LOS ANGELES — California moved a step closer Friday to allowing marijuana deliveries in communities that have banned retail sales of the drug as regulators rebuffed cities and police chiefs who are opposed to the rule.

The proposal is a major issue that could ultimately end up in court as the state continues to set myriad rules for how pot is grown, tested, packaged and delivered since recreational sales became legal Jan. 1.

Cities have been able to ban retail sales, but state law says local governments cannot prevent cannabis deliveries on public roads so the state rejected the plea from opponents who said it would jeopardize public safety.

California police chiefs, the League of Cities and others launched an online petition this summer opposed to the proposal.

Regulators received 6,000 comments about a raft of proposed regulations and half of those were aimed at the delivery issue, said Alex Traverso, spokesman for the Bureau of Cannabis Control.