Fountain Valley's kratom crackdown is now law: products likened to "legal morphine" are banned starting September 17, and no one under 21 can buy

FOUNTAIN VALLEY — The Fountain Valley City Council has adopted an ordinance restricting kratom, a Southeast Asian leaf sold as an herbal product. The first vote came on July 14, 2026, and passed 4–1. The second and final vote came on the evening of August 18, 2026, as a consent calendar item — a group of items usually approved in a single vote, without separate discussion. The result was again 4–1, as reported by Voice of OC on August 24, 2026. Vice Mayor Patrick Harper cast the lone no vote.

The rules take effect September 17, 2026, exactly 30 days after adoption, and become Chapter 8.65 of the Fountain Valley Municipal Code.

What is kratom?

Kratom is a tropical tree from Southeast Asia; its scientific name is Mitragyna speciosa. The leaves are ground into powder, packed into capsules, or brewed into drinks, and sold at smoke shops, supplement stores, and online. People use it for mild pain relief or to step down from opioid painkillers — and the city's own report acknowledges those benefits in kratom's natural form.

The problem is a compound called 7-hydroxymitragynine, or 7-OH. It binds to the same opioid receptors in the brain that morphine does — and according to the city's report, research shows it binds even more strongly than morphine. The report notes that medical experts have described concentrated 7-OH as "legal morphine." Synthetic 7-OH products often carry inconsistent labels, so buyers can't easily tell whether they're getting the natural leaf or a far more potent synthetic version.

What exactly does the law ban?

Chapter 8.65 sets five rules for every person and business in Fountain Valley:

1. No selling, giving, or distributing kratom to anyone under 21.

2. No products where 7-OH exceeds 2% of the total alkaloids.

3. No packaging that appeals to children: cartoons, candy-lookalike wrappers, or the word "candy" in any spelling, including "kandy."

4. Age verification required at every point of sale.

5. No kratom containing synthesized or semi-synthesized alkaloids — compounds made by chemical synthesis rather than traditional extraction.

A violation is unlawful and counts as a public nuisance, which the city can shut down by any legal means, including a court injunction. The kratom ordinance sets no penalty of its own, so the city code's general penalties apply. Under Chapter 1.16 of the Fountain Valley Municipal Code, a violation is a misdemeanor by default: a fine of up to $1,000, up to six months in county jail, or both. Prosecutors can charge it as an infraction instead — $100 for the first violation, $200 for the second, and $500 for each one after that within a year. The city can also issue administrative citations on the same $100–$200–$500 scale under Chapter 1.13. Worth noting for shops: every day a violation continues counts as a new offense, and a shop that owes $500 or more in fines for over 30 days can have the related license suspended.

Why is Fountain Valley acting?

Behind the five rules is an alarm from the medical community right here in Orange County. Dr. Steven R. Ey, chief of service at Hoag's addiction treatment centers, wrote on Hoag's website: "In the past two months, I've treated as many patients for Hydroxy Kratom withdrawal as for fentanyl." He called it "an alarming shift." Hydroxy Kratom is Hoag's term for the 7-OH product family.

The federal government has stepped in too. The FDA has sent warning letters to companies selling high-potency 7-OH products, and on July 29, 2025, it formally asked the DEA to place 7-OH products on the controlled substances list.

A 4–1 vote, not a unanimous one

At the public hearing on the evening of July 14, four residents spoke over eight minutes. Then the council voted. Council members Ted Bui, Kim Constantine, and Glenn Grandis and Mayor Jim Cunneen voted yes. Vice Mayor Patrick Harper voted no. At the final vote on August 18, Harper voted no again, according to Voice of OC. He had given his reason on July 14: adopting these ordinances is "kind of trendy," he said, but "there seems to be no issue with [kratom] right now," so he would not support it. Council member Ted Bui said he would support it because the target is synthetic kratom, not the natural leaf.

How far has the crackdown spread?

Fountain Valley is not acting alone, and it did not pick the harshest option. Its ordinance is modeled on the one Orange County adopted in 2025, which covers unincorporated areas — including Midway City, the heavily Vietnamese pocket inside Westminster. Huntington Beach, Laguna Niguel, and Buena Park have passed similar laws. Newport Beach, San Diego, and Oceanside went further, banning all kratom products regardless of 7-OH content. Irvine went the other way: a council majority declined to take the issue up.

Closer to the Bolsa area, the picture is unfinished. Garden Grove drafted a total ban on kratom sales earlier this year, postponed it on February 10, then pulled it from the agenda on February 24, 2026. As of August 20, Garden Grove has not adopted a kratom law of its own. No kratom rules turned up in Westminster's code either.

Meanwhile, the state moved before the cities did — through administrative action. On October 24, 2025, the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) declared foods, dietary supplements, and drugs containing kratom or 7-OH dangerous and illegal to sell or manufacture in California. By March 2026, the state had seized more than $5 million worth of violating products, and Governor Gavin Newsom announced that businesses had pulled more than 3,300 products from shelves — a 95% compliance rate. In parallel, Sacramento is still weighing AB 1088, a bill to regulate synthetic kratom by statute; if it passes, it takes effect January 1, 2027. Fountain Valley's staff report gives the city's reason for not waiting: there is no guarantee the bill will pass.

What buyers and shops need to know

If you use kratom, there are two concrete things to check. First, the label: products marked "7-OH" or "7-hydroxymitragynine" in high concentrations, or sold as extra-strong "extract," are in the group about to be banned in Fountain Valley. Second, the packaging: candy-style wrappers and cartoon artwork are signs a product will have to come off the shelf. For health questions about stopping or switching products, talk to your doctor.

For shops in Fountain Valley: starting September 17, 2026, every kratom sale requires an ID check, and products over the 2% 7-OH line — plus anything with synthetic alkaloids — must come off the shelves. Shops in Westminster and Garden Grove are outside this ordinance's reach. But CDPH's statewide ban applies everywhere in California, no matter the city.

The kratom story won't stop at Fountain Valley's borders. People in the Bolsa area cross between three cities every day, and each city now has different rules. What happens next is up to Sacramento and AB 1088 — and to whether the remaining cities follow suit.

SEE THE RECORDS & WHO TO CALL

Full ordinance text: pages 341–345 of the August 18 agenda packet, at the city's Agenda Center (fountainvalley.gov/AgendaCenter).

Fountain Valley City Clerk (vote result, full text of the law):
(714) 593-⁠4445

Report sales of state-banned products (CDPH hotline):
(800) 495-⁠3232

Poisoning or urgent medical questions (Poison Control):
1-800-222-⁠1222