Fountain Valley council hears hours of public comment, directs staff to draft ordinance targeting synthetic ‘7‑OH’ while preserving natural kratom access

Fountain Valley — After a police presentation and an extended public-comment period that drew patients, addiction‑recovery advocates and law‑enforcement representatives, the Fountain Valley City Council on Oct. 22 directed staff to prepare a template local ordinance modeled on county language to address synthetic kratom products while leaving natural kratom legal.

Sergeant Donald Farmer of the Fountain Valley Police Department told council his unit had conducted an undercover check of six local smoke shops and found ordinary kratom products widely available and, at one location, what he described as “the synthetic version” in pill and liquid forms. Farmer framed the presentation to distinguish the traditional plant product from chemically concentrated derivatives that public-health officials and some law-enforcement groups say carry heightened overdose risk. “The intent is not to take immediate action, but to review available data and determine whether future regulation may be warranted,” he said in his staff memorandum.

The council then heard roughly an hour of virtual and in-person public comment split…