Last week, Salinas attorney Aaron Johnson was in Denver, attending the National Cannabis Industry Association's summit and expo. He went to the first-ever American Cannabis Bar Association meeting at a law office one evening.
And Tuesday afternoon, Johnson, of the law firm L+G, was back in his usual spot, speaking to the Monterey County Board of Supervisors, urging them to write local regulations for cannabis-related businesses.
To kick off that process, at Johnson's request, the supervisors agreed 5-0 to put a 45-day ban on all business applications connected to medical cannabis, to give county planners, attorneys and law enforcement officials time to write regulations that will guide the evolution of the cannabis industry in unincorporated Monterey County.
Johnson won't say exactly who he's repping, but told the supervisors he has Bay Area clients with dispensaries who want to grow marijuana in Monterey County.
"This will be the best growing region," Johnson said. "We don't need to heat too much in the winter, we don't need to cool too much in the summer."
The hitch: County staff aren't sure exactly who is already in business, or how advanced businesses-in-progress are. That left a debate unresolved about who exactly should be exempt from the short-term ban.
Aram Stoney, co-founder and co-owner of Big Sur Cannabotanicals, a medical cannabis delivery service, spoke in support of the temporary moratorium on new businesses and clearer county rules.
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