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City to grandfather existing CBD, hemp sales

City to grandfather existing CBD, hemp sales

Written by Joe Hendricks on . Posted in Anna Maria, Community News, Featured.

ANNA MARIA – Businesses in the city that currently sell CBD and hemp products will be allowed to continue doing so with a soon-to-be-adopted grandfathering exception.

A city ordinance adopted in 2015 to prohibit medical marijuana dispensaries also prohibits the sale of any product made from the cannabis plant, including CBD and hemp products – even though Florida law allows CBD and hemp sales.

Anna Maria leaders want to allow limited CBD and hemp sales without allowing full-blown CBD stores like those legally operated in Holmes Beach and many other Florida cities.

City to grandfather existing CBD, hemp sales
Anna Maria City Attorney Becky Vose crafted the proposed grandfathering ordinance. – Joe Hendricks | Sun

On April 11, City Attorney Becky Vose presented newly-proposed Ordinance 24-293, which contains the following language: “Businesses with a business location in the city of Anna Maria – not to include mobile sales – that, as of April 1, 2024, regularly sold product that would otherwise have been prohibited shall be eligible to receive grandfather status to continue such sales, but not to increase the volume of such sales, in accordance with procedures outlined in a resolution to be adopted by the city commission.”

To receive grandfathered status, busi­nesses that currently sell CBD and/or hemp products will have to register those business activities with the city.

The city’s efforts to revise its CBD and hemp prohibitions began in February after Holmes Beach-based CBD vendor Mel Wendell was told she couldn’t participate in an arts and crafts fair taking place in Anna Maria.

City to grandfather existing CBD, hemp sales
The North Shore Café can continue using non-CBD hemp products. – Joe Hendricks | Sun

The North Shore Café owners then received a notice of violation for selling food and drink products made with a legal hemp powder containing trace amounts of THC. The Cool Beans AMI coffee shop owners received a notice of violation for selling CBD products. Those two businesses will be eligible for city commission-approved grandfathering exemptions.

City to grandfather existing CBD, hemp sales
Cool Beans AMI will be allowed to continue selling CBD products. – Joe Hendricks | Sun

When offering public input during the April 11 meeting, AMI Beach & Dog Supply owner Janalee Gallagher informed city officials that canine-grade CBD products are currently sold at her Anna Maria business. Gallagher was told she would also be eligible for the grandfathering exception.

The proposed ordinance has not been formally adopted yet and the accompanying city resolution that establishes the specific grandfathering rules and requirements is expected to be presented soon.

The commission previously rejected a proposed ordinance that would have limited CBD and hemp offerings to no more than 10% of a retail establishment’s total inventory. The commission felt the 10% threshold would be nearly impossible to enforce and would require an audit of the retailer’s entire inventory.

STATE LEGISLATION

Anna Maria’s efforts to amend its CBD regulations occur at a time when stricter CBD regulations proposed by the Florida Legisla­ture await transmittal to Gov. Ron DeSantis to veto, sign into new state law or allow to become state law without his signature.

On April 9, Vose sent the mayor and commissioners a copy of SB 1698 and a brief summary of the proposed state law that said: “It basically prohibits the sale of hemp-based products that create euphoric effects on people by putting caps on the amount of THC concentration in hemp-based products that can be sold. The publicity surrounding the bill seems to indicate that it will prohibit a large percentage of the products sold in CBD stores.”

The ordinance Vose presented on April 11 says, “Nothing in this ordinance shall be construed to allow the sale of any product which is otherwise prohibited by Florida law.”

On April 11, Vose also noted legalizing recreational marijuana statewide will be on the general election ballot this fall.

Related coverage: Commission struggling with CBD regulation

Commission struggling with CBD regulation

Commission struggling with CBD regulation

Written by Joe Hendricks on . Posted in Anna Maria, Community News, Featured.

ANNA MARIA – Revising the city of Anna Maria’s CBD and hemp prohibitions is proving to be challenging for city officials.

Anna Maria’s code of ordinances currently prohibits the sale of any product derived from the cannabis plant, including medical marijuana and CBD and hemp products. The current ordinance was adopted shortly before Florida voters legalized medical marijuana and medical marijuana dispensaries in 2016.

After debating proposed revisions to the existing city ordinance on March 14 and March 28, city commissioners remain divided and undecided as to how to allow Anna Maria businesses to sell limited amounts of CBD and hemp products while still prohibiting medical marijuana sales and discouraging retail operations focused primar­ily on CBD sales.

The city’s regulatory quagmire began in late February when Holmes Beach-based CBD vendor Mel Wendell was told she couldn’t sell CBD products at an arts and crafts fair being held in Anna Maria. In response, Wendell told the mayor and commissioner there were other businesses currently selling CBD products in Anna Maria.

