Local government: Williamson Act: cultivation of cannabis and hemp.

The California Land Conservation Act of 1965, otherwise known as the Williamson Act, authorizes a city or county to contract with a landowner to limit the use of agricultural land located in an agricultural preserve designated by the city or county. Existing law requires the board of supervisors or city council, as applicable, to adopt rules governing the administration of agricultural preserves, including rules related to compatible uses consistent with specified principles of compatibility. Existing law defines "agricultural preserve" for these purposes to include an area devoted to agricultural use, which is further defined as a use of land for the purpose of producing an agricultural commodity for commercial purposes. This bill would provide that industrial hemp, cultivated in accordance with specified law, is an agricultural commodity for these purposes. This bill would authorize these rules to provide that commercial cultivation of cannabis pursuant to the Medicinal and Adult-Use Cannabis Regulation and Safety Act may constitute a compatible use on contracted or noncontracted lands within an agricultural preserve. The bill would state these provisions are declaratory of existing law.