For the past two decades, Oakland has been on the forefront of embracing cannabis.
That could soon change.
The City Council’s Public Safety Committee on Tuesday voted 4-0 to bring Councilmember Rebecca Kaplan’s ordinance to the full council for approval.
Urine and hair samples, for example, reveal inactive drug residues that can stay in someone’s body for days or weeks, long after the drug’s effects are over.
The ordinance would not apply to testing workers suspected of being under the influence at work, or under a “last chance” agreement in which a worker with a documented substance abuse issue agrees to terms of employment that could include testing.
All non-fire department commercial drivers—such as street sweepers— are subject to random drug testing under federal Department of Transportation regulations.
Firefighters are also subject to testing “for cause,” like in the event of an on-duty vehicle crash where intoxication might have been a factor.
Earlier this year, Assemblymember Bill Quirk, D-Hayward, introduced a bill intended to prevent employers from using evidence of prior marijuana use as justification for terminating an employee, or denying a person a job.
Dale Gieringer, director of California NORML and a sponsor of AB 1256, has said urine tests for cannabis are akin to finding liquor bottles in an employee’s trash and concluding they must have been drunk at work.
Councilmembers Nikki Fortunado Bas, Dan Kalb and Sheng Thao—who were not part of Tuesday’s unanimous vote because they don’t sit on the Public Safety Committee—have signed on as co-sponsors to the measure and will likely vote for it when it comes back to the full council.
“If they are engaging in legal behavior and have fully recovered from that by the time they’ve come to work, great.
During his time at BANG, DeBolt covered Oakland City Hall, the Raiders stadium saga and the A’s search for a new ballpark, as well as the Oakland Police Department and police reform efforts.