The attention created by Wendell’s public statement resulted in the North Shore Café owners receiving a notice of violation for selling food and drink products made with a hemp powder containing a miniscule amount of THC. The Cool Beans AMI coffee shop owners received a similar notice for selling some of the same CBD products sold legally at their Live Naturally store in Holmes Beach.

Commission struggling with CBD regulation
CBD sales are legal in Holmes Beach and Live Naturally is one of two CBD-prevalent stores in that city. – Joe Hendricks | Sun

On March 14, City Attorney Becky Vose presented an ordi­nance that proposed limiting CBD and hemp sales to no more than 10% of a retail outlet’s total inventory. The commission agreed that provision would be virtually impossible to enforce and would require an audit of a businesses’ total inventory.

On March 28, the commission reached preliminary consensus on two key points proposed in the ordinance but remained puzzled as to how to regulate CBD sales at brick-and-mortar retail locations and the signage associated with such sales. Federal law prohibits the regulation of sign content.

Commission struggling with CBD regulation
Anna Maria commissioners are concerned about the signage associated with CBD stores in general. – Joe Hendricks | Sun

The commission agrees CBD and hemp sales should be allowed at craft fairs, markets and other special events taking place with a city commission-approved special event permit, as long as the number of CBD/hemp vendors doesn’t exceed more than 10% of the total vendor roster.

The commission agrees that mobile CBD sales not related to special events should remain prohibited in order to prevent CBD being sold from trucks, trailers, tents and other mobile operations.

The commission also agrees that the fine amounts associated with CBD or hemp sales viola­tions should be established in a separate city resolution.

Commission struggling with CBD regulation
Commissioner Gary McMullen noted CBD sales are allowed statewide and take place in Holmes Beach and many other Florida cities. – Joe Hendricks | Sun

Commissioner Gary McMullen questioned why the city wants to continue outlawing CBD and hemp products that are legal statewide and legally sold in Holmes Beach and many other Florida cities.

Along those same lines, Commissioner Jon Crane said, “I’ve got nothing against medical marijuana and I support it.”

Commissioner Kathy Morgan expressed support for the current CBD prohibitions.

Commissioner Charlie Salem asked Vose to research how other Florida cities are regulating CBD sales.

After noting CBD sales are prevalent in most Florida cities, Vose said the commissioners are essentially dealing with a cut-and-dried decision to either allow or continue prohibiting CBD and hemp sales and CBD stores in Anna Maria.

These matters will be discussed again at the Thursday, April 11 meeting. In lieu of the ongoing regulatory efforts, Mayor Dan Murphy is giving the North Shore Café and Cool Beans AMI owners an additional 30 days to comply with their notices of violation.

Related coverage: Anna Maria seeks to amend CBD prohibitions

Anna Maria seeks to amend CBD prohibitions

Anna Maria seeks to amend CBD prohibitions

Written by Joe Hendricks on . Posted in Anna Maria, Community News.

ANNA MARIA – The city of Anna Maria is trying to revise its current marijuana prohibitions in a manner that would allow CBD and hemp products to be legally sold in the city.

The city’s code of ordinances currently prohibits the sale of any product derived from cannabis plants, including medical mari­juana and over-the-counter CBD and hemp products.

On March 14, City Attorney Becky Vose presented the mayor and city commission with the first reading of proposed Ordinance 24-923, an ordinance that would repeal and replace the city’s existing marijuana prohibitions.

City officials are revisiting the ex­isting city ordinance enacted many years ago that prohibits medical marijuana dispensaries in Anna Maria – an action taken shortly before Florida voters approved the legal sale of medical marijuana.

The current ordinance came into question when Holmes Beach-based CBD vendor Mel Wendel was denied participation in an arts and crafts show taking place in Anna Maria. A short time later, the owners of the North Shore Café and the owners of the Cool Beans AMI coffee shop received notices of violation for selling hemp products and/or CBD products, including a hemp powder that contains microscopically low levels of THC.

PROPOSED ORDINANCE

The new ordinance Vose pro­posed would still prohibit medical marijuana dispensaries but would allow retail establishments to sell CBD and hemp products as long as those products didn’t equate to more than 10% of the retail establishment’s inventory.

The ordinance proposed prohibiting the mobile sales of any products made from can­nabis plants unless such sales are pursuant to a city commission-approved special event at which no more than 10% of the event’s total inventory could consist of CBD and/or hemp products.

The commission questioned how a 10% inventory threshold could possibly be enforced. Mayor Dan Murphy acknowledged that would require an audit of the establish­ment’s entire inventory, which is not something the city intends to do.

Commissioner Jon Crane op­posed the proposed $500 fine for a first-time offense. He feels that’s too high and not consistent with other fines levied in Anna Maria.

