Governor Gavin Newsom has vetoed Assembly Bill 1332, legislation that would have allowed licensed microbusinesses to ship medical cannabis directly to patients using common couriers such as UPS or FedEx. The bill aimed to expand patient access in California, the nation’s oldest legalized medical cannabis marketplace.
Sponsored by Assemblymember Patrick Ahrens (D-Silicon Valley), A.B. 1332 passed unanimously in both the Senate (39-0) and Assembly (78-0) before reaching the governor’s desk.
In his veto statement, Newsom cited administrative challenges and costs as key reasons for rejection:
“While I appreciate the author’s goal of expanding patient access to medical cannabis, the proposed direct-shipping program would be burdensome and overly complex to administer,” Newsom said. “The Department of Cannabis Control (DCC) will need to revamp the California cannabis track-and-trace system, which will take significant resources and time. Moreover, this measure includes numerous restrictions on eligible products – many of which are unclear, overly narrow or unworkable, adding to the implementation challenge.”
A fiscal analysis by the Senate Appropriations Committee reported a one-time $269,000 implementation cost to modify the DCC’s track-and-trace system, with ongoing annual costs of $472,000 to oversee shipments. While small compared to the state’s total taxable cannabis sales, the governor said the costs outweighed the potential benefits, especially as the program would initially allow only two businesses to ship directly to patients.
Under A.B. 1332, any microbusiness holding an M-license with retail, manufacturing, distribution, and cultivation activities could ship medicinal cannabis products—including flower and tinctures made with non-volatile solvents—directly to patients. Currently, California has 290 active microbusiness licenses with medicinal or combined adult-use/medicinal designations, of which more than 50 are fully vertically integrated.
The veto comes amid declining medical cannabis sales, projected to fall below $200 million in 2025, roughly 4% of the state’s licensed cannabis marketplace, down from $540 million in 2021. Advocates argue that medical patients are increasingly underserved due to high taxes, prioritization of adult-use products, and limited local availability.
Proponents of the bill, including Ahrens and the Society for Cannabis Physicians, emphasized the challenges faced by patients with severe conditions such as epilepsy, cancer, multiple sclerosis, and neurodegenerative disorders. Many live in regions where specialized medical cannabis products are not stocked, and travel to distant dispensaries is difficult or impossible.
“Since the implementation of Proposition 64 in 2018, the availability of medical cannabis products has declined significantly due to regulatory burdens, high taxation and the prioritization of adult-use products over medicinal formulations,” said the Society for Cannabis Physicians.
Doctors also testified in favor of A.B. 1332, highlighting that long-term patients can no longer access the medicinal products they previously relied on. Dr. Laurie Vollen, a licensed preventive medicine physician, described California’s medical cannabis patients as “orphans” of the current system.
Despite the veto, Governor Newsom indicated a willingness to work with lawmakers to explore alternative strategies to improve equitable access to safe medical cannabis for patients in need.