Although recreational cannabis is legal under California Proposition 64, Berkeley prohibits smoking or consuming cannabis in public places, and infractions carry the same fines as public alcohol consumption violations.
Proposition 64 legalized adult-use cannabis statewide in 2016 but expressly preserves local authority to ban public consumption. Berkeley enforces a no-public-use rule under Health and Safety Code section 11362.3 plus BMC public conduct provisions, treating sidewalks, parks, transit stops, and the UC Berkeley campus as off-limits. Smoking is also barred in any location where tobacco smoking is prohibited, capturing most outdoor commercial corridors. Licensed on-site consumption lounges are permitted only with explicit local approval, which Berkeley has authorized in a small number of cannabis retailer overlays.
Public consumption is an infraction with a base fine, escalating near schools or youth facilities, and confiscation of the cannabis is standard enforcement practice.
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