Cannabis: testing: quality assurance.

Assembly Member Sharp-Collins proposes comprehensive changes to California's cannabis testing and quality assurance framework, revising how cannabis products are evaluated, monitored, and cleared for retail sale. The legislation transfers quality assurance responsibilities from compliance monitors to the Department of Cannabis Control while implementing more rigorous testing protocols.

The bill requires all cannabis products to undergo laboratory testing before distribution, with testing laboratories now subject to performance evaluations to ensure consistent results across facilities. Retailers and licensees must provide customers with certificates of analysis upon request and allow the department to conduct off-the-shelf testing of products offered for sale.

Under the revised framework, the department assumes direct responsibility for quality assurance reviews at distributor, microbusiness, and retailer locations to verify compliance with labeling, packaging, and testing requirements. The legislation also modifies embargo procedures, eliminating physical tagging requirements while mandating that licensees separate non-compliant products within one business day of notification.

The measure establishes new protocols for sample collection and testing, requiring laboratory employees to obtain and transport samples while maintaining chain of custody. Testing laboratories may retest samples when equipment malfunctions or staff errors occur, subject to department notification and approval. Licensed cultivators retain the option to request continued cultivation of embargoed cannabis, pending departmental authorization.