Cannabis consumption lounges are legal in California, but not in the state’s capital—and it looks like it’s going to stay that way after a May 10 committee meeting.
A plan to allow cannabis consumption lounges in Sacramento stalled Tuesday when City Council Law and Legislation Committee Chairman Jay Schenirer refused to discuss the plan, even though it was on the committee’s agenda, the Sacramento Bee reported.
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“I personally have not heard and have not talked to a lot of council members about this, but have not seen a lot of desire to move this item at this point in Sacramento,” Schenirer said, according to the news outlet.
Councilwoman Katie Valenzuela, who is also a member of the Law and Legislation Committee, told the Sacramento Bee that she plans to ask the full city council at its May 24 meeting to reconsider holding a discussion on cannabis consumption lounges. If the council gives the green light, the issue will then go back to the committee.
Sacramento’s consumption lounges would be attached to licensed cannabis dispensaries under the proposal, which was initiated by Davina Smith, who leads the Sacramento Office of Cannabis Management, according to the Sacramento Bee.
Valenzuela told the news outlet that cannabis consumption lounges would would allow customers to sample retailers’ product offerings and boost business at Sacramento’s dispensaries, thus generating more sales tax revenue for the city.
Despite California’s legalization of cannabis consumption lounges, only a handful of these establishments currently exist in the state, according to the Sacramento Bee, including two in San Francisco and one in West Hollywood, which plans to allow up to 16 consumption lounges within its jurisdiction.
