California: drones and autonomous cars won't be able to deliver cannabis

When California dispensaries will be able to sell recreational cannabis in January 2018, following the last year's vote, However, a certain type of delivery will be prohibited: by drone.

The California Cannabis Control Board has in fact specified last week the rules applied to the marketing of recreational cannabis, in a 500-page compendium that every Californian entrepreneur will need to read and master before applying for a cannabis business license. Deliveries will be possible under certain conditions.

Specifically, cannabis deliveries will only be authorized if they are carried out «in person by a closed motor vehicle». This not only closes the door to weed deliveries by drone, but also by autonomous cars and bicycles.

We also learn that «cannabis products must not be visible from the outside during deliveries. Nor may they be left in a vehicle unattended unless the vehicle has an active alarm system. Vehicles used for delivery must have a dedicated, functioning GPS device that allows the dispensary to identify the location of the vehicle during delivery.»

Deliveries will also have to be made to physical addresses, excluding federal lands or «buildings leased by public agencies». FBI agents will therefore have to go directly to dispensaries for their supplies!

Start-ups that have already launched into home cannabis delivery, such as Eaze or Trees Delivery, most of which had already talked about drone delivery, will have to take these restrictions into account.

In any case, drone delivery is tightly controlled, even if big companies like Amazon are trying to relax regulations on this activity. And even if the law were to be relaxed, local authorities would still have the final say on whether or not to allow delivery on their territory. Weed won't be falling from the sky any time soon!