Florida State Cannabis Security Requirements
Here are the requirements for Florida state as listed in as listed in Florida 381.986
(f) To ensure the safety and security of premises where the cultivation, processing, storing, or dispensing of marijuana occurs, and to maintain adequate controls against the diversion, theft, and loss of marijuana or marijuana delivery devices, a medical marijuana treatment center shall:
1.a. Maintain a fully operational security alarm system that secures all entry points and perimeter windows and is equipped with motion detectors; pressure switches; and duress, panic, and hold-up alarms; and
b. Maintain a video surveillance system that records continuously 24 hours a day and meets the following criteria:
(I) Cameras are fixed in a place that allows for the clear identification of persons and activities in controlled areas of the premises. Controlled areas include grow rooms, processing rooms, storage rooms, disposal rooms or areas, and point-of-sale rooms.
(II) Cameras are fixed in entrances and exits to the premises, which shall record from both indoor and outdoor, or ingress and egress, vantage points.
(III) Recorded images must clearly and accurately display the time and date.
(IV) Retain video surveillance recordings for at least 45 days or longer upon the request of a law enforcement agency.
2. Ensure that the medical marijuana treatment center’s outdoor premises have sufficient lighting from dusk until dawn.
...5. Store marijuana in a secured, locked room or a vault.
6. Require at least two of its employees, or two employees of a security agency with whom it contracts, to be on the premises at all times where cultivation, processing, or storing of marijuana occurs.
7. Require each employee or contractor to wear a photo identification badge at all times while on the premises.
8. Require each visitor to wear a visitor pass at all times while on the premises.
...10. Report to local law enforcement within 24 hours after the medical marijuana treatment center is notified or becomes aware of the theft, diversion, or loss of marijuana.
...(III) 6. Provide specific safety and security training to employees transporting or delivering marijuana and marijuana delivery devices.
...(10)(c) The department shall conduct at least a biennial inspection of each medical marijuana treatment center to evaluate the medical marijuana treatment center’s records, personnel, equipment, processes, security measures, sanitation practices, and quality assurance practices.
How to Comply with the Florida State Regulations:
Non-Security-Camera, but Security-Related Regulations:
Florida requires you to have "Sufficient lighting from dusk until dawn" and a "Fully operational security alarm system." This means that you will need security alarm that secures all doors and windows, as well as panic and duress buttons. It also requires you to have "sufficient" lighting outdoors. It doesn't define what sufficient means, however, so what sufficient means is open to interpretation. We would include enough outdoor lighting as to ensure that you can capture color photos at night, since that will also help your team identify people before opening the door. Choosing one of our low light or white light camera models can make it so that you have to install less outdoor lighting, feel free to check out our Buying Guide and Best Practices: Improving Surveillance Footage at Night for a breakdown on what features to look for in low light environments.
You'll also need to get a photo identification badge system in place for employees and contractors and a visitor badge system. If you have our access control product line, you can print this badge on the back of the keycard that allows them access to sensitive parts of the building, with the Avigilon Alta Badge Printing App and the Instantcard printer integration. Using an access control system is not specifically required, but will also meet all physical security locking requirements. Although, traditional keys are not specifically ruled out in Florida's regulation, access control systems typically save you time and money over the long term as they complexly remove the need for rekeying, which will be required when you have turnover and generally costs about a thousand dollars per door.
Camera Regulations:
Florida does not require any specific resolution regulation, but does require you to be able to have "clear identification of persons and activities in controlled areas of the premises." It defines the controlled areas as "grow rooms, processing rooms, storage rooms, disposal rooms or areas, and point-of-sale rooms," so you will need to be able to clearly identify someone in all areas of each of these rooms. You also have to have cameras on both the entrance and exit points of all exterior doors.
The fixed location requirement is interesting as that sounds as if you can't use PTZ cameras. If you really need a PTZ on location, we do have models with dual lenses that would meet this requirement.
Recording Regulations:
Florida does require "Date and Time stamps" on recordings. Just about every surveillance system does can do this and with an SCW system this will be on by default. Don't turn this option off.
Storage Regulations:
Like most states, the storage requirements are the hard part.
Luckily you are only required to store 45 days of footage, however, you also will need to download footage and store it should there be any theft or other incident that involves (or should involve) the police. We cover storage requirements pretty in depth on the main Cannabis regulations page.
Make sure you have a lock on the door to the room or server rack that houses the NVR to meet the "Physical Media Storage" Physical Security Requirement.
*We're not lawyers and laws do change. We try our best to keep this page updated with changes to the law, but you should always do your own research or hire your own lawyer to guarantee compliance with the law.