Humboldt County, California, Measure A, Cannabis Measure (March 2024)

Humboldt County Measure A
Election date March 5, 2024
Topic Local marijuana
Status Defeated
Type Referral

Humboldt County Measure A was on the ballot as a referral in Humboldt County on March 5, 2024. It was defeated.

A "yes" vote supported changing local regulations for cannabis cultivation, including limiting the number, type, and acreage of permits for commercial cannabis cultivation; requiring the county to investigate all public complaints and coordinate with state agencies; requiring an on-site inspection per year; limiting generator size and usage; and regulating water storage.

A "no" vote opposed changing local regulations for cannabis cultivation.

This measure required a simple majority to pass.

Election results

Humboldt County Measure A
Result		Votes	Percentage
Yes		9,220	23.80%
No		29,525	76.20%

Results are officially certified.

Source

Text of measure

Ballot title

The ballot title for Measure A was as follows:

“

Shall the measure changing local cannabis (marijuana) laws, including: new limits on the number of permitted grows; limiting new or expanded grows to 10,000 square feet, using natural light and artificial light of 6 or fewer watts per square foot, with restrictions on more or bigger buildings; new rules for water and generator use; prohibiting growers from holding multiple new permits; requiring at least one in-person, on-site inspection before yearly permit renewal; be adopted?

”

Full Text

The full text of this measure is available here.

Impartial analysis

The impartial analysis of the measure is below:

“

INTRODUCTION. This initiative would impose new rules for cannabis (marijuana) grows in Humboldt County. BACKGROUND. After California voters made cannabis legal, County Supervisors adopted local laws regulating grows. Every California county must adopt a general plan regulating land uses. Coastal counties also adopt local coastal plans to regulate land uses in the coastal zone. Zoning ordinances must be consistent with general plans. This initiative amends the County general plan, local coastal plan, and zoning ordinance. Zoning permits are “discretionary,” i.e., issued by the Board of Supervisors, an appointed Commission, or staff after a public hearing; or “ministerial,” which typically means issued by County staff without a hearing. THE INITIATIVE. The measure would limit the number of grows which can receive permits after it is adopted to roughly one-third those now allowed. It would prohibit new grows larger than 10,000 square feet (a bit less than a quarter-acre). It would allow larger, existing, permitted grows to continue, but would not allow them to be expanded. It would also prohibit permits for new grows using mixed outdoor and indoor cultivation using lights brighter than 6 watts per square foot. Outdoor grows and those using dimmer lights could be permitted. Under current County laws, ministerial permits can allow up to 5,000-square-foot grows on parcels of 5 acres or larger and up to 10,000 square-foot grows on parcels of 10 acres or larger. The measure would require discretionary permits for new or expanded grows over 3,000 square feet. It would also require permits for an increase in grow area or in the “number or size of any structures used in connection with cultivation.” This would include drying sheds, greenhouses, nursery rooms, water tanks, and solar systems. Growers could not hold more than one new permit. The measure would forbid the County to waive a public hearing on a new or expanded permit. It would require the County to notify property owners within a mile of a grow of hearings; currently the County must notify those within 300 feet. The measure requires applications for new or expanded grows on parcels served by private roads without centerline stripes to provide an engineer's report confirming roads meet Category 4 standards. Those require two lanes along which parking is forbidden and which serve fewer than 100 parcels, each limited to one dwelling. It will require more water storage for some grows, phase out generators, require studies of new wells to show no impact on other wells, and further regulate diversions from streams. It would require the County, before renewing an annual permit, to conduct at least one, on-site, in-person inspection on less than 24 hours’ notice to the grower, to find any permit or law violations at a grow have been fixed, and to investigate any comments or complaints about a grow.

