Sonoma Patient Group Settles Sonoma County Prop 65 Claim

SAN FRANCISCO, June 4, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Sonoma Patient Group, a cannabis dispensary in Santa Rosa, California, has settled a Proposition 65 claim brought by the Sonoma County District Attorney alleging that the dispensary failed to provide sufficient warnings for marijuana smoke.

Proposition 65 is a California right-to-know law that requires businesses to provide clear and reasonable warnings prior to exposing individuals to any one of the 900+ chemicals on the Proposition 65 list. "Marijuana smoke" is identified on the list as a carcinogen. Since 2014, hundreds of California cannabis dispensaries have been targeted in enforcement actions by private persons, since Proposition 65 can be enforced either by public enforcers or by private persons in the public interest.

The Sonoma Patient Group enforcement action is the only Prop 65 marijuana smoke case brought by a public enforcer. The settlement allows the dispensary to provide warnings on exit packaging instead of the extensive signage required by previous private enforcer settlements.

According to Ann Grimaldi of Grimaldi Law Offices, which represented Sonoma Patient Group in the action, these two elements together mean that this settlement could become a new model for Prop 65 marijuana smoke warnings for dispensaries throughout California.

Sonoma Patient Group is the longest operating, permitted cannabis dispensary in Sonoma County. It has operated in Santa Rosa since 2007. SPG has been a leader in the industry, setting an example for over a decade of how to work in close collaboration with government and public safety officials to best serve the community.

Consistent with its leadership role in the Sonoma County cannabis community, Sonoma Patient Group has pledged to provide an educational seminar for other cannabis businesses in Sonoma County on Proposition 65's requirements in the near future.

San Francisco-based Grimaldi Law Offices provides compliance advice and litigation defense services for businesses facing diverse chemical and product regulatory challenges. The firm's practice areas include Proposition 65, California's Safer Consumer Products Regulations, California's Rigid Plastic Packaging Container Act, and the federal Toxic Substances Control Act.

For more information, visit grimaldilawoffices.com.

Contact:
Ann Grimaldi
196500@email4pr.com
415-463-5186