Tag: Ohio

After years of preparation, marijuana use for recreational purposes may soon be legalized in Ohio. Since its clearance on August 16th, the proposal has undergone significant evolution and faced various challenges. These challenges include resistance from lawmakers who declined to deliberate on it and the necessity to gather additional valid signatures to meet the ballot qualification criteria. If passed, the proposal would grant individuals aged 21 and above the right to buy, possess, and cultivate up to 2.5 ounces of cannabis… Read more.

As Ohio officials release pro and con arguments for a marijuana legalization initiative that will appear on the November ballot, a GOP congressman who represents the state is applauding the measure and explaining why he will personally be “voting yes.” In a statement shared with Marijuana Moment on Monday, Rep. Dave Joyce (R-OH), co-chair of the Congressional Cannabis Caucus, encouraged “all Ohio voters to participate and make their voices heard on this important issue” now that the legalization measure has… Read more.

As Ohio voters prepare to decide on a marijuana legalization initiative on the November ballot, only about one in 10 Ohio prosecutors say they’re likely to take advantage of a separate recently enacted law that allows them to independently seal the records of people with low-level drug convictions—and most of those say they’d focus on cannabis-related offenses—according to a new study. Researchers at Ohio State University surveyed 86 municipal prosecutors this year to better understand the practical impact of the reform, which… Read more.

An initiative to legalize marijuana in Ohio will appear on the state’s ballot this November, officials announced on Wednesday. About two weeks after activists turned in a final round of signatures for the cannabis proposal, the secretary of state’s office has now certified that it met the requirements for ballot placement. The Coalition to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol (CTRMLA) submitted more than 220,000 signatures for the measure last month, but the state found that advocates came up short by 679 valid signatures. They… Read more.

Ohio could see up to $403.6 million in annual tax revenue from adult-use marijuana sales if voters approve a legalization measure that could appear on the November ballot, a newly updated analysis projects. The paper from Ohio State University researchers assesses the potential economic impact of cannabis legalization in the state, providing tax revenue estimates for the first years of sales based on an analysis of comparable state markets. The analysis focuses on marijuana sales trends in neighboring Michigan because the… Read more.

As Ohio marijuana reform advocates await final certification of signatures for a legalization initiative they hope to place on the November ballot, an unrelated vote during the state’s special election on Tuesday is being viewed as a bellwether for the cannabis proposal’s passage. Voters turned out in impressive numbers to defeat Issue 1 on Tuesday. The GOP-backed measure would have raised the threshold to approve constitutional amendments at the ballot from a simple majority to 60 percent—a change that could… Read more.

An Ohio marijuana legalization campaign is just 679 valid signatures short of putting its initiative on the November ballot, sate officials say, but organizers now have 10 additional days to make up the difference to qualify. The Coalition to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol (CTRMLA) turned in more than 220,000 signatures earlier this month. But the secretary of state’s office said in a letter to the campaign on Tuesday that only 123,367 were verified, several hundred short of the 124,046 signature requirement for ballot… Read more.

The Ohio State Medical Board last week added irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) as a qualifying condition to the state’s medical cannabis program, the Ohio Capital Journal reports. The panel, however, rejected the addition of obsessive-compulsive syndrome (OCD) and autism spectrum disorder as qualifying conditions.  In all, there are now 26 total conditions for which Ohio cannabis patients can access medical cannabis.   Charlie Trefny, the Ohio Medical Cannabis Industry Association’s director of government affairs, told the Journal that the organization was “disappointed” that the board… Read more.

Should a bipartisan bill receive approval from the Ohio Statehouse, individuals in Ohio who are 21 years old and above will gain the right to cultivate, purchase, and possess marijuana. State representatives Casey Weinstein of Hudson and Jamie Callender of Concord introduced House Bill 168, also known as the Ohio Adult Use Act, earlier this month. The proposed cannabis legalization includes a provision for expunging conviction records related to prior cultivation and possession offenses. Weinstein expressed in a news statement that "adult… Read more.

Cannabis legalization advocates in Ohio are again collecting signatures to put the legalization question to voters in November after state lawmakers missed the deadline to pass a citizen-authored initiative to enact the reforms, WCMH reports. The Ohio Coalition to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol needs to gather 124,046 signatures to get the issue on ballots, spokesman Tom Haren said.   A Spectrum News/Siena College poll from September found 60% of Ohioans back the reforms with 37% opposed and 3% unsure.  The measure includes home… Read more.

Under Gov. Mike DeWine’s executive budget, the Ohio Board of Pharmacy would no longer have responsibilities regulating the state’s medical cannabis dispensaries, Cleveland.com reports. The governor’s plan would transfer some of the pharmacy board’s responsibilities to the Department of Commerce, but the pharmacy board would still be responsible for reviewing and adding qualifying conditions to the medical cannabis program.   Currently, there are three agencies that regulate the Ohio medical cannabis program: the commerce department, pharmacy board, and State Medical Board.  Dan Tierney, DeWine’s spokesman,… Read more.

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), along with the organization’s Ohio chapter, has filed a proposed amicus brief supporting Afroman in a civil lawsuit brought against him by seven police officers who are upset the hip hop artist used footage of their marijuana raid on his home in a music video. Afroman, whose real name is Joseph E. Foreman, was sued last month by members of the Adams County, Ohio Sheriff’s Office who conducted a 2022 search of his house… Read more.