalCannabis Cultivation Licensing program, the Department of Consumer Affairs’ Bureau of Cannabis Control, and the Department of Public Health released draft regulations for the Medical Cannabis Regulation and Safety Act of 2015. These licensing authorities held several public hearings to accept oral and written comments regarding the draft regulations. The licensing authorities had planned to move forward with a separate draft regulatory package for implementation of Proposition 64: The Adult Use of Cannabis Act of 2016. However, in late June, the Legislature passed and the Governor signed into law the Medicinal and Adult-Use Cannabis Regulation and Safety Act (MAUCRSA), which creates one regulatory system for both medicinal and adult-use (recreational) cannabis. As a result, the licensing authorities withdrew the proposed medical cannabis regulations on October 6, 2017, as announced in this news release.

The three cannabis licensing authorities have now drafted emergency regulations based on the new law for the commercial medicinal and adult-use (recreational) cannabis industries. During this process, the licensing authorities considered the valuable public comments received regarding the draft medicinal cannabis regulations.

The licensing authorities are using the emergency rulemaking process to establish the new regulations, which will be followed by the formal rulemaking process. The emergency regulations were released on November 16, 2017, and are available to read here.

The withdrawn draft medicinal cannabis cultivation regulations are available to read here.

To subscribe to CalCannabis email alerts for updates, please sign up here. For information on the other state licensing agencies, visit the California Cannabis Portal.

CalCannabis Regulatory Documents

• Emergency California Cannabis Cultivation Licensing Regulations
• Finding of Emergency
• Notice of Decision Not to Proceed
• Summary of Public Comments on the Proposed Medical Cannabis Cultivation Regulations
• Proposed Medical Regulations
• Initial Statement of Reasons and SRIA
• Notice of Proposed Action
• OAL Notice of Filing and Printing - Commercial Cannabis Licensee Bond form

FAQs and Additional Information

• NEW! Annual Cannabis Cultivation Licenses: A Reference Guide for the CULTIVATION PLAN
• NEW! Annual Cannabis Cultivation Licenses: A Reference Guide for the APPLICATION ATTACHMENTS
• NEW! Workshop Video: Local Agency Implementation
• NEW! Criminal Conviction Disclosure Form
• Cannabis Cultivation License Application Overview Presentation
• Cannabis Cultivation Regulations Update Presentation
• Step-by-Step Videos: How to Fill Out an Application for a Temporary and an Annual Cannabis Cultivation License
• Fact Sheet: Emergency Regulations Summary for Cannabis Cultivators
• CalCannabis Temporary License Application Information for California Cannabis Cultivation (English and Español)
• CalCannabis Checklist: How to Start Preparing for the Annual Cannabis Cultivation License Application
• Track-and-Trace System: Third-Party Applications for Integration With METRC
• CalCannabis Fact Sheet: Who Does What Among the Three Licensing Authorities
• FAQ on Medicinal and Adult-Use (Recreational) Cannabis Cultivation Licensing
• FAQ on the California State Regulatory Process
• Sign Up for CalCannabis Email Alerts
• California Cannabis Portal: A Gateway to the Other State Cannabis Authorities for Distribution, Retail, Microbusiness, Testing Lab, and Manufacturing Licenses
• CDFA News Release see the newsfeed below

CalCannabis on Social Media

• Facebook @CACultivationLicensing
• Instagram calcannabis.cdfa
• Twitter @cal_cannabis

________________________________________________________________________________________

Final Program Environmental Impact Report (EIR)

The CalCannabis Cultivation Licensing program has prepared a Final Program Environmental Impact Report (EIR) in accordance with the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). The Final Program EIR provides information about the potential environmental effects associated with the adoption and implementation of statewide cannabis cultivation regulations. This report also includes responses to public comments received on the Draft Program EIR.

For more information, please visit our Final Program EIR web page, which includes a copy of the draft and final report and additional reference material. _______________________________________________________________________________________

---

---