SLO County is wise to take its time drafting rules on medical marijuana cultivation

The San Luis Obispo County Board of Supervisors earns a grace-under-pressure bouquet for declining to rush through adoption of an ordinance regulating medical marijuana cultivation. Supervisors this week directed staff to continue working on an ordinance — a process that could take until the end of the year.

That’s in contrast to actions taken by local cities, which spent the past couple of months passing a half-dozen ordinances restricting cultivation. Some cities — Atascadero, Arroyo Grande, Pismo Beach and Paso Robles — banned it altogether; Grover Beach and Morro Bay allowed limited at-home cultivation. The city of San Luis Obispo didn’t pass a new ordinance; city officials said existing regulations already prohibited commercial grows.

In the cities’ defense, there was a semi-legitimate reason for the rush: At one point, it appeared cities and counties faced a March 1 deadline to adopt local regulations, or they would lose control to the state. That deadline, however, was made in error, and it was not expected to stand. But instead of waiting to see whether the deadline was dropped — which it was — many jurisdictions around the state went into a sky-is-falling frenzy.

At least SLO County had the patience to wait it out, so that staff can now thoroughly research the issue before developing draft regulations. We’re reserving judgment on whether we’ll support the ordinance, but we credit the county for giving this important issue the time and attention it deserves.

This story was originally published February 12, 2016 at 8:22 AM with the headline "SLO County is wise to take its time drafting rules on medical marijuana cultivation."