California Lawmakers Consider Legislation to Increase Consumer Warnings on Cannabis Labels

California lawmakers are set to discuss legislation April 4 that would increase consumer warnings on cannabis labels.

Senate Bill 1097, the Cannabis Right to Know Act, was introduced Feb. 16 by Sen. Richard Pan, and is scheduled for an April 4 hearing in the Senate Business, Professions and Economic Development Committee, according to the North Bay Business Journal.

Pan led a virtual press conference March 31, according to the news outlet, where he told a panel of doctors, youth groups and parents that additional consumer warnings are necessary for cannabis products and are similar to those on tobacco products.

“I authored the Cannabis Right to Know Act because current health warnings required for cannabis products are insufficient to communicate well-established health risks, especially to our youth,” he said, adding that the current government warnings about the “intoxicating effects” are inadequate.

Specifically, Pan’s bill cites a report by the National Survey on Drug Use and Health that found an uptick in California teens between the ages of 12 and 17 using cannabis between 2016 and 2019, the North Bay Business Journal reported.

Under Pan’s proposal, cannabis labels would require rotating warnings with a bright yellow background and a 12-point font that includes wording such as: “Cannabis use may contribute to mental health problems, including psychotic disorders such as schizophrenia. Risk is greatest for frequent users and when using products with high THC levels.”

Some industry stakeholders have expressed their opposition to the bill, including Tiffany Devitt, chief of government affairs for CannaCraft, a Santa Rosa, Calif.-based cannabis producer.

“S.B. 1097 is characteristic of a lot of ‘reefer madness’ type policies,” she told the North Bay Business Journal, adding that more restrictive policies will only further burden legal cannabis businesses that are trying to compete with California’s still-thriving illicit market. “The protect-the-children hysteria is taken to such absurd lengths that it ends up hurting the very communities it’s purporting to protect.”

The California Cannabis Industry Association has also voiced its opposition of the bill in a March 25 letter to the Legislature, according to the news outlet.

“While we appreciate the bill’s intent, its focus may be more effectively guided toward consumer education already in program and funded by cannabis tax revenues from the licensed market,” the organization wrote.