Murphy said the city needs to establish a fine amount that’s rea­sonable but high enough to deter business owners from considering the daily fine to simply be the cost of doing business in Anna Maria.

Vose suggested an initial $50 per day fine that would escalate to $500 per day after five days’ notice.

Vose said the proposed Anna Maria ordinance is not modeled after the Holmes Beach ordinance that allows CBD stores and CBD sales, and as currently written, would not allow CBD stores in Anna Maria.

Commissioner Mark Short said the proposed ordinance doesn’t address the potency of the CBD products sold and he’d like that addressed in the ordinance. Short said he would like the city’s potency allowance to be as low as possible. Vose said the state already regulates the potency and labeling of CBD products and the city isn’t going to purchase CBD products and send them to a lab to be tested.

Commissioner Charlie Salem asked Vose if the city can prohibit the sale of CBD products allowed by the state.

“Yes, we can. We can regulate them,” Vose said.

Vose noted the Florida Leg­islature recently sent proposed legislation to Gov. Ron DeSantis that would further restrict CBD sales in Florida. If supported by the governor, the revised state regula­tions could impact the city’s efforts to revise its local regulations.

When asked if the city can regulate CBD and THC references on business signs, Vose said federal law prohibits the regulation of sign content.

As the discussion came to a close, Murphy said more research and commission discussion is needed regarding inventory thresholds, potency levels, fine amounts and other factors. The commission took no formal action on the proposed ordinance and the regulatory efforts remain a work in progress.

Craft fair prompts CBD sales discussion

Craft fair prompts CBD sales discussion

Written by Joe Hendricks on . Posted in Community News.

ANNA MARIA – Because she sells CBD products, Edibles N More owner Mel Wendel wasn’t allowed to partici­pate in the Feed the Island art and craft show at Roser Church on Feb. 9-10.

Danielle Lynch owns and operates Blue Ribbon Events, a company that organizes arts and craft fairs in Michigan and Florida. In Anna Maria, these events require a city commission-approved special event permit.

On the morning of Feb. 8, Lynch received a call from Deputy City Clerk Fran Berrios informing her that CBD and hemp sales are not allowed in Anna Maria.

CBD products don’t contain THC, the psychoactive ingredient in marijuana that produces the euphoric “high.”

Lynch and Wendel appeared before the city commission that afternoon. After Lynch requested Wendel and her husband be allowed to participate in that weekend’s event, Mayor Dan Murphy asked what they planned to sell.

Wendel said their Holmes Beach-based Edibles N More retail store and their affiliated Vape on the Go business sells CBD and hemp-based products including edibles, topicals and smokeables, and that’s what they’d be selling.

“It’s listed as an arts and crafts festival and you’re wanting to sell CBD products. It’s not an art or a craft. It’s something else,” Murphy noted.

City Attorney Becky Vose said, “If they’re going to do something other than arts and crafts, the permit needs to be looked at again.”

Wendel claimed the city already set legal precedent by allowing other busi­nesses in the city to sell CBD products. She said Beach Bum Apothecary is producing and selling CBD products, some of which she sells at Edibles N More, and Cool Beans AMI is selling products containing low levels of THC.

Wendel said the federal 2018 Farm Bill legalized hemp and it’s no longer considered marijuana. She noted the city of Holmes Beach amended its ordinance to exclude hemp from its definition of marijuana.

“Every item in our store is derived from hemp,” Wendel said, noting Publix and Live Naturally also legally sell CBD products in Holmes Beach.

Commissioner Gary McMullen said, “I think it’s unfair to single them out if we have other people in the city already doing the same thing.”

Murphy said he doesn’t recall CBD sales ever being permitted in Anna Maria.

“If somebody’s doing something illegal that we don’t know about that doesn’t set a precedent,” he said, noting the commission could address CBD sales with future ordinances.

Murphy suggested giving Vose time to review the matter and provide him with a legal opinion before the Friday morning event began. The following morning, Murphy sent Lynch an email containing his decision and Vose’s three-page memo that he based his decision on.

“It is my conclusion that the sale of hemp-based products is prohibited by our local ordinances,” Murphy stated in his email, noting the decision also pertains to the event Lynch is hosting at City Pier Park on March 9-10.

In her memo, Vose stated, “It is my legal opinion that the sale of CBD products within the city of Anna Maria is prohibited under Section 34-2 of the city’s code of ordinances, and that such ordinance can be enforced regardless of the change of status of CBD and hemp under general Florida law.”

Regarding the 2018 Farm Bill, Vose wrote, “It is clear that certain types of hemp are no longer illegal in Florida. However, that does not mean local governments cannot regulate matters related to hemp, even if otherwise legal.”