California Governor Signs Law Allowing Medical Cannabis on School Campuses

California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed legislation into law Oct. 9 that allows schools in the state to decide whether parents can administer medical cannabis to their children on school property.

The law—called “Jojo’s Act”—goes into effect Jan. 1, according to a KTLA report.

Previously, California law prohibited cannabis within 1,000 feet of K-12 campuses, the news outlet reported. Now, school districts can decide whether to allow it. Under the new law, parents of students with a valid medical cannabis recommendation could bring cannabis in a non-smokable form to the school and administer it to their children.

“Jojo’s Act would lift barriers for students with severe medical disabilities—for whom medicinal cannabis is the only medication that works—so they can take their dose at school and then get on with their studies, without being removed from campus and without disrupting their educational experience or that of their classmates,” said the bill’s sponsor, State Sen. Jerry Hill, in a public statement upon the legislature’s passage of the measure.