Off Duty Marijuana Use: How AB 2188 and SB 700 Impact Public Employees in California

Special Update Courtesy of Rains Lucia Stern St. Phalle & Silver, PC 

The New Year Brings New Legislation: How AB 2188 and SB 700 Impact Public Employees in California
By Pete Hoffmann, Partner; Timothy Talbot, Principal; Rocky Lucia, Principal; Mike Rains, Principal

As our calendars rolled over to 2024, new legislation took effect to update the California Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) and expand the rights of employees to use marijuana off duty. Specifically, AB 2188 and SB 700 added off-duty cannabis users to the list of protected classes under FEHA, but interestingly exempted the building and construction trades. While the legislation provides narrow exceptions to this rule, police officers, deputy sheriffs, firefighters, dispatchers, and other public employees are not exempted, and are now generally afforded statutory protections for off-duty cannabis use.

What if my employer disagrees with employees using marijuana

Simply stated, the new legislation is not discretionary. While the historical relationship between law enforcement and cannabis is obviously complex given drug enforcement efforts, the social, political, and medical views of cannabis have evolved over the course of time. 

In light of this history, it is to be expected that some management and labor ....

© 2026 Legal Updates, LLC.
This content is protected by copyright law. Republishing or redistribution in any form without written permission is strictly prohibited. For licensing or reprint requests, contact support@legalupdates.com.