Overview
- The Board of Supervisors voted 7–4 Tuesday to pass an ordinance authored by Rafael Mandelman and transmitted the measure to Mayor Daniel Lurie, so it is not yet law.
- The law would create a new cannabis café permit that lets licensed cannabis retailers offer on-site cannabis consumption alongside prepared food, nonalcoholic drinks and live entertainment while banning alcohol and tobacco sales.
- Only existing licensed cannabis retailers and their equity partners may apply for café permits during the first year, a provision intended to give current businesses first access to the new revenue stream.
- The ordinance requires venues to meet food-safety rules, ventilation and signage standards, verify customer age at entry, and follow state worker protections such as providing N95 masks on request and disclosing smoke-exposure risks.
- The move implements Assembly Bill 1775, which was revised after a 2023 veto to add worker safeguards, and supporters say it will help legal cannabis shops compete and boost nightlife while critics warn it weakens indoor smoke protections.