Cannabis Environmental Impact Report

The County of San Diego’s (County) Planning Commission will conduct a public hearing as follows:

Project Name: Socially Equitable Cannabis Program

Date: April 10, 2026

Description: This is a request for the Planning Commission to provide a recommendation to the Board of Supervisors (Board) on the proposed Socially Equitable Cannabis Program (SECP) including draft Zoning Ordinance amendments and the Final Program Environmental Impact Report (PEIR). The SECP also includes amendments to the Regulatory Code and the Social Equity Program, which fall outside of the scope of the Commission’s purview, however any input from the Commission will be shared with the Board.

The SECP would allow for new cannabis facilities in the unincorporated areas of the county, including cultivation, distribution, manufacturing, microbusiness, retail, onsite consumption lounges, temporary cannabis events, and testing laboratories. The SECP was prepared in response to the Board's January 27, 2021 (4) direction to develop amendments to the Zoning Ordinance and County Regulatory Code to allow for permitting and licensing of new commercial cannabis uses.

On January 14, 2026 (3), staff presented program options to the Board based on stakeholder feedback. These options included proceeding with a program aligned with State standards (Program Option A) in addition to other options that would expand regulations to incorporate local requirements for buffers, sensitive uses, allowed facility types, and separation requirements. At that hearing, the Board directed staff to pursue Program Option A, which aligns local standards with state standards for buffers from sensitive uses and is consistent with the Board’s original January 2021 direction. Under State standards, cannabis facilities would be required to be located at least 600-feet from schools, daycares, and youth centers.

The SECP includes four components:

1) Regulatory requirements, including amendments to the County Zoning Ordinance and the Regulatory Code,

2) a licensing and permitting structure and procedures,

3) a PEIR to analyze potential environmental impacts from the program, and

4) a Social Equity Program promoting fair access to the cannabis industry for those who have been impacted by cannabis-related criminalization and the War on Drugs.

Hearing Information

• Date: April 10, 2026
• Time: 9:00 a.m.
• Location: County Operations Center (COC) Hearing Room, 5520 Overland Avenue, San Diego, CA 92123

Public Participation

Those wishing to participate in the meeting and/or comment should visit the Planning Commission website.

If you have any questions, please contact the Planning Commission Secretary at PDS.PlanningCommission@sdcounty.ca.gov.

Assistance for Persons with Disabilities or Requesting Interpretation

Agendas and records are available in alternative formats upon request. Contact the Planning and Development Services office at (858) 694-3003 with questions or to request a disability-related accommodation. Individuals requiring sign language interpreters should contact the Countywide ADA Title II Coordinator at (619) 531-4908. To the extent reasonably possible, requests for accommodation or assistance should be submitted at least 72 hours in advance of the meeting so that arrangements may be made. An area in the front of the room can be designated for individuals requiring the use of wheelchair or other accessible devices. Please visit the Planning Commission website for more details.

The County of San Diego Planning & Development Services (PDS) is pleased to announce that the Final Program Environmental Impact Report (Final PEIR) including responses to public comments for the draft Socially Equitable Cannabis Program (Cannabis Program) is available.

The Final PEIR, prepared in accordance with State of California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) Guidelines, can be viewed on the County’s CEQA website.

The Final PEIR identifies and studies potential impacts to the environment from the proposed Cannabis Program, while evaluating ways to avoid or reduce impacts.

The Draft PEIR and draft ordinances for the Cannabis Program were released for a 60-day public review period on January 30, 2025. The County accepted public comments through March 31, 2025. As required by CEQA Section 15132, the Final PEIR consists of the Draft EIR including minor revisions in response to public comments, comments received on the Draft EIR, a list of persons, organizations, and public agencies commenting on the Draft EIR, and responses to comments received on the significant environmental points raised during the review process.

Consistent with CEQA guidelines, there is no additional public review period for the Final PEIR. The Cannabis Program is not yet adopted and must first receive a recommendation during a noticed public hearing from the Planning Commission (spring 2026) and consideration of the ordinances and certification of the Final PEIR from the Board of Supervisors (summer 2026).

If you have any questions, please contact the Cannabis Program Team at PDS.LongRangePlanning@sdcounty.ca.gov or at (858) 505-6677.

On January 14, 2026, the Board of Supervisors provided direction on decision points for the draft Socially Equitable Cannabis Program (SECP). Details of each decision point are available in the minute order and the meeting recording is available online.

Recap of Board Direction

Decision Point #1: Land Use (Program Options)

The Board provided direction to continue to develop the draft SECP in alignment with State standards (Program Option A). This option would allow all cannabis facility types and would require a 600-foot buffer from schools, day cares, and youth centers to cannabis facilities, consistent with the January 27, 2021 Board direction and State regulations.

Decision Point #2: Regulations on Temporary Events & Consumption Lounges

The Board provided direction to retain temporary cannabis events and onsite consumption lounges in the SECP for further consideration.

Decision Point #3: Community Equity Contribution Program (CECP)

The Board provided direction to continue to develop the CECP.

Additional Direction on Background Checks

The Board provided additional direction and directed the Chief Administrative Officer to return to the Board with amendments to the Regulatory Code that rely on the State Background Check for receiving a cannabis operating certificate.

Next Steps

Staff will finalize the draft Zoning Ordinance, draft Regulatory Code, and the Final Program Environmental Impact Report (PEIR). Staff will return to the Planning Commission in spring 2026 for a formal recommendation on the Zoning Ordinance amendments and the Final PEIR. Following the Commission’s recommendation, staff will return to the Board for consideration of the entire SECP including the Zoning Ordinance and Regulatory Code amendments, the Final PEIR, any associated permitting and licensing fees, and the codification of the Social Equity Program.

On October 17, 2025, the County of San Diego’s Planning Commission received an informational update on the draft Socially Equitable Cannabis Program. The Planning Commission received an overview of the draft Zoning Ordinance amendments and the Draft PEIR, a summary of public outreach and feedback, and potential zoning ordinance changes that reflected stakeholder comments. No formal recommendations were made on the Cannabis Program.

Click here to view a recording of the Planning Commission Hearing.

The 60-day public review period for the Draft EIR concluded on March 31, 2025. Thank you for your comments!

All comments received during the Draft EIR public review period will be responded to in the Final EIR. The Draft EIR and draft ordinances are still available for reference on the County's CEQA Public Review page.

Public comments on the Socially Equitable Cannabis Program are welcome at any time. For any comments not submitted during an identified comment period, please email comments to PDS.LongRangePlanning@sdcounty.ca.gov.

The County prepared and released a Notice of Preparation (NOP) on September 15, 2023, for public review and comment and held two virtual public scoping meetings on October 12 and 17, 2023. The public comment period ended on October 31, 2023.

The public comment period provided an opportunity for agency staff and interested members of the public to submit written and verbal comments on the scope of the environmental issues to be addressed in the EIR, including any suggestions for measures or alternatives that should be considered to minimize environmental impacts.

You can review the NOP by following this link: CEQA Public Review (sandiegocounty.gov) or by clicking on the Documents icon on this page.

Comments received during the scoping period have been reviewed and are being considered as we prepare the Draft EIR.

EIR Public Scoping Meetings

The County hosted two public scoping meetings on October 12 and 17, 2023, to present an overview of the Cannabis Program and CEQA and to gather verbal comments on the scope and content of the Cannabis Program EIR.

Please see ‘EIR Scoping Meeting Presentation’ on the right-hand side of this page to view the slides presented at the scoping meetings.