”

Support

Official argument

• Mark Thurmond DVM, PhD, sponsor of the initiative; Elizabeth Watson PhD, sponsor of the initiative; Robert ‘Woods’ Sutherland, initiative supporter; Ken Miller MD, director of Salmon Forever; Mark Wheetley, former mayor of Arcata (Official Argument): Humboldt County isn’t doing enough to protect our communities, water, and wildlife from commercial cannabis cultivation. Measure A closes loopholes in current ordinances, improves enforcement and public participation, and better protects our watersheds, people, and wildlife. Measure A also sets fundamental cannabis policy in the County’s General Plan and prevents politicians from weakening its protections without a vote of the people. Measure A would: • Protect rivers, streams, and wildlife by: a) extending the period during which water cannot be diverted from streams and rivers, b) requiring studies to show new water wells will not impact streams, springs, or other wells, c) phasing out generators, and d) improving coordination with state water and wildlife agencies. • Add a goal to the General Plan supporting small-scale, high quality cannabis cultivation. • Discourage future large-scale farms by: a) limiting new and expanded permits to 10,000 square feet of cultivation area, and b) preventing approval of multiple new, active cultivation permits for the same person or on the same legal parcel. • Limit the number of permits and acreage under cannabis cultivation by capping the total number of permits and acreage at levels five percent above those allowed by existing approved, unexpired permits as of March 4, 2022 – a substantial reduction from the County’s current cap of 3500 permits. • Protect vested rights and property rights. • Improve public participation and official accountability by requiring public hearings and better notice of permit applications. • Support effective enforcement by requiring annual in-person, on-site inspections, correction of violations, and investigation of public complaints before permits are renewed.

Opposition

Official argument

• Natalynne DeLapp, executive director of the Humboldt County Growers Alliance; Nancy Olson, CEO of the Greater Eureka Chamber of Commerce; Destry Henderson, president of the Humboldt Deputy Sheriff’s Organization; Jackee Riccio, executive director of the Cannabis for Conservation; Portia Bramble, executive director of the North Coast Growers Association (Official Argument): Humboldt needs a well-regulated legal cannabis industry, and Measure A is not the way! As advocates for our environment, public safety, local businesses, and small cannabis and food farmers, we urge you to vote NO on Measure A. Crafted behind closed doors by special interests, this 38 page citizen initiative would amend the General Plan to establish complex and unworkable restrictions only for legal cannabis businesses. Most of these broken rules could then never be fixed without an additional ballot measure. Measure A is anti-cannabis, anti-small business, anti-public safety, and antienvironment, and would put thousands of jobs and millions in tax revenue at risk. An analysis from the Humboldt Planning Department found that Measure A “could [make] compliance so difficult that the legal [cannabis] market is rendered not viable in Humboldt County.” Measure A is NOT an environmental initiative and would likely produce negative environmental outcomes. The Planning Department’s analysis found Measure A would “discourage existing permit holders from modifying their permits in any way,” including “adding infrastructure intended for environmental protections” such as water storage or solar panels. An analysis by the non-profit 501(c)(3) environmental group Cannabis for Conservation found the initiative “lacks both environmental and scientific rigor” and would result in increased “regulatory hoop-jumping for farmers, with no measurable, quantifiable, or data-supported conservation benefits.” Measure A is NOT a public safety initiative. It has unworkable restrictions that would only apply to permitted farmers, not unregulated farms, thus further encouraging illegal cultivation. Legal farmers are already heavily regulated by the county, the state Department of Cannabis Control, the Water Board, and Fish & Wildlife. To protect the environment, small farmers, Humboldt’s economy, and public safety, please join us in voting NO on Measure A.

Path to the ballot

This measure was put on the ballot through a vote of the governing body of Humboldt County.

How to cast a vote

See also: Voting in California

See below to learn more about current voter registration rules, identification requirements, and poll times in California.

How to vote in California

Poll times

All polls in California are open from 7:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Pacific Time. An individual who is in line at the time polls close must be allowed to vote.

Registration

Check your voter registration status here.

To vote in California, an individual must be a U.S. citizen and California resident. A voter must be at least 18 years of age on Election Day. Pre-registration is available at 16 years of age. Pre-registered voters are automatically registered to vote when they turn 18.

Automatic registration

California automatically registers eligible individuals to vote when they complete a driver's license, identification (ID) card, or change of address transaction through the Department of Motor Vehicles. Learn more by visiting this website.

Online registration

See also: Online voter registration

California has implemented an online voter registration system. Residents can register to vote by visiting this website.

Same-day registration

California allows same-day voter registration.

Californians must be registered to vote at least 15 days before Election Day. If the registration deadline has passed for an upcoming election, voters may visit a location designated by their county elections official during the 14 days prior to, and including Election Day to conditionally register to vote and vote a provisional ballot, which are counted once county election officials have completed the voter registration verification process. The state refers to this process as Same Day Voter Registration.

Residency requirements

To register to vote in California, you must be a resident of the state. State law does not specify a length of time for which you must have been a resident to be eligible.

Verification of citizenship

See also: Laws permitting noncitizens to vote in the United States

California's constitution requires that voters be U.S. citizens. When registering to vote, proof of citizenship is not required. Individuals who become U.S. citizens less than 15 days before an election must bring proof of citizenship to their county elections office to register to vote in that election. An individual applying to register to vote must attest that they are a U.S. citizen under penalty of perjury.

As of November 2024, two jurisdictions in California had authorized noncitizen residents to vote for local board of education positions through local ballot measures. Only one of those jurisdictions, San Francisco, had implemented that law. Noncitizens voting for board of education positions must register to vote using a separate application from the state voter registration application.

All 49 states with voter registration systems require applicants to declare that they are U.S. citizens in order to register to vote in state and federal elections, under penalty of perjury or other punishment. Seven states — Alabama, Arizona, Georgia, Kansas, Louisiana, New Hampshire, and Wyoming — have laws requiring verification of citizenship at the time of voter registration, whether in effect or not. In three states — California, Maryland, and Vermont — at least one local jurisdiction allows noncitizens to vote in some local elections. Noncitizens registering to vote in those elections must complete a voter registration application provided by the local jurisdiction and are not eligible to register as state or federal voters.

Verifying your registration

The secretary of state's My Voter Status website allows residents to check their voter registration status online.

Voter ID requirements

California does not require voters to present identification before casting a ballot in most cases. However, some voters may be asked to show a form of identification when voting if they are voting for the first time after registering to vote by mail and did not provide a driver license number, California identification number, or the last four digits of their social security number. On September 29, 2024, Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) signed SB 1174 into law prohibiting any jurisdiction in the state from adopting a local law that requires voters to present ID before voting.

The following list of accepted ID was current as of October 2024. Click here for the California Secretary of State page to ensure you have the most current information.

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Current and valid photo identification provided by a third party in the ordinary course of business that includes the name and photograph of the individual presenting it. Examples of photo identification include, but are not limited to, the following documents: driver's license or identification card of any state; passport; employee identification card; identification card provided by a commercial establishment; credit or debit card; military identification card; student identification card; health club identification card; insurance plan identification card; or public housing identification card. Any of the following documents, provided that the document includes the name and address of the individual presenting it, and is dated since the date of the last general election…: utility bill; bank statement; government check; government paycheck; document issued by a governmental agency; sample ballot or other official elections document issued by a governmental, agency dated for the election in which the individual is providing it as proof, of residency or identity; voter notification card issued by a governmental agency; public housing identification card issued by a governmental agency; lease or rental statement or agreement issued by a governmental agency; student identification card issued by a governmental agency; tuition statement or bill issued by a governmental agency; insurance plan card or drug discount card issued by a governmental agency; discharge certificates, pardons, or other official documents issued to the individual by a governmental agency in connection with the resolution of a criminal case, indictment, sentence, or other matter; public transportation authority senior citizen and disabled discount cards issued by a governmental agency; identification documents issued by governmental disability agencies; identification documents issued by government homeless shelters and other government temporary or transitional facilities; drug prescription issued by a government doctor or other governmental health care provider; (R) property tax statement issued by a governmental agency; vehicle registration issued by a governmental agency; or vehicle certificate of ownership issued by a governmental agency.

”

See also

Local measures

• Local measures in 2024
• Local marijuana on the ballot

California

• California 2024 local measures
• Local ballot measures, California
• Humboldt, California

News and analysis

• State and local preemption conflicts
• Measures advancing national agendas