Rules Committee advances Clint Kellum after hearing on labeling, youth protections and illicit market enforcement

Clint Kellum, the governor’s nominee for director of the Department of Cannabis Control, told the Senate Rules Committee that he aims to strengthen consumer protections, reduce youth exposure and shrink the illicit cannabis market as the committee voted to advance his nomination to the full Senate.

Kellum opened by thanking the governor and saying he has 18 years of state service. He said the department is working to make the legal market more accessible and to reduce consumer confusion, including through a Real California Cannabis public awareness campaign and a consumer-facing website that lists licensed retailers by address. “There’s a real sort of dichotomy on...how much is happening and how much people want to do it,” Kellum said, summarizing a 2023 consumer survey that, he said, shows significant confusion in jurisdictions that ban retail sales.

Senator Jones questioned Kellum about labeling and youth protections and displayed a 100 mg THC beverage can to illustrate concerns about packaging and dosing. Kellum said attractive-to-children packaging is under legislative consideration and that the department is working with the California Department of Public Health and a cannabis advisory committee of operators and public-health experts. He noted SB 540’s educational pamphlet, which the department requires licensed retailers to print and make available to new users, and called it “certainly better than nothing.”

On enforcement, Kellum told the committee that the scale of illicit cultivation outpaces the licensed market. He provided 2024 production figures: 12,800,000 pounds of cannabis produced statewide, of which roughly 1,400,000 pounds were legal, and he cited a state consumption estimate of about 3,800,000 pounds. Kellum said the department has a team of roughly 75 sworn law enforcement staff and is working with local and federal partners through a unified enforcement task force. He also described approximately $125 million in Board of State and Community Corrections Prop 64 grant funds prioritized for illicit-market enforcement and said the department is reviewing dozens of grant applications.

Kellum agreed to provide the committee follow-up material on notable enforcement cases when asked by senators. After members praised his qualifications, Senator Jones moved to advance the nomination, and the committee approved the motion by roll call, 4–0. The committee record shows the appointment will now go to the full Senate for confirmation.