Cannabis - Cultivation associations: Cannabis clubs dissatisfied with regulation
Just before nearly, in Berlin, a temporary solution has been found for Cannabis growing cooperatives. People who wish to cultivate grass communally can apply for a corresponding license from July 1st at the Berlin district offices. A spokeswoman of the health administration informed the German Press Agency. After receiving all documents and evidence, the applications will be processed within three months.
A regulation that regulates the responsibilities in relation to the Cannabis law is not available according to the spokeswoman's statements yet. Until then, the "fallback responsibility" lies with the districts. It is planned that the districts will also be responsible in the future.
Exactly how this looks in detail is still completely unclear. The health administration made no statements about which department within the districts is responsible and whether the applications should be submitted by post or digitally.
Cannabis Social Clubs dissatisfied with the solution
The clubs are dissatisfied due to the many open questions. "The solution is immature and could have been put into action weeks ago. It's not enough to say five minutes before twelve who will be in charge, when the new responsible person neither had the time nor the capacity to initiate a proper application process", said Jana Halbreiter, managing director of the Cannabis Cultivation Associations Germany (CAD), to the German Press Agency.
Many questions are still open, criticized Halbreiter, for example, where exactly the documents should be submitted. "Is it expected that the documents should be handed in at the reception?" It is also unclear which district is responsible if the planned cultivation area and the pick-up point for members are in different districts. "The Senate has only managed to pass on the black Peter after months", criticized the CAD managing director.
District offices apparently unprepared
The district offices seem to be anything but prepared. In response to the question of how the licenses can be applied for from Monday and whether there are special contact details, the Pankow district office replied that "nothing is known about this topic". From Marzahn-Hellersdorf, it was said that the district administration had not received any information from the responsible senate department. A spokeswoman of the Mitte district office said on inquiry: "The legal framework conditions regarding the implementation of the Cannabis law are still not conclusively regulated / they have not yet been handed over to the Ordnungsamt Mitte."
Whether applications will actually be filed at the offices on Monday - in whatever way - is questionable. "In Berlin, we are not aware of any club that is already ready on Monday to submit its documents. And how would one even send one's official identification document to a specific address if no such address was known", said Halbreiter. The association "Green Social Club" has therefore already moved its registered office from Berlin to Brandenburg a few weeks ago to have a real chance of a timely permit decision. In other federal states, the responsibilities have been clarified for a longer time. In some cases, there are special online forms and contact details.
Point in time for decision on ordinance still uncertain
How long must Berlin clubs wait for a regulation with clear rules? According to the spokesperson of the Berlin Health Administration, on Thursday at the level of state secretaries, constructive discussions took place about a draft. Open questions regarding the implementation of the law, especially those concerning the supervision of growing associations, should be clarified promptly in order to bring the regulation into the senate-internal approval procedure as soon as possible.
"Subsequently, the regulation will be presented to the Council of Mayors for comment and then adopted by the Senate."
A senate-wide working group will regularly deal with the topic and clarify all questions for a uniform implementation of the Cannabis Law in Berlin, the time between the enactment of the law on April 1 and the regulation for growing associations being put in place is described as "very short" and "more ambitious than planned". The implementation of the law poses great challenges for the authorities.
Three months after the release of cannabis for adults and private cultivation with numerous provisions, a second stage comes into force on July 1. From then on, non-commercial "growing associations" with up to 500 members can start. Full-grown people can then cultivate cannabis together and give it to each other for personal consumption. The clubs must apply for a permit, regular controls are also provided for by law.
- Despite the temporary solution for Cannabis growing cooperatives in Berlin, the Cannabis Cultivation Associations Germany (CAD) is dissatisfied due to the many open questions, as stated by Jana Halbreiter, the managing director.
- Halbreiter criticized the lack of clarity in several aspects, including where exactly the documents should be submitted and which district is responsible if the planned cultivation area and the pick-up point for members are in different districts.
- The district offices in Berlin seem to be unprepared for the Cannabis law implementation, with the Pankow district office indicating that they have no information on how to apply for licenses.
- In response to the questions about how to apply for licenses and whether there are special contact details, the Marzahn-Hellersdorf district office stated that they had not received any information from the responsible senate department.
- The association "Green Social Club" has already moved its registered office from Berlin to Brandenburg to increase its chances of a timely permit decision, as clarifications for the responsibilities have already been made in some other federal states.
