Indopedia All Things Marijuana
“There must be some limit to the coercive power of government,” said California Governor Jerry Brown in response to one of three cannabis-related bills he vetoed late last week.
Specifically, Gov. Brown was referring to Senate Bill 386, which aimed to ban smoking at all California parks and beaches as well as post signage alerting patrons to those new restrictions.
Brown stated this bill, like another similar one he vetoed last year (SB1333), was “too broad” and posed too large a fine for the criminal action. The bill called for up to $485 in fees for individuals caught smoking tobacco or any other plant matter. SB386 also called for a ban on vaping in the same areas.
While proponents of the measure argued the bill would benefit the state environmentally and financially, Gov. Brown retorted, “If people can’t smoke even on a deserted beach, where can they?”
The most common piece of garbage collected on California beaches is cigarette butts by a long shot, but stronger legislation aimed at littering, rather than smoking, may be more impactful on that specific issue.
Another bill Gov. Brown refused to sign was for a ban on edibles manufactured in shapes that…
