Newsbrief: Calif. regulator says local bans ‘benefit’ illegal market

Communities that ban the cannabis industry "benefit" the illegal market, California's top cannabis regulator told State Affairs.

Between October 2022 and August 2025, Gov. Gavin Newsom's cannabis enforcement task force seized illegal product in 196 unincorporated areas across eight counties. Of those 97% took place in counties with local bans on licensed growers. The number doesn't account for areas which have not opened to licensed retail

“Cannabis is used in every . . .