What you need to know: Since January 2024, California has seized more than $191 million worth of illegal cannabis, with $70.7 million worth of illegal cannabis seized in the last three months alone.

SACRAMENTO - Governor Gavin Newsom today announced the continued progress of California’s Unified Cannabis Enforcement Task Force (UCETF), which has seized $70.7 million worth of illegal cannabis since July and over $191 million worth across 13 counties since January 2024. Through enforcement efforts, UCETF continues to demonstrate California’s commitment to protecting public safety, preserving natural resources, and supporting the integrity of the licensed cannabis market.

“Our communities are safer with over 42,000 pounds of illicit cannabis taken off the streets since the beginning of the year. Through the UCETF, California continues the charge in cracking down on the illicit cannabis market for the safety of consumers and the support of the legal cannabis industry.” - Governor Gavin Newsom

Governor Newsom created the UCETF in 2022 to further align state efforts and increase cannabis enforcement coordination between state, local, and federal partners. The enforcement actions protect consumer and public safety, safeguard the environment, and deprive illegal cannabis operators and transnational criminal organizations of illicit revenue that harms consumers and undercuts the regulated cannabis market in California.

“UCETF continues to make significant progress by targeting illegal operations that harm California’s environment and natural resources,” said Nathaniel Arnold, Chief of the Law Enforcement Division at the Department of Fish and Wildlife. “The dedication and skill of the officers involved in these operations are truly commendable - they’re on the front lines, protecting our natural resources, ensuring public safety, and safeguarding vulnerable workers.”

“This quarter we targeted unlicensed cannabis operators misusing the California cannabis universal symbol on their packaging,” said Bill Jones, Chief of the California Department of Cannabis Control’s Law Enforcement Division. “This deceptive practice confuses consumers and puts them at risk. We are stepping up enforcement across the supply chain and shutting these operations down.”

Today’s UCETF update follows actions announced earlier this month in which over $2.3 million in illegal cannabis and toxic pesticide products, including 2,652 plants, were seized under a single operation.

Taking down illicit cannabis

Governor Newsom has directed state agencies to aggressively target the organized criminal enterprises involved in the illicit cannabis market. These illegal schemes not only threaten California’s legal cannabis market, but the use of illegal pesticides and unregulated practices harm California’s environment and water quality. California is also focused on ending the exploitation of vulnerable workers at these sites, who are often victims of labor violations and human trafficking.

Protecting California’s consumers

Last month, Governor Newsom announced emergency hemp regulations in response to increasing health incidents related to intoxicating hemp food and beverage products, which state regulators found sold across the state. The new regulations ban any detectable quantity of THC from consumable hemp products to protect youth and mitigate the risk of adverse health effects. The emergency regulations will also better align the sale of hemp products with restrictions currently seen in the California legal cannabis market by limiting serving and package size and establishing a minimum age of 21 to legally purchase industrial hemp food, beverage and dietary products.

This month, Governor Newsom issued a statement following the Los Angeles County Superior Court’s recent decision to reject the industry’s attempt to block enforcement of the regulations.

Successful enforcement by the Alcoholic Beverage Control

Since the emergency hemp regulations were put in place, agents from California’s Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC) have visited 673 locations and seized 1,622 illegal hemp products. ABC will continue to visit licensed locations throughout the state to enforce the new regulations and ensure illegal products are not being sold.

A unified strategy across California

Since inception, UCETF has seized and destroyed over 162 tons worth of illegal cannabis worth an estimated $536 million through over 350 operations. The taskforce has also eradicated 526,037 plants, seized 167 firearms, and arrested 59 individuals.

To learn more about the legal California cannabis market, state licenses, and laws, visit cannabis.ca.